The opening of Universal Orlando Resort's Epic Universe park earlier this year has created new opportunities for theme-park lovers for the first time in nearly 25 years.

What's so special about the new Epic theme park? In this episode, retail editor Jamie Biesiada walks host Rebecca Tobin through innovations in ride technology, the queues and other Epic details - favorite or most surprising rides? -- and we talk about theme park performance in 2025 overall so far.

And we discuss a few new tidbits from Walt Disney World's Cool Kid summer promotion and disclose details of a new nighttime parade.

Summer series:

This episode is part of our annual Summer Series, where we feature some of our favorite recent Folo by Travel Weekly discussions. This episode was recorded May 30 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions https://www.expeditions.com/

Related links:

Jamie Biesiada's Cover Story: An Epic opening for Universal Orlando Resort https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Epic-Universe-opening-analysis-Universal-Orlando

Exploring the enchanting details at Epic Universe https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Enchanting-details-Epic-Universe

Waiting in line at Epic Universe: Which has the best queue https://www.travelweekly.com/Blogs/Dispatch/Best-queue-experience-Epic-Universe

It's an Epic era for Universal Orlando, and Celestial Park sets the tone https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Epic-Universe-new-era-Universal-Orlando-Resort

Walt Disney World's summer promo leads to a magic resort stay https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/The-magic-of-a-resort-day-at-Disney-World

Dispatch, Orlando: Discovering Disney's 'Cool Kid Summer' https://www.travelweekly.com/Blogs/Dispatch/Discovering-Disney-Cool-Kid-Summer

New Disney 'Starlight parade' opens at Magic Kingdom https://www.travelweekly.com/North-America-Travel/Disney-Starlight-nighttime-parade-debuts-at-Walt-Disney-World-Resort

A Disneyland park is coming to Abu Dhabi https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Disneyland-park-coming-to-Abu-Dhabi

 

 

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Travel Weekly’s annual Power List is a massive undertaking to identify and rank the biggest sellers of travel. And when we say big, we mean big: The minimum for inclusion this year was agencies that sold at least $125 million in travel in 2024. But among the 70 travel agencies that made the cut, which ones grew the most?

In this episode we look at Departure Lounge, which moved almost 10 places in the rankings, after joining just last year.

Host Rebecca Tobin and retail editor Jamie Biesiada talk with owner Keith Waldon about Departure Lounge’s founding as a travel agency/wine bar/coffee shop and how his experiences at Virtuoso shaped Departure Lounge. We also talk about how to find independent contractors and treat them right; why some advisors are making so much money; and the 2024 landscape and the 2025 prognosis. 

This episode was recorded July 7 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions https://www.expeditions.com/

Related links:

Departure Lounge https://www.departurelounge.com

The 2025 Power List https://www.travelweekly.com/power-list-2025

A 2017 column from Richard Turen that features Departure Lounge: "Rethinking the travel agency experience" https://www.travelweekly.com/Richard-Turen/Rethinking-travel-agency-experience

 

 

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It’s getting to be mid July, but as you’ll hear from this episode, the summer travel season – both booking and traveling – is far from over.

With our guest Melissa Krueger, the CEO of Classic Vacations, we’re going to talk about all things summer-travel and summer-trend related: A comeback in Maui, traveling to Italy, a surprise getaway in the U.S. and, of course, what this season's close-in  booking window means for travelers and sellers. And: What is JOMO, and how can you apply it to your next vacation? 

This episode was recorded July 10 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor: 

This episode is sponsored by National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions https://www.expeditions.com/

Related links:

Classic Vacations https://www.classicvacations.com

Tour operators and advisors plan around overtourism https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Tour-Operators/Tour-operators-and-advisors-plan-around-overtourism

Inside the $6 million marketing campaign aimed at Maui's recovery https://www.travelweekly.com/Hawaii-Travel/Insights/Maui-tourism-recovery-marketing-campaign-details

 

 

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It’s July, and despite what we’re hearing about close-to-home travel, Americans are still headed to Europe in large numbers and to tourism hot spots like Venice, Barcelona, Greece and Lisbon. Many of these places have also been the sites of protests over tourism – in Barcelona, for example, protesters were again using water guns to spray visitors in an attempt to make their concerns known.

Travel advisor Miriam Martinez of Revigorate, who works with and advises American clients, joins tours editor Brinley Hineman and host Rebecca Tobin to talk about whether travelers are concerned about overtourism protests and anti-tourism sentiment; how advisors and tour companies are packaging and selling lesser-visited destinations to travelers; and possible solutions to overcrowded cities.

