Walt Disney World has just launched two offers that could help families save money on a dream holiday to the Florida theme parks – and it’s valid for school holidays too
16:47, 21 Apr 2026Updated 16:53, 21 Apr 2026
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Walt Disney World has brought back its popular free dining and drinks deal(Image: Getty Images)
Walt Disney World is a bucket list destination for most families, but visiting the Florida theme parks isn’t necessarily easy to do on a budget.
However, Mickey Mouse’s US home has just launched a deal that could help families save money on their meals – and you could currently save up to £400 off a booking too.
That’s because the resort’s Free Disney Dining and Drinks deal is back for holidays in 2027 – including some school holiday dates – with plans that include free table service dining plans or quick service plans, and one drink per meal (alcoholic or non-alcoholic, depending on the plan you go for). The offer is valid for a minimum of five nights’ consecutive stays if you’re booking a Walt Disney World hotel along with a park ticket package.
You can already book on disneypackages.co.uk, with the deal running until November 4, 2026. However, if you book by July 2, 2026, then you could also bag a discount of up to £400 per booking.
Don’t be disheartened if it’s not quite the right deal for you, or you can’t commit before July 2. For a start, if you book after July 2, you’ll still be able to save up to £200 per booking. Meanwhile, there are plenty of tempting deals and offers throughout the year with the Walt Disney Travel Company, including the Free Dining and Drinks offers. If you’re after ticket offers, the likes of Floridatix and AttractionTix can also be good sources, especially if you’re thinking of combining your Disney trip with other Orlando attractions, or even some of the Universal theme parks.
If Florida still feels a little too far to travel just yet and you want some of that Disney magic just a little closer to home, then you may want to consider a cruise, as the Disney Wish cruise ship will be sailing from the UK next summer (we got a sneak peek at what you can expect onboard earlier this year).
Animal Kingdom theme park: Bluey and Bingo will be at the Conservation Station from May 26, with photo opps and games.
Magic Kingdom: Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin is back after refurbishment, with new interactive targets, lights and sound effects. Meanwhile, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will reopen on May 3.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios: From May 22, Star Wars fans can join The Mandalorian and Grogu on a new Millenium Falcon: Smugglers Run mission. From May 26, the former Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster will open with its new Muppets theme.
Have you got a holiday question you want answering? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com
THE conflict in Iran has added as much as $100 (£77) per person to the price of long-haul flights from Europe, new figures have revealed.
The Transport & Environment (T&E) said in a statement that disruption to jet fuel supplies is likely to trigger higher ticket prices for passengers.
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The conflict in Iran has caused the price of jet fuel to sky rocketCredit: AlamyFor families – the cost of long-haul holidays could increase by as much as £308Credit: Getty
T&E added that the rise in jet fuel prices has increased the average fuel cost by £77 for each passenger on long-haul flights leaving Europe.
For a family of four heading on a long-haul holiday that’s an increase of £308.
For short-haul flights within Europe, they’ve increased by £25.26 per passenger – or more than £100 per family.
In the report, T&E then predicted that jet fuel for a flight from Barcelona to Berlin would be €26 (£22.64) more expensive per passenger.
Long-haul journeys, for example Paris to New York could even cost €129 (£112.35) more in fuel.
Since the Iran conflict began and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, jet fuel prices have risen to well over $100 (£74) a barrel.
And there are fears that more turmoil is on the cards, as atemporary ceasefire ends tomorrow,with concerns the Middle Eastern conflict could spark back into life – as thousands of US troops are on standby to launch fresh attacks.
A second round of crunch peace talks are due to resume in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad shortly – but they have already been plagued by no show claims.
Iran has refused to confirm if it will attend even after the US delegation, led by JD Vance, prepared to board a jet for the Middle East.
Trump has already said it is “highly unlikely” the two-week ceasefire will be extended past the deadline especially if a permanent end to the fighting can’t be hashed out.
The impact of the rising costs of fuel have been felt everywhere from the petrol pumps to Brits’ summer holidays, as airlines have offset rising costs by increasing ticket fares and adding additional baggage fees.
In total, Air France and KLM will have increased their round-trip fares by €100 (£87) on most of their long-haul flights.
It comes after the head of the International Energy Agency warned that Europe has just six weeks left of jet fuel.
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said mass flight cancellations will begin “soon” if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed.
Airlines including United, Scandinavian Airlines and Lufthansa have already been forced to cancel hundreds of flights in recent weeks due to fears of shortages.
