Are You Ever Coming Home?...No! I am playing with Wizards, Farkles and Sparkling Friends completed 10/21/2017 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
We probably waited 15 minutes for the bus….impatiently of course. We kept watching the monitor and it kept adding minutes till it would come. This would become the theme of our stay here.
Finally it did come and we were off to Epcot…where we were greeted with large crowds going through bag check. I believe we arrived right about 10:15, which is the prime time for many people entering the parks.
We got into what looked like the shortest line, but we soon found out was the slowest one moving.
The security guards were switching out and they would check a few, move to the next table, check a few and then when they made it to our table they would head off…I assume for a break or another assignment. We got one guy at our table that literally took out every item of every bag. One guy had a stack of napkins in his backpack and this guard shook each and every one out.
Some guys next to us told us Dave the security guard was down a few tables and hopefully he would make his way to our table soon as he was going fast….and YES as we got closer Dave moved to our table and the line moved extremely fast then.
They were only randomly selecting people to go through the metal detectors today and we were able to bypass that.
Now let me remind you that this is June and the temps were already in the 90’s this morning. It was HOT! We knew we may be moving slower than normal, but still planned to try and get in as much as we could. We power walked over to the Land to get in line for Soarn’. My feet already were hurting. OMG! I had newer tennis shoes that I had been using for walks at home to get them broken in……but I had put an insert in them at home. A few days before we left, the insert was getting milly and was sticking to my socks so I pulled it out and threw it away. Now without that insert, my feet were sliding all around in the shoe and jamming my toes into the front of the shoe. I already knew I would have a blister before the end of the day. I just can’t win with my stupid feet!
We got in line and I think it was about a 45 minute wait. It was cooler in line, but still warm. But we would take this over being outside. The line moved slowly, but we were ok with it.
We eventually made it in and we were put on the side and at the end. I hate that spot, and seem to get it all the time, but oh well, we’ll live.
This was our first time seeing the new film. It was great, and the wind and movement felt wonderful. I may be the odd one out, but I still like the old version better. It was still a great ride though.
We headed out and made a bathroom stop and then hightailed it out and over to Test Track. I got a message from a Diser after I got home and she said she had seen Claire and I leaving the Land, but we looked like we were in a rush so she didn’t say anything. LOL. Yep…we are always trying to get to the next thing fast.
We did not have a fastpass for Test Track either, but Claire was now brave enough to do the single rider line, so we went that route and got on very fast.
I think we were only a few cars apart, and she waited for me at the end down where they display the pictures and then we were off once again….this time for our first fastpass….Spaceship Earth.
It did move fast, but I just was a bit disgusted they would allow a fastpass line to get that long. There are pros and cons to Fastpass + and this is one of the cons for sure.
It was nice to sit down and relax for the ride and feel some cool air again. I didn’t really take pictures during the ride so much because I have about 10 copies of each. It did make me feel a bit drowsy and that early morning was catching up to me.
We hit the bathroom again afterwards and splashed water on ourselves and applied my travel deodorant. I knew it would be hot, so we had one just for the parks so we could freshen up slightly.
We had a fastpass here too and this is one of Claire’s favorites. There are still rumors they will be closing it eventually, so we must ride it each time and Claire prays they don’t turn it into something else.
No pictures again as I have taken so many over the past years.
It was now getting close to our lunch reservation time. We were doing one of our favorites, Via Napoli. Time seemed to get away from us and we were moving slower than normal with the heat and already sore feet, so as we started coming up to World Showcase, I noticed a friendship boat pulling in. Let’s do that! We got right on and it took off a few minutes later. This was a first for us too. We always just walk around, but it was a nice relaxing ride. I am sure it shaved off a few minutes and my feet were super grateful.
We got off in Morocco and did a speed walk over to Italy.
We were called soon and taken to the side room this time. I have never been seated in there before…and honestly, I hope we never are again. It was like we were in a forgotten area. I will start out by saying this is the worst service we have ever had here.
So we were seated and we waited….and waited….and waited. I was starving again…getting the hungry headache and we were both super thirsty. A waitress went by and said she would be with us soon….and we waited….and waited.
Finally we got water and we drank it down like we were camels…The refills were pretty slow…as in almost never.
Our waitress was off singing happy celebrations to about every table around us and she then came over to take our order….or did we need to look over the menu. Nope, we have had at least 10 minutes to do that, we know what we want. First I asked for bread, which doesn’t come out normally, but if you ask they will bring it. She was confused if we wanted some special break that we would be charged for or just regular bread. I said the regular bread….and keep it coming, we’re starving. She didn’t understand what that meant at all. UGH! We made our order for a small pizza and then waited again.
Finally a guy brought out our drinks and later the bread…2 pieces….JUST 2 stinking pieces. I guess she didn’t understand the part where I said I was ready to eat a horse. LOL.
It was fantastic! We ate the whole thing and we were not over stuffed, which was great, because we wanted to go have some snacks later.
