What's the shortest time you can imagine for planning a Disney trip. - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Our first trip in 2009 we booked and planned about 60 days out. It was great a trip. We had no idea what we were doing, but we had fun.
Now we really enjoy planning 500 days out. Yes, that's the room only and then when the packages come out we discuss Park hopping, then which park which days and dinning and then FP+. The planning and talking about it is a big part of the fun.
We once did one that was 6 weeks out, but with FP+ now, I think it would be harder. But on the other hand, we booked our next trip about a year and a half out and that is way too long!
What is the big concern with FastPass+? My DD did ours in April May and was changing them constantly. She never seemed to have a problem getting passes for the new park. I think the thing I disliked is having to make fast passes for rides where you wouldn't need them or particularly want to go to if you had to wait.
What is the big concern with FastPass+? My DD did ours in April May and was changing them constantly. She never seemed to have a problem getting passes for the new park.
Getting them day-of would likely be easier for one or two people if she made them for you both. When you were there might have made some difference.
Those with concerns are generally wanting the high-demand attractions for several family members.
I would be amazed if you could get multiples for Anna/Elsa, 7DMT, Test Track, or TSMM on the day you want them. Soarin', possibly slightly better chance if there at a least-busy time.
An individual would be far more likely to cadge one, I expect.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
We were there at the end of April into May. We got fast passes for Soarin and Test Track at Epcot, Kali, Everest and Dinosaur at AK and the mountains at MK. There were 5 in our party, although the baby and I didn't ride but let the others use ours.We kept switching plans so DD got all the passes either the day of aor the night before. She was able to get a few additional at the Kiosks.
We had made Fastpass+ reservations around 60 days out. We ended up changing them. Maybe we are too fickle a familybut deciding what you are going to be doing two months ahead of time just doesn't work for us. We get tired, like to judge crowds and not be bound to a schedule.
Just DD and I went to DHS beofer the others arrived. It was mid week of the last week in April, Other than for TSM we did not use our reserved passes.
Unitl Fastpass+ we were a wake up and decide ona park kind of family. It was very hard to change our style and we eventually were able to make fastpass+ work with this philosophy.
One big problem I saw during our trip was the number of people with their head focused on their smart phone (my DD included). To me, WDW should be put the phone away family time, not spend the time using the DMW app.
I think because we have never had much planned out months (or even weeks) in advance, I don't understand why there is a need to plan so far ahead. If it's fun that's one thing, but if it stresses you out when you can't get the fastpass you want, relax.
My person experience has been we have never planned much ahead and have always gotten the rides, meals and almost always the accommodations we want. ONe I could not get the moderate I wanted for all of a last minute trip. BUt I also will not book full price so I could have gotten the room, but for more than I thought was reasonable to pay.
i booked the trip we took earlier this year just two months ahead (normally I'm a year-ahead planner). I ended up pretty much getting all the FP+ and ADRs we wanted (except Crystal Palace for breakfast).
We were there at the end of April into May. We got fast passes for Soarin and Test Track at Epcot, Kali, Everest and Dinosaur at AK and the mountains at MK. There were 5 in our party, although the baby and I didn't ride but let the others use ours.We kept switching plans so DD got all the passes either the day of aor the night before. She was able to get a few additional at the Kiosks.
We had made Fastpass+ reservations around 60 days out. We ended up changing them. Maybe we are too fickle a familybut deciding what you are going to be doing two months ahead of time just doesn't work for us. We get tired, like to judge crowds and not be bound to a schedule.
Just DD and I went to DHS beofer the others arrived. It was mid week of the last week in April, Other than for TSM we did not use our reserved passes.
I'd love to know how you got Soarin' and Test Track...on the same day or different days? It isn't supposed to be possible to get both in advance on the same day, since they are both Tier 1. Has that changed?
MY DD did the fast passes. I followed her. I think that she may have booked additional passes once we used the first three. I know they were booked very close in order. If I remember we did Soarin, (FP) Nemo , Living with the Land and then headed across to Mission Space and Test Track. They may have actually done test track twic-once single rider and once with fast pass. But that is my point, getting fast pass+ the day of is not impossible or even that difficult. Other than 7 Dwarfs Mine train, we got fast passes for everything we wanted. We also hopped parks and I think it was once we got to the second park she got additional passes.
I did not book them but I know we did all the headliners and my kids don't wait more than 20 minutes. I actually found having to book fastpasses for rides we would never do if there was a line a pain.
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The only thing we couldn't get FP for at two weeks out were Anna Ana Elsa M&G and 7 Dwarves. Everything else had multiples still available to choose from.
Since we are always dreaming of going we are always planning trips months out.
But back in Summer 2009, i got laid off from a job, I had 6 weeks of vacation time paid out to me so we booked a 3 week road trip for two weeks later. it was scaled back to a 2 week road trip a week later as i had found a new job.
Honestly the kids and i could wing it and leave tomorrow morning if the funds allowed it. I would do laundry there if I had too! LOL
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