ORLANDO, Fla. (Oct. 7, 2019) – Condé Nast Traveler today announced the results of its annual Readers’ Choice Awards with Disney Cruise Line recognized as the No. 1 Top Large Cruise Line in the World for the eighth consecutive year.

This year, more than 600,000 Condé Nast Traveler readers from across the globe rated their travel experiences. In the cruise category, voters evaluated more than 400 cruise ships across a multitude of brands.

“It is our goal at Disney Cruise Line to create unforgettable vacations for every guest who sails with us,” said Jeff Vahle, president of Disney Cruise Line. “Being recognized once again by the readers of Conde Nast Traveler is a source of great pride for our team, whether they make their magic on our ships, at our private island Castaway Cay or behind the scenes. This award speaks to their commitment to always going above and beyond – and making every guest’s experience truly special.”

The Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards are one of the longest-running and most prestigious recognitions of excellence in the travel industry and are commonly known as “the best of the best of travel.” The 2019 Readers’ Choice Awards are published on Condé Nast Traveler’s website and in the November issue of Condé Nast Traveler US and UK print editions.

Disney Cruise Line blends the magic of Disney entertainment with the excitement of ocean cruising, offering incredible onboard experiences and itineraries to the sun-drenched destinations of the Caribbean year-around and awe-inspiring seasonal sailings throughout Alaska and Europe. Most Caribbean itineraries also include a stop at Castaway Cay, Disney Cruise Line’s award-winning private island in The Bahamas. Plus, for the first time next year, Disney Cruise Line will set sail from New Orleans onboard the Disney Wonder. The world of “The Princess and the Frog” is brought to life like never before onboard the Disney Wonder, which features exciting new enhancements, including the addition of a New Orleans-themed lounge that transports guests deeper into the heart of the city’s iconic French Quarter.

Disney Cruise Line continues to expand its horizons, with new ships scheduled for delivery in 2021, 2022 and 2023. The name of the highly anticipated fifth Disney Cruise Line ship, Disney Wish, was recently announced along with the ship’s featured stern characters – Rapunzel and her feisty sidekick Pascal. The Disney Wish is scheduled for delivery in late 2021 and will set sail in January 2022. All three new ships will be powered by liquefied natural gas and, at approximately 144,000 gross tons and 1,250 guest staterooms, be slightly larger than the Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy. For a look at the latest concepts, visit the Disney Parks Blog.
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To learn more about Disney Cruise Line or to book a vacation, guests can contact their travel agent, visit disneycruise.com or call Disney Cruise Line at 888-DCL-2500. Travel agents can call Disney Cruise Line at 888-325-2500 or visit disneytravelagents.com.

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About Disney Cruise Line
Since its launch in 1998, Disney Cruise Line has been recognized as the leader in family cruising, offering guests the magic of Disney entertainment combined with the relaxation of tropical, sun-drenched beaches and adventure of ocean cruising. Disney Cruise Line continues to expand its horizons, with new ships scheduled for delivery in 2021, 2022 and 2023. Disney Cruise Line has received hundreds of distinguished awards from the travel industry praising all aspects of the experience from dining to entertainment.

About Condé Nast Traveler
Condé Nast Traveler is the world’s most distinguished travel title providing inspiration and advice for discerning travelers. Authoritative and influential, Condé Nast Traveler is a multi-platform, transatlantic brand. Publishing US and UK print editions under Editor-in-Chief Melinda Stevens, Condé Nast Traveler offers award-winning expertise in luxury travel from around the world. For more, visit www.cntraveler.com.

Written by Gregg Condon

Took the good camera, only about 20% of the pics actually turned out which is pretty typical for a Halloween event. =) 

And so she walked out of our lives forever ... 

(the "Temporary closed" sign was gone as well)

We arrived at the park just in time to take in "Unleashed". 

Here they come ... 

These 3 pictures show the art of the scare slide. Despite being a bit blurry I love these pics. 

​(click for larger version) 

Where we would spend most of our night, but more on that later. 

We first started off with the mazes and Vault 666 which I didn't experience on opening night. 

Now in it's 5th (I think) year, this was easily the best year for this maze so far. Other than some of the props and the path, this maze seemed entirely new. Gone is the "animals and human hybrid" theme and it's taken on a whole new life. 

Condamned was also really great, it just seems really quiet in there this year for some reason. 

I try to get this shot every year, and it never works out. 

Red's was fun as always, but would love to see some changes to this one next year. Or an entirely new maze. 

Music and stuff happens here 

Exile Hill

We did both Willoughby's and Sewer of Souls. It's definitely time for another re-theme for Willoughby's. It's still fun and the talent in here is great as always. I'd love to see the Willoughby's story continue, but a fully re-imagined maze is definitely needed here for next year. 

