10 Nights of Magic in The Orlando Trifecta-TR - COMPLETE!! 12/10 - Page 39 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
I am a big Harry Potter fan, read all the books and have seen all the movies, probably because my girls were at the right age when the books came out. The theming is amazing and its such a same you missed Gringotts I think its the best ride in the two parks.
It's quite a well themed area of the park as so much to see and do. I will certainly experience Gringotts on my next trip here.
__________________
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!
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.
Doesn’t Sound Like a Good Combo, But I’ll Give It a Try!
Saturday, October 7th (Part III) After exiting Islands of Adventure, I made my way over to City Walk, which was close by. I wanted to try one of the eateries here that I have heard so many good things about.
Not this one….
…..But this one!
I had checked Cowfish’s menu out before my trip and it looks very good. Also, Tara and Cheryl had raved about it on the boards. So, it was one I wanted to try! I’m hoping my experience is as good as theirs was. They don’t take reservations and I ‘ve heard it’s not usually a problem. I checked in downstairs and was called for my table in about ten minutes. A bit of a wait, but not too bad. One of the hosts escorted me upstairs by elevator.
The host brought me to the top floor and had me seated at the bar, where the kitchen was. I liked this area as you can watch the chefs in action.
My server came by shortly with a menu and took my beverage order. I decided on a Kirin Ichiban draft as I planned on having some sushi and this always goes well with it. I forget my server’s name but he was very good for my entire meal. He went over the menu with me and gave me some recommendations. Always the sign of a good server, who knows the menu well. He said to look it over for a bit and he’d be back with my beer and take my order.
My view up at the bar by the kitchen.
Some of the sushi on display
View of kitchen and like the décor and theming inside Cowfish
Shortly, my server returned with my Kirin Ichiban draft and it was frosty cold! I looked over the menu and gave him my choices. While I waited for my first course to arrive, I just observed the kitchen as well as the sushi chefs preparing various creations.
In about ten minutes my first course arrived. My two entrees are sushi combinations and hoping I’d enjoy both. The first one is a beef sushi concoction and a first for me. It doesn’t sound like a good combo, but I’ll give it a try!
Doug’s Filet Roll- Avocado, crab, cream cheese inside, topped with thin slices of seared filet mignon, spicy mayo, scallions and masago. Served with a side of pounded ginger sauce
The texture of this with the cooked filet mignon was a bit odd for me. It’s something I’ve never experienced with sushi. The combination of various flavors was very good and worked so well together! I enjoyed this quite a lot. It’s a big portion and I still had one more entrée coming. Just hope I’d have room for dinner later as I have a reservation in about 4.5 hours.
After finishing this, it was on to round two!
Tropical Storm Roll- Crab, avocado and cucumber inside, topped with tuna, salmon, yellowtail, Japanese mayo, sweet eel sauce, sriracha and tobiko. Served with wasabi yuzu dipping sauce
This was quite colorful and looks amazing. I enjoyed the combination of flavors so much and this worked so well. This was definitely, my favorite of the two entrees. Although, the first one was quite good as well. This was another good size entrée, but I polished off the entire dish!
After finishing this, my server returned and asked if I wanted dessert! I had to save room for dinner later, so I passed on this and asked for the check. It wasn’t cheap as the rolls were a bit pricey, but quite good. I enjoyed my first experience here and glad I chose this for lunch! I will certainly be back on my next trip to Universal!
After settling the bill, I took the elevator downstairs and headed back to Islands of Adventures for more attraction experiences. I had quite a bit of time as dinner was about four hours away at 7:30 pm.
NEXT: Probably, My Most Bizarre Attraction Experience Ever!
__________________
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!
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.
Dave, I am so happy that you enjoyed Cowfish!!! The food there is fresh and delicious!!
Yes, it most certainly was and enjoyed it so much! I will definitely return!
__________________
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!
Last edited by SuperDave; 04-09-2018 at 06:36 PM..
Yes it was and enjoyed it so much! Will put it on my list for must do's at Universal!
__________________
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!
I don't eat Sushi, but my oldest and husband do, so I will definitely remember this restaurant when we finally visit Universal. It looked really good even though I don't eat it.
I like the decor of the restaurant sounds like a great meal.
Nice colors in the restaurant and I really enjoyed my lunch here!
Quote:
Originally Posted by chezp
I'm also glad you enjoyed Cowfish. I'm not sure though you'll be ready to eat anything for dinner, as it's only a few hours away...
Thanks to your positive review of Cowfish, I had to try it and I wasn't disappointed! About four hours until dinner, so we'll see how I do. I'll need to do a lot of walking to Islands of Adventure, which should help!
__________________
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!
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.
Sounds like Cowfish met your expectations! It's fun to watch the chef's at work too!
It certainly did. I always like sitting up at the counter watching the chefs in action. The Cali and Jiko in WDW are good places for this.
Quote:
Originally Posted by disneydreamer33
I don't eat Sushi, but my oldest and husband do, so I will definitely remember this restaurant when we finally visit Universal. It looked really good even though I don't eat it.
I enjoyed it a lot for lunch. They won't be disappointed with the Cowfish!
__________________
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!
Yes it was and both of my choices were quite colorful, flavorful and looked and tasted so good!
