Pre-Trip Report We're Going To Disney - For the FIRST TIME! Feb. 16-Feb. 19 - Page 4 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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.
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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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Well I'm back (the one who writes most of this TR ) and we just have a small update. We called the reservation center (I think this must be the fifth or sixth time LOL) and we requested a room in either the Cabanas area or the Ranchos area of Coronado Springs. Thanks to our handy dandy PassPorter map we realized that if we stayed in the Casitas that we would have to walk ALL the way around the lake just to get to the main pool ! The reservations agent said he couldn't assure us a room - but he would make a note - just as good!
We also are trying to debate if we should do one more ADR our first night there - we aren't sure where we would do it though... What do you think - ADR or not - and any suggestions? We already have a Chef Mickey's and Boma...
We're looking at The Garden Grill Restaurant at Epcot...
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Garden Grill is a favorite with our family, but that said we usually do CS on our first day now regardless of when we're arriving as it just seems less stressful for us.
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I just realized that it might make more SENSE to do Epcot our first day there. Since our second day we have an ADR at Chef Mickey's which is at the Contemporary ... and since the Contemporary is a MK resort - it might be a lot easier to get too. So now it's Epcot first day - and then Magic Kingdom second day in the afternoon.
Do you guys think that makes sense - or do you think we should stick with our original plan?
Garden Grill is a favorite with our family, but that said we usually do CS on our first day now regardless of when we're arriving as it just seems less stressful for us.
Agree with that and good move on the CSR part! 8b Cabanas was our location this time around and it was still a couple minute walk to the lobby area - but 1 minute from the bus stop which was great at the end of the day with a sleeping 4-year-old!
Garden Grill is a favorite with our family, but that said we usually do CS on our first day now regardless of when we're arriving as it just seems less stressful for us.
Thanks for the advice - yea we will probably just do a CS meal!
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Just looked it up in our PassPorter - and WHOA! That ride looks awesome! Thanks so much for the tip!! We will definitely be doing that ride (but will be Fast-Passing or Single Rider lane)
Agree with that and good move on the CSR part! 8b Cabanas was our location this time around and it was still a couple minute walk to the lobby area - but 1 minute from the bus stop which was great at the end of the day with a sleeping 4-year-old!
Yea - thats what we thought! 1 minute from the bus stop would definitely be nice. That said we can't decide where to say we want to stay in the AKL. WE think we want to stay in the Kudu or Zebra trail... Anyone have any suggestions?
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We Chef Mickey's, too. We usually do it on our MK day, but last year we did it on our arrival night (no park that day, but we did stick around for the Electrical Water Pageant after we ate), and this year we're doing it on our Epcot day. I hope you enjoy it!
Did you say you have park hoppers? Since BB will be closed, you might be able to squeeze in a little DHS time to get those two attractions done.
We Chef Mickey's, too. We usually do it on our MK day, but last year we did it on our arrival night (no park that day, but we did stick around for the Electrical Water Pageant after we ate), and this year we're doing it on our Epcot day. I hope you enjoy it!
Did you say you have park hoppers? Since BB will be closed, you might be able to squeeze in a little DHS time to get those two attractions done.
Can't wait to read more!
Thanks for reading! Yes we opted for a 3 day base with water park fun and park hopper! That way since BB will be closed - we can do Typhoon Lagoon one morning and then go to a different park ghat afternoon (most likely Magic Kingdom - so we can zoom over to the Contemporary).
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) and we just have a small update. We called the reservation center (I think this must be the fifth or sixth time LOL) and we requested a room in either the Cabanas area or the Ranchos area of Coronado Springs. Thanks to our handy dandy PassPorter map we realized that if we stayed in the Casitas that we would have to walk ALL the way around the lake just to get to the main pool 
! The reservations agent said he couldn't assure us a room - but he would make a note - just as good!
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Chef Mickey's, too. We usually do it on our MK day, but last year we did it on our arrival night (no park that day, but we did stick around for the Electrical Water Pageant after we ate), and this year we're doing it on our Epcot day. I hope you enjoy it! 
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