The Sun’s Head of Travel explains further
The Sun’s Head of Travel Lisa Minot, explains more.
There’s no doubt the current jet fuel crisis represents the greatest challenge to the travel industry since the pandemic.
Passengers face higher fares and less choice if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed in the coming weeks.
While flights – and prices – are relatively stable in the short term, it is inevitable that we may see more flights cancelled and surcharges added to existing flights and holidays if the war continues into May.
But given the scale of the global aviation network – and the fact we rely on the Middle East for part but not all of our jet fuel imports – the UK is relatively well placed to deal with the fallout.
With so much uncertainty, we’ve seen a surge in those looking to book staycations.
But there are still some fantastic deals out there for those willing to get booking – particularly to destinations in the Eastern Mediterranean that are completely safe yet have suffered a drop in interest.
Some airlines – including Air Canada and Virgin Atlantic – have already started applying a surcharge to flights or have increased prices for checked luggage as they anticipate the inevitable rise in fuel prices.
And package holiday operators have the right to impose a surcharge of up to eight per cent in the light of fuel increases – if they ask for any more than eight per cent, holidaymakers have a right to an automatic refund as well.
So far – none have chosen to do so.
Birol’s deadline means airports could face critical fuel shortages by May, causing travel chaos for Brits heading abroad during the school May half-term holidays.
Despite the chaos, there are still great holiday deals to be made as Egypt tour operators have dropped prices of all-inclusiveholidays with thousands in savings.
Getaways should not be seriously impacted immediately as airlines bought fuel far in advance at a fixed rate.
But if the crisis continues into June, operators may start adding a surcharge to holiday prices.
A limited number of flights may be cancelled, but mostly on well-served routes with alternatives.
If supplies start to dry up, cancellations would increase.
2. Am I entitled to a refund?
IF some or all of your holiday is cancelled by the provider, your refund depends on whether you booked your trip as a package holiday, or individually.
Your money tends to be much better protected with a package deal.
3. Is now a bad time to book?
There are some great deals, but book with caution.
You must take out travel insurance as, if your flight is cancelled, you may have protection against the cost of other elements of your holiday, such as accommodation.
The price of jet fuel could increase the cost of holidays for families to as much as £308Credit: Alamy
Families, in their various flavors, have been essential to television since that light first flickered on. They may be ideal or nightmarish, or both, or in between, and we take to them — be they Waltons or Addamses or Simpsons — according to our own experience or desires, having known families of our own or wanted something other than what we had.
In “Schitt’s Creek,” Dan Levy co-created — with his father, Eugene, yet — one of the medium’s greatest family comedies. It was a show that grew over time from a basic premise about rich people who lose their money and are forced to live at close quarters in adjoining motel rooms to a paean to love, understanding and acceptance. It swept the comedy categories at the 2020 Emmys, including acting awards for both Levys, Catherine O’Hara and Annie Murphy and writing and directing trophies for Dan.
“To family” are in fact the last words spoken in the first season of “Bad Mistakes,” Levy’s noisy, funny new show, co-created with Rachel Sennott and now streaming on Netflix — though given what precedes it, it’s less a blessing than a curse. Levy plays Nicky, a pastor at a sparsely attended suburban New Jersey church of no evident denomination. He’s out as gay, but supposedly celibate; that he has a boyfriend, Tareq (Jacob Gutierrez), is known only to Tareq; this, of course, creates a secret, which will create pressure, which will create comedy.
Sister Morgan (Taylor Ortega) is an elementary school teacher, a job that doesn’t quite jibe with everything else we see about her — it’s barely represented, anyway, summer having come — and a very longtime boyfriend, Max (Jack Innanen), who has decided that now is the moment to propose. She had once tried acting in New York, which means that she lived a wilder life once and is something of an improviser. Their mother, Linda (Laurie Metcalf), who owns a hardware store, is running for mayor and the campaign is being managed by extra daughter Natalie (Abby Quinn).
The series begins as their grandmother is dying, and at Linda’s command, they rush out to buy her a present — Linda is trying to squeeze in an “early birthday” before her mother passes. And because she is that sort of person, Morgan shoplifts what she imagines is a cheap necklace from a convenience store. (Attendant Yusuf, played by Boran Kuzum, will have much to do.) The necklace isn’t cheap, it turns out, for no particularly good reason, and the convenience store isn’t just a convenience store, but a kind of waystation for stolen goods run by local Russian mobsters. As a result, Morgan and Nicky find themselves forced to run errands for them, under threat of death, or worse.
