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Best Orlando Hotels (2026): Westgate Resorts Named Top Pick for Families and Theme Park Travelers by Expert Consumers

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NEW YORK, Aug. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Expert Consumers has named Westgate Resorts a top pick among Orlando hotels for 2026, citing the brand’s strong fit for families, theme park travelers, and larger groups planning vacations around Florida’s major attractions.

The recognition reflects a broader shift in how travelers compare Orlando hotels. Location remains important, but many families are also looking at room size, kitchen access, resort amenities, pool areas, dining options, and the ability to balance theme park days with slower resort time.

Best Orlando Hotels for Families and Theme Park Travelers

Westgate Resorts – a collection of resort-style hotel and villa properties near major Orlando attraction corridors, offering spacious accommodations, family-focused amenities, and convenient access to theme parks, dining, shopping, and entertainment.

For many visitors, Orlando travel planning now involves more than booking a room close to the parks. Families often need space for children, grandparents, luggage, snacks, strollers, and downtime between full attraction days. Expert Consumers highlighted Westgate Resorts because its Orlando-area properties address several of these needs through flexible layouts and resort-style features.

Which Westgate Resorts Are Included in Orlando?

The Expert Consumers review highlighted several Westgate Resorts properties that serve different Orlando travel needs:

Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa – a resort setting with water park access, dining, spa services, and fitness amenities.Westgate Vacation Villas Resort – villa-style accommodations, pools, recreation, marketplace access, and water park access in Kissimmee.Westgate Town Center Resort – a Kissimmee resort base with pools, pet-friendly options, and theme park route access.Westgate Palace – an International Drive-area stay near restaurants and entertainment.Westgate Blue Tree Resort – a Lake Buena Vista option with pools, pet-friendly features, and a quieter resort setting.Westgate Leisure Resort – an Orlando option with pools, marketplace access, and fitness amenities.Westgate Towers Resort – a Kissimmee-area stay with pool access for theme park-focused trips.

Why Do Westgate Resorts Fit Family and Theme Park Travel?

Expert Consumers recognized Westgate Resorts for offering several types of accommodations rather than one fixed hotel format. Suite-style and villa-style stays can be useful for families planning longer vacations or traveling with multiple age groups.

Many properties offer living areas, kitchen or kitchenette features, and separate sleeping spaces. These details can help guests prepare simple meals, store snacks and drinks, and create more breathing room after long days at theme parks. For families comparing standard hotel rooms with spacious Orlando villas, these features can make the stay feel more manageable.

The review also points to the importance of location variety. Westgate properties are positioned across key Orlando-area travel zones, including Kissimmee, Lake Buena Vista, and International Drive. This gives travelers options depending on whether the trip is focused on Disney-area access, Universal Orlando, dining, shopping, or a broader Central Florida itinerary.

How Do Westgate Resorts Support Theme Park Travelers?

For theme park travelers, convenience often depends on more than distance. A hotel also needs to support meals, recovery, recreation, and flexible downtime. Expert Consumers noted several Westgate Resorts features that can help with Orlando trip planning:

Pool and recreation areas can give families something to do on arrival days, rest days, or afternoons away from theme park crowds.On-site dining and marketplace access can reduce the need to leave the resort for every meal, snack, or basic travel item.Kitchen or kitchenette features at select accommodations can help families manage quick breakfasts, stored drinks, and simple meals.Fitness amenities, hot tubs, and spa services at select properties can support downtime for adults during longer stays.Water park access at select resorts can add a built-in activity option without requiring another full park day.

These features may be especially useful for longer Orlando stays, where constant park visits can become tiring or expensive. They also help families build lighter days into a vacation schedule without losing access to activities.

What Are Orlando Travelers Prioritizing in 2026?

Orlando remains one of the most planning-heavy family travel destinations in the U.S. Guests often compare family-friendly Orlando hotels, resorts near Disney World and Universal Orlando, hotels with water parks in Orlando, and spacious villas for family vacations.

