New Disney World Attractions To Bring Immersive Experience

by Chris Owen on

Walt Disney World in Florida has some new attractions on the way. The new Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom park will be home to the Enchanted Forest, a new park within a park, inspired by the popular Disney films “The Little Mermaid” and “Beauty and the Beast.” The Enchanted Forest officially opens December 6, 2012, but we got a sneak peek during dress rehearsals last weekend, open to the public.

Eventually hosting lush landscapes, roaring waterfalls and two new castles, guests will be able to ride under the sea with a little mermaid, dine in a beast’s castle and even join a “beauty” for a retelling of the “tale as old as time.”

On our visit, we stopped by Enchanted Tales With Belle, an interactive experience (as opposed to a “ride”) that begins when an enchanted mirror transported us from Belle’s house to Beast’s library, where Belle and Lumière invite guests to become part of a lively retelling of the “tale as old as time.”

Unique here is that groups are small and many are invited to participate in the experience that brings guests up close and personal with live action characters from Beauty and the Beast. This is not a passive, sit around and watch attraction.Steps away, Gaston’s Tavern was also open, serving LeFou’s Brew, Roasted Pork Shanks and other snacks. LeFou’s Brew looks like a mug of beer but is actually a “non-alcoholic no-sugar added frozen apple juice with a hint of toasted marshmallow, topped with all-natural passion fruit-mango foam,” we were told. Roasted pork shanks, so popular they ran out while we were there, fit right in with the tavern designed to look like a comfy lodge in the French countryside.

Not all attractions are open as work progresses. A Be Our Guest Restaurant will soon invite guests to savor the classic cuisine of France. Ariel’s Grotto is close to Under the Sea~Journey of The Little Mermaid attraction where Ariel will be on hand to meet new friends, sign autographs and pose for photos. In the same area and opening in 2014, a massive Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, will take guests through the Dwarfs’ diamond mine, along the countryside and on to their cottage to meet up with Snow White and her pals.

New Fantasyland is opening in phases for the largest expansion in the history of Magic Kingdom park, nearly doubling in size and offering more immersive enchantment and interactive experiences.




[Flickr photos by ChrisCruises]

Roadside America: Keokea, Maui

by Kyle Ellison on

Let’s get real. The island of Maui isn’t exactly a secret. The nation’s 17th largest island (how’s that for trivia points?) sees over two million visitors per year, and it’s been voted as the best island in the world by Conde Naste readers an astounding 19 times. To say the least, it seems to be a vacation destination firmly on every traveler’s radar.

While it’s tough to compete with other global perennials such as Bali, Bora Bora, Kauai, or Santorini, what makes Maui an annual favorite is the diverse selection of offerings available for those who make the lengthy flight.

Want to lounge on a sandy crescent of a beach with the palm fronds rustling above you in the trade winds? Not a problem. Want to hike through bamboo forests and wade across mountain streams to a waterfall you refreshingly have all to yourself? Yep, it’s got that too.

But what if you want to sit in the middle of ranchlands amongst green pastures where farmers still sell their vegetables on the side of two-lane country roads? A place where the cool 3,000-foot elevation warrants the use of a morning flannel, and the stillness of the morning air is matched only by the calm demeanor of the affable locals? A friendly smile here, a well-placed shaka there, and merchants who swap stories with customers they know by first name?

That can all be found here too, although you may have to drive a little farther to find it. While most visitors to the island will only venture “Upcountry” on their drive to the summit of Haleakala Crater, those who instead head out towards the ranching outpost of Ulupalakua (a one-shop town home to the island’s only winery), will find a corner of the island where life moves so slow you’ll wonder if time actually stopped.This is Keokea, a rural farming hamlet first constructed by Chinese immigrants and now home to the likes of Oprah. Yes, Keokea possesses such a striking sense of calm that of all the places in the world to buy a ranch house, the world’s most notable media mogul decided on these green pastures right here.

