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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Glad you are staying an extra day. A road trip to the NE and Acadia is on my and DH's bucket lists so I am glad to have all the info you are providing here!
I believe I left off on Thursday. This day started off cloudy but turned to brilliant sunshine. Here's what happened that day: We started off with our trek downtown for coffee. I also purchased a bandana for our dog, Calvin. It says "coffee hound" on it and boy is he cute in it! However, when I went to pay for our purchases with my credit card (the one I used at check in) it was declined. Say what?? I gave him cash and left in a panic state. You see, when I checked into the hotel, I paid for all four nights up front in cash. I got a receipt and was told that they would be putting a $50 hold on a credit card for minor purchases and such. This is normal procedure. Well when I checked in on Monday, for some bizarre reason, they had my four night reservation split into three (3) nights and then (1) night. Everyone at the check in desk was nice enough, but not very skilled in what they were doing.
Fast forward to the declining of my credit card! I called my bank and was informed that the hotel put through a charge for ALL FOUR NIGHTS. So I now have essentially paid for 8 nights. What the heck? The only credit card I brought with me was one with only a $1400 limit. I started off the trip with it at zero. My intention was to only use it here and there. I had already used about $250 worth on it and then BAM - over $1000 was charged. I felt sick....now the sun was shining and I wanted to get into Acadia. But first, I had to trek back to the hotel to fix this mess. Well that was not easy to do. the bank was telling me one thing and the hotel was doing another. I had two telephone conferences between myself, the front desk manager and my bank to try to straighten it out. it took until today, Saturday morning to fix it! It was so ridiculous, that I couldn't even stay the extra night on Friday.....
I digress: after not fixing my issue, I left and headed into Acadia. We started with the trip around the Park Loop Road. Stopping at Thunder Hole and Jordan Pond. Words can not describe the beauty of Acadia! At every turn in the road it takes your breath away. After exploring Jordan Pond. We decided to have a little lunch at Jordan Pond House. We got a seat outside on the lawn, overlooking the pond. They are famous for their popovers and homemade jam! Words cannot describe these either. I also had seafood chowder and my daughter had a chicken sandwich. She wouldn't share even a bite with me, so I know it must have been good.
We left the park after lunch and headed back to the hotel. I tried once again to fix my credit card mess - to no avail. I threw in the towel and we got ready to head to the pool. It was quite busy, but we managed to score a few chairs for ourselves. After a bit, the chowder wore off and I was a little hungry. I went to the tiki bar and ordered myself a mai tai and an order of chicken tenders to split. I got my kiddo a fruity surprise drink too! The chicken tenders never came out. they forgot to put the order in - so this is how my day was going. I tried to not let it bother me and always had a smile on my face, because how could you get mad at people that were not trained properly. It only reminded me that I wasn't in Disney. As I sat by the pool, I was struck by how much I truly love going to WDW. I mean after sitting by your pool at your resort, if you got a little bored, you could head to a park and have the time of your life! Right?
Finally the chicken came out, after I went up to the bar two more times. I paid our bill (in cash!) and we headed to our room. There was a power outage at our hotel. For real. We had to take the stairs in the dark to our room. Got changed and headed back down to the front desk. I inquired about my credit card mess once again and it was not fixed. Everyone was scrambling due to the power outage. A pattern was forming. Why couldn't anyone fix this insanity?!
We headed back into the park. I wanted to see the sunset from Cadillac Mountain. We drove to the top, but we were way too early...by about one hour. So I decided we needed ice cream. As I drove down the mountain road, I apparently did not come to a full stop at the stop sign. IMO I did but the Park Ranger said otherwise. He let me off with a warning. At this point, I said to my daughter - is this day really happening? She said YUP Mom it is!
After ice cream we made it to the top of Cadillac in time to see the most beautiful sunset. I'm so glad we were able to see it together! Now a trip was in order out to the "sand bar" that connects Bar Harbor with Bar Island when it is low tide. Even though it was getting dark, the tide was out so we headed down. Tons of people make this trek every evening to look for sea glass and shells. Even though you aren't supposed to drive out onto the sand bar - most people do, because there is no parking downtown at this time of night. I mean no parking. So I ventured down the little side street out the sand bar. You have to be super careful doing this as there are boulders on either side of you and huge holes.
My car went into a hole.
My car hit a boulder
My side door trim got ripped off
Yes this really did happen to me. I pulled onto the stupid sand bar at this point and walked back to pick up the piece of my car. Some men were nearby and felt bad for me - they said it should go back on easy enough. Tom put it on for me today, but one of the clips is missing so is kinda sticks out from the surface of the car door. I've only had this car for one year. Ugh. It was my own fault, I know it was - but still. My daughter couldn't stop laughing. She laughed for hours and hours about it all.
