Shhhh ... A Very Merry Surprise! ~ PTR for 11/4 - 11/12 2011 - Page 3 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
Our first full day at the World will start off at the Beach Club for the Cape May Cafe buffet breakfast with Goofy, Minnie and Donald. I am really looking forward to this meal! I wanted to try something different as we've always done Chef Mickey's, and I've seen some great reviews in other TRs that I've read. This will be one of several "firsts" for us this day.
From there we'll head over to Epcot, which, surpisingly to me, is both of my DD's favorite park. I thought for sure it would be MK, which was always mine as a child. However, they love exploring the WS countries, Innoventions and of course the Kidcot Stations. I really think they could spend days here!! They LOVED decorating their Duffy Bears last year, and we actually had to make a pit stop back at Epcot at the end of our last trip because my oldest DD realized that we were missing one country and she could not go home without a "finished" Duffy! To think of all the things to do in WDW, their favorite is coloring! We should be done with breakfast around 9:45, so I think we'll head first to Soarin to get a fastpass and then do some exploring in Future World. I think this time we'll also try to do the Kim Possible mission, another first for us. If anyone has any advice or tips on it, please share! Are their any country missions that are so so, or ones that we shouldn't miss?
Finally, I'm hoping to do some sampling at the F&WF that evening, which would also be a first for us! Last year we hadn't planned on partaking in it and had a big meal right before heading to Epcot. I could not believe how delicious all of the carts smelled, I wanted to try everything but was too full! All I managed to try was a FAB, the frozen cosmo from France. All I can say is Yum! This year I purposely did not plan any lunch or dinner ADR's for our Epcot day, as I plan on grazing around the world. I'm making myself hungry just thinking about it!
We should all be quite full and tired after a long day at Epcot, we'll head back to our resort before the park closes to get some rest for an early morning at MK the following day. We'll miss Illuminations, but I plan on catching it later in the week.
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Finally we make it to the Magic Kingdom, my favorite of all the parks . I'd like to make it to see the opening ceremony, as we've never done that before. It will all depend on how late of a night we have on Sunday I suppose. If everything goes as planned everyone will get up bright eyed and bushy tailed in the morning, we'll grab a light breakfast in our room and we'll be out the door before 8 AM . The park opens at 9 that morning, but what time does the opening show start? 15 mins prior?
I've mentioned before that we have a very casual touring style, so I really don't have much planned beyond that. We'll be sure to hit some of our favorite rides, IASW, Dumbo, the Teacups, BTMRR, Splash Mountain, Jungle Cruise and the Magic Carpets. I'm looking forward to the new meet and greet with Mickey Mouse, and to see the progress being made on the Fantasy Land expansion. (I can't wait for it to be done!! Just one more reason to plan a trip in 2012! ) We'll hit a CS restaurant for a light lunch and later head over to the Grand Floridian for an early dinner at 1900 Park Fare. Hopefully everyone will not be too tired after dinner, since I don't have an afternoon break planned, but I'd like to head back to the MK to catch the Electrical Parade. This has been on my to do list for our last two trips, but both times we were unable to see it. First, we had a long wait even with our ADR at Tony's Town Square, and missed the parade while we were eating . We saw bits and pieces out the window, and caught the tail end as we were leaving the restaurant but really didn't see much. Last year we made it to the park early and got a great viewing spot, then the heavens opened up and the parade was cancelled. Maybe the third time will be the charm!
By then, we'll all be pooped, so we'll probably start making our way back to our hotel. We'll skip Wishes, we've seen it plenty of times, and we're planning on going to MVMCP on Wednesday, so at least we'll get to see Holiday Wishes there!
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.
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Just signing on! How can I resist when you'll be at the World the same week as my family! This will be our seventh year visiting during "Jersey Week" as it is a wonderful time to go. We were thrilled to discover that the late dates this year allow us to attend MVMCP... that is a first for us, too! We always seem to miss it by a day or two. You have some great plans... great ADR choices. 1900 Park Fare is a absolute blast with the stepsisters. They are hysterical!
Just signing on! How can I resist when you'll be at the World the same week as my family! This will be our seventh year visiting during "Jersey Week" as it is a wonderful time to go. We were thrilled to discover that the late dates this year allow us to attend MVMCP... that is a first for us, too! We always seem to miss it by a day or two. You have some great plans... great ADR choices. 1900 Park Fare is a absolute blast with the stepsisters. They are hysterical!
Looking forward to your next update!
Thanks for reading along! Perhaps we'll cross paths during our trip I am really looking forward to MVMCP, I really didn't think that we'd ever be able to go to it. At first we were going to skip it because of the price tag, but I was able to convince DH that this year the late dates of our break are just a fluke and most likely "Jersey Week" won't coincide with the party for quite some time after this. Glad you confirmed this for me and that I won that battle
The resort you are staying at looks so nice and the pool area looks like a lot of fun. Great plans so far, I have not been (yet) to any of the table service restaurants you have chosen so I am looking forward to hearing about your experiences.
