Sparky's Gone to the World- A TR 9/13/11-9/20/11 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
Hello again fellow PP! I am back with a new PTR...I however have decided that instead of a full length TR when I return I will just update this TR with highlights of the trip.
I find I have enjoyed sharing my plans, but found writing a whole TR daunting. So enjoy my PTR/TR for what it's worth.
Cast of Characters: Me (Sparky) Age 32 (33 in 12 days!), DH 44 (45 time of trip), and DD 6 (7 at time of trip)
Package Details: Magic Your Way with Park Hopper 6 days and DDP
I am very happy and excited today! I bought my airfare and I have to say it was quite a task.
Originally the trip was suppose to be 9/12/11-9/19/11 but I found out last night that if we changed it to 9/13/11-9/20/11 we could save a bundle on airfare. In order to pull this off I need 3 things to happen.
1.) Get ahold of the TA to see if we could switch dates, on a Fri after 6 pm.
2.) Availability for the 20th
3.) All this happening before the price went up.
I put in a call and an email explaining the situation and asking my TA to call me ASAP. Leslie, being the fab TA she is called me at 9:15 and said "Your all set for the new dates. Go ahead and get on that airfare!"
So I booked it today! $67 each way, per person! It ends up being $466 for three of us...but wait! There's more! I also have $100 credit through my credit card for miles. So with that it brought the price of 3 tickets down to $366!
SCORE!!!!
I have a list of all the ADR's I want to make and have my park hours chart printed out ready to go. So now I am just waiting for March 1st to come around to plan my park days and on March 16th I can book my ADR's! Here is a list of ADR's I am hoping to get....
CRT breakfast
O'Hana dinner----NEW
O'Hana breakfast---NEW
Sci Fi lunch
Le Cellier lunch
1900 Park Fare dinner---NEW for 2
LTT lunch---NEW for 2
Crystal Palace lunch
Garden Grill dinner---NEW
Hopefully I am able to get these ADR's as I am very peticular even about what meal it is I want for them. Obviously, I am booking CRT and Le Cellier first.
These are some of the counter service restaraunts we have on our list: (though these are negotiable depending on where we are when we are hungry and what we feel like eating)
Pecos Bills
Colombia House---NEW
Cosmic Ray's---NEW (kind of, we haven't been in 6 yrs.)
Harry's
Lotus Blossom China---NEW
Sunshine Seasons---NEW
Yak & Yeti---NEW
Catalina Eddie's---NEW
Fairfax Fare---NEW
We have 21 CS meals, but I think we will end up sharing a few resulting in more meals. Some of the portions of these CS places are huge! I also think that having small amounts throughout the day, leaves a better feeling in my belly. Sometimes, you feel hungry and then when you start to eat half way through, you feel full again. So I think this will work better.
When I actually book my ADRS I will be back with a finalized (however finalized it can actually be ) version of our week.
Because our flight leaves at 11:45 and we are due to arrive at 2:40 i am unsure of whether I want to try to go to a park the first night. I am undecided just because...how do you surprise a 7 yr old with going to WDW and then NOT go to the park as soon as you get there. But I feel that by the time we get there and check in and get to a park, is it really worth it. Also, there is a good chance based on what I have seen in the past that the Halloween Party will be going on that night. I don't think my DD will be any happier going to DHS or Epcot the first night than my alternate plan. Which is....
Our meal at O'Hana for that night and then watch Wishes or Hallowishes, which ever it may be, on the beach. Hit the hay and then up at the crack of dawn so to speak, in the morning. We have never watched the fireworks from the Poly but it sounds good. Maybe the floating light show thing...what's that called and what time is it? Help fellow PP....What do you do?
I am however thinking about doing O'Hana breakfast the last day, earliest time we can get and just take a taxi over. What is the earliest ADR for there? I'll have to look that up. Adding an extra day to our tickets for a total of 7 and hopping over to MK for a couple hours before we have to leave at 6:30pm. So we would have to catch the ME about 2:30.
I am also hoping that on the second day I can get a reservation for DD at BBB in the morning. Also and ADR for CRT breakfast immediately following. DH has a gift certificate for the Richard Petty Driving Experience Ride Along, so he will come with to BBB and then go to that. DD and I will have breakfast and then meet him over there. This gives us all something to do and in case of bad weather there's still time for DH to do his driving.
These are the only major decisions I have made thus far. I now have to wait for the schedules to come out.
I was unsure if we we're going to be able to pull this off. At this point it's definate, the plane tickets are bought. But I couldn't pass up that price!
Talk to you all soon and I can't wait to hear your feedback regarding my questions...
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.
PLans look wonderful. Congrats on the airfair that Rocks I would never get that to Orlando from Canada. LOL Only in my dreams! I would pay what your paying one way per person! LOL
Congratulations! That's amazing airfare!! (I think you're whole party is what I'm paying for one person! LOL)
Can't wait to hear your plans!
