8 Days Without the Kiddos – June 2014 Trip Report COMPLETED - Page 9 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
Sorry you had such a disappointing time at 50's PTC - we have only gone there once - and my DH and DD were not crazy about it - they actually do not like the "teasing" (especially if they are really hungry :roll eyes but we had good luck with a server that teased just enough - but was not over the top. And what stands out most for me food wise was the dessert!!!
And that is a bummer about the fast passes for Fantasmic! We also had a similar experience with the dining package - and since then we have found we are better off seating ourselves.
I guess they did change the seating. The dinner package seating was in the center.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22
Sorry that 50's Prime Time was a disappointment. The Fantasmic Dining Package seating used to be on the far left, so I guess they have changed that with the FP+. Interesting!
It was still an incredible show, but would have been better from somewhere closer to the center.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DLinNH
Great job so far, I'm glad I found your report! I too did not care for 50's PTC. The food was not good for the price. On our next trip I plan to eat at HBD....I haven't been there since 1999!
I am sure we will go back sometime, but not for a few trips. To many other choices.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mom to 3 princesses and 1 prince
We own DVC, and Saratoga Springs is our home resort, although we haven't stayed there yet. You got a great deal! I looked up your dates, and it would have been 235 points. With the average rental price of $13/point, you would have paid over $3000 for your week at SSR! I'm sure the rack rate would have been even higher.
WOW! I did not know it was that reat of a deal. One note, we did not stay there the last night, so it was on 7-night at SSR, but still, I guess I did good.
Quote:
Originally Posted by shazza
Your experience at PT was similar to ours a few years ago. Haven't made it back yet, but so many folks love it. Maybe the server had a bad day, you would think they would all be expected to entertain.
I hope you have better luck with a few of your ADRs.
We did eventially. It is not that we had terrible experinces, but sometimes when you research as much as I did and get this "ideal" experience in your head. Probably my fault.
__________________
Click Here or on the picture above to read by personal travel blog.
Sorry you have been disappointed with your meals. But it looks like you have been doing pretty well with everything else. DW and I are going to be at WDW In Sept. We also used RCI for our stay. The first week we are staying at VWL. It cost us 36 trading power points (RCI weeks system) and $209 exchange fee and $49 insurance plus we will pay the $99 amenities fee at check in for a 1 bedroom villa. I will have to do a comparison to see how much we actually saved. RCI is a great way to travel. Looking forward to the rest of your trip.
This was the day I was most excited about while in the planning process. When we were in WDW in 2010 we did go to Epcot, but only spent one day there. That year it was on day 3, and if you have kids you know about “Day 3” of any family vacation, it is breakdown day for the kids. So by 11:00 am that trip we were headed back to the hotel with our cranky kids. We were able to come back later that night, but we just did not get to experience Epcot the way I wanted to. So I was very excited about spending the day exploring, and that is what we did.
This was and EMH day, and I was intent on making it. We had not stayed too late at DHS the night before, so we were up early and heading for the bus station at Saratoga Springs by about 7:15 am. By the time we got there and in the line, it was just prior to EMH opening and the line to get in was huge.
I had FP+ scheduled for that morning. Honestly, the only one I cared to make was Soaren. The other two were really just throw away, and I do not even remember what they were. We did not use them. My plan was to let them lapse by the time we rode Soaren at 10 am, then try to get a Bonus FP+ in the afternoon for a headline attraction. I have to be honest, we never tried to get the Bonus FP.
My plan for the morning was to head straight to Test Track at rope drop. We did not get to ride it in 2010, and it was on our list. So we booked it over as fast as our legs would take us. This line was really cool. I thought the concept cars were neat. We did have a short wait in line, but soon were ushered into the design area. We made a mistake here. Candi and I were assigned to one station. I wish I would have asked to design my own car. We could not agree on anything, but we had a design.
Then we loaded into the test car and off we went. I have to say that I thought this was incredibly cool. All the indoor tests we fun. Our car design even lead in a couple of the tests. Then the doors open and we started the outside portion -- man that was fun. I know you go much faster on the highway, but it felt like we were flying. Then it was all over.
