From no trip to celebrating 20 years together… planning it all in less than 100 days! UPDATED 6/30 - Page 84 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
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We've ended up on roads a few times that I wasn't sure we should be on - once trying to get to AKL. But I figure if they were really off limits, they should be gated!
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Love how the WL is developing and will be quite something when completed! Looked like a good meal at Geysir Point and hope to try this in the future as it looks like such a relaxing spot with the views! That detour you took seems the way to go with less traffic.
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
Even with all the times that I've been to Disney, I am still confused by the roadways! I guess mostly because my DH always drives, so I'm not paying attention as much as if I was the driver, but there seems to be a lot of changes to the roadways lately!
They are constantly changing the roadways. Honestly, I don't think we've ever been to Disney when there aren't any roadworks going on.
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We have gone that way many times. My husband is very good at finding back ways to things. We drive down and we come in a back way to Disney to totally avoid I-4. We avoid I-4 if at all possible!
That I can understand. I swear that road gets worse... and I never thought I'd say that!
WL will be so very nice once it's all completed. I've visited numerous times but have yet to actually stay there! Some day...
I hope you're able to. It is very neat.
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Add me to the list of having driven that back way many, many times! Before and during the DTD construction, I went that way a LOT to avoid Buena Vista Rd - especially when staying at POR, POFQ or SSR. I've also stayed at that Sheraton Lake Buena Vista a few times, so it's super convenient for that hotel too.
We've ended up on roads a few times that I wasn't sure we should be on - once trying to get to AKL. But I figure if they were really off limits, they should be gated!
My thoughts too! Mind you, there was the time we ended up behind Magic Kingdom in the "firework fallout zone"... we figured we weren't supposed to be there, but even that wasn't gated!
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.
Love how the WL is developing and will be quite something when completed!
I'm sure it will be.
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Looked like a good meal at Geysir Point and hope to try this in the future as it looks like such a relaxing spot with the views! That detour you took seems the way to go with less traffic.
Oh definitely. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Much less stressful than the I-4....
Saturday 4 March – part three: “oh look at that one”
Soon we were pulling into Discovery Cove…
I do love the fact that the theming starts pretty much the second you pull into the parking lot. It’s designed to transport you to somewhere like Hawai’i, and now having been there, I think I appreciated the theming a lot more.
They had the standard security check when we arrived, and you should have seen how much food and drink had already been disposed of. Because it’s all free when you’re in the park, you’re not allowed to bring anything in with you, which I think is fair enough. You also can’t bring in things like flotation devices for kids, something the guy in front got hauled up over. He was told either they could hold them for him, or he could take them back to the car. He opted for the former.
Inside, this entrance building really reminded me of Aulani. As I say, I think this all meant to me now, with a bit more travel under my belt.
On the two previous occasions we’ve been here, after they take your photo for your photo ID that you wear around your neck all day, they’ve done a complimentary photo of your party. That was apparently discontinued last year, and they also used to take you down to a certain point in the park, and explain everything to you. You’re now left to meander your own way, which is fine, but it’s a bit of a shock, when that’s not how they’ve done it before.
As you can see from the photos, the foliage here is very lush, and you forget you’re in central Florida almost as soon as you arrive here. It is brilliantly done.
We found ourselves by guest services, and at least here, they do stop you and ask if you’ve been before, and if you want an explanation of where to go, but it’s certainly a lot shorter than we’ve had before. The woman kind of went through her spiel, and it was then like “any questions?” and although I had plenty, as she wasn’t that clear on everything, I restrained myself. I figured we’d make our own way around, and figure it out for ourselves…
We quickly found the Laguna Grill, which is the place to go for lunch. I was looking forward to sampling this again, as last time, I’d been impressed by their food.
We carried on walking…
… and found ourselves by the Dolphin Lagoon, although these dolphins weren’t as camera friendly as the ones at SeaWorld, shall we just put it that way? Every time I got focused on one, Mark would be like “oh look at that one” and another had popped up, and the one I was focused in on had disappeared.
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Looking forward to more details! It looks amazing so far. I can't recall any info about it from anybody before, so it's all kind of new to me! (and if you did share info previously.... sorry! I must have forgotten!)
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Tanya
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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.
Looking forward to more details! It looks amazing so far. I can't recall any info about it from anybody before, so it's all kind of new to me! (and if you did share info previously.... sorry! I must have forgotten!)
Oh gosh no, I think the last time we went there was 2007 - hence the need for a return visit. The first time we went was back in 2000.
A nice start to your day in Discovery Cove and looks very well themed! That is funny with the dolphins not exactly posing for photos. They got some nerve!
__________________
October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
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Looked like a good meal at Geysir Point and hope to try this in the future as it looks like such a relaxing spot with the views! 
That detour you took seems the way to go with less traffic.
PassPorter Guide Author
I guess mostly because my DH always drives, so I'm not paying attention as much as if I was the driver, but there seems to be a lot of changes to the roadways lately!
I swear that road gets worse... and I never thought I'd say that! 
Every time I got focused on one, Mark would be like “oh look at that one” and another had popped up, and the one I was focused in on had disappeared. 
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