Westgate Resorts was highlighted in the Expert Consumers review because it connects those search priorities with practical travel needs, including space, convenience, location variety, and resort-style amenities.

The full review is available on the Expert Consumers website.

About Westgate Resorts

Westgate Resorts is a diversified hospitality company headquartered in Orlando, Fla., featuring the largest privately held timeshare resort club in the world and a portfolio of more than 60 resort properties. The company offers spacious villa accommodations, world-class amenities, and family-friendly destinations in sought-after locations such as Orlando, Las Vegas, Gatlinburg, Park City, and Myrtle Beach. In 2025, the company expanded its footprint with the addition of VI Resorts by Westgate, enhancing its presence in the Pacific Northwest, Hawaii, Canada, and Mexico. Since its founding in 1982, Westgate has focused on creating memorable vacations and delivering exceptional service, while maintaining a commitment to innovation, hospitality, and community engagement. Whether guests are seeking relaxation, adventure, or a combination of both, the company’s 9,000 Team Members provide personalized and value-driven getaways tailored to every traveler’s needs. Connect with Westgate Resorts on social media through LinkedIn, Instagram or Facebook and learn more at WestgateResorts.com.

About ExpertConsumers.org: Expert Consumers delivers news and insights on consumer products and services. As an affiliate, Expert Consumers may earn commissions from sales generated using links provided.

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SOURCE ExpertConsumers.org

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Cetera Welcomes Former Commonwealth Advisors Jim Tucker, Patrick Bria and Their Team Overseeing Approximately $420 Million in AUA

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After building their businesses over two decades, the advisors chose Cetera’s Summit community for its high-touch service, flexibility and commitment to helping advisors operate their way

SAN DIEGO, Aug. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Cetera welcomes financial advisors Jim Tucker, CFP®, CRPS®, and Patrick Bria, and the Tucker Bria Wealth Strategies team overseeing approximately $420 million in AUA1. Tucker Bria Wealth Strategies joined Cetera through its Summit Financial Networks2 community. Based in Durham, North Carolina, co-founders Tucker and Bria have built their practice together since 2013. The two have been friends since their teenage years in Pittsburgh, and later were teammates on Duke University’s varsity swim team.

Tucker Bria Wealth Strategies – a name built around the firm’s belief that “Life alters wealth®” – provides individualized financial planning and wealth management to individuals and families navigating life’s transitions, from wealth creation and preservation to windfalls such as inheritances and business sales.

The move to Cetera follows more than a decade at Commonwealth Financial Network, a firm Tucker and Bria deliberately chose for its culture of experienced advisors and personalized support. When LPL announced its acquisition of Commonwealth, the partners launched a monthslong search for a new financial services partner, including traditional broker-dealers and RIA models.

Keeping continuity for clients, some of whom have been with the practice since its inception, was central to their search. With Cetera, the firm could maintain its existing custodian, Fidelity’s NFS. Another key decision point was Cetera’s flexibility, which allowed Tucker Bria to continue using third-party technology that had become integral to their client service model during their years at Commonwealth.

Ultimately, the firm wanted access to a well-established and scaled infrastructure, products, services and AI-powered growth resources – tools designed to augment how advisors already work, not change how they operate – without asking the practice to give up how it runs its business.

“We were deliberate about choosing Commonwealth, and we were just as deliberate about where we went next. We wanted a partner strong enough to provide the compliance, technology and back-office support we didn’t want to build ourselves, but flexible enough to let us keep running our business exactly the way we always have,” Tucker said. “Summit has a clear reason for being, the same way our previous firm did, and that mattered to us as much as anything else.”

The firm’s high-touch approach to client service – centered on close, ongoing relationships rather than scale, with regularly scheduled client meetings and financial planning built around each family’s specific circumstances – was also at the forefront of their decision-making process.

“We tell our team to love our clients, not because of what they’ve entrusted to us, but because that’s simply the standard we hold ourselves to,” Bria said. “Our next-gen advisors are in the room with clients from day one, learning the relationships, not just the technical side of the job. Because of this, our clients know their advisor team is going to be in place for the next 30-plus years.”