As we exited we discovered that our design ended up in 2nd place. Thats okay, we had a 1st place experience. We loved it. We also had a lot of fun in the unload and play area of the ride. It was nice to just spend time and play together.
Now it is still early, about 8:45 I think. So we just stayed in that area of Epcot, not really knowing what was around. We immediately saw Mission Space. I think this was one of our FP+, but I do not remember using it. There was no wait. We started in the intense line, but chickened out. The articles to look at in the line were interesting I am sure, but we were walking past so quickly we did not spend much time looking, then we were directed in. I am not sure which position I filled on the launch. I was in position #3 on the dots. I was nervous when they loaded is in the ride vehicle, it was very claustrophobic. We had both enjoyed Star Tours the day prior, and Mission Space was very similar. I do not know that I would do the intense side, but my boys will love this next year.
An interesting side effect of going without your kids, you start measuring rides based on what your kids will like. They will also love the next attraction we visited, Ellen’s Energy Adventure.
I was hesitant to even take the time for Ellen, as it has a bit of a bad rep online. But it was right there, so we went it. The opening room movie was VERY cheesy, but soon enough we went inside the next room. Candi and I went to the center of the front row in the middle section. I really did not know what to expect, so after the next video, I thought it was cool when the seating started to move. The Ellen animatronic was bad, but overall, we did enjoy. My boys love dinosaurs, so they will love this ride.
As we left, we headed into the innovations building right outside Ellen’s. As soon as we went in we were interested in the model future home, but the tour had just started and we did not want to wait. So went further in, and the cast member at Habit Hero’s invited un in. We really did not know what to expect, but I have to say this was a lot of fun. We had not expect Disney to trick us into exercising on our vacation, but we did and we had fun. Plus you get a FREE gift on the way out.
By this time it is after 10, so we decided to head toward Soaren for our FP+ that was usable at 10. We still had plenty time. On the way I spotted a Photo Pass stop, so of course we stopped at the fountain. I have no idea where the Photo Pass pictures were, I could not find them. May be confusing this with another day. They start getting meshed tegether.
Then as we headed on I spotted something we missed last time, Club Cool. My sister still reminds me that we did not go here in 2010. She may not have been on this trip, but we stopped in. I think we tried them all, including Beverly. I was not really a fan of any of the offerings. The only one that I even took more than one drink of was a watermelon flavor. Candi thought it was interesting that there was one from Thiland. We had an exchange student from there, who lived with us once. Wonder if he has ever tried it?
By this time we are running out of time on our Soaren FP+, so we booked it to the Land Pavillion. I think we went through the FP line with about five minutes to spare. when we got to the loading line, I asked to the on the top row. We rode Soaren in 2010, and it was just as fun. I have to admit that I am a little scared of this ride. I know you are secured in the seat, but I hate heights. Still love it.
Leaving Soaren at lunch time means Sunshine Seasons for lunch. We did eat here in 2010, and decided to give it another try. It get great reviews online. I had the children’s Beef & Broccoli form the Asian bay. It came with a small water and grapes for like $6. Candi had a grilled chicken ceasar salad and a slice if the Strawberry Shortcake. We quickly found a seat and enjoyed lunch. I would rate it “fine.” Quality about the same as the mall food court, except the dessert was extra yummy. I wish it was bigger.
Full bellies we headed out, but there was no waiting on Living With The Land, so we hopped on. It is so fun to lean as you are entertained on a ride. It was not the best part of the season, as there was not much blooming. My favorite part is the farm scene.
After lunch we headed to the other innovations building to the Disney Visa Character Spot. It was still to early when we got there so we took a few minutes and did the Storm Tracker Exhibit. It was a neat time filler, but we were there for the FREE picture. My middle so is nuts about tornado. In October of last year one hit our town and destroyed the church where I preach. Since them, he wants to talk indlessly about tornados. I guess it is his way of coping. Anyway, this would be something he would love.
I had read about this in the Disney Visa Newsletter we get, and we thought it sounded good. It was about 12:45, and there was already a line. We just joined it and made some new friends while we waited. We thought it was funny that they would not tell you who the characters were, it was a big secret. So we just speculated with people in the line. As you see, it was Minnie and Goofy. I had my vinylmation out for signatures. I was not sure why, but Mennie did not remember signing it already the day before at DHS. Oh well, it was fun playing with them for a couple minutes.