I'm so glad you will be able to do MVMCP on your trip! It is a great time and the fireworks are great! I know everyone says that the MNSSHP fireworks are better, but I really love the Christmas ones!
The resort you are staying at looks so nice and the pool area looks like a lot of fun. Great plans so far, I have not been (yet) to any of the table service restaurants you have chosen so I am looking forward to hearing about your experiences.
Thanks! We really do love the resort, but I'm still dreaming of staying on property one of these years. Maybe if I can get my hands on one of those elusive pin codes! All of these restaurants are firsts for us, but I've heard lots of good things about them!
Quote:
Originally Posted by ilovedisney247
I'm so glad you will be able to do MVMCP on your trip! It is a great time and the fireworks are great! I know everyone says that the MNSSHP fireworks are better, but I really love the Christmas ones!
I can't wait!!! I LOVE Christmas, and I can't wait to see it "snow" on Main Street. That has got to be a beautiful sight!
Tuesday morning we will head on over to the Animal Kingom. Hopefully we will get to spend more time here than we normally get to. We always plan to spend a lot of time here, checking out our favorite attractions and exploring the trails, but it seems the weather always has another plan! On both of our most recent trips, rain storms have chased us out of AK early . While we normally would just throw on our ponchos and keep on going, I find that AK is the hardest park to do this as mostly everything is outdoors and their are not too many places to go in and escape the rain. Let's hope this time the weather cooperates!!
We'll start off by getting FP for EE, and then head over to the Safari for an early morning ride. By the time that's over we should be able to use our FP, and then we'll check out Dinoland. This is my DD's favorite spot in AK. They love the face painting and the games, so we'll probably spend a good amount of time here. We've yet to see Finding Nemo the Musical or The Festival of the Lion King as DD's usually don't show any interest in them, maybe this will be the year they do! Another thing we'd like to check out is Rafiki's Planet Watch, as we've never had the chance to see it before.
Once we are done at the AK, we'll probably head back to our resort for a quick break. We've got a 6:45 PM ADR at the Garden Grill in Epcot that evening, so I'm hoping to leave AK around 3 PM or so for our hotel. After some relaxing and maybe a quick swim we'll head to Epcot for dinner, some FW touring and finish off the day with a viewing of Illuminations.
We'll probably be pooped after a long day, but we'll have time to rest as we're taking the next morning off ... Up Next, Some Down Time and MVMCP ...
About This Page: 
last year, and we actually had to make a pit stop back at Epcot at the end of our last trip because my oldest DD realized that we were missing one country and she could not go home without a "finished" Duffy! To think of all the things to do in WDW, their favorite is coloring! 
We should be done with breakfast around 9:45, so I think we'll head first to Soarin to get a fastpass and then do some exploring in Future World. I think this time we'll also try to do the Kim Possible mission, another first for us. If anyone has any advice or tips on it, please share! Are their any country missions that are so so, or ones that we shouldn't miss? 
Last year we hadn't planned on partaking in it and had a big meal right before heading to Epcot. I could not believe how delicious all of the carts smelled, I wanted to try everything but was too full! 
All I managed to try was a FAB, the frozen cosmo from France. All I can say is Yum! 
This year I purposely did not plan any lunch or dinner ADR's for our Epcot day, as I plan on grazing around the world. I'm making myself hungry just thinking about it! 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
. I'd like to make it to see the opening ceremony, as we've never done that before. It will all depend on how late of a night we have on Sunday I suppose. If everything goes as planned everyone will get up bright eyed and bushy tailed in the morning, we'll grab a light breakfast in our room and we'll be out the door before 8 AM . The park opens at 9 that morning, but what time does the opening show start? 15 mins prior?
. We saw bits and pieces out the window, and caught the tail end as we were leaving the restaurant but really didn't see much. Last year we made it to the park early and got a great viewing spot, then the heavens opened up and the parade was cancelled. Maybe the third time will be the charm! 
making rope drop!
Aimee
I am really looking forward to MVMCP, I really didn't think that we'd ever be able to go to it. At first we were going to skip it because of the price tag, but I was able to convince DH that this year the late dates of our break are just a fluke and most likely "Jersey Week" won't coincide with the party for quite some time after this. Glad you confirmed this for me and that I won that battle 
. While we normally would just throw on our ponchos and keep on going, I find that AK is the hardest park to do this as mostly everything is outdoors and their are not too many places to go in and escape the rain. Let's hope this time the weather cooperates!! 
Linear Mode