Tucker Bria’s next generation – including Wealth Advisors Josh Polidori, CFP®, CPFA®; Financial Planning Associate Chris Bleeker; and Financial Planning Associate Taylor Clement, CFP® – already serves as the primary point of contact for many of the firm’s second- and third-generation clients.

Tucker is also the author of Family, Legacy, Wealth: How to Nurture and Grow Your Family Orchard, a book designed to help families define and pass on their legacy, one that goes beyond money.

Welcoming the Tucker Bria team, Cetera Advisor Channel Leader Tom Halloran said: “Jim and Pat have spent decades building something special together that grew into a client-centered practice with the kind of robust next-gen advisor strategy that doesn’t happen by accident. We’re thrilled to welcome Jim, Pat and their team to Cetera, and we’re eager to help them expand their legacy for many years to come.”

About Cetera

Cetera is the premier financial advisor Wealth Hub, empowering independent advisors and institutions with personalized support, flexible affiliation models, and end-to-end growth solutions. Home to approximately 12,000 financial professionals and institutions, Cetera’s multi-channel ecosystem enables financial professionals to grow, scale or transition their businesses on their own terms.

Unlike traditional IBDs, Cetera offers true choice – blending modern technology, integrated wealth solutions, and a community-driven culture. Cetera’s five-channel model and commitment to long-term advisor value provide a scalable blueprint for consistent, repeatable growth.

As of March 31, 2026, Cetera firms manage approximately $630 billion in assets under administration and $296 billion in assets under management. Its Voice of the Customer program has captured nearly 50,000 advisor reviews, with more than 43,000 five-star ratings, giving Cetera a 4.7 out of 5 satisfaction score.

Learn more at www.cetera.com and follow Cetera on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and X.

Cetera is a network of independent retail firms, including those that are members of FINRA/SIPC: Cetera Advisors LLC; Cetera Wealth Services, LLC (formerly known as Cetera Advisor Networks); Cetera Investment Services LLC (marketed as Cetera Financial Institutions or Cetera Investors); and Cetera Financial Specialists LLC. Entities registered as investment advisers with the Securities and Exchange Commission include Cetera Investment Management LLC and Cetera Investment Advisers LLC. Cetera’s principal office is located at 655 W. Broadway, 11th Floor, San Diego, CA 92101.

Avantax Planning Partners, Inc., is an SEC registered investment adviser within the Aretec Group, Inc. (dba Cetera Holdings, an affiliate of CFG). All the referenced entities are under common ownership.

Cetera exclusively provides investment products and services through its representatives. Although Cetera does not provide tax or legal advice, or supervise tax, accounting or legal services, Cetera representatives may offer these services through their independent outside businesses. This information is not intended as tax or legal advice.

1Value approximated based on information provided to Cetera for asset holdings as of April 30, 2026.

2Summit Financial Networks is a region of Cetera Wealth Services, LLC. Securities offered through Cetera Wealth Services, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory services offered through Cetera Investment Advisers LLC, a registered investment adviser. Cetera is under separate ownership from any other named entity.

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SOURCE Cetera Financial Group

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Extra Space Storage CEO Joe Margolis Named One of Glassdoor’s Best CEOs of 2026

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SALT LAKE CITY, Aug. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Extra Space Storage Inc. (NYSE: EXR) today announced that CEO Joe Margolis has been named a 2026 Glassdoor Best CEOs Award recipient. The award recognizes chief executives whose leadership has earned high marks directly from employees.

Unlike many workplace honors, the Glassdoor award does not include a self-nomination process. Winners are determined solely through voluntary, anonymous reviews submitted by current and former employees. Margolis ranked No. 25 among the chief executives recognized, based on reviews submitted between May 16, 2025, and May 16, 2026. Additional details about the award methodology are available on Glassdoor’s awards website.

“This recognition belongs to our entire team and reflects the extraordinary culture we have built together at Extra Space,” Margolis said. “Every team member plays an important role in strengthening our culture and living our core values of Excellence, Teamwork, Innovation, Integrity and Passion. I am grateful to work alongside such talented people who make Extra Space an exceptional place to work and position us for a bright future.”