All and all we shared some magical moments together - but the best moment we shared wouldn't happen until tomorrow morning.
Friday Morning - we pack up and check out. The bill they left under the door was for another night's stay - really people? To the front desk I go - I now know the people by name - they correct the bill for that one night. We load up our car and head for - you guessed it - our coffee. We also grab two egg and sausage croissant from a bakery to eat on the long ride home.
Before I hit the highway, I want to drive through Acadia one last time. There was not a cloud in the sky. I stop at every stop sign. While we are slowly cruising along, I have my sunroof open and what does Allison spot? A American Bald Eagle!!!!! No kidding. It glided right in front of us and over our car. We could look up and see him so perfectly. It was truly amazing. I mean how many people can say they have seen one of these in their lifetime in their natural habitat and within only a few feet overhead. I'm still blown away by this...
After our vision of happiness occurred, we checked out the awesome gift shop at Jordan Pond. I bought a couple of travel mugs and a pair of earrings I wanted. Then I drove the long drive home.
All in all, it was a great vacation - albeit a short one. We made memories and that is all that matters. I actually would stay at the Holiday Inn Regency again, because it has the most spectacular views of any hotel on the island. Here is a round up of great places/must dos when in Bar Harbor:
Places to Eat:
Rosalies - great pizza
Paddys - incredible lunch or dinner ($$ - but worth it - try the bread pudding)
Coffee Hound Coffee Bar - nuff said (try the blueberry hand pies)
Reel Pizza - great place to spend an evening seeing a movie in a quirky setting
Jordan Pond House - In Acadia - you must have popovers and chowder!
Adelman's Deli - amazing sandwiches
Must Do's
Sand Bar out to Bar Island - for treasure hunting - DO NOT BRING YOUR CAR
Sunset from Cadillac Mountain
Hike around Jordan Pond - before popovers
Psychic Reading - for fun if you're into that sort of thing
Drive to Northeast Harbor to Asticou Gardens - bring a picnic lunch
Improv Acadia - a nice, entertaining evening out seeing improv
Head's Up:
Don't eat breakfast at Holiday Inn Hotel (awful)
Don't drive through stop signs
Don't pay for your hotel upfront
Don't forget to laugh at yourself!
I hope you all get to see this part of the country soon.....thanks for reading along
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Omigosh, what a day! I can't believe the credit card fiasco and the fact that the hotel couldn't fix it easily!! And then to rip your car door off to top it all off!
Gosh Diane, what a last day you had. At least the weather turned sunny and you were able to get some things done! Thanks for sharing your trip with us, and for the list of places to eat and must dos!!
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It's a good thing the rain cleared and you got to experience the beauty of Acadia, otherwise this day would have been a total loss! At least you gave your daughter some laughs, and a lot of memories to share. The ineptitude of the staff at the hotel is beyond belief.
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Wow, that was some last day! Good for you taking it all in stride and finding the joy in it! Thanks for taking the time to share your trip and to give us some great information.
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.
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. Say what?? I gave him cash and left in a panic state. You see, when I checked into the hotel, I paid for all four nights up front in cash. I got a receipt and was told that they would be putting a $50 hold on a credit card for minor purchases and such. This is normal procedure. Well when I checked in on Monday, for some bizarre reason, they had my four night reservation split into three (3) nights and then (1) night. Everyone at the check in desk was nice enough, but not very skilled in what they were doing. 
. I also had seafood chowder and my daughter had a chicken sandwich. She wouldn't share even a bite with me, so I know it must have been good. 
. I tried to not let it bother me and always had a smile on my face, because how could you get mad at people that were not trained properly. It only reminded me that I wasn't in Disney
. As I sat by the pool, I was struck by how much I truly love going to WDW. I mean after sitting by your pool at your resort, if you got a little bored, you could head to a park and have the time of your life! Right?
. He let me off with a warning. At this point, I said to my daughter - is this day really happening? She said YUP Mom it is! 
. While we are slowly cruising along, I have my sunroof open and what does Allison spot? A American Bald Eagle!!!!! No kidding. It glided right in front of us and over our car. We could look up and see him so perfectly. It was truly amazing. I mean how many people can say they have seen one of these in their lifetime in their natural habitat and within only a few feet overhead. I'm still blown away by this...
DLinNH
PassPorter Guide Author
I'm glad you could still find a positive side, after going through all that....
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