Florida flowers and Caribbean cruising LIVE TRIP REPORT COMPLETED 3/8 - Page 20 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
Pre-trip report – part sixteen: “I’m going back a week on Friday!”
Tuesday 3 February
I was down in our Brighton office for work today, which is about 60 miles away from where we leave. It usually takes about an hour and a quarter to get there on a good day, but sadly today was not a good day. We had some snow, which looked very nice…
It didn’t affect the roads at all but for some reason, it took me 35 minutes to cover four miles. There was no reason – no accident or other incident, but at least it gave me a chance to catch up on some of the recent PassPorter moms podcasts, and it was so nice to hear Sara getting all excited about her cruise, as I think I was listening to some of the podcasts when she had about two weeks before her cruise, and we’re at about the same state now!
I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited to see a grocery order, because it means that our first aid kit is now fully equipped again. I know, sad isn’t it?
Wednesday 5 February
I always love getting my weekly All Ears Newsletter, but even more so when it’s getting close to one of our vacations. In today’s one, I was fascinated to read Deb Wills’ thoughts about the changes going on at Disney Springs (otherwise known as Downtown Disney – I’m not quite clear when it will formally change its name ). It sounds like it’s still quite a mess over there, with lots of construction walls, but equally it sounds like there are aa lot of new things to see there too…
There were details of changes to the monorail’s operation, but fortunately the first set of dates are while we’re on the Dream. With the second set, I don’t think it will affect us, as we haven’t got any plans to head to the Magic Kingdom on those days, but then again, that could be a case of “famous last words”…
I had another look ahead to the forecast for while we’re in Florida and the Caribbean tonight, and it looks like it’s getting a bit warmer, with some temperatures in the high 70s and low 80s. Sounds good to me!
On the boards tonight, there were more rumours about Be Our Guest getting a breakfast, but who knows when? Some reports suggest from 25 February, which would be perfect, as I’d definitely try and get in there to sample it, but others say “later in the year”. I’ll keep an eye out for more news and hope that the February date is right. Fingers crossed!
I saw a photo Marci (disney4us2) had posted of the hat at the Studios. My goodness, it’s almost all gone now. I doubt by the time we get there, which will be towards the end of our vacation, there’ll be anything left. I never really liked the thing that much, but ironically, I am now sad to see it go..
I also couldn’t resist posting on Jennifer’s trip report (jenseib) when she posted a photo of Castaway Cay, and said “wouldn’t you love to be there?” Well, wouldn’t you know it, three weeks today exactly (I know, I checked the calendar! ) we’ll be on Castaway Cay!
Thursday 5 February
I had a look to see if there were any further details of shows etc. from the other parks tonight, but you really couldn’t make it up. SeaWorld Orlando has details up until 1 March, and guess when we’re going? You got it – 1 March! I think I could have a seriously long wait for details from the Busch Gardens website, as they’re only showing details of the show time for the next 10 days!
The Universal site has details for the next couple of weeks, and again the information runs up until about two days before we’re due to visit. It’s as if they know, and just want to make us wait even longer….
For some reason, I went over to the Virgin Atlantic website, as I had a feeling that they might have some more movies showing up, and they did! The movies that were still showing as “coming soon” a few days ago, are now current ones. That means Gone Girl is showing, which I wanted to see at the cinema, as is Fury, which Mark wanted to see at the cinema, so good news for both of us.
Friday 6 February
I got so excited this morning when I logged on to the boards to see that there was a report of breakfast starting at Be Our Guest on 25 February. Unfortunately, as with a lot of these things at the moment, it wasn’t right, and I did post questioning that, given all the discussions I’d seen over the last few days. Sara messaged me later to say that apparently the breakfast menu had gone up on the WDW website earlier this week, but it came down pretty quickly…. Oh Disney, stop playing with my emotions – if there’s going to be a breakfast starting while we’re there, please just tell us, so that I can try and get it booked. This waiting is killing me!
Saturday 7 February
I went into town this evening to pick up my supply of contact lenses, so that’s another thing off the list done. I also got another couple of swimming costumes, well tankinis would be a better description, which is a holiday thing, although it’s also an everyday thing for me, as I need a supply of them. I swim regularly year round, usually at least three times a week if I can, and I tend to find I go through quite quickly (a couple a year) as chlorine can be really harsh on them. I also don’t know about in the States, but nearly all the swimming stuff over here is hand wash only. I don’t think so – the only way to get that chlorine out that I know of is to throw it in a washing machine. That probably doesn’t help with their longevity, but never mind…
I went into one of my favourite clothes shops while I was out as well. I tried five things on, but none of them were sadly any good. While I was browsing in there, I heard one of the sales girls say to another “I really love Disney. I feel like a kid when I’m there”. The other then said “I’m going back in March” and of course I couldn’t resist saying “I’m going back a week on Friday!” It turns out that one of the girls has been to Walt Disney World, Disneyland Paris, Disneyland California and has cruised with Disney – a big fan indeed, but she hasn’t made it to Aulani yet. She has been to Hawai’i before, but she stayed in Waikiki, before Aulani was built. I think I may have given her an idea for a future Disney vacation…
I figured it was about time I went ahead and printed out our itineraries, so I did, but only the days that were completely confirmed – generally the Disney days, as I still don’t have show times for the other parks. No surprise there then!
