A mum says moving close to Disneyland “saved her marriage” and she now takes her family to the park up to four times a week. Holly Cole, 29, decided to move 700 miles from Nashville, Tennessee, US, with husband, Cody, 29, and daughter, Willow, two, to Auburndale, Orlando, Florida, US.
She has been Disney mad since aged five, and is now just 40 minutes from the parks, since December 2022. Now the family visit the parks three to four times every single week – and spend £33 a month on their season passes.
Holly admits she doesn’t go to Disney “for the rides” but likes to go for the “festival feel”. She credits the move with improving the relationship with her husband - which was "on the rocks" - because their mental health has increased.
Their housing situation back in Tennessee was also a strain on their marriage, she said. Holly, a veteran, who lives in Orlando, Florida, US, said: “It was the best decision I have ever made.
“We go three to four times a week. I’ve been a fan of Disney since I was five and it’s always been my dream to live down here.
“When Harry Potter world opened up at Universal, I was even more keen to move. Since moving here my relationship with my husband has improved.
"We had been struggling really badly with our mental health before and had a lot of stresses with our housing situation back in Tennessee that was a strain on our relationship. At Disney you can forget everything else.
“Disney saved our marriage. It’s pure joy and happiness.”
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Holly and Cody, a delivery man, were finally able to move to Orlando, Florida, in December 2022 – after saving up for the last year. The family now get to go to Disneyland up to four times a week – and love visiting their favourite park, Epcot.
Holly said: “Cody is not as big a fan of Disney as me, but he still loves coming and watching Willow interact with the characters. Epcot is our favourite. I don’t go for the rides, I go for the festival feel.”
Holly says the family has Disney films and TV shows on every night in their household. She said: “We have Disney on most nights. We love Tangled and Willow loves Frozen.”
The couple are also self-confessed “Harry Potter nerds” and hope to reinstate their Universal studios season pass when Willow is old enough for the rides – which costs £30 a month per person. Holy said: “We’re both big Harry Potter fans.
“It’s our personalities. You can’t live in this house and not be a Potter fan.”
Holly says being able to visit Disney so often helps with her mental health – as she suffers from PTSD after a stint in the navy. She said: “When I’m at Disney I can forget everything else going on.
“Since I’ve moved here, my mental health has improved. Our marriage was on the rocks before we moved here.”
Holly is also growing a collection of Loungefly Disney bags – which cost £50 each – and currently has 10 of the themed backpacks. She said: “I’m building my collection up at the moment.
“I have some star wars and Disney park ones so far. My favourite princess is Rapunzel but Goofy is my favourite character. My daughter loves Mickey – she demands to meet him every time we go in the park.”
Cody said: "We've been happier since we moved. It's crazy the impact theme parks can have.
"My first time at Disney was last May. Walking down the main street in Magic Kingdom and hearing the main tune was enough to bring a tear to my eye.
"I'm surprised I like Disney as much a I do. I enjoy it every time we go. It's awesome to see how Willow interacts with all the characters. There's something different about Disney."
