Disney Insights

This past week Disney Legend Rolly Crump passed away after having a unique career helping to build such memorable attractions as The Enchanted Tiki Room and "it's a small world". One of his first assignments was remodeling the Adventureland Bazaar. We share that story and its messages around trust. And then we head to two separate Emporiums across the globe--one at Walt Disney World and the other...

We begin a multi-part series that looks at the amazing details around Disneyland Paris. Today we begin at Fantasia Gardens and the Disneyland Hotel in the front of the park. We then step down the left side of Main Street U.S.A., which seems on the surface very similar to Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World. But we'll look at details you'll never see in Florida as we peel back the layers to this fan...

Journey Into Imagination has been one of the most visited, mentioned, and missed Epcot attractions since it opened 40 years ago this week. We look at what this entire corner of the park was really all about and specifically what the attraction Journey Into Imagination really was. Because the original attraction was significantly gutted and changed back in 1999, many guests simply don't know what t...

Taking photos and making memories through them are such a big part of the Disney experience, no matter which Disney resort you may visit. And yet we've never really taken the time to discuss how to best capture the magic through photos. So today I have the privilege of Ryan Crane joining us to share his insights on just that. If you are like me, you're always looking for that ideal way of capturin...

Yesterday, Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law legislation that puts the State of Florida in charge of a reconstituted body known The Reedy Creek Improvement District. Positioned at a firehouse down the way from Disney Springs, the governor put into law this legislation. It occurs on the same day his new book came out, The Courage to Be Free, Florida's Blueprint for America's Revival. Now called...

Let's walk around the World! It may be the annual Walt Disney World Princess Marathon this weekend but don't worry if you've missed it! Don't even worry if you don't run! In one day you can do a thirty mile walking marathon that covers not only all four Disney Parks: Magic Kingdom, Disney's Animal Kingdom, Epcot and Disney's Hollywood Studios--but Walt Disney World Resorts and Disney Springs. My f...

We have entered into a new portal of Disney magic and we want to invite you to learn all about it. Join me, my daughter Jennica and my son-in-law Jason as we share with you our first impressions of experiencing TRON for the first time here at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World. We'll look at the queue, the ride and the challenges of embracing this new high octane thrill ride that goes up to 60...

Last week we spoke of the first quarter earnings and the strategies Bob Iger has put in place for revitalizing The Walt Disney Company. One of those opportunities is to build capacity in the parks. To that end he announced the addition of an Avatar experience at Disneyland, with the intent that it would not only create greater capacity thus allowing more guests to visit, but would draw more intere...

In the 1st Quarter earnings report for 2023 Bob Iger shared the status of the Walt Disney Company and made a startling announcement: An Avatar experience is coming to Disneyland! We will look at how this could happen and what it could mean? Where could you put this? There is a way! We'll also look at other announcements made in this event and what it means to those who love to visit Disney Parks a...

In previous podcasts I've shared not only my love of all things Disney but a largely wonderful experience I had being a part of the Walt Disney World Company. For me, working at Disney was the best thing that ever happened to my career. But leaving Disney was the second best thing I ever did in my career. This is that story of how I left and how I eventually learned the business of consulting and...

I've spent several decades having a date night with my wife once a week. Every year we share with all of you the latest and greatest at each of the annual Epcot Festivals. Rather than just go through the motions of sharing the latest and greatest differences in the most recent festival, I thought I would talk about how to make a date night really special for you and the one closest to you. Much of...

In previous episodes we spoke of my life long love of Disney and how it eventually led me to an opportunity to work with The Walt Disney Company, first as a consultant, and then as a leader with Disney University Professional Development Programs, a group that later became part of, and then took over The Disney Institute. In a previous podcast I spoke of that merger, and how I was also responsible...

With Disneyland's kickoff of the 100 years of Wonder celebration this weekend, we have the opportunity to pause for just a moment to see if events that have unfolded over a century's worth of time aren't happening again in some form or another. We'll look at three such issues, which focuses on competition, Cast Member buy-in and wolves on Wall Street. We'll also look at how Disney needs to grasp i...

