Sep 26-Oct 3: MNSSHP + Food & Wine + More: The PTR - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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So sorry you had to cancel your trip in May, but hopefully your September trip will make up for it. I LOVE your photos! Looks like we will be there right before you!
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So sorry you had to cancel your trip in May, but hopefully your September trip will make up for it. I LOVE your photos! Looks like we will be there right before you!
Thanks! I hope we both have a great trip. And, we've booked a trip for next April, so that helps
Apparently, I'd been in zombie land with respect to Disney planning, as I had given no thought to FastPass selection. After a few weeks of catching up on the PP boards, and reading TRs, I began to get my planning mojo back. Good thing, since we were already at 63 days out.
Here's what I learned as I began to research the current state of FastPass+ :
I could make FP+ selections 60 days out, starting at midnight
I could select FP+ for all 7 days of our trip (up to 10 days for longer trips)
FP+ for the new Seven Dwarves Mine Train were not that difficult to get at 60 days
FP+ for Anna & Elsa were very difficult to get - best to try for the days at the end of the trip
I wanted to get both the new Mine Train and the Anna & Elsa M&G, but missing them wasn't going to ruin our trip. Plus, we may be able to ride the Mine Train during the Halloween Party.
Caught in the hype, I stayed awake last night to see if I could get the elusive Anna & Elsa FastPass. At the stroke of midnight, I was logged in and ready to do battle with My Disney Experience. Sure enough, there were no times available for our MK days. There were openings starting on Day 4 of our trip. I picked Day 6, figuring we might be ready to return to the MK on Wednesday. Folks with a 2 or 3 day trip have almost no chance to get the Anna & Elsa FP, even when booking 60 days in advance.
9/26: Arrival Day and MNSSHP - the plan is to arrive in time to see the new Festival of Fantasy Parade, go on some rides, and have dinner before the official Party opens. Success! I picked up FP+ for Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain, and the Haunted Mansion. The times line up nicely between the parade and dinner. Note - spots for the Parade, MSEP, and Wishes were available, but they were going quickly. I prefer different spots than the FP+ viewing areas.
(I have no older photos of Splash Mountain - it's been out of commission on our last three trips!)
9/27: Saturday at the Magic Kingdom: easily picked up mid-day FP+ for Enchanted Tales, Under the Sea, and the Seven Dwarves Mine Train. If we get the BOG FP for lunch, this will be a nice overview of the New Fantasyland.
I have filled in the rest of the days with FP+ for Epcot and DHS - no problems at 60 days out. We will probably skip AK on this visit.
My FastPass+ Experience was painless, but it might be daunting for the first time user. Fortunately, we had some practice in preparation for our trip last February.
I am SOOOOO EXCITED that you have started a new PTR and are keeping your fall trip!!! And how exciting to have a "real" fly in vacation!!! You will LOVE the F&WF! Can't wait to hear what you try and see all the food porn photos!! .........and you never know.....there is a slight chance Scott and I might be down around the same time (trying to find a way to make either end of Sept or end of October work ).
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So glad I found this PTR!!! Can't wait to hear about your plans! My aunt (Luvsun) and I will be down there from October 1-7th. I love going in the fall! The Food and Wine Festival is so yummy and fun to try new things! And my favorite event Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party! Can't wait to read more of what you will be doing!!!
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You make a good Elsa, Sharon It seems like you had a fairly painless time getting all of the FPs you wanted, it is crazy though how fast those Anna/Elsa ones get taken!
Nice FastPass + choices and congrats on getting one to meet Anna and Elsa. I like a challenge, so I'll be trying to get one for our trip in the spring.
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I love the Sharon/Elsa photo-- "Shelsa"? Good job with the FP+. Looking forward to hearing the dining choices. I hope the photo is not a preview.
Shelsa - that's a good one . Casey's corn dog nuggets are my favorite!!! Unfortunately, Grumpy bear prefers real food.
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Originally Posted by iwonathomas
Great start! So glad you are finally getting to do F&WF you will truly enjoy. I love your pictures they are wonderful
Thanks for the kind words. I'm looking forward to F&W.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lfredsbo
I am SOOOOO EXCITED that you have started a new PTR and are keeping your fall trip!!! And how exciting to have a "real" fly in vacation!!! You will LOVE the F&WF! Can't wait to hear what you try and see all the food porn photos!! .........and you never know.....there is a slight chance Scott and I might be down around the same time (trying to find a way to make either end of Sept or end of October work ).
That would be great if you guys were there - our paths will cross at some point!
So glad I found this PTR!!! Can't wait to hear about your plans! My aunt (Luvsun) and I will be down there from October 1-7th. I love going in the fall! The Food and Wine Festival is so yummy and fun to try new things! And my favorite event Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party! Can't wait to read more of what you will be doing!!!
Thats great that you get a fall trip too. This is our first MNSSHP.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pamcarey
Congrats on getting the FP's you wanted, other than Anna and Elsa!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2
Thanks, Pam. Getting the A&E for any time is tricky.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JKnott17
You make a good Elsa, Sharon It seems like you had a fairly painless time getting all of the FPs you wanted, it is crazy though how fast those Anna/Elsa ones get taken!
I assume there are just not that many time slots for Meet & Greet FastPasses - and no one wants to just "Let it Go..." when it comes to these two.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chezp
Nice FastPass + choices and congrats on getting one to meet Anna and Elsa. I like a challenge, so I'll be trying to get one for our trip in the spring.
You will be up for the challenge. Anna & Elsa, and BOG dinner are the hardest to get. I guess Victoria & Albert Chef's Table is up there, but that's not yet on our list.
Glad you got everything you wanted, other than Anna & Elsa. I have a feeling that will be a problem for us too. The girls want to meet them, but we don't want to wait forever. So we will see what happens. We will have 3 MK days, so maybe we will get lucky on one of the days.
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. Casey's corn dog nuggets are my favorite!!! Unfortunately, Grumpy bear prefers real food.
Liz 
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