family vacations

As you probably remember from your late teens and early twenties, hostels are the best place to meet young singles with a yen for traveling and -- if my own experience is any indication -- a seriousness when it comes to partying. Hostels on a Saturday or Sunday morning are quieter than a church in...

In 2012, Walt Disney World in Orlando will add some 2,000 new rooms in its "Value" category, which are the cheapest rooms on its property. Cosmetic details of its Disney's Art of Animation Resort were announced today. In some idealized artist's renderings, the company unveiled the outside of the...

Vacationers this summer report that they are opting to travel to nude resorts rather than pay extra to stash their clothes in an aircraft's cargo hold. Destinations where clothing is optional are riding such a wave of new-found popularity that online travel sites are openly embracing a term once...

Families searching for a taste of the African savanna on the cheap might consider booking a canvas tent this summer that overlooks sun-drenched plains brimming with rhinos, elephants and zebras -- all right here in America. Sleepovers at zoos, museums, aquariums and amusement parks are gaining in...

It was announced yesterday that Disneyland would no longer require its women workers to wear stockings. For readers who are under 30, stockings are leg coverings that cling like leggings but aren't nearly as comfortable. Think tights, but sheerer, prone to snags and generally good for one or two...

The official grand opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter isn't until tomorrow morning, but last night a lavish VIP kick-off was held and WalletPop had a coveted golden ticket to attend. The new theme park at Universal Orlando's Islands of Adventure is how your family soon will be spending...

UPDATE: See our coverage with exclusive pics and video of the opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, with picture of Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and JK Rowling herself and see our video tour of the Harry Potter world at the Orlando theme park! This week at Universal's Islands of...

WalletPop was given rare access to Walt Disney Imagineering, the Los Angeles-area think tank where creative and technical geniuses invent new gizmos for the Disney theme park and cruise ship empire. Almost no non-Disney people are admitted. There's a strict no-camera policy, and all guests are...

We have a resolution to a problem covered on these pages a few weeks ago. Steven Goodwin's ploy to force the struggling Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach to pay him $500,000 a year plus 1.5% of revenues for the use of the name has ended with empty pockets. Rather than indulge him, the new owners of...

Now I get it.Travel agents. Maybe travel web sites have seemingly made them obsolete to a large portion of the public, but I just returned from a four-day summer vacation, having used my first travel agent, and now I'm a convert.I'm not an expert on the topic, and obviously my one great experience...