In a recent podcast I overviewed the first three decades of my love of all things Disney and how it eventually led me to a full-time salaried position as a leader providing professional development programs to Fortune 100 companies and others at The Disney Institute. In this next two-part experience I'll canvas that experience and what it was like to wear a name tag and represent The Walt Disney W...

This weekend Splash Mountain ended at Walt Disney World after more than 30 years of operation. Soon Disneyland, which built the first Splash Mountain, will close as well. While there may be controversy of its replacement, there is no question, this attraction was a brilliant Imagineering masterpiece. Led by designers like Tony Baxter and Bruce Gordon, this attraction did what no other ride or attr...

This month marks the 20th anniversary of Performance Journeys, the company I founded not long after I left The Walt Disney World Company. In celebration of that event, I wanted to share how my career has tied in with Disney over the decades. In the weeks to follow I will share a three part series of my history, to include my years working as a leader for The Walt Disney World Company, as well as m...

It's been too long since guests have had the privilege of riding the Walt Disney Railroad, closed over four years ago when construction began on Tron. Still, good things are worth the wait and this attraction is lovelier than ever. We board at the Main Street U.S.A. station and take a scenic journey around the Magic Kingdom. There's much to discuss along the way, such as the upcoming closure of Sp...

The week is already on a roll as many announcements have been made even in the last 24 hours. We'll review each of them to include an opening date for Tron as well as dates for new fireworks shows. More news awaits with changes made to Genie+ and to Annual Passholder perks. Did we mention free parking at the Disney resorts? Plus Disneyland has some changes as well. Then we head out to the high sea...

One of the reasons that Pirates of the Caribbean since it opened in 1967 is my favorite attraction is because there is so much attention to the details. I've been on it literally hundreds of times and in four different versions across the globe--and yet I still see new details from time to time. Imagine that the attraction was not only taken to the next level, but that there was an entire land sup...

After the first day of the New Year, what are we to learn about the Disney Parks at Walt Disney World. We walk through a day at Epcot to discover how things big and small, great and stupid, all come down to one total experience. Genie+ plays a big role here. Parking lot trams played no role, but we do talk about the return of the train over at Magic Kingdom. Journey of Water--Moana, and wait times...

Happy New Year! We ring in a new calendar year with the most comprehensive lineup of what's happening at Disney in 2023. And we're not just sharing what new attractions are on their way, but rather, what are key events will kick off those new offerings. Big press events and milestones are key to when things may be coming your way, and we'll look at all of that. Critical to this is just when all of...

Let's look at the past year not from some list of what happened, but how that list of what happened tiers up into three important lessons any organization should take from Disney out of 2022. These lessons clearly illustrate the importance of customer loyalty, i.e., Disney fans; How demand really inflates price; and why delivery must exceed expectations. We'll bring you examples of how this has oc...

One of the truly wonderful experiences Disney Parks and Attractions offer are uniquely themed dining experiences. Some of the most memorable are those that bring you to a nighttime setting where you dine among the stars all the while being indoors. We look at all of them, represented in nearly every Disney resort from Shanghai to Disneyland; from Walt Disney World to Disneyland Paris. From the ori...

Disney has stated that the 50th anniversary for Walt Disney World goes on until March 31st of 2023. But is that really the case? We canvas the entire Florida property to see if the magic is still calling you to this golden anniversary. From new entertainment to attractions; from food & beverage to anniversary merchandise, we look at whether you can really still celebrate or whether the World's Mos...

We're embarking on a new series here in Disney at Work and Play. Imagineering Explored is an opportunity to deep dive into best practices of Imagineering. We look at what works and more importantly why it works. And on occasion, we'll even make application to life outside Disney's gates. This first podcast in the series looks at great themed transitions that occur in the parks--particularly as you...