Sewer of Souls was great again, we did it once with the 3D and once without. Great both times. 

Aftermath, fun as always. 

The sign for the Underground is done

Looked like the track for West Coast Racers was completed, no station yet. 

One of our absolute favorite scare zones

We also got some more story time with Lorraine Lurane. One of our absolute favorite characters at any Halloween event. Definitely not to be missed. 

Foggy revolution 

Hey Riddlers!! 

Headed back in to City Under Siege. 

We could seriously just stay here all night and be happy. 

Looking for his next victim

Tag Team

No need to fight guys, plenty of teenagers to scare

Did a GIF of all of these shots but wanted to post them individually as well. 

For some reason, 99% of the shots I took in Terrortory Twisted didn't turn out. 

So long SFMM, until next time. 

We're going to make it a point to go later in the evening one night just to see the Slider Show, so stay tuned for that. 

Related Videos:

Related Updates: 

• SFMM West Coast Racers and Fright Fest 2019 Opening Weekend - September 17, 2019
• Six Flags Magic Mountain West Coast Racers Tour - July 19, 2019
• Six Flags Great America Maxx Force Media Day - July 3, 2019
• Six Flags Magic Mountain West Coast Racers Update - June 22, 2019
• Six Flags Magic Mountain West Coast Racers Update - May 25, 2019

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It's so dark!! 

What’s this RMC goodness I see

Festival Del Terror

Scary DJ Set

Warning, scare zone ahead this one was witches

And the ultimate witch

More scare zone fun

There is no skimping on the queue designs

Hello Discovery Kingdom

More Medusa, just because

So the houses are funny.

It’s all the same formula just different themes. There’s a zombie outbreak theme, mummy theme, hospital theme, radioactive warehouse chemical leak etc...but the formula is the same.

You walk in To the first room and the person gives a brief summary of what’s going on, in Spanish. Then you walk through the house with lots of banging, and the scare actors yelling at you, in Spanish. It’s amazing. And the actors WILL TOUCH you.

But guess what, everyone’s having a great time. El Culto a La Llorona, hands down house of the night. It deviated from the above formula and was indooors and outdoors and had a creep factor.

Full bar area near Medusa, plenty of TV’s and specialty Festival Del Terror drinks

Still one of the best parks in the chain. And if you don’t have a pass, here’s the prices

Overall fantastic event and the scare actors at all the houses and scare zones know their jobs and do thier jobs well!!!

Welcome to the Los Angeles Haunted Hayride! 

Before we head into the town of Midnight Falls, we do have to bring up the elephant in the zoo, err, room. And that's the logistics of actually getting into the event. Once you're in everything seems to be running spectacularly.

Unfortunately trying to park was the biggest nightmare of the night. It didn't seem like there was a lot of communication going on between the staff in the different parking sections, nobody knew who was supposed to park where, there was no alternative parking area's that we saw and we even saw one parking attendant who didn't know where handicapped parking was.

The line for security was also the longest we saw all night. Obviously security is something we have to deal with in this day and age, but it was really long.

Hopefully they'll work on those logistics with the companies that are doing the security and parking, because we aren't sure if that's a Haunted Hayride thing, or an outside company thing. Train your people the right way and this has less a chance of happening (says the guy who's been a corporate trainer for 15 years).

Alright, enough of the one negative, let's get to the good stuff!!

Welcome to Midnight Falls!!

Cool arch heading into the event this year 

Sign leading you every direction

The Scary-Go-Round is back

Some fun shows going on here all night

The inhabitants of Midnight Falls were a lot of fun

Let's head in and do the Hayride! 

This looks familiar (as seen at Midsummer Scream) 

The waiting area is a container instead of the cages used in previous years 

We're ready!! 

Unlike previous years there are no stops on the Hayride, which we think actually works better than the show stops. It helps everything to flow much better. 

The Hayride features some tried and true Hayride scares, and some new ones that were a lot of fun. 

No fishing at night

Itsy Bitsy spider 

Who decided to make a Hayride near the Cemetery? 

The Hayride also features a few mazes, which were a lot of fun. The first was Midnight Mortuary. 

The talent in the mazes was spectacular. 

Next up was Trick or Treat 

The doorbells are back, but no candy this year. But the maze was super fun. 

Friend!! 

Cute baby!! 

Cheers!! 

1,000,000 internet points if you know what makes this so great!! 

The merchandise was also pretty amazing this year. 

We still have our free tickets from Midsummer Scream so are planning on going back at least one night this season. 

We also decided to stop at one of our favorite eateries after, the Dog Haus. And you can see why. 

Make sure you head out for this years Hayride. It's super good and we definitely recommend it this year. 

You can find out more information and get tickets for the Hayride at the link here. 