To learn more about working at Extra Space and explore current career opportunities, visit careers.extraspace.com. Extra Space has received multiple honors recognizing its workplace and company culture, see the full list here.

About Extra Space Storage Inc.

Extra Space Storage Inc., headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, is a self-administered and self-managed REIT and a member of the S&P 500. As of June 30, 2026, the Company owned and/or operated 4,410 self-storage stores in 42 states and Washington, D.C. The Company’s stores comprise approximately 3.0 million units and approximately 341.0 million square feet of rentable space operating under the Extra Space brand. The Company offers customers a wide selection of conveniently located and secure storage units across the country, including boat storage, RV storage and business storage. It is the largest operator of self-storage properties in the United States.

About Glassdoor

Glassdoor is transforming how people find jobs and companies they love by providing greater workplace transparency. Professionals use Glassdoor to research company ratings, reviews, salaries and more across millions of employers, and to participate in candid workplace conversations. Companies use Glassdoor to post jobs and attract talent through employer-branding and employee-insights products. Glassdoor is part of Indeed, a subsidiary of Recruit Holdings and a global leader in human resources technology and business solutions.

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SOURCE Extra Space Storage, Inc.

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FinThrive’s AI-Powered Fusion® Platform Earns Gold Stevie® Award for Healthcare Technology Innovation

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PLANO, Texas, Aug. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — FinThrive, Inc., a leading healthcare revenue management software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider, today announced it has won a Gold Stevie® Award in the Technical Innovation of the Year – Hospitals & Health Systems category in the 2026 Stevie Awards for Technology Excellence.

The Stevie Awards for Technology Excellence celebrate the remarkable accomplishments of individuals, teams, and organizations shaping the future of technology across all industry sectors.

For more than 20 years, the Stevie Awards have been touted as the world’s premier business awards – the newest program sets a global benchmark for technology achievement.

The award recognizes FinThrive Fusion®, the company’s first‑of‑its‑kind AI‑powered data intelligence platform designed to unify and optimize the entire healthcare revenue cycle, enabling predictive insights, intelligent automation and autonomous workflows. By transforming disconnected healthcare data into intelligence, Fusion helps organizations prevent denials, billing errors and revenue leakage.

“Innovation matters only when it delivers meaningful outcomes for healthcare providers,” said Hemant Goel, President and CEO, FinThrive. “We’re honored that the Stevie Awards recognized FinThrive Fusion and our commitment to helping hospitals and health systems harness AI and connected data to strengthen financial performance, improve operational efficiency and better serve patients.”

Today, FinThrive supports healthcare organizations in all 50 states, processes more than 200 million claims annually and helps manage more than $1.4 trillion in healthcare revenue. Three out of five U.S. hospitals and health systems rely on FinThrive solutions to navigate today’s complex reimbursement environment.

More than 180 professionals worldwide participated in the judging process to select this year’s honorees.

About FinThrive 

FinThrive is a healthcare revenue cycle management (RCM) technology company that helps healthcare organizations maximize revenue, reduce costs and accelerate cash flow through a unified, intelligent platform. At the core is FinThrive Fusion, the industry’s first data intelligence platform built specifically for healthcare revenue operations. Powered by Fusion, FinThrive’s AI transforms complex, manual revenue cycle tasks into streamlined, autonomous workflows. It unifies data across the enterprise while supporting regulatory compliance. As one of the most advanced SaaS platforms in healthcare, FinThrive delivers a connected, holistic approach to revenue optimization. FinThrive’s solutions span patient access, charge integrity, claims and contract management, insurance discovery, automation, analytics and education, enabling organizations to manage performance across the front, middle and back office with greater visibility and control. Learn more at FinThrive.com.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/finthrives-ai-powered-fusion-platform-earns-gold-stevie-award-for-healthcare-technology-innovation-302849062.html

SOURCE FinThrive, Inc.

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