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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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
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Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
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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.
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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.
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So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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Who has cruised out of Galveston? We have only been on 2 cruises - both from Port Canaveral. We are doing a 7 day out of Galveston next November. We are thinking about driving from Michigan (taking a couple days both ways to do so - maybe with a stop in Memphis ) I think flying will be too costly because it's over Thanksgiving. Any advice? Where to stay near the port for the night before? Or would you drive in on the day of?
I would not drive in the day of. I've read stories of the ice storm a couple of years ago when people were stuck in their cars on the highway for hours and missed their cruise.
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1984 WDW off-site, 2003 WDW ASS, Poly, Wonder, 2006 WDW PC, 2011 Wonder to Alaska,
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I would not drive in the day of. I've read stories of the ice storm a couple of years ago when people were stuck in their cars on the highway for hours and missed their cruise.
Thanks! I don't think we will be driving in the day of. I think we will be doing a couple of days on the way down. I don't remember that ice storm though. Weird!
I actually live less than an hour from Galveston so feel free to ask me anything. Staying at the two hotels from the article put you right on the beach. There is a wide sidewalk atop the seawall that goes for miles on the ocean side of Galveston that you can stroll down or gain access to the beach. If you are going to have your own car, it would be a good spot. Lot of eateries along the seawall. As mentioned in the article, Moody Gardens is very nice - we visit several times a year and starting in mid-Nov they have a Christmas Light display that is very enjoyable. There is also the Strand basically right across from the cruise terminals. It is the old downtown and has shops and restaurants plus a Railroad Museum. There are also lots of beautiful historic houses and churches on the island. If you are interested in NASA, it is a short drive to the Space Center. As I said feel free to pick my brain!
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We cruised out of Galveston in the Spring of 2013 and will be cruising out of it again in early 2016, so we enjoyed it enough to do it again. We drove down the last trip and we won't do that again, as we drove two days each way for a four day cruise. Duh--what was I thinking? We will fly SWA into Hobby for our next trip. The hotel we ended up staying at (a different, long and unrelated story) was the Hotel Galvez, which was under renovation at the time. A very old and beautiful hotel with a fantastic history. Our room was very small VERY SMALL, but pleasantly appointed and had a beautiful view. The hotel is on the sea wall and though it was a blustery evening, we had a pleasant walk around, eating at a restaurant on the sea wall and a gorgeous view of the gulf. The hotel provided a complimentary shuttle service to port and allowed us to park our car on property for a nominal fee.
The terminal is VERY understated and at that time really not prepared for Disney travel. I'm looking forward to seeing if there are any upgrades to the terminal. Even with the lack of typical Disney aesthetics, the crew at the terminal were well trained and we were pleasantly surprised at the efficiency. (Somewhere I have pictures). Getting off the ship was a little more interesting as the local transportation was not prepared for the masses wanting to get off, out and on the road--for us, so the wait getting off terminal property was longer than our check-in.
I actually live less than an hour from Galveston so feel free to ask me anything. Staying at the two hotels from the article put you right on the beach. There is a wide sidewalk atop the seawall that goes for miles on the ocean side of Galveston that you can stroll down or gain access to the beach. If you are going to have your own car, it would be a good spot. Lot of eateries along the seawall. As mentioned in the article, Moody Gardens is very nice - we visit several times a year and starting in mid-Nov they have a Christmas Light display that is very enjoyable. There is also the Strand basically right across from the cruise terminals. It is the old downtown and has shops and restaurants plus a Railroad Museum. There are also lots of beautiful historic houses and churches on the island. If you are interested in NASA, it is a short drive to the Space Center. As I said feel free to pick my brain!
Thanks so much! I probably will as questions arise. Sounds like there's a lot to do!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Beautiful Mother
We cruised out of Galveston in the Spring of 2013 and will be cruising out of it again in early 2016, so we enjoyed it enough to do it again. We drove down the last trip and we won't do that again, as we drove two days each way for a four day cruise. Duh--what was I thinking? We will fly SWA into Hobby for our next trip. The hotel we ended up staying at (a different, long and unrelated story) was the Hotel Galvez, which was under renovation at the time. A very old and beautiful hotel with a fantastic history. Our room was very small VERY SMALL, but pleasantly appointed and had a beautiful view. The hotel is on the sea wall and though it was a blustery evening, we had a pleasant walk around, eating at a restaurant on the sea wall and a gorgeous view of the gulf. The hotel provided a complimentary shuttle service to port and allowed us to park our car on property for a nominal fee.
The terminal is VERY understated and at that time really not prepared for Disney travel. I'm looking forward to seeing if there are any upgrades to the terminal. Even with the lack of typical Disney aesthetics, the crew at the terminal were well trained and we were pleasantly surprised at the efficiency. (Somewhere I have pictures). Getting off the ship was a little more interesting as the local transportation was not prepared for the masses wanting to get off, out and on the road--for us, so the wait getting off terminal property was longer than our check-in.
Thanks for the review! The hotel sounds beautiful! I was kind of curious about the port and how that was too!
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) I think flying will be too costly because it's over Thanksgiving. Any advice? Where to stay near the port for the night before? Or would you drive in on the day of?
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