As I was printing out the itinerary, I realised it still said “Dine with Shamu or Shark’s Underwater Grill”. Hmmm.. Has this not been sorted? Apparently not… I did one final check, and Dine with Shamu is still listed as dinner only, and we want lunch, so it’s not an option for us. I realised that I could’ve booked Shark’s Underwater Grill a couple of weeks ago, but I’d obviously forgotten about doing it. Thank goodness it’s not a hot draw, say on the lines of Be Our Guest. I had no problems getting the time I wanted, which was the first seating at 11:30am. It was a bit of a pain not having the show times available to coordinate things, but to be honest, we saw One Ocean (the Shamu show) and Blue Horizons (the dolphin show) the last time we were there, and I’m not overly bothered if we don’t see them this trip, which allows us to be a lot more flexible with our day.
I had a quick look on All Ears Net to see whether or not there was anything new on there, and sure enough there was. They had this article all about the new carvings on the roots of the Tree of Life. How cool! We’ll definitely make sure we see those.
I also went a browsing elsewhere, and found photos of the work being down to convert Downtown Disney to Disney Springs. Wow, I’ve heard how much the construction is affecting everything, but it’s only when you see the photos that you realise the full impact of the work. Oh well, I guess at least now I’m fully prepared…
Only 4 days now! Temps in the 70s and 80s sounds surreal to me. This morning in Boston the actual temperature is 3 below, and the feels-like is 25 below, with yet another 16" of fresh snow on the ground, making a total of 90" so far! Soak up the sun for me!
70's....aaahhhhhhh. We don't have anything as bad as Laurie, but it was wind chills of -20 all day yesterday, with 40 mph wind. And tonight we're under a winter storm warning. Sunday is supposed to be our first above freezing day.
Maybe we'll all join you in the Treehouse - there's lots of room!
I wonder if the other parks can just sense you're a Disney pannier, and pull the hours down whenever you're on the site? I just cannot imagine not putting up hours well in advance?!
Did you read the book, Gone Girl? The book was excellent. The movie did a good job as often I'm so disappointed in a movie when I enjoyed the book. Glad you'll have more to occupy yourself for 9 hours!
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
We did Kennedy Space Centre yesterday, I would suggest you take one of the first bus tours in the morning. Yesterday 15 of the buses were pulled to go and pick up people from cruise ships, it made the waits much longer, also we had about a 45 min wait to get lunch and this was with us waiting until 1 pm to eat.
Yay for the movies on the plane!
Looks like all the pieces are falling into place now with it getting so much closer. Just a few details left by now!
__________________
Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
Cheryl, have you looked for chlorine resistant swimwear? That's what I try to get for my water aerobics classes in the pool. They last a lot longer. I get tankinis from swimsuitsforall.com. Not sure if you can order form them in the UK, though.
Ah, the plans are really falling into place for you!! I know you are getting so excited! I love seeing your trip getting closer as that means ours is as well, since we are right behind you.
Only 4 days now! Temps in the 70s and 80s sounds surreal to me. This morning in Boston the actual temperature is 3 below, and the feels-like is 25 below, with yet another 16" of fresh snow on the ground, making a total of 90" so far! Soak up the sun for me!
Oh my goodness, that is just insanity! You poor thing. I really hope the snow stops soon and it warms up for you.
70's....aaahhhhhhh. We don't have anything as bad as Laurie, but it was wind chills of -20 all day yesterday, with 40 mph wind. And tonight we're under a winter storm warning. Sunday is supposed to be our first above freezing day.
Oh that is just nuts. I really feel for you guys right now.
Quote:
Maybe we'll all join you in the Treehouse - there's lots of room!
There is certainly a lot of room there, but I am kinda looking forward to having it to ourselves.
Quote:
I wonder if the other parks can just sense you're a Disney pannier, and pull the hours down whenever you're on the site? I just cannot imagine not putting up hours well in advance?!
Maybe?
Quote:
Did you read the book, Gone Girl? The book was excellent. The movie did a good job as often I'm so disappointed in a movie when I enjoyed the book. Glad you'll have more to occupy yourself for 9 hours!
No I haven't read the book and, how bad is this, I didn't even know there was a book!
We did Kennedy Space Centre yesterday, I would suggest you take one of the first bus tours in the morning. Yesterday 15 of the buses were pulled to go and pick up people from cruise ships, it made the waits much longer, also we had about a 45 min wait to get lunch and this was with us waiting until 1 pm to eat.
Wow, thanks for the heads up! My plan was to be on one of the first bus tours of the morning and hopefully we'll have stuffed ourselves so much at breakfast, we'll only need a snack for lunch.
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
About This Page: 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
PassPorter Guide Author
but for some reason, it took me 35 minutes to cover four miles. 
There was no reason – no accident or other incident, but at least it gave me a chance to catch up on some of the recent PassPorter moms podcasts, and it was so nice to hear Sara getting all excited about her cruise, as I think I was listening to some of the podcasts when she had about two weeks before her cruise, and we’re at about the same state now! 
In today’s one, I was fascinated to read Deb Wills’ thoughts about the changes going on at Disney Springs (otherwise known as Downtown Disney – I’m not quite clear when it will formally change its name 
). It sounds like it’s still quite a mess over there, with lots of construction walls, but equally it sounds like there are aa lot of new things to see there too… 
I doubt by the time we get there, which will be towards the end of our vacation, there’ll be anything left. I never really liked the thing that much, but ironically, I am now sad to see it go.. 
I had no problems getting the time I wanted, which was the first seating at 11:30am. It was a bit of a pain not having the show times available to coordinate things, but to be honest, we saw One Ocean (the Shamu show) and Blue Horizons (the dolphin show) the last time we were there, and I’m not overly bothered if we don’t see them this trip, which allows us to be a lot more flexible with our day. 
Oh well, I guess at least now I’m fully prepared… 
Disney Magic - Oct 2015
Linear Mode