__________________
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!
Probably, My Most Bizarre Attraction Experience Ever!
Saturday, October 7th (Part IV) I headed out of City Walk and back to Islands of Adventure for more attractions and experiences. I wasn’t in any rush as I had nearly four hours until my dinner ADR at 7:30 pm. I entered Islands near the beginning in the Marvel section of the park.
I did the Hulk Coaster on day one and it’s quite thrilling and scary as you can see!
It was nice out currently, although quite hot and humid, which is typical for early October in Orlando. The skies were starting to darken somewhat with some big clouds rolling in. Thunderstorms are predicted for this afternoon and I did remember to bring my rain gear just in case.
First in line for attractions was Spiderman and one of the better simulator rides in Universal. There was a pretty long wait for the standby line and glad I had the Universal Express Pass, which was coming in quite handy today as the parks are much busier today than on my other days.
After Spider-Man, I continued walking toward more attractions. There were still several attractions I wanted to experience once again, before dinner.
Popeye!
Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls, which I got soaked on a few days ago!
Soon I was near Skull Island-Reign of Kong for a return experience.
The line was quite long again and I used my express pass as I’ve tried to use it for any attraction you can. It has saved me a lot of waiting in line during my three days in the Universal parks. It was a fun ride once again, but not nearly the best here.
It was about the time I exited the Kong attraction, that it began to rain. Shortly, it was a total downpour and I put my rain gear on. Even with this I did not want to be stuck out in this drenching rain, so I went in one of the counter service eateries close by to stay dry while the storm passed. There was some thunder and lightning accompanied with the storm, but it was a bit away from here. There was a lot of ponding of water outside as with such heavy rain, it didn’t have much time to drain. The storm passed in about fifteen minutes and the rain lightened up. Although, it rained lightly over the next thirty minutes or so.
Next, I walked to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter as I wanted to get one more ride on Harry Potter’s Forbidden Journey. It’s one of my favorite simulator rides and certainly the best one in Universal.
As it was still raining out, I didn’t take any photos while I was here. My first business was to find a locker and store my belongings in one. It was jam packed with people in here and after a few minutes of searching the various rooms, I found a vacant one. It would probably be a good idea to expand this area as this attraction is so popular.
After this, I entered the Universal Express Pass line. Although, it’s much better than the standby queue it was still about twenty minutes until I got to board. I enjoyed it once again and such an active experience and lasts several minutes. It’s certainly worth the wait, even with a third ride on it!
After retrieving my belongings from the locker, I exited the attraction and made the short walk to Hogwart’s Express. Much to my dismay, I found out it was closed for the day as it stops running at 5 pm. It was just a few minutes after the hour. I’m glad I could ride both train experiences on my previous days!
I left the WWoHP and went over to the Lost Continent for a rest stop as the liquids from lunch and during the day have taken their toll!
I enjoy this fountain in the Lost Continent
After this, I walked back toward the other end of the park. In my previous days in the park there was one attraction I had yet to experience and I was hoping to right now. It had been closed on previous tries as it was raining then. The rain had now stopped and I was skeptical, whether it would be open.
This is what I was looking forward to and not like anything else in Universal. It’s obviously located in the Jurassic Park section. It wasn’t open when I got there, but there were several people in line. A cast member told us it would be opening shortly, so I got in line with the others waiting.
The Raptor Encounter opened and it was quite interesting seeing everyone’s experience with this as the reactions were all different. You stand by a fenced in area where a raptor is behind you. Then he interacts with you. It’s quite realistic with his movements and sounds which are all done by animatronics. Below, are the raptor in action and my experience with him.
He looks rather menacing!
The participants go up one at a time and have their experience with the raptor. The line wasn’t that bad and I was about the fifth or sixth person in line. Shortly, it was my turn. You hand the cast member your phone and they take photos and a video of your experience. It comes at no extra cost, which is even better!
Getting a bit too close!
Perhaps, the raptor thinks it’s dinner time!
One thing you don’t see, but I have it on video as once I left, I turned around and waved to the raptor. It was quite funny as he snapped at me vigorously and growled rather angrily! This was a lot of fun and probably my most bizarre attraction experience ever!
Next, I walked over to the Jurassic Park River Journey attraction. Unfortunately, the ride was down at the time, but I was told it may be opening shortly. They didn’t give us an exact time, but I decided to wait in line with the others who were gathered here. The line for express pass wasn’t that long and only about fifteen of us for this line. There were many more for the standby line. Some time passed and in around 15 minutes the ride opened and we proceeded into the queue and to the boarding area.
There was a five minute wait in the boarding area as there were other guests who had assembled here, when the ride went down. It was a good ride and a fun one, although not nearly my favorite action in Universal.
I exited the attraction and began to head in the direction of City Walk for dinner as it was just after 6:30 pm and my ADR is at 7:30 pm.
As you see, it’s beginning to get quite dark out.
In about ten minutes I exited Islands of Adventure and walked over to City Walk to spend some time before dinner as well as after. It’s been quite a long day as I’ve spent about seven hours here already.
NEXT: This Should Make a Fun Dining Experience!
__________________
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!
Last edited by SuperDave; 04-15-2018 at 03:04 PM..