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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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What a fun day at Hollywood Studios!! . That's a bummer about your magic band but it sounds like you scored big time for the inconvenience! Those cupcakes look delish! I also must tell you that I the Indiana Jones show! My favorite memory of that show was when I was with my then college son ( who is now 30!). I enthusiastically volunteered and was chosen to participate in the show! It was an amazing experience,but the best part was embarrassing the heck out of my son!
Glad you were finally able to get your MB fixed. Score with the golden FP, too, so now you could ride TSMM. It will look a bit strange to see DHS without the hat. It wasn't there for our very first trip, but for the 19 after that it was fixture.
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.
Just wanted to say how much I am enjoying your "no plans" trip. You seem to both really be enjoying yourselves so I'm thinking it is a pretty good way to go. All the snacking makes me jealous....DH wants to eat big meals where I would rather do more snacking! Can't wait for more.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tcmary
I'm thoroughly enjoying your TR. The idea of going without a plan and winging it would have had me twitching when I was a commando traveler. It seems to be working well for you. I look forward to more photos and adventures from you.
The "No Plan" is not without it's drawbacks but it can be done as long as you are able to be flexible and not mind that you are not going to be able to get that highly popular attraction/dining because you didn't advance plan and book it at 180 or 60/30 days out.
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.
Today we’re going to Epcot. Having decided that, DW says she would really like to have breakfast at The Crystal Palace, when we visit the Magic Kingdom. I check the app on the phone and get a breakfast reservation for 27 Jan 15. Next, I check our dining options for today at Epcot and, not surprisingly, there are times for lunch and dinner all over the world.
Next, a check of FPs and the only problem (if I can call it that) is that the only time for Soarin’ was at 1930 so I opt for Test Track instead. We add Spaceship Earth (remember to thank the Phoenicians’) and The Seas with Nemo & Friends.
Spaceship Earth is first and is a classic, as always, although this time the ride itself seems a little bumpy. Next is Test Track and this is my first time. I can certainly see the attraction that others have for this ride, it was a lot of fun designing the car and striving for that balance between performance and conservation. The actual ride is thrilling, although the "stop & go" portion at the beginning was a little "jerky".
Nemo is a fun but I had forgotten how dimly lit the queue is there.
Time for a late lunch and we have a craving for German. A check of the app shows times available at Biergarten so we do a walk up. We are seated with another (elderly) couple and a family of four. The buffet is fantastic, made slightly better with the addition of a beer flight that we share. Between the two trips through the line I have potato & leek soup, bratwurst, schnitzel, spaetzel, two types of potato salad, sauerkraut and red cabbage. The dessert line offered strudel, black forest cake and German cheesecake. We have a great dining experience with the fantastic food, the entertaining band and chatting with our table-mates.
We finish wandering our way around the world, stopping at the Twinnings store in the UK for more tea and then decide to head back to the resort.
The day starts with breakfast at the Crystal Palace. All my favourite breakfast buffet items are there: eggs, bacon, sausage & gravy, grits, Mickey waffles, French toast, etc. It’s all so good!
Eeyore and Winnie showed up to say hello:
After breakfast we try to have a look at our FP options but, once again, the app seems to have crapped out. We head over to Mickey’s Philarmagic, since you really don’t need a FP for that one. It’s been a while since we saw that show; I always liked how Donald interacts with the other Disney characters.
We head over to the nearest FP+ kiosk to try and book some FPs and we learn that, this time, it’s not the app that’s broke but the whole FP system. CM gives us a old-time paper golden FP, so we tuck that away. There’s a short wait time for “It’s a Small World” so in we go. We have never been on that one before, it’s an enjoyable attraction but that song sticks in your head for a while.
Next, we head over to Pirates of the Caribbean as the wait time says 40 mins. Turns out it moves much faster than that and we are in at about the 20 min mark. We get loaded in the front of the boat along with these two other dudes who repeatedly took flash photos with their phones despite my reminding them that flash photography was not permitted – maybe they did not understand English so well but the only other languages I speak are sarcasm and profanity! The boat goes over the (relatively) small drop and we get soaked (WTH?!?!) liked we never have before. It’s so bad we have to return to the resort to change our clothes. I now see that POTC is now closed and a lot off the comments came from people who had similar experiences.
Returning to the park, we are just in time for the Festival of Fantasy parade and have a really good spot to watch the parade. That is one scary float!
It’s especially magical when the characters notice our buttons (even from the top of their floats) and wish us a Happy Anniversary!
After the parade, we cash in our FP at the Haunted Mansion and it remains one of my favourites as I seem to notice something new each time.
We head on over to the Jungle Cruise despite the 40 min posted wait time. I convinced DW that it wouldn’t be that long, they said Pirates 40 mins but it was only half that. Well, I was wrong; it was 40 mins all right!
There’s a short wait to meet with Tinkerbell so we head on in. She is such a fun character.
It’s getting late and we’re feeling a little hungry so we head over to Casey’s for a hot dogs and fries. It’s a great, tasty hot dog that needs only ketchup and mustard!
We then walk down Main Street to catch the Electrical Parade and then walk back up Main Street and find a spot near the Crystal Palace to watch Wishes. We’ve seen Fantasmic and Illuminations and they are fine shows but Wishes is, without a doubt, our favourite fireworks show.
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.
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. That's a bummer about your magic band but it sounds like you scored big time for the inconvenience! 
Those cupcakes look delish! I also must tell you that I 
the Indiana Jones show! My favorite memory of that show was when I was with my then college son ( who is now 30!). I enthusiastically volunteered and was chosen to participate in the show! 
It was an amazing experience,but the best part was embarrassing the heck out of my son! 
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Thank
Pixie Dust
That is one scary float! 
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