Might I suggest that instead of heading to a park the first night you go to DTD? I took my daughter and we flew in around 5:30 or so, and went to DTD and had dinner and shopped. It'll kill the better part of the evening and that way you're not wasting a full day ticket. If your flight gets into MCO at 2:40 by the time you get through DME and to the hotel it will be close to 4 anyway.
Great plans so far! Awesome air fare, too! The water show is the Electrical Water Pageant. Here some info about it from allears.net. Electrical Water Pageant
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.
hope that you and your family have a magical time at the world
__________________
Heather - "I'm Tinkerbell's biggest fan!"
WDW - August 1997 Off Property
WDW - January 2005 AKL
WDW - May 2006 Pop Century
WDW- november-dec 2007 pop century
WDW- dec/jan 2009/2010 pop century
WDW- oct/nov 2012 art of animation
WDW- sept 2013 port Orleans riverside
WDW- july 2015 beach club
PLans look wonderful. Congrats on the airfair that Rocks I would never get that to Orlando from Canada. LOL Only in my dreams! I would pay what your paying one way per person! LOL
Thank you! I am so happy over the airfare, I almost get a high getting a good deal on things I need, and I love to share that info! LOL
I have to say, thank goodness that airfare isn't that expensive for me, or I might not be going at all. Ouch.
Quote:
Originally Posted by shanmac
Congratulations! That's amazing airfare!! (I think you're whole party is what I'm paying for one person! LOL)
Can't wait to hear your plans!
Might I suggest that instead of heading to a park the first night you go to DTD? I took my daughter and we flew in around 5:30 or so, and went to DTD and had dinner and shopped. It'll kill the better part of the evening and that way you're not wasting a full day ticket. If your flight gets into MCO at 2:40 by the time you get through DME and to the hotel it will be close to 4 anyway.
Thanks! I am so pysched about that airfare! I will keep DTD in mind, that is another option. I am pretty much at a point where I have decided no park the first night. Just trying to figure out alternate plans. I think O'Hana, fireworks, and electrical light parade...might end up being what we do. At least then she will see fireworks.
But the other part of me, thinks 1900 Park Fare, bc then she sees characters the first night. But no fireworks or light show.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22
Great plans so far! Awesome air fare, too! The water show is the Electrical Water Pageant. Here some info about it from allears.net. Electrical Water Pageant
Thanks Cam! I also want to say, you are one of those fabulous TR writers I am not. Thanks for sharing your trips!
I kept wanting to call it the electrical light parade, and I knew that wasn't it. Would do that plan or do 1900 Park Fare the first night? It's so hard...maybe she would like to see some characters the first night. But O'Hana and Poly there are 2 things to watch. Idk....I am thinking that when I actually build my schedule it will make the decision easier.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bsblady01
hope that you and your family have a magical time at the world
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.
SPARKY!!! OMG...Lol, I don't know why, but I'm super excited that you're writing a PTR...and we're arriving on the 19th. So if you want, we could meet up that night, if you don't have a ressie...We're eating at the Pop because we aren't going to a park, but we ARE heading over to Jellyrolls after dinner to enjoy some dueling pianists. We'll have to figure that out, for sure. I am so excited for you, now that you know you're going for sure! And congrats on the airfare! You paid less for three people than David and I paid for two. Then again, we ARE coming from further away.
SPARKY!!! OMG...Lol, I don't know why, but I'm super excited that you're writing a PTR...and we're arriving on the 19th. So if you want, we could meet up that night, if you don't have a ressie...We're eating at the Pop because we aren't going to a park, but we ARE heading over to Jellyrolls after dinner to enjoy some dueling pianists. We'll have to figure that out, for sure. I am so excited for you, now that you know you're going for sure! And congrats on the airfare! You paid less for three people than David and I paid for two. Then again, we ARE coming from further away.
LOL Thanks! I am glad someone is. Here we are back where we started, making plans for trips that overlap.
I have no idea what I am doing the last night, but I think we could easily squeeze some time in. That would be fab! This time, no mom and instead my DH and DD will be with me. (as you already know from reading, duh). When we get our schedules and ADRs planned we will figure it out!
Thanks about the airfare, I am so happy that I got it that cheap. Cheapest I have paid in the past 2 times I have gone. I just couldn't pass up that price and once the tickets are bought, there is no going back! So here we come!
Quote:
Originally Posted by bkwrm
Great plans and congrats on the amazing airfare.
Sharon
I would love to meet your husband and daughter. So cool. I'm so excited that we are both able to go again. (We were kind of up in the air about it for a month or so too!)
About This Page: 
Sparky's Gone to the World- A TR 9/13/11-9/20/11
I am back with a new PTR...I however have decided that instead of a full length TR when I return I will just update this TR with highlights of the trip.
), DH 44 (45 time of trip), and DD 6 (7 at time of trip)
) version of our week.
"Sparky"(My first trip.)
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
Happy planning though!
Sammi
Awesome air fare, too! 
Linear Mode
