Disney and Universal dethroned as top theme parks
But despite Disney's enormous crowds — the Orlando parks draw up to 58 million guests a year, compared to Dollywood's 3 million — it was the Smoky Mountains park that won visitors' hearts. Knoebels Amusement Resort in Pennsylvania jumped from eighth to third place, followed by Universal's Islands of Adventure, Fun Spot America, and Silver Dollar City. Whale's Tale Waterpark in New Hampshire cracked the top 10, nudging out Busch Gardens.
TripAdvisor reviewers praised Dollywood not only for its rides but for its warmth, affordability, and charm. One visitor described it as 'a place to celebrate Dolly Parton's life,' blending Southern hospitality with thrill rides and family fun. Tickets to Dollywood range from $92 to $132, with water park access available for an additional $10.
Meanwhile, some Disney fans are pushing back against the rankings — and recent park changes. Gavin Doyle, founder of Disney news site MickeyVisit.com, called Disneyland 'the most charming and impressive theme park resort in the US,' and questioned why it didn't make the top list. 'Dollywood is a great small theme park... but Walt Disney World delivers a great vacation experience at impressive scale,' he told Daily Mail.
Meanwhile, Forbes also named Dollywood the top US employer for women, based on surveys of more than 140,000 women across large companies. 'We are proud of the ways we've empowered women across our organization — from leadership development to flexible scheduling and mentorship programs,' said Dollywood vice president of human resources Susan Loveday. Disney has faced criticism for high prices and the axing of rides.
One guest was furious after paying $1,394.91 for a 'bargain' day out at Disney with his family of four. Fans also criticised the park for its decision to replace Star Wars: Launch Bay with a new experience called The Magic of Disney Animation at Hollywood Studios. Fans have also been grieving the loss of the Muppet Vision 3D show and the removal of Tom Sawyer Island in Frontierland .
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Martha Stewart is launching her own skincare brand
Martha Stewart, 84, is launching a new skincare brand called Elm Biosciences, set to be available for purchase on September 17, 2025. The entrepreneur partnered with dermatologist Dr. Dhaval Bhanusali, who also helped develop Hailey Bieber's Rhode skincare brand, for this venture. Elm Biosciences is a two-part regimen consisting of an oral supplement and a serum, focused on extending the life of skin cells. Stewart has used the products herself, stating that her skin is now 'pretty fabulous' and praising the 'delightful concoction' for its texture, color, and scent. This latest business endeavor follows the release of her Netflix documentary, Martha, where she notably confessed to having an affair during her marriage.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
‘Unmistakable gentleness': why Pig is my feelgood movie
Michael Sarnoski's Pig is not an obvious feelgood movie. Its hero is a bedraggled hermit named Robin (Nicolas Cage) who lives in the woods with his pet pig. Robin is kind of a tough hang – a sullen misanthrope who just barely tolerates the occasional presence of Amir (Alex Wolff), the young businessman who buys truffles from him. We don't know who Robin was before, but it's clear that life has taken a lot from him already. And then someone steals his damn pig. He sets off to rescue her and soon finds himself drawn into the grubby underbelly of Portland's culinary scene, where chefs and waiters take part in bare-knuckled fights. We learn that Robin himself was once an esteemed chef and, called back into his old world on a quest for vengeance, it briefly looks like Pig is setting him up to be a scruffy John Wick. But, for Robin, revenge is a dish best served with the utmost care. Rather than violent showdowns we get a series of gentle sit-downs. First, he and Amir breakfast on some poorly cooked French toast. Amir tells Robin about his struggles growing up with a domineering father and a mentally ill mother. Robin responds by reminding him that the entire city of Portland is sure to be obliterated by earthquakes soon, so his personal problems really aren't that big a deal. 