My spontaneous against the odds solo trip adventure! - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
But here's a quick recap too:
I just changed careers, and to relax and celebrate a little I wanted to try to hit WDW in my down time inbetween jobs. It was spontaneous and last minute, but at this time of year I figured we could get rooms, etc fairly easily. I was originally supposed to go with my bff Stephanie - she's a singer songwriter I just signed to my indie americana/folk record label. If you want to check her out here she is, she just wrote this cute song for her husband over the weekend YouTube - my old man - stephanie fagan
Sorry this was supposed to be the short version! haha!
So anyway...Steph's a military wife and we were going to head down together to take advantage of the amazing promo WDW has going right now. It was a road trip, no reservations, no plans, totally spontaneous and fun...in theory lol!
Well Steph got sick, and the weather got bad. When she broke the news to me I was heartbroken because I had already emotionally prepared myself to go! (I am sure you guys know what that means lol!)
I thought about it, and I did go alone last year, and I wouldn't mind doing it again...but wasn't sure if DH would go for it or not. It was a wild, unplanned thing, I no longer had the military discount angle to work, and his feelings might be hurt that I wanted to go away without him. He's kind of a Disney downer, but he'd still rather go than be left at home.
He wasn't thrilled when I approached him and wouldn't commit to a firm YES, espeically about me driving down there alone with ice on the roads up here. But I buttered him up in every way I could think of, and he did eventually concede in the 11th hour. Yay!
I already had my bag almost packed, so I was ready to go in a half hour. I hopped onto priceline and got a downtown disney area hotel for $60 a night! The Royal Plaza - normally over $200 a night, so this was a pretty amazing deal! I am sure bad weather cancellations made this possible, but I won't complain. I hopped in the car, and away I went! I got out of town at about 7:30 PM, and was checking in at 2AM...I was tired but the adrenaline kept me alert. I had absolutely NO traffic, so that was a huge help too.
My room was spacious and very comfy! It reminded me of a nice Vegas hotel room - maybe one at the MGM would be a good comparison? Not opulent, but very clean, fresh, new looking - it had a very business hotel feel to it. I travelled for work with my old job a lot, and it was a heck of a lot nicer than what you can get for $60 almost anyplace else I've been!! I swung by the taco bell which has late night drive thru hours, and is super conveniently located just a couple blocks away from the hotel. There's also a 24 hour supermarket! I didn't think I'd be ok with staying off-property, but it turned out to have some nice perks.
I also had a very fortunate turn of events with regards to tickets - my cousin's mother in law works for Disney! So she was able to get me complimentary park hopper passes for THREE days! Yeah! Since it was just me, I didn't feel too bad taking her charity, and it definitely softened my husband up to the trip, being that it would be significantly less expensive with free tickets. I'd never ask again, but in my "darkest hour" I was soooooo incredibly grateful!
More on that tomorrow ngiht - I start my new job tomorrow, so I need to hit the hay now...but I'll report on my free ticket adventure, Sanaa, my visit to AK, and WS tomorrow after work. Wish me luck!
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.
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.
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.
I love your friend’s song (it made me all teary eyed) & her voice is beautiful! I wish she could have joined you, but I am glad you had a nice safe trip to Disney! I have had the free tickets before it sure is nice hu? Your room sounds very nice & that price is great! Have a great first day of work! I am looking forward to reading all about your solo adventure!!
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.
About This Page: 
I had absolutely NO traffic, so that was a huge help too.
I'd never ask again, but in my "darkest hour" I was soooooo incredibly grateful! 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
PassPorter Guide Author
with the new job! Looking forward to reading all about your second solo trip!! 
Susan
Deb
I wish she could have joined you, but I am glad you had a nice safe trip to Disney! I have had the free tickets before it sure is nice hu?
I am looking forward to reading all about your solo adventure!! 
for the first day at the new job!
Linear Mode
