Forums Closed
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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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
Best wishes for a wonderful and magical new year!
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01-14-2016, 06:50 PM
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#1
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PassPorter Guide
 Community Rank: Globetrotter 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 3,041
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Feature Article: Comparing a Walt Disney World Vacation with a Disney Cruise - A Disney Destinations Planning Article
Comparing a Walt Disney World Vacation with a Disney Cruise - A Disney Destinations Planning Article
by Lori Ketcherside
Whether you hit Disney on the surf or turf, did you ever wonder whether there’s a big difference between the two vacations? Will switching it up still feel like a “Disney” vacation or does the magic get lost in translation?
Last week as my six-year-old wrote her first compare/contrast paragraph (on Walt Disney World and Disney Cruise Line of course!) I realized that in many ways they are sibling experiences. While they both share Uncle Walt’s smile and storytelling, each grew into a very unique vacation.</p> Ten Ways Walt Disney World and Disney Cruises are Exactly the Same (and TOTALLY Different)
10. Characters
Mickey and the fab five, the Disney Jr. characters, Stitch, the princesses, pirates and even the Frozen friends appear! While random character encounters, particularly with the big cheese, have disappeared on land, on the Disney Cruise Line (DCL) they happen with a startling regularity. To the point that kids will do a wave a keep walking the opposite way down the hall because they’ve seen so many characters that day. Though times to see and meet the characters onboard are plentiful, the variety of characters available is usually limited compared to Walt Disney World (WDW). If you’re in search of a meet and greet with Pocahontas, Mulan, or Snow White you may be out of luck as they are often busy visiting Walt Disney World. In either case, you want to pick up a ticket (through Guest Services at DCL, FastPass+ at WDW) to meet the Frozen Friends.
9. Interactive Experiences
Disney recently blossomed into an interactive explorer’s dream. With adventures ranging from Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom, Agent P’s World Showcase Adventure, Jedi Training Academy and the Wilderness Explorers at Walt Disney World and the Midship Detective Agency, Jedi Training - Experience the Force and Anna’s Chocolate Chase on Disney Cruise Line, you’re sure to find something exciting for the whole family. 8. Those Special Cast Members
While all cast members bring their own touches to their roles, every trip I run across at least one person who is practically perfect in every way. This is why we always smile and nod when people ask if we’re going to Disney “again.”
7. See the World
Fancy breakfast in a Parisian Patisserie, the rest of your morning meeting dolphins, lunch in the Mexican twilight, an afternoon exploring Germany and dinner in Morocco next to an enchanted lagoon? Epcot is your best bet. The Kidcot Fun stops offer stamps and coloring activities. (They even have souvenir passport books available for purchase.) If you want to tour the eternal city, swim with dolphins in the Caribbean and enjoy a Mexican twilight over the open sea, Disney Cruise Line is more your speed. You want a real passport book rather than the Epcot World Showcase passport.
6. Adults Only Dining
Victoria and Albert’s, Walt Disney World’s premiere dining experience earned the AAA Five Diamond Award every year since 2000. The food, service and surroundings are superb. My kids would be happier spending an evening in the Sandcastle Club and although you are extremely unlikely to see children in this establishment, they do allow guest age ten and up to dine Palo and Remy both strictly enforce an eighteen and up age limit, as do many of the lounges on Disney Cruise Line during the evening hours. Much like their land based counter parts, the Oceaneer Club keeps my children happy and engaged long after I’m ready to go to bed.
5. Relaxation
Ah…to be holding down a lounger with the only care in the world remembering to reapply your sunscreen. Walt Disney World offers many different pools and water parks to suit a variety of vacationers. Sand bottom pools more your style? Stormalong Bay, exclusively for Disney’s Beach Club Resort guests might be the waterpark for you. Or there’s always Disney Cruise Line’s Castaway Cay for the perfect toes-in-the-sand-hammock-umbrella-drink-paradise getaway. Then head back on the ship to be gently rocked to sleep as your ship heads back home.
4. Snacks
Whether you’re a Mickey Bar fan, soft pretzels or prefer all you can eat soft serve, DCL includes your snacks in the cost of your cruise. Packaged candies and popcorns cost similar amounts to at Walt Disney World. If you’re looking specifically for Mickey shaped pretzels, churros or Dole Whip floats, you’ll need to head off to Walt Disney World.
3. Entertainment
If you love Disney spectacles (and if you read PassPorter, there’s a pretty good chance you might) then Finding Nemo: The Musical, Illuminations and Festival of Fantasy top your must do list at Walt Disney World. Disney Dreams: An Enchanted Classic (and several other stunning stage shows) fill this niche at sea. While the Pirates in the Caribbean Deck Party offers the best fireworks at sea, Walt Disney World has the best fireworks in the world. The deck parties offer something similar to the kinetic nature of the parades, but on a much smaller scale (no floats). There are far better odds of getting to dance with Minnie or Pluto during the deck parties than during a parade.
2. Rides
DCL features fun and quirky waterslides that differ from ship to ship. Exciting port adventures can be found for everything from zip lines, hikes and swimming with stingrays, if you’re into thrill seeking. You could see it as having no rides. Or the ship, in and of itself can be viewed as the longest continuously running most interactive ride ever developed by Disney. Walt Disney World offers every imaginable ride from a gentle soar through the air with Dumbo to escaping a yeti through the twists and turns of Mount Everest. And my children’s perennial favorite, the monorail. In both vacations, height restrictions (and for many of the port adventures, age restrictions) are strictly enforced for children’s safety.
1. Pixie Dust
The extra attention to detail that leaves each day seeming magical? That, I am happy to say is alive and well whether you vacation takes you to land or sea.</p>
Added to PassPorter's Article Collection on 01-12-2016 09:01 AM
What do you think? Please add your own comments, experiences, or news related to this article in this thread! Reader feedback is welcomed and encouraged.
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