By this time we were ready to head on to World Showcase, as we had basically missed out in it altogether in 2010.
Stay Tuned: PART 2 - Epcot World Showcase & Chef De France
Back To Daily Play-By-Play Table of Contents CLICK HERE
__________________
Click Here or on the picture above to read by personal travel blog.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Sounds like a good morning at Epcot. I love Soarin'!! It's my favorite Disney attraction. On one trip, the Land Pavillion was open extra long (from 9-10pm) because Test Track was down for refurb. The really great thing was that not that many people knew about it. I spent a couple nights on that vacation riding Soarin' over and over again during that hour and then walking thru an EMPTY Epcot to the IG and back to my resort. One of my coolest Disney experiences.
I also love LWTL and I ride it every trip. Please tell me that you also rode Spaceship Earth! Those are my 3 must do Epcot attractions.
Can't wait to hear about your exploration of World Showcase......another one of my favorite things to do. There's so much to see (and eat!)
(btw that was Pluto with Minnie in your Visa Meet and Greet photo, not Goofy).
Sorry 50's was not up to par. I agree the server can make it or break it. We have luckily had some pretty great servers who truly made it a wonderful experience, but on our last visit there she was just so-so. Really did not get into "her part".
Sounds like you are off to a good start at Epcot!!! Excited for you how early you were able to get moving in the morning! We have gotten so much slower on our vacations - especially with a teen to contend with
__________________
Lisa Co-Guide to Sharing the Adventure: Disney World Trip Reports
Glad you are taking your time at Epcot. There is so much to experience there!
We always enjoy Ellen's Energy Adventure. For one thing it's a great place to relax in the A/C for 45 minutes! And yeah, it's corny, but who cares? It's Disney!
Sorry you have been disappointed with your meals. But it looks like you have been doing pretty well with everything else. DW and I are going to be at WDW In Sept. We also used RCI for our stay. The first week we are staying at VWL. It cost us 36 trading power points (RCI weeks system) and $209 exchange fee and $49 insurance plus we will pay the $99 amenities fee at check in for a 1 bedroom villa. I will have to do a comparison to see how much we actually saved. RCI is a great way to travel. Looking forward to the rest of your trip.
That is about the same for us. I never dreamed it was a $3000 stay though. WOW!
__________________
Click Here or on the picture above to read by personal travel blog.
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
That is about the same for us. I never dreamed it was a $3000 stay though. WOW!
Well, hold on to your hat because you got an even better deal than you thought. Rack rates for a SSR 1BR for the beginning of June are $497 per night plus you would have to pay a sales tax and room occupancy tax that totals 13% if you were to book with Disney.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
EPCOT is our favorite park. It's actually one of my kids favorite park as well, but they are big time foodies. I'm glad you finally got to ride Test Track. That's actually my son's favorite ride. I can't wait to hear more!
You all covered quite a bit of ground in Future World, making great use of the EMH!
It was a busy morning
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colexis Mom
Great pictures from DHS! Sorry 50's PTC didn't live up to your expectations! Great start to your day at Epcot!
Thanks, Happy you are enjoying them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by HollyH
Well, hold on to your hat because you got an even better deal than you thought. Rack rates for a SSR 1BR for the beginning of June are $497 per night plus you would have to pay a sales tax and room occupancy tax that totals 13% if you were to book with Disney.
$497 x 7 = $3479 + $452.27 tax = $3,931.27
So you did really well !!!!!!!!
WOW, that is amazing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheAyers
EPCOT is our favorite park. It's actually one of my kids favorite park as well, but they are big time foodies. I'm glad you finally got to ride Test Track. That's actually my son's favorite ride. I can't wait to hear more!
TT was a lot of fun.
__________________
Click Here or on the picture above to read by personal travel blog.
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.
About This Page: 
but we had good luck with a server that teased just enough - but was not over the top. And what stands out most for me food wise was the dessert!!!
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
Great start to your day at Epcot! 
!!!!!!!!
Linear Mode