This episode was recorded June 30 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor

This episode is sponsored by National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions https://www.expeditions.com

Related links

In Europe, tour operators and advisors plan around overtourism https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Tour-Operators/Tour-operators-and-advisors-plan-around-overtourism

Protesters spray tourists with water guns in Spain https://www.travelweekly.com/Europe-Travel/Protestors-spray-tourists-with-water-guns-in-Spain

Cruise industry navigates a new wave of port taxes https://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/Cruise-industry-navigates-new-wave-port-taxes

Previous Folo episodes

Is the term 'overtourism' being overused? https://www.travelweekly.com/Podcasts/Folo/overtourism-overused

 

 

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It’s been an eventful year for Los Angeles tourism, but as we’re nearing the six-month mark from the devastating fires that tore through Pacific Palisades and Altadena, we wanted to look back at the hotels that were impacted or evacuated during the disaster – specifically in this episode one of a small group of luxury properties in Malibu: The 47-room Malibu Beach Inn.

This area has been also challenged by the subsequent closure of the Pacific Coast Highway that links it to western Los Angeles, so on this episode we’re talking with managing director Geoffrey Day and Travel Weekly’s hotels editor Christina Jelski about business, the delicate business of keeping workers on the job and happy during demand peaks and valleys, housing first responders and what it takes to evacuate and then restore a luxury hotel.

This episode was recorded Thursday June 26 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by the Globus Family of Brands https://www.globusandcosmos.com

Related links:

The Malibu Beach Inn https://www.malibubeachinn.com

From Los Angeles, a plea for visitors: https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Los-Angeles-hotels-plea-for-visitors

 

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This week we’re talking about our annual "Focus on LGBTQ+" travel cover story. This year, the headline was “A chill in the air for Pride,” and the report by news editor Johanna Jainchill looked at why some international LGBTQ travelers are rethinking visits to the U.S. – both for Pride events and in general.

With Canadian travel advisor Dean Nelson, of Departures by Dean, and Stacy Ritter, the president and CEO of Visit Lauderdale, we talk about the size of the LGBTQ+ travel demographic and what U.S. destinations that are popular among the LGBTQ community – like Fort Lauderdale – are doing to continue to stay focused on this market segment. Where are international travelers going instead of the U.S.? And on the flip side, how should inbound LGBTQ+ travelers continue to support the local communities – is travel the answer?

This episode was recorded June 16 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by the Globus Family of Brands https://www.globusandcosmos.com

Related links:

Focus on LGBTQ+ travel: A chill in the air for Pride https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/Focus-on-LGBTQ-travel-2025

Visit Lauderdale https://www.visitlauderdale.com/

Trump's passport policy casts chill over LGBTQ travel https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Government/Trump-passport-policy-casts-chill-LGBTQ-travel

Departures by Dean https://www.departuresxdean.com/

 

 

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Today is all about travel brands making an entry into Europe river cruising. We’ve been surprised this year by the number of established names moving in to the Rhine, Danube and beyond: Celebrity, Trafalgar and National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions among them. 

With Lisa Fitzgerald, a river-cruise expert advisor and founder of Fitzgerald Travel, and river cruise editor Brinley Hineman, we’re exploring why each of these brands is approaching river, and how they’re doing it in different ways. We’ll also look at the popularity of emerging destinations around the world, and numbers from Viking, the biggest river cruise line. We also talk about Brinley’s trip on Riverside Luxury Cruises – this episode was recorded in mid-May, so that trip has already concluded, and we've included some of her reporting in the show notes. 

This episode was edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor

This episode is sponsored by the Globus Family of Brands. https://www.globusandcosmos.com

At the end of this episode, stay on for a special, bonus discussion about the latest from the Globus Family of Brands between Camille Olivere, Globus' chief sales officer, and Mary Pat Sullivan, the executive vice president of marketing partnerships for Northstar Travel Group, Travel Weekly's parent company.

