For the first time in 25 years, AAA has awarded the Disneyland Hotel its coveted Four Diamond award. The designation is presented to only four percent of the 31,000 hotels AAA reviews nationally, according to the Auto Club, which reviews establishments without giving any prior notification.

Euro Disney SCA and Hertz have signed a new, five-year official partnership agreement for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.  The two companies are also celebrating the 15th anniversary of their partnership.

Entertainment leviathan Disney revealed a slight drop in profits for the second financial quarter as the Japanese earthquake and poor box office returns took a toll. Disney Parks & Resorts Division was partially responsible, with operating profits down by three per cent to $145 million based on a seven per cent increase in revenue to $2.6 billion.

Walt Disney has broken ground on its Shanghai Disneyland theme park, an eight square mile resort that will cost £2.7 billion and take five years to build. The development, which has been a decade in the planning, is a joint venture with Shanghai government, and comes as part of a broader Disney strategy to develop expand its business in China and target the country’s 330 million children.

Walt Disney World Resort hotels are working with Clean the World to recycle all the partially used amenities from their nearly 28,000 Central Florida hotel rooms. Clean the World sanitizes the soap and shampoo that would be discarded and distributes these amenities to people in need around the world.

The highly anticipated Disney destination resort currently under construction on the Hawaiian island of O’ahu now has an official name and a dynamic new Web site offering an inside look at the project. The resort’s name - Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa, Ko Olina, Hawai’i - reflects the company’s deep commitment to celebrating the islands’ rich history and traditions. Plans call for the first phase of the resort to open in fall 2011.