Grand Duo Birthday Trip: COMPLETE 2/5/09 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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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Where Would We Fly Out Of, Our Dining Choices, and Some Other Plans
OK…so the trip with my mom in February came and went, as well as trip to DL in April. When we got home from CA, I made it a priority to work on getting airfare for this trip. Flights out of Louisville were either non-stop at all the wrong times; flights are a decent time but having a layover in Atlanta or Detroit (huh?), $350-$450 a piece RT, or combo of the three. It was just not cool. So after talking to Chuck, we decided that we were going to check flights out of Indy. Yes, it would require a 2 hour drive and most likely a hotel stay the night before, but I truthfully thought we were going to come out ahead. I logged onto Airtran, put in my dates, and just smiled. It took a matter of minutes to decide. We got RT non-stop airfare for both of us for $370. Even with the hotel the night before and gas, we are going to come out ahead by at least $200. Happy with the decision, oh yes I am.
At this point, MVMCP dates were announced at the beginning of May. Prior to May, during one of many chats via IM, Tiff (tigger22) told me that she and her DH were headed to WDW as well during the same time frame. We don’t plan it this way. We just consider it two great minds thinking alike. So I talked with her to find out when they were going to MVMCP so we can go to the same party. We were trying to decide between the 16th and the 20th. We eventually decided on the 20th. I called and ordered my tickets within the two weeks of May and made an ADR for LTT.
Next, it was time for the rest of the ADRs; however, the WDW site did not post the hours for November at the beginning of May. I didn’t have to call until the 18th, so I just started playing around with the historical hours getting a basic game plan. The 18th came and still no hours, so I just went with my plan and got everything I wanted except Yak and Yeti as I had to call exactly 180 days out for that one. That day came and got that ADR without issue. Now, it was within the first week of June that the November hours were finally posted. After reviewing them and comparing them to my plans, I only had to call and change two ressies and had no problems.
I will give a brief rundown of my food choices. I know it isn’t the most interesting info but since we are going on the Deluxe Dining Plan, I wanted to show how we are using our meal credits.
Saturday: Teppan Edo (L); Cali Grill (D) (7 hours between meals) Sunday: Crystal Palace (B); Citricos (D) Monday: Yak and Yeti (L); Artist Point (D) (6.5 hours between meals) Tuesday: 1900 Park Fare (B); Spirit of Aloha Luau—8:00pm show Wednesday: Akerhaus (B); Narcossees (D) Thursday: Chefs De France (L); LTT (D) (5.5 hours between meals) Friday: Kona Café (B); Le Cellier (D) Saturday: Ohanas (B); Biergarten (L)
There are a lot of new restaurants for the both of us which we are both excited about trying. We plan to use the snack credits to satisfy any hunger urges we might have between the meals. I’m going to make every effort to take pictures of our food and do mini-reviews throughout the TR, not just the "I ate here and this is what we had."
Airfare-check, ADRs-check, MVMCP tickets-check. Now I wanted to do something to surprise Chuck for his birthday. He had already gotten his birthday present early due to his iPod nano being in his car that was in the repair shop and he had two business trips (one to Mexico) and he had to have music. Spoiled, yeah…we both are. Luckily, I had already bought him a new iPod classic that I planned to give him the night before we left for WDW. Anywho, I decided to try and snag an Illuminations Cruise. After seeing all the pictures from other PassPorters cruises, I knew this is what I wanted. 90 days out was on a Saturday morning. Guess who forgot to call? Yep, that would be me. I remembered first thing Monday morning and called immediately. The planning gods must have been watching over me because I snagged the last boat available for the night I wanted it.
After I snagged the cruise, I told Tiff so her and her DH could plan to join us. I had been chatting with Peggy (POOH) and let her know that I was going to try and get a cruise. I PM’d her to let her know I got one, and she let me know it would be her and her sister. I then put a post out on the PP boards to see if I could fill up the last 4 slots. I got a PM from Lisa (poohbearu.k.), and she asked if her family could be the four. Sent a PM back and said that her family was more than welcome, so Lisa, her DH, and her two sons will be joining us on the 21st.
Oh how well I remember that weekend Dawn!! That was the weekend that Ben and I went to WDW for the night. Down there it was very hot, humid and tornado warnings and up here it was about 10 degrees above zero and slicker than snot!
What a great time to start planning the next vacation!!
Your dining plans look great! This is going to be such a great trip for you guys!
Wow, what a great sounding trip Dawn, I am so excited for you!! Can't wait to hear more about your swanky Deluxe trip! There will be lots of Passporters living vicariously through you!
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So I talked with her to find out when they were going to MVMCP so we can go to the same party. We were trying to decide between the 16th and the 20th. We eventually decided on the 20th. I called and ordered my tickets within the two weeks of May and made an ADR for LTT. 
I remembered first thing Monday morning and called immediately. The planning gods must have been watching over me because I snagged the last boat available for the night I wanted it. 
And how great to have a bunch of PPs to share it with!! 
Congrats on getting the Illuminations cruise.
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