As if it's not fun enough to set sail for a Disney Cruise, Disney pumps up the volume on the experience with the lively Pirates in the Caribbean Night. It may be one of the best Disney themed parties ever. A whole evening of swash buckling fun designed to entertain both young and old with a series of exciting events!

The annual theme park attendance rates are in and the Magic Kingdom finds itself at the top of the list. AECOM, a professional technical and management support services firm, compiled the information from parks worldwide and the Themed Entertainment Association published the info.

Disney's Animal Kingdom is celebrating conservation events all year long! As a zoological park it is regularly engaged in ongoing research and conservation efforts involving its animal species. Today the folks in the Park are celebrating Pollinator Day! Guests who stop by Rakiki's Planet Watch can participate in Pollinator Day activities that include the opportunity to see two different types of bees and to learn how to create a pollinator garden at home.

Got a letter to send? How about sending a bit of Disney and Pixar charm along with it? Late last week, the United States Postal Office debuted a series of new stamps featuring popular characters from several Disney Pixar films.

We've talked about Postcards and the Art of Correspondence before, but if you're looking to buy a unique souvenir for a friend or family member the next time you're at Walt Disney World, go nuts! Don't just send any postcard, send a Coconut Postcard!

Visiting the happiest place on earth just got a bit pricier. At the end of last week, Disney raised ticket prices to its Walt Disney World parks.

Both single and multi-day passes were hit by the latest increase. A single day ticket to one of the Walt Disney World parks now stands at $89, a 4.7 percent increase from the previous price. Mutli-day tickets were also subject to the rise in prices and jumped up anywhere from five to sevent percent. Adding the "Park Hopper" option to the multi-day tickets rose by $2 and now stands at $57.

Summer is here and the temperatures are already breaking records all across the country. The combination of high heat, the beautiful Florida sun, and a vigorous theme park touring strategy can make for disaster if we don't take care. Be sure not to let your Walt Disney World vacation turn into a family emergency due to heat illness. Know the signs and symptoms, have a plan to get out of the heat and sun to cool down.

The folks at Pixar have given us many of our favorite characters, and now some of that same magic will be found at sea. Recently, the Disney Cruise Line announced a series of Pixar-themed cruises planned for this fall.

Cruises set to offer the Pixar theme are seven-night costal California cruises aboard the Disney Wonder. A variety of activities centered around Pixar characters are planned for each cruise and will include:

• Artist and filmmakers giving an inside look into the making of the newest Pixar film, Brave.
• Sneak peeks of upcoming Pixar films

Here are a few attraction- and food-related news tidbits from around Walt Disney World.

First off, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad has reopened after a long refurbishment with some changes. If you're heading out to take in the Magic Kingdom attraction, you'll see the Fastpass and Stand-by line entrances have been switched. The Stand-by queue area has been lengthened by quite a bit with the promise of additional props to be added to the waiting area in the weeks to come. As for the ride itself, not a whole lot appears to have changed; there are reports the coaster is smoother overall.

Though it's set to start this fall, it's never too early to start talking about Epcot's International Food and Wine Festival. For 2012, the festival is set to run 46 days (September 28 through November 12) and will have some new features as well as returning favorites.