As you can imagine, however, the downtown hub isn’t on Oprah’s front porch. It’s back on the main highway at Grandma’s Coffee House, a mom and pop venture where the omelets and coffee are served with a side of aloha and down-home friendliness. Sunday mornings feature slack key guitar played lived on the porch, and it’s a place where morning joggers, passing cyclists, small-town locals and a few lucky tourists all mingle in an atmosphere of simplicity.

Need a few snacks for an afternoon picnic? Walk next door to Ching Store, a mom and pop general store in existence since the arrival of the pioneering Chinese. Need to top off the gas tank? Fong Store is the next door down, and it offers gas, which is usually the cheapest on the island. Why the discount? No corporations to report a bottom line to, because Fong Store is a mom and pop store as well.

On the drive back towards Kula, consider picking up some locally grown vegetables at the roadside stall, which sits on the same land where it was grown. Another reason why it’s not as expensive to live in Maui as you think, you would be amazed at the prices you can get when shipping and packaging costs are factored out.

So if you’ve traveled to Maui a number of times but have yet to stray off of the tourist map, do yourself a favor and pay a visit to Keokea. Bring a jacket, a camera, and an agenda, which includes nothing. Get a second cup of coffee, listen to some music and see what Maui looks like from 3,000 feet on the mountainside and 30 years or so set back in time.

[Grandma’s photo credit: ewen and donabel on Flickr]

Travel To Cuba Easier, For Cubans

by Chris Owen on

Travel to and from Cuba took a progressive turn this week as restrictions dating back a half-century were lifted for Cubans, allowing them to leave the island without going through a time-consuming process. It’s good news for Cubans longing to travel freely in and out of their country and a step in the right direction for Americans, dreaming of a visit to Cuba.

Starting in January, Cubans will no longer need an exit visa permitting departure and a letter of invitation from someone in the destination country. Those restrictions were imposed in 1961 after the Cuban Revolution that occurred between 1953 and 1959, placing Fidel Castro in power. Now, most Cubans will only need their passports, national identity cards and a visa (if needed) from the country they will visit.It’s a move viewed as a next step to allowing free travel to and from Cuba for Americans eager to visit the island. Right now, travel is restricted via the U.S. government’s 1917 Trading with the Enemy Act. Under that act, the restriction is not on travel but on the spending of money in Cuba.

That act effectively equates to a travel ban because under normal circumstances a visitor would spend on accommodations, food and other necessities.

“Like earlier decisions legalizing the personal sales of homes and cars, this is another step in the direction of loosening restrictions and opening up Cuban society,” said Sarah Stephens, executive director of the Center for Democracy in the Americas, a Washington group opposed to the U.S. embargo on Cuba, in a Reuters report.

Back in April 2011, Gadling reported on new guidelines that allowed journalists plus religious and educational groups to travel to Cuba just about whenever they wanted to. Those rules also allowed Americans to send up to $2,000 annually to Cuba, limited to $500 per quarter (up from $300). Progress is being made.

Still, to get to Cuba, Americans must look to an exception to the rule on spending money in Cuba, allowed by licenses issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the Treasury Department.

Want to go to Cuba?

Cuba Travel Services, Cubalinda and a few other travel agencies specialize in travel to and from Cuba, operate direct flights between the United States and Cuba and can assist licensed travelers with all their travel accommodations.




[Photo Credit: Flickr user Ed Yourdon]

Car Rally Is ‘Halloween On Wheels’

by Spencer Harrison on

Looking for a different way to celebrate Halloween this year? Do you love “The Amazing Race”? Do you like dressing up in costumes? If so, then round up some friends and spend your Halloween weekend going head-to-head with other road warriors in the Rental Car Rally. Described as “Halloween on Wheels,” Rental Car Rally (RCR) sends costumed teams on an expedition between two cities with checkpoints and challenges along the way, and is held multiple times each year in different cities across the country.

