Anyone do a Disney Cruise at Christmas time? - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Pancetta Leek and Goat's Cheese Tartlet with Sweet Tomato and Garlic Dressing
Alaskan King Crab Legs with Melted Anchovies, Lemon Butter and Roasted Cherry
Tomato Chutney
Prosciutto Cup filled with Gourmet Leaves with Grape Tomatoes and a reduction of Balsamic vinegar
Smoked Salmon Parcel with Baby Spinach stuffed with fresh Herb Cream Cheese and Red Bell Pepper Coulis
Soups & Salads
Stilton and Cranberry Soup swirled with Chili-Tomato Dressing
Chilled Tomato Soup with Chipolte Cream
Mediterranean Romaine Salad with Feta Cheese, Artichokes and Vine-ripened Tomatoes mixed with Red Onion tossed in Oregano-flavored Olive Oil
Holiday Season Mixed Salad Leaves served with Crispy Smoked Duck and Toasted Pine Nuts with a Red Wine and Hazelnut Reduction
Main Course
Honey-glazed Baked Virginia Ham with Sweet Corn Cakes, Roasted Red Skin Potatoes and Whole Green Beans on a rich Madeira Sauce
Oven-roasted Young Tom Turkey wih Bread Fruit Stuffing, Sweet Mashed Potatoes, Baby Sweet Corn, Pan-roasted Juices and freshly made Cranberry Relish
Prosciutto-wrapped salmon rubbed with Crushed Green Pea and Wasabi served on Mediterranean Vegetable Ragout
Mustard-rubbed Prime Rib of Beef with Double-baked Potato, Glazed carrots and Buttered Broccoli Florets
Baked Pacific Lobster Tail on Yukon Gold Potato Mash, Garlic-roasted Asparagus and Yellow Squash covered in Shrimp Lemon Butter
Lighter Fare
Roasted Chicken Breast
Grilled Sirloin Steak
Baked salmon Steak
All served with Steamed Rice or Baked Potato with selection of Steamed garden Vegetables
Vegetarian Selections
Vegetable Wellington served on a Duo of Red and Yellow Pepper Sauces
Blue Cheese and Asparagus Risotto served with Celery and Roasted walnut Loaf
Bread Selection
Corn Bread
Sour Dough Loaf
Desserts
Holiday English Pudding with Brandy Sauce
Double Chocolate Yule Log with Meringue Mushrooms
Passion Fruit and White Chocolate Creme Brulee with Vanilla Ice Cream
Flourless Chocolate Cake served with a Vanilla Cream Frosting and a Milk Chocolate Sauce
Banana Caramel Bliss Mint Chocolate Ice Cream with Slice of Banana, Pecan Brittle and Rum Caramel Sauce
No Sugar Added Desserts
Chocolate Cheesecake with Chocolate Sauce
Assorted Sugar-free Ice Cream
Apple Pie a la mode
Specialty Cocktails
Cosmopolitan: Vodka, Cointreau, Lime Juice and a splash of Cranberry Juice
Jingle Bell: Vodka, Peach Schnapps, Blue Curacao, Midori and Orange Juice
Santa's Delight: Light Rum, Chambord, Pineapple Juice and Strawberry Juice
And a huge selection of wines/champagnes/spirits, after-dinner drinks, teas, and specialty coffees.
This was the menu on Christmas Night 2005.
And you can have any or all or as much as you want of the food off the menu. My DS had the lobster AND the prime rib!
We're going to be on the Magic for Christmas and have never done that "special" itinerary. Can anyone tell me if the views at sea better will be better with cabin on port or starboard side? We've requested port side (to get a better view of Cuba and FL Keys as we sail past??), but obviously have time to change our request.
Funny thing - we wanted to book the cruise over New Years' Eve, but cabins we were interested in were all already sold out when we went to book during "Spring Break" cruise in March. DD was quite happy to "settle" for being on the Magic for Christmas, particularly after one of the CMs told her that there is always a Christmas tree and plenty of decorations. She was willing to waive the "no more traveling on Christmas Day" promise we made her a few years back since the "travel" in question does not involve sitting in an airport on Christmas Day.
When the ship is in port in St. Thomas and St. Martin, it's the starboard side that faces the dock/islands instead of the open ocean.
It's also the side to see Castaway Cay, since the ship usually backs in.
This is the "sunset" side of the ship.
To see Cuba, and I think even Puerto Rico (it'll be mentioned in the Navigator what time you'll be able to vaguely see those islands), you can just go up on deck to the port side. You can hardly see it, but it's cool to still be able to say you saw Cuba!
We've done the same cruise as you and were very happy with our starboard cabin, like you. However, December cruise we are doing is the "special" route that goes to CC on way out to Costa Maya and Cozumel (and again on the way back). Looking at the route maps in one of the guidebooks it looks like the port side will have better views. I would love to hear from someone who has "been there-done that" - or is the Sept. 27th sailing the first time that DCL is doing that particular route? I'm getting sooo confused.
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