As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
I have never cruised before, on any line. Ever. Toying with the idea of a 5 night Bahamian cruise in Feb 2019 as an early grad gift for my DD. She is a GINORMOUS Marvel fan AND she's always wanted to go on a DCL. I'm the chicken <insert word> who is terrified of being "stuck" with no escape. I also have a special needs DS which is yet another terrifying thing. But, since losing my DH I am trying to give my kids crazy new opportunities whenever I can and lead by example that thebskies the limit. So now onto my questions:
Best spot: Forward, mid or rear part of the ship? I'm looking at concierge level if that makes a difference. What should I keep in mind? What's a "must-do", a "eh, I'm glad I did it but wouldn't do it again" and a "could do without". My kids will be 18 and 15 on the trip. TIA
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Mid-ship, lower levels feel less movement than any other area of the ship.
If you are wanting a Marvel Day At Sea--I believe that is offered on the 7 night itineraries.
Our best tips, having sailed 8 times with DCL:
--pre-purchase a photo package
--try to be in the first groups getting onto the ship (more time on the ship)
--get up and out early on Castaway Cay Day(s)
--Rebook on board if you love it
What ports are on the itinerary? That would help with recommendations too. That's a big part of the "what to do or not" part of the question. Most things on the ship are pretty awesome.
I've stayed midship and aft, and honestly didn't notice much difference in motion. I would say it doesn't have a HUGE impact on most people. Of course some people it does, but I wouldn't let it make or break you.
I've started choosing more now by what I want to be close to (or NOT close to). When my husband and I went we stayed aft to be closer to the adult dining and bar spaces. You may also not want to stay close to Cabanas or the pool as there might be some additional noise.
DCL is sooooo great, I love it! Excited that you're going on a cruise! Ask lots of questions!!
__________________
I want adventure in the great wide somewhere...and coffee
The ship will be large enough that you should not feel trapped. You can go hours without even noticing you are on the ocean, if you don’t go onto the open decks.
I find cruises much easier to plan and much more relaxing than park trips. You can look at Personal Navigators (daily schedules) from previous cruises to get a sense of what might be happening, but you can also just make plans for each day as it arrives.
Your 18-year-old will not able to go to the teen club, but will have access to all adult facilities (just not the ability to drink alcohol). The adults-only restaurant, Palo, would be a great treat for graduation, as long as your 15-year-old is comfortable without you. You could get him dinner at a quick-service restaurants on the pool deck before you go to dinner, then send him to the teen club. If you have early dinner seating, you could even make a late dining reservation at Palo and join him for an appetizer in the main dining room while he eats dinner.
The cast members on the Disney ships will be as accomodating as possible to whatever needs your family has. If you sail Concierge, the Concierge hosts will be able to help with any questions or problems that arise.
One tip that I would give is to bring different colored highlighters for your Personal Navigators. If each of you marks the navigator with a different color you can each plan your days easily. The navigator for the next day will be put in your room the night before and if you want extras you can pick them up at the Guest Relations desk. I was very nervous before my first cruise because I didn't know what to expect, but it's so easy and relaxing, yet there's lots to do. I think you'll all have an amazing time.
This was just our personal experience from last October's 5 nights on the Dream.
Best deck : mid-ships, deck 6 - right in the middle of the ship, near the elevators and stairs, very well balanced place to be.
Must do : any show in the Walt Disney Theatre - Broadway-quality, stunning, made me cry every night!
Glad I've done but just meh : walk around the shops in Nassau. All either very high-end designer, or junky, tatty, souvenir rubbish.
Could give it a miss : nothing! We loved everything we did, from swimming at Castaway Cay in the pouring rain (once the island had reopened after the storm!), to sitting on the top deck in the adults-only area at night with coffee and just watching the sea, to Pirate Night with fireworks at sea, to Halloween night and the ever-changing pumpkin tree, I could go on and on. We became firm friends with our table-mates at dinner (and are now friends on Facebook, despite living on different continents!), the food was all amazing, and one day I had two ice-creams for lunch.
Wow. Have a wonderful time!
__________________
Silvercat
(Enjoy reading trip reports? Why not try my books, "Tiggerific Travels Parts 1, 2, 3 & the new volume 4" - available now as e-books)
We always go with midship, as we find the movement is less there.
As for must-dos, it depends to a certain extent on which ship and which itinerary you're doing and what your personal preferences are - i.e. do you want to see the shows? Is dining important to you? etc.
The front of the ship is best for getting to the adult pool & the spa. The rear is best for able to pop up to the beverage station. And I've read the middle is best if you think you may struggle with motion sickness, although with the exception of unusually rough seas, i've never been motion sick on DCL (but I do suffer from it on small boats & back seats of cars).
As far as feeling "stuck", on the contrary I've felt so much more free on the ship than I expected. Endless fresh air. And no worries for stuck in terms of things to do - we always leave many things the never got the chance to do.
I'm so excited for you and your kids - youre gonna have a great time!
__________________
Don't let your heart be filled with sorrow, for all you know, tomorrow, the dream that you wish will come true.
About This Page: 
Our last WDW trip as a family 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
]Read all about our Disney Experiences on the Williams Family Blog: 
PassPorter Guide Author
Hybrid Mode
