I just returned from Universal Orlando and was extremely impressed by everything new at the parks! So the timing seems good for a post on what’s new, and what’s coming up later this year. Two of these technically opened in 2017, but if you haven’t been since the beginning of… Read More
Why You Want to Visit Universal Orlando During the Holidays
Universal Orlando Holidays We’ve visited Universal Orlando a lot over the past few years – eight times to be exact. We go the first week of September every year, when local schools are in session but our kids haven’t started yet. We’ve also visited in January and in March, and… Read More
Tips for Visiting Universal Orlando
(Updated 2018) I’ve just returned from my 7th trip to Universal Orlando the past few years, and I realized that I’ve unintentionally acquired a lot of knowledge about how to have a great trip. So I’m writing this post! But first, a question I get a lot is why we… Read More
What Can I Take Into Volcano Bay?
In May I wrote up a blog post on visiting Volcano Bay, the newest theme park at Universal Orlando Resort. I tried to make it as complete as possible, but virtually every day I get emails asking what people can and cannot take into Volcano Bay, and what people should… Read More
Volcano Bay at Universal Orlando Resort: What You Need to Know
Volcano Bay I wrote this post after the May 2017 grand opening of Universal Orlando’s newest theme park, Volcano Bay. The first day was set aside for media, and I was able to go on all of the rides and slides that I wanted to. The second day was opening day,… Read More
Why We Started our Around-the-World Trip at Universal Orlando Resort
Note: This post originally appeared on Universal Orlando’s blog. The Many Reasons Universal Orlando Keeps Impressing Us Earlier this year, my 10-year-old daughter and I flew around the world in two weeks, visiting seven destinations in six countries on four continents. The planning was fun—we created a list of our… Read More
Best of 2016: Favorite Things Around the World
It’s an absolutely amazing world, and I was lucky enough to see a lot of it this year, mostly with the kids. I started the year in Thailand, then moved on to the Philippines, Taiwan, the US, Tanzania, Kenya, Switzerland, Germany, Jamaica, China, Sri Lanka, Ireland, Hungary, Italy, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, the UK, France,… Read More
Why We Prefer Universal Orlando to Disney World
Universal Orlando vs. Disney World I’ve traveled to Orlando from Southern California with my kids four times the past few years, visiting Universal Orlando every time and the Disney parks twice. We had intended to visit Disney World/Epcot a third time, but the kids voted to spend the day at our hotel instead. I often get… Read More
Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando
With three kids into Harry Potter, we’ve flown from California to Florida four times now to visit the Universal Orlando theme parks. The thing that’s impressed me is how much there is to do there beyond Harry Potter, and every year as the kids are taller we’ve gone on more… Read More
2015: A Look Back on a Record Travel Year
Such a fun travel year! Starting in Colorado and ending in Thailand, I flew 178,790 miles to 20 countries on 4 continents. I don’t think I had flown more than 150,000 miles in a year before? Five countries were solo – India and Japan for photo expeditions, Germany and Spain for travel conferences… Read More