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