'You don't have to care,' Robin assures him. It would be easy to mistake that advice for nihilism, to interpret it as encouragement to swear off humanity the way Robin has. Because he's not wrong – even if you avoid the floods, everything you love in life will be washed away eventually. So maybe it's better not to care. But that doesn't quite jive with the rest of the movie. Setting aside the extremely upsetting pig-napping scene, Sarnoski's film is crafted with an unmistakable gentleness. The woodland where it begins is captured in long, patient takes that highlight the delicate play of light and water. Later, a home cooking scene is lit with such a gorgeous amber glow that it feels like a childhood memory. Each image is arranged with the care of a master chef assembling elements on a plate, and the yearning score from Alexis Grapsas and Philip Klein complements it beautifully. In short, this is not a film that's going to tell us not to care. In fact, it's the very opposite. Robin and Amir follow their breakfast with lunch at a hot new restaurant where plates of foam and smoke are accompanied by impassioned spiels about 'the story' each dish tells. Robin summons the head chef and quickly drives him into an existential crisis by asking him simply, kindly, if he actually likes cooking this stuff. Maintaining the monk-like stillness that he carries throughout the film, Robin asks the increasingly frantic chef why he's letting critics who don't matter and customers who'll never think about him again dictate the direction of his life. 'We don't get a lot of things to really care about,' Robin says. What's beautiful about Pig – beyond the tranquil music, soul-soothing photography, offbeat humour and Cage's meditative performance – is that it's a movie about the importance of choosing to care. There's a reason the film closes with a cover of Springsteen's I'm On Fire, where love is described in terms of knife wounds and flames. Yes, caring will open us up to failure and pain. Robin himself is a walking embodiment of all the damage that caring can do to a person. But, over the course of the movie, we see him being slowly brought back to life – first by his fierce desire to protect the one creature he still allows himself to love, and then in a growing ability to care about other people too. There are plenty of movies that provide a more conventional 'feelgood' role in my life. Ponyo paints the screen with pure joy. Airplane! is a barrage of beautifully braindead humour. When Harry Met Sally fits like a wool sweater and Lord of the Rings sweeps you up into a bucolic fantasy world where good always prevails. But I love Pig because it acknowledges all the reasons there are to feel absolutely terrible and then doubles down on the reasons to feel good anyway. We don't get a lot of things to really care about, but the list surely includes nice food, good company, and movies like this. Pig is available on Netflix in the US, UK and Australia
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Tom Brady must have 'lost half' his sense of humor in Gisele Bundchen divorce after roast regrets, claims comedian
Legendary NFL quarterback Tom Brady must have 'lost half' his sense of humor in his 2022 divorce to supermodel Gisele Bundchen, famous comedian Jeff Ross said. Ross' takedown of Brady comes as the now-Fox Sports commentator expressed regret in being the subject of a live roast on Netflix, with several talented comedians on the bill alongside plenty of the quarterback's NFL teammates and coaches. Ross, a legendary roaster who has targeted the likes of Donald Trump and Justin Bieber in the past, was on hand for the festivities and cracked jokes about Brady's time in the NFL and several aspects of his personal life. Brady appeared to take the jokes well during the broadcast, even when people came for his ex-wife, with it having an affect on his three children. 'I didn't realize you could lose half your sense of humor in a divorce,' Ross told Page Six. 'I want everyone to love the roast. To leave there feeling like it was the greatest night of their life.' 'Above that, beyond that, the guy deserves a Nobel Peace Prize for taking the hits for three hours so the rest of us can forget our problems.' Brady previously said after the event that he preferred when the jokes were about him. Bundchen has been dating Joaquim Valente since June 2023, while Brady has not had a high-profile girlfriend since the divorce. Plenty of jokes about Bundchen and martial arts were made since the supermodel entered the relationship post-Brady. Netflix has not held another live roast of the sort since Brady was the centerpiece, with other sporting legends like Tiger Woods and LeBron James having the star power necessary to be the next subject. Ross is known as the 'Roastmaster General' and is one of the leading names in the comedic genre. The set from comedian Nikki Glaser at Brady's roast sent her into superstardom, leading to her having a role with Prime Video for NFL games and hosting last year's Emmy Awards.
