Marketing Disclosure

We strive for transparency and objectivity, among other things, in the content of our blog. Transparency and objectivity are the reason this page exists. That, and because the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising requires us to have this page.

In the interest of transparency, we pay for the vast majority of the experiences you read about here, as well as the operational expenses of this website. There is no third party corporate investor or silent partner–Disney Tourist Blog is owned and operated solely by the Bricker family (Sarah, Tom & Baby Megatron).

Yes, we travel frequently, but almost all of the costs associated with such travel are borne by us. We spend an obscene amount of our own money at Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and the international Disney Parks each year on Annual Passes, resort reservations, food & beverage, etc.

That said, here are some items of interest for you readers…

Review Policy

Media Events – From time to time, we’re invited to media events that aren’t available to the general public; the FTC guidelines are murky as to treatment of these events, but any post we write that reviews experiences had at a media event we will clearly indicate that said experience discussed involved a media event.

It is not uncommon for media attendees to receive various free items at these events that are unavailable (or available at a cost) to the general public. With the exception of the occasional stuffed animal for Megatron (hard to explain “journalistic ethics” to a baby), we give all of these away.

If we’re simply sharing photos taken at a media event that could have been taken on any ordinary day, we will generally not make such a disclosure. Nor is one even conceivably required under even the most expansive reading of the FTC guidelines.

At various times we may review other things or experiences on the blog. If the product, service, or experience was provided to us without charge, we will disclose such in the text of the article. If we’re silent as to who footed the bill, we did. (You’ll notice that none of our Disney dining or resort reviews have disclosures…that’s why!) Regardless, we will always call things as we see them as we strive to remain objective.

Media Rates – Hotels and other travel destinations and experiences sometimes offer discounts to bloggers; occasionally, we receive these discounts. When we do receive these discounts, we are under no obligation to report favorably on any experience that we received at a discounted rate. Much more frequently, we pay out of pocket for our rooms, usually booking discounts for Annual Passholders or Florida/California residents.

Advertising

Websites are expensive. In order to pay for the operational costs of this website and various expenses, we use ads and affiliate programs.

Ads: We currently run static banner ads and contextual advertising via Google AdSense and AdThrive. Google delivers ads to the vast majority of websites on the internet, so you’re probably familiar with these ads. We do not have control over what ads are delivered through contextual advertising, but you do. Google delivers these ads based upon your known preferences and browsing history (sort of Big Brother-ish, right?). Since this is a Disney fan-site, we have blocked a number of questionable categories of ads from displaying here.

Affiliate Programs: Like virtually every website on the internet, some of the shopping links on DisneyTouristBlog.com are referral links. These links track the source of the purchase back to this website through an affiliate program. When you click on one of those links and buy something (including car rentals and hotel rooms from Priceline, Expedia, Hotels.com, etc.; theme park parks from Undercover Tourist, ParkSavers, and Get Away Today; photography equipment and items to pack from Amazon or B&H, etc.), we receive a small commission from the linked site for referring you.

We only link to products and services that we personally use and recommend, and our linkage is not motivated by the prospect of being enriched by some pocket change. If you have a purchase to make, though, we’d really appreciate it if you’d use these links! They don’t affect the price of anything you buy. The only thing they do is help us keep operating the site. And hopefully you do like the site.

Conflicts of Interest

At no time has Disney had any editorial control, actual or implied, in the content, message, or tone of this site. Over the years, Disney has sent the occasional story “correction” when they believe articles contain factual inaccuracies. We have edited posts when it’s been warranted, and left them alone when there was nothing to actually correct.

Finally, DisneyTouristBlog.com is not an official site of The Walt Disney Company nor is it associated with TWDC in any way. Content on this site is all © Tom Bricker unless otherwise noted. Feel free to link to the site and/or its photos, or to use any of the photos for non-commercial uses.