CELEBRATION, Fla. (Sept. 26, 2019) – In early 2021, Disney Cruise Line will return to New Orleans for a limited-time engagement with sailings to the Bahamas and Caribbean, including visits to Disney’s private island paradise, Castaway Cay. A lineup of popular itineraries will continue across the Disney fleet with cruises to tropical destinations from Texas, California and Florida.

Bookings open to the public on Oct. 3, 2019. More details on the itineraries spanning from January through May 2021 can be found on the Ports and Itineraries for 2021 page of disneycruise.com.

Return to New Orleans
Back by popular demand, the Disney Wonder will return to the bayou from late January through February 2021 with a series of magical voyages. A pair of four- and five-night cruises to the Western Caribbean kick off the season from New Orleans. The five-night voyage includes a visit to Progreso, Mexico, a new port of call for Disney Cruise Line on the Yucatan Peninsula. This quaint town is filled with treasures for families to explore together, from ancient Mayan ruins to hidden swimming holes filled with crystal-clear water.

Three seven-night sailings to the Bahamas with a stop at Castaway Cay, plus a 14-night Panama Canal cruise, round out the departures from the Crescent City in early 2021.

Guests sailing from New Orleans will experience the flavors and flair of the Big Easy both onboard the Disney Wonder and ashore. The sounds and sights of New Orleans come to life at Tiana’s Place restaurant, where families are transported to an era of southern charm, spirited jazz and street party celebrations with live music and other surprises inspired by the Disney animated film “The Princess and the Frog.” Before or after their cruise, guests can savor the city’s distinct cuisine, visit family-friendly museums and parks, and take in the sounds of world-renowned live jazz music.

Popular Itineraries from Texas and California
The Disney Wonder will also return to the popular home ports of Galveston and San Diego in early 2021. Guests sailing from Texas can enjoy the white-sand beaches of the Western Caribbean on a series of four- and six-night cruises to Grand Cayman and Cozumel. One seven-night departure will feature stops at Key West, Nassau and Castaway Cay.

Following the season in New Orleans, the Disney Wonder heads to the West Coast for a variety of sailings to Baja and the Mexican Riviera departing from San Diego. Families can hunt for gold aboard a pirate ship in Cabo San Lucas, embark on an off-road adventure in Ensenada or sunbathe on glittering sand beaches on cruises ranging from three to seven nights.
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Bahamian and Caribbean Getaways from Florida
Disney Cruise Line will have three ships sailing to the Bahamas and Caribbean from Florida in early 2021, and every cruise includes a day at Disney’s private island paradise, Castaway Cay. This award-winning destination, reserved exclusively for Disney Cruise Line guests, is the ultimate escape for everyone in the family. A day at Castaway Cay offers opportunities for adventure and relaxation in a lush, tropical setting filled with classic Disney storytelling.

• From Miami, the Disney Magic will sail three-, four- and five-night Bahamian and Western Caribbean cruises.
• From Port Canaveral, the Disney Fantasy will sail seven-night Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries.
• From Port Canaveral, the Disney Dream will sail three- and four-night Bahamian cruises.

With a variety of options from Florida, guests can experience spectacular cruises full of fun and relaxation – featuring Broadway-style shows, immersive themed dining, imaginative kids clubs, character encounters and spaces for everyone in the family.
To learn more about Disney Cruise Line or to book a vacation, guests can visit disneycruise.com, call Disney Cruise Line at 888-325-2500 or contact a travel agent.

When we got there it was still a bit light out 

Maybe a nap before we head in? 

Soon the sun came down and the Captain welcomed us into the event 

As we like to do at most of these events, a live-stream of the opening moments. 

An overview of the event from the VIP lounge 

The event always features some amazing lighting design

We of course took in all of the mazes and video'd most of them (the one for Feast didn't come out as well as we would have liked). But we hope you enjoy these!! 

The new maze for 2019, Rogue which replaces the fan-favorite Deadrise. A similar type theme, some really amazing special effects. Wish they would have kept the Deadrise ending though. That fog tunnel was always amazing. 

The Iron Master is back. We did notice a few new things this year in the maze, fun as always. 

Lullaby had a new path this year and a really creepy scene in the pool. One of the highlights of the event as always. 

It took a few years for B340 to hit it's stride, but this is definitely now one of our favorites at Dark Harbor

And last, but certainly never least, Circus is back with some new treats for you all. 

We of course had to take in the Slider show

We decided to do a bit of a different perspective on the show this year, we actually really dig out this came out. Hope you will too. 

Some more of the amazing props around the event 

Best name for a bar ever 

They also have some amazing character posters. We tried to get the best angle on these as we could. 

We're making plans to return to Dark Harbor 2019 to have even more fun with some of our favorite monsters. 

We'll have some more pics and video in the next few days from Scott. So stay tuned!!