Related reports

Trafalgar's river cruise debut is seen as just a first step https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/Trafalgar-river-cruise-debut-seen-as-just-a-first-step?ct=river

Lindblad, Trafalgar, Waldorf: More companies are attracted to river cruising https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/Insights/river-cruise-attracts-more-travel-companies

River cruise lines are excited that Celebrity is wading into the business -- why? https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/Insights/River-lines-react-to-Celebrity-Cruises-entry

No slowing down for river cruising: 2026 looks better than 2025 https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/River-cruise-bookings-surging-for-2026?ct=river

Dispatch, Riverside Debussy: An indulgent, fine-dining experience https://www.travelweekly.com/Blogs/Dispatch/Fine-dining-in-the-Vintage-Room-on-Riverside-Debussy?ct=river

Fitzgerald Travel https://fitzgeraldtravel.com/

 

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We’re returning to a subject that we’ve talked about before on the Folo, but that just keeps continuing to grow and evolve, that’s cruise companies’ private islands and destinations. With us this week is Jay Schneider, the chief product innovation officer for Royal Caribbean International. And Royal Caribbean has been at the forefront of these discussions with its Perfect Day projects and now is moving forward with a destination in the South Pacific and a hotel in Chile for Antarctica guests on its Silversea brand. 

In this episode, cruise editor Teri West and Schneider talk about the inspiration for Royal’s thrill-and-chill vibes, competition and the evolution of land-and-sea vacations in the Caribbean.

This was recorded May 29 and has been edited for length and clarity. 

Episode sponsor

This episode was sponsored by the Globus Family of Brands https://www.globusandcosmos.com

Related links

Perfect Day Mexico: Royal Caribbean previews its next frontier of fun https://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/Royal-Caribbean-previews-Perfect-Day-Mexico

The Grand Lucayan overhaul is an $827M bet on cruise tourism https://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/Grand-Lucayan-Resort-overhaul-analysis

Royal Caribbean expects to open its South Pacific destination in early 2027 https://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/Royal-Caribbean-renderings-for-Lelepa

Holland America Line reveals plans for an upgraded Half Moon Cay https://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/Royal-Caribbean-renderings-for-Lelepa

MSC Cruises will develop a private island adjacent to Ocean Cay www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/MSC-Cruises-developing-luxury-island-near-Ocean-Cay

Carnival Corp.'s private-destination plan: Update, build and promote https://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/Carnival-private-destination-plan

NCLH starts construction of a pier on Great Stirrup Cay https://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/NCLH-starts-construction-of-Great-Stirrup-Cay-pier

The evolution of cruising's private islands https://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/evolution-of-cruising-private-islands

 

 

 

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The opening of Universal Orlando Resort’s Epic Universe park has created new opportunities for theme-park lovers for the first time in nearly 25 years. What’s so special about the new Epic theme park? 

In this episode, retail editor Jamie Biesiada walks host Rebecca Tobin through innovations in ride technology, the queues and other Epic details – favorite or most surprising rides? -- and we talk about theme park performance in 2025 overall so far.

And we discuss a few new tidbits from Walt Disney World's Cool Kid summer promotion and disclose details of a new nighttime parade. 

This episode was recorded May 30 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by the Globus Family of Brands https://www.globusandcosmos.com

Related links:

Exploring the enchanting details at Epic Universe https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Enchanting-details-Epic-Universe

Waiting in line at Epic Universe: Which has the best queue https://www.travelweekly.com/Blogs/Dispatch/Best-queue-experience-Epic-Universe

It's an Epic era for Universal Orlando, and Celestial Park sets the tone https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Epic-Universe-new-era-Universal-Orlando-Resort

Walt Disney World's summer promo leads to a magic resort stay https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/The-magic-of-a-resort-day-at-Disney-World

A Disneyland park is coming to Abu Dhabi https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Disneyland-park-coming-to-Abu-Dhabi

 

 

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What is going on with summer travel? As Americans prepare to take to the roads and skies, we’ve heard a lot of mixed messages from travel companies about what this year might bring: Just a few weeks ago we spoke on the Folo podcast about “chop” and “noise” in projecting future booking patterns.

In this episode Hopper lead economist Hayley Berg returns to talk about her data: Whether Americans are traveling and, if so, where their summer plans might take them. We talk about the obvious destinations and the hidden gems -- plus one great summer-booking tip. With us is cruise editor Teri West, who looks into research from the Mastercard Economics Institute on its travel trend report. 

This episode was recorded Thursday, May 22 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by the Globus Family of Brands https://www.globusandcosmos.com

Related links:

https://www.travelweekly.com/Asia-Travel/Asian-cities-shine-Mastercard-2025-travel-trends-report

Volatility is making hotel forecasting difficult https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Volatility-making-hotel-forecasting-difficult

Travel advisors voice their concerns about job cuts and the economy https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/Travel-agents-voice-concerns-federal-job-cuts

 

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