Magical Moments for new WDW visitors - Day 1 - Page 2 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
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Our next-to-last day, and it was Hollywood Studios. I thought it would be a challenge because of the EMH tonight and the Star Wars fireworks, but the only real challenge was the rain!
We got to the park before opening and split into two groups: my DS and DGS headed off to ride Star Tours first thing (they had a FP+ for a later 2nd ride), while the other three of us went to Starring Rolls to secure breakfast. We were joined by my son & my DGS who was grinning from ear-to-ear. As he is shy he didn't want to do the Jedi Temple bit, and none of us were adventurous enough for Tower of Terror or Rock-n-Roller-Coaster, we really only had Toy Story as a challenge, and we'd made a FP+ for that. So off we went, and I must agree that it was one of the best rides ever!
In quick order, we went on Great Movie Ride and Little Mermaid, then we split again so the boys could do the Star Wars hanger (although I must admit that I made a pass through it myself), while we took Alayna to the Disney Junior show. She was wearing her Sophia shirt and nearly bounced herself to death when Sophia appeared on stage. She also enjoyed Doc McStuffins, and was delighted by the soap bubbles. We met up with the boys after that and made our way back to the hotel for naps & swimming.
So far, we'd had good luck with the weather but the afternoon failed us. It opened up and poured the moment we arrived back at HS. So out came the ponchos and we once again split up - the boys back on Star Tours with FP+ and the girls to Frozen (also FP). Alayna, as I said earlier, is a Frozen fan and even though she is only 3 she knows all the words to all the songs. And her face during the snowfall at the end was pure bliss. (When I get home, I will upload pictures to add to this.)
After that, the pickings were slim. It was still drizzling so outdoor shows were crossed off our list. We went to the Muppets then took our time crossing the park for Fantasmic. Fortunately, it stopped raining, so we were able to see that for the first time for any of us. We then made our weary way towards the front of the park, arriving at the Crossroads in time for the fireworks.
The minute they ended, though, it looked like the stampede scene from Lion King. We wheeled the stroller and took off, my DD-I-L calling to us to save the children & ourselves as she valiently tried to stay ahead of the herd. fortunately, we arrived at the split for the various transports and they were diverted away from us. We boarded our bus shortly and headed for the hotel, although my DGD arrived in slumber-land before we even left the HS parking lot.
Last day tomorrow, so we have already pre-packed. We are all sad but also sort of looking forward to the rest.
Wow have you all packed a ton into just a few days. Just read through the TR and I couldn't stop so now I need to go back & reread for more details. So glad that everyone had a great time despite the on/off again rain. Sounds like the DGS & DGD kept up rely well with the adults & vice versa. So glad GD got to meet her favorite princess - seems that there were many magical moments to trestle from this trip. Looking forward to reading the remaining day as well as seeing the pics whenever they get uploaded. Safe travels
Thanks for all the comments! We did do a number of things but we also tried to have a small list of "musts" and allow random fun when it took us. That turned out to be very important on this day.
Our last day was Animal Kingdom, and Saturday was miserably hot and muggy. We spent the morning at our hotel, packing and loading the car, then having a leisurely breakfast as we knew we'd be staying till after the first Jungle Book show. We arrived at AK at noon, armed with sunscreen and our little spritzer fans. We'd need both.
We got our picture in front of the tree and immediately popped inside for "It's Tough to be a Bug" which seemed to have only a 5 min wait most of the day. (Last time I was here, I couldn't even get near it!) Then we headed towards Dino-land but my DGD was having a heat melt-down so we diverted to "Nemo" instead - and it was a hit. Kids & G-kids all entranced, and I got teary-eyed towards the end myself. When we got out, it was sprinkling a little which seemed to reduce the Everest line, so my DS & GS headed there while we ducked into the shops for next-to-last souvenir shopping. They loved it and the pictures were great, too. Next, we had FP+ for Kali River, and we had our first experience with the rider switch as Alayna was just a little too short to ride. She and her dad settled with frozen lemonades at a table while the rest of us rode Kali (taking the precaution to switch out our shoes!) and had a great time. Then I sat with her while the other three too the ride-swap ticket and went back on it, having an equally fun time.
After that, it was back to the front of the park for our "lunch/dinner" reservation at Rainforest Cafe. This was a hit with the grandkids, which I thought it would be, and a cool rest for the adults.
Then it was "Lion King" and our safari ride, which was amazing - and I had timed it in early evening when the animals would hopefully be coming out. We saw a lot of different animals, and the grandkids had never been to a non-zoo setting for that, so they were awestruck.
With almost 2 hours before the Jungle Book, we check the Lines app for options. We decided to try again for Dino-land, and most of the group went off to Dinosaur (2 times in a row) while I took my granddaughter on the Triceratops spin ride - 3 times. I am still dizzy thinking about it, but she was in heaven. Then we made our way to the FP+ entrance to the Jungle Book. We had great seats and enjoyed the show, although maybe not as much as Fantasmic.
After that, we strolled towards the front, stopping for very last minute souvenirs (I finally found the shirt I wanted!) and watched the Tree go through a couple sets of changes, which was amazing. Then it was off to the parking lot and the Hunt for our Car - we had decided to drive to AK as we were immediately heading home. We decided that the names for the sections were highly informative - the Yeti section was for cars that were rumored to exist and people claimed to have seen but no one actually found their cars there. The Giraffe section - you needed to be as tall as a giraffe to find your car there. The Unicorn section - a fantasy in the minds of people who actually thought they'd parked that close. The Butterfly section - it was actually the Caterpillar when they originally parked there, but by the time they walk back to their car they've emerged from the cocoon. (Clearly, the heat had gotten to us by then...)
And so we waved farewell to the AK and to Disneyworld, pointed our car back towards Atlanta, but promising to return again in a year or two.
Thanks again for all the comments! I thought I would end with a few things that I learned from this trip.
1. We were at 3 hotels over 9 days/8 nights, the longest being the 4 nights at POR and the rest being 2 nights each. For us, that was a little too much moving. If we hadn't had the young kids it would have been a different story, but packing up 3 times was at least 1 time too many and caused a melt-down. Part of it couldn't be helped - for my conference, I had to be at the Embassy Suites. If I had to do it again, I would have booked the family the Disney hotel for the whole week and I would have just moved back & forth.
2. The more "stuff" there is to do at a resort, the longer you need to stay there with down days to enjoy. For Embassy Suites and All-Star Sports, the 2 nights with 1 down day at each was fine. But at POR, we had just one down day & an evening, and while we did all of Riverside, we never got to the French Quarter with its kids' play area, or its bakery.
3. The more people in a room, the bigger the space needed. We had 3 adults and 2 kids (one under 3), and while we technically fit at the All-Star Sports, it was a little tight. Riverside was big enough bed-wise, but we lost storage space and we were still all in one room. On the other hand, the Embassy Suites with two separate rooms was nice for the adults, as we could watch TV and chat after the kids went to sleep without waking them up. The only problem was we were off-site, which would have made it touch returning for naps. Next time I return to Disney, I will look into a suite.
4. The tips about portion sizes were right - a lot of the meals were too much for one but perfect for an adult & child to split, or even two meals among three of us. We did that on the last half of the trip and had less wasted food.
5. Our last day should have been a half-day or down day -- even between the three of us driving/napping on the way home, we were exhausted. (And somehow driving through the night was easier when I was younger....)
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