The show gets very complicated on its way to a circular semi-conclusion; there is a lot going on, with Linda’s mayoral ambitions and various relationship issues. (Elizabeth Perkins plays Max’s mother, bridging storylines.) But it’s a good ride, and classic in its way; searching the phrase “get mixed up with gangsters” brings forth a host of old comedies. Through the dodgiest situations, brother and sister do not hesitate to argue. Nicky would love to be anywhere else, while Morgan finds it invigorating. Though it is all improbable, the parts do mesh neatly; they make television sense.
Finally, the series rests on the shoulders of the three principal players, who are just a pleasure to watch; the camera obliges by moving in close. Levy brings a soft-spoken breathlessness you may recognize from his David Rose on “Schitt’s”; his softly muttered “OK,” which might just mean “stop talking,” is almost a trademark. Ortega brings a kind of poignance to her reborn wild child, while Metcalf plays Linda with a kind of small-town operatic intensity, eyes popped and pronunciation precise — she’s like a country cousin to O’Hara’s Moira Rose — as if she were onstage pitching to the back row of the theater.
Michelle Pfeiffer and Elle Fanning in “Margo’s Got Money Troubles,” premiering April 15, 2026 on Apple TV.
(Allyson Riggs/Courtesy of Apple)
In “Margo’s Got Money Problems, premiering Wednesday on Apple TV, Elle Fanning plays the title character, a college student flattered into bed by her married-with-children writing professor, Mark (Michael Angarano), despite my shouting at the screen for her not to do it. Soon she is pregnant, and soon after that the essentially single mother of baby Bodhi, unable to find work or the time to write. (As the heroine, we assume her talent.)
Presumably in search of some normalcy, Margo’s mother, Shyanne (Michelle Pfeiffer), a former good time girl — but still sparkly — has become engaged to Kenny (Greg Kinnear), Christian, square and sincere; the Ralph Bellamy of the piece, you are not asked to take him quite seriously (though Kinnear plays him straight). Shyanne’s ex-husband is Jinx, a former professional wrestler, played by Nick Offerman with the low-key affect of Ron Swanson, dialed down even further; depression and drug addiction will do that to you. Fresh out of rehab, he trades a championship belt for a motorcycle and joins the household; though he left Margo early, and unlike Shyanne, he proves to have a marvelous, easy way with Bodhi. (The baby himself, or babies — they use twins for this job — are themselves marvelous.)
Also in residence is roommate Susie (Thaddea Graham), a chirpy cosplayer — and coincidentally Jinx’s biggest fan — whose skills will become valuable as Margo, needing cash, sets off into the world of OnlyFans. First picking up tips describing followers’ penises in terms of Pokémon (no explanation has been thought necessary), she pivots to video, mounting increasingly elaborate sexy sci-fi productions alongside Susie (sets and costumes), Jinx (narrative advice, stunt coordinator) and OnlyFans veterans KC (Rico Nasty) and Rose (Lindsey Normington), a fabulous tag team to whom Margo turns for advice. (Margo does seem to take things over, but it’s her name in the title, so there you go.) This introduces an element of Mickey and Judy, my uncle’s got a barn, let’s put on a show comedy. More important, it creates a team, melding the family you make with the family you have.
It’s as sweet as can be. Apart from sleeping with one’s professor — students, do not do this! — the show is positive about just about everything: motherhood, daughterhood, professional wrestling, second chances, sex work, cosplaying and the way art shows up in strange places. Only Marcia Gay Harden, as Mark’s mother, Elizabeth, is an outright villain, and you will hate her.
The series was created by David E. Kelley (Mr. Michelle Pfeiffer), from Rufi Thorpe’s 2024 novel, once again under the umbrella of Nicole Kidman’s Blossom Films (following their collaborations on “Big Little Lies,” “Nine Perfect Strangers” and “Love & Death”), with its house style of well-upholstered capital-Q Quality (as distinct, in its pop-cult, way, from prestige). (Kidman has a small role as a wrestler-turned-lawyer and it’s been a while since I’ve seen her this well used.) “Margo’s Got Money Problems” can be terribly sentimental, almost corny — the climax is pure Hollywood — but undeniably effective. And if its mix of comedy and drama can be a little destabilizing, you won’t need to worry about where it ends up.