Meeting at a secret starting line, teams converge for a kick-off party and receive a briefcase containing a series of checkpoints they must find over the next 24 hours. The team that successfully finds all checkpoints (verified by requiring photos at each one) in the lowest amount of miles wins the prized Golden Gas Pump, and major bragging rights. Style points, defined by “looking awesome,” also play a role in the overall winner. Checkpoints include off-the-beaten-track places like haunted hotels, Cold War missile silos, closed amusement parks and brothels.

The $179 tickets are per vehicle, not per person. Teams wanting extra perks can upgrade to a $699 “Joe Viterbo” ticket, which includes a “deluxe steel briefcase” at the starting line, and a suite and steak dinner at the finish line hotel. There’s even a $2,999 ticket, that no one has ever purchased, and includes a shot of pure human adrenaline. Teams pick their own themes, which have ranged from Gilligan’s Island to Hooters Girls to Ron Burgundy and the Channel 4 News Team. While using an actual rental car is not required, it is highly advisable (with full insurance policies) due to mischief along the way.

The rally concludes with a party in the finish line city, which is still unannounced. Organizers say they got the idea of RCR by wanting to participate in international road trip adventure Gumball 3000, but not having the money for the six-figure entry fee. Previous RCR’s include Los Angeles to Tombstone, Los Angeles to Tahoe, New York City to Montreal and San Francisco to Yuma. Two 2013 RCR’s have already been announced for this year: June 21 from Los Angeles and August 13 from New York City. You can find out more at the rally homepage.

[Photos Courtesy Spencer Harrison and Rental Car Rally]

Roadside America: St. Joseph, Michigan

by Meg Nesterov on

Growing up in Boston and later Tucson, I grew up going on beach vacations in New England and California. It wasn’t until I started dating my husband a decade ago that I discovered America’s “Third Coast” (the Great Lakes, for our purposes, though some call the Gulf states the Third Coast) in the Midwest. Visiting my in-laws in St. Joseph, Michigan, I was amazed to see that you don’t need to go to the edges of the country to experience sand between your toes, eat an ice cream on the boardwalk, and swim out further than your parents can see you. The Lake Michigan town of St. Joseph is a resort town from way back in the midst of a comeback, striking the rare balance between charming and twee.

Each year that I’ve visited St. Joseph, the town has evolved and improved into a destination worth visiting beyond a quick side trip from Chicago. The waterfront parks have been revitalized in recent years, and the beaches are so wide and sandy, you could forget you aren’t on an ocean. St. Joe and its sister city Benton Harbor are under two hours from Chicago, as well as an easy drive from other Midwestern cities such as Milwaukee and Detroit, in what has been called the “Riviera of the Midwest.”Just across Lake Michigan from Chicago, residents recently had hoped to revive the old Chicago-St. Joseph ferry that carried thousands to the beach in the 1920s heyday, but the venture proved too costly. Land remains the only approach, although there is a trans-Lake Michigan ferry between Milwaukee and Muskegon in the summer season, about 90 miles north of St. Joe. Amtrak makes the trip an hour and forty minutes from Chicago daily if you’d prefer not to get caught in traffic.

This area of Michigan is also famed for its produce, owing to the “lake effect” on the climate, helping to produce what is arguably the world’s best fruit. From June to November, you can taste many varieties at the Benton Harbor Fruit Market, one of the oldest and largest seller-to-buyer produce markets in America. Excellent fruit means excellent wine as well, and you can visit over a dozen wineries within a dozen miles of St. Joseph. You can also sample Michigan flavors at the annual Harvest Festival and regular farmers markets in the summer season.

In addition to the cute shops and a good selection of restaurants, St. Joseph has a budding arts scene anchored by the Krasl Art Center, which holds a major art fair each summer. The new pride of St. Joe is the Silver Beach area just below downtown. The historic Silver Beach Carousel was first opened in 1910 and re-opened 100 years later after the park had deteriorated and closed in the early ’70s. You can ride the carousel year-round, but go in the summer for the optimum effect, when you can finish out a day at the beach with one of Michigan’s famed sunsets and think about how soon you can return.

[flickr image via Molechaser]