Disney Parks - Disney Cicerone

How the design of Disney parks affects our perspective

Disney Cicerone November 9, 2020 0 Comments

The layout of the Disney parks may not be something you think about except for at the end of the day when your feet are aching and sitting feels like the best ride ever. Or when you're hiking around the Epcot World Showcase in the blazing sun and afternoon heat. But the ways the Imagineers have creatively designed the parks influence your experience more than you think, and in ways you might not...

Why we need Disney in the midst of a pandemic

Disney Cicerone November 2, 2020 2 Comments

Today, we visit the WHYs that everyone is asking us, my fellow Disney friends. Why would anyone choose to visit a theme park, a breeding ground for germs, during a pandemic? Why would anyone want to travel to a hot, muggy climate and wear a mask all day in the unrelenting sun? Why would anyone pay for a lesser Disney experience, with so much of the parks closed and unavailable? Why can't you...

Why Disney’s Halloween filter is about more than the magic

Disney Cicerone October 26, 2020 0 Comments

It's Halloween week. We've arrived! It's a bittersweet holiday for all of us Disneyphiles... with no Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Parties this year (and no giant Mickey pumpkin on Main Street USA for all you Disneylanders), the Halloween Time magic is simply not the same. Sure, there are cavalcades with our favorite dastardly villains and Winnie the Pooh dressed up in adorable costumes. And...

Adventure is saying yes despite your fear

Disney Cicerone October 12, 2020 2 Comments

I am writing this sitting in front of Expedition Everest, having gone on the expedition but wishing I hadn’t. My motion sickness doesn’t allow backward motion, but all day long I have watched intrepid travelers traverse the terrain in train cars up the mountain, and I wanted to be one too. So I rode. And now I’m sitting because my head feels like it’s on backward. The totem poles outside...

How Grief is a Catalyst for People and Purpose

Disney Cicerone October 4, 2020 0 Comments

The Disney community is grieving this week. I know I'm not alone in feeling it. From the loss of some of our very favorite performers (I'm looking at you, Yehaa Bob) to the thousands upon thousands of brilliant cast members who won't be returning to bringing us the magic anytime soon, we are all in a start of disbelief. This can't happen to Disney... it's our happy place. Those cast members,...

Weather makes a difference (but not the way you think)

Disney Cicerone September 17, 2020 0 Comments

Nothing builds the dread in a Disney planner's heart more than seeing a week's worth of rain in the forecast for a much-anticipated vacation. Sure, we all say, “It’s better when it rains! It clears out the parks!” But nobody really wants it to rain/thunderstorm/hurricane/you name it during your delightfully, thoughtfully planned Disney adventure. But you see, friends, it’s exactly these...

How Disney Provides Stability in an Unstable World

Disney Cicerone September 15, 2020 0 Comments

I sat in my teacup this week watching the families around me laugh and spin, arms in the air, and as carefree as ever. And that’s when it hit me. It’s stability. Something that hasn’t changed in a world where everything has changed. Sure, we were all wearing masks and dutifully sanitized our hands before and after. But there were beloved (likely motion-sick prone) family members around the...

How Disney Teaches You to Persevere

Disney Cicerone September 14, 2020 4 Comments

The fire notices screamed from my phone this week while I dashed haphazardly around my home and debated about what I wanted to take with me as we evacuated the wildfires that have plagued our side of the nation. I picked up objects and put them back. I looked tearfully at others realizing I may never see them again. I threw odd things in my suitcase and forgot what I was doing as...

Are You In a Fade-In or Fade-Out?

Disney Cicerone September 6, 2020 0 Comments

As summer draws to a close and the change-over to Pumpkin Spice Lattes and falling leaves is upon us, I've been thinking about transitions. One of my favorite parts about visiting the Disney parks is the thoughtful way the Imagineers transition you between lands. It's often done in a cinematic style, so subtle you barely know it's happening until suddenly you're in a whole...