Then we waited and waited and waited. I saw her bringing celebration treats to other tables and talking and laughing. I finally got the attention of another waitress and told her we needed to leave and needed our bill. It still took a bit, but I think it went faster than if I had just waited. I was paying with a gift card and I handed it right to her to take. I didn’t want her to wait and come back in another 10 minutes or so. I was really frustrated. She was very nice, but she was not attentive to us at all. I think she had too many tables with celebrations going on and she couldn’t keep up with everything. I know this is not the norm, so I will be back again.
With our bellies full, we headed outside and sat down on a bench and called Skip to let him know we had arrived safely and were enjoying our day, even though it was 100 degrees out….literally.
And I wasn’t a fan. It had a funny after taste to it. It was not how I expected it to taste at all. Oh well. I have given it a try and I know if I ever go back to not choose that flavor.
Sorry about your feet and the service at Via Napoli. We've had situations like that and it's so much worse when you arrive thirty and/or hungry.
I hear you about those Fastpass+ lines for Spaceship Earth. We experienced something similar (not quite that bad) in February/March and thought it was just crazy. Fastpass+ is all very well, but somehow they seem to have messed it up. Some of the lines we saw were insane and not for what I'd call the major attractions....
The bird was drying his feathers. It's a bird that can dive - but cannot fly with Wes (kind of a design flaw if you ask me).
Sorry about the service at Via Napoli. The pizza looked delicious, though! We love their pizza. We've never been in the side room, and I'm thinking now that's good!
We got in line and I think it was about a 45 minute wait. It was cooler in line, but still warm. But we would take this over being outside. The line moved slowly, but we were ok with it.
On my trip in April, I felt like throughout WDW, the air conditioning inside buildings wasn't as cold as it used to be, and in some cases it was way too warm. For people that go more often, maybe they wouldn't have noticed subtle changes over time, but for me, it was my first trip there in four years, and the difference in air conditioning levels was definitely noticeable. Probably another cutback .
Sorry about the lousy service at Via Napoli. Luckily your pizza looked delicious!
Glad all went well with your arrival to WDW! Great that your room was ready! It's a great resort at POR as I've stayed a few times there. Looks like a good time in Epcot with the exception of the hot temps. Some good attractions in. I had the same thing happen to me with the FP+ line for SE, but they said the ride was down for a bit, which caused this.
__________________
October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
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.
Aww, sorry for the bad service at Via Napoli. I've always had great service there. I love going there because the food is good and the servers are easy on the eyes.
Sorry about your feet and the service at Via Napoli. We've had situations like that and it's so much worse when you arrive thirty and/or hungry.
I hear you about those Fastpass+ lines for Spaceship Earth. We experienced something similar (not quite that bad) in February/March and thought it was just crazy. Fastpass+ is all very well, but somehow they seem to have messed it up. Some of the lines we saw were insane and not for what I'd call the major attractions....
I have had some others tell me that this is the new normal for Spaceship Earth. UGH!
Quote:
Originally Posted by cubfancolleen
The bird was drying his feathers. It's a bird that can dive - but cannot fly with Wes (kind of a design flaw if you ask me).
Sorry about the service at Via Napoli. The pizza looked delicious, though! We love their pizza. We've never been in the side room, and I'm thinking now that's good!
Interesting...and yes major design flaw!
Quote:
Originally Posted by pamcarey
On my trip in April, I felt like throughout WDW, the air conditioning inside buildings wasn't as cold as it used to be, and in some cases it was way too warm. For people that go more often, maybe they wouldn't have noticed subtle changes over time, but for me, it was my first trip there in four years, and the difference in air conditioning levels was definitely noticeable. Probably another cutback .
Sorry about the lousy service at Via Napoli. Luckily your pizza looked delicious!
I thought the same thing about the A/C...but thought maybe because we don't normally come in the dead of summer we just aren't used to it and maybe the A/C couldn't keep up. But I bet Disney is trying to save a few bucks. Some places were uncomfortably warm.
Quote:
Originally Posted by crythomas
Sounds like a nice trip so far can't wait to hear the rest.
Thanks!
Quote:
Originally Posted by MayraLR
Aww, sorry for the bad service at Via Napoli. I've always had great service there. I love going there because the food is good and the servers are easy on the eyes.
We got Claire’s churros, which seem to take quite a while, and then took them to Norway and sat down to eat them. It started to sprinkle and people were going into panic mode about the rain. It never really got hard, just about 10-15 minutes of a sprinkle and then it stopped. I laughed at all the people who were in ponchos and racing for cover. To us, it just felt fantastic and was never enough to even worry about.
Talking to my friends who were in Orlando though, it had rained hard in some areas.
After the churro was finished, we headed to the bathroom and then it would be time for our next fastpass.
We then got in line for Frozen Ever After. This was another first for us, which is why we used our first tier fastpass for it. I wanted to be sure we did get on this ride.
I think we waited around 15 minutes or so in the fastpass line, but it did seem to keep moving constantly.
Claire couldn’t really remember Maelstrom that much. I told her that the loading area is totally different now and this was basically where we used to get off.
Soon we were on our boat and heading to our Frozen adventure. I took a lot of pics on my phone and camera, but neither are good with low lights, so a lot are pretty blurry.
We loved the ride. I know some were not happy that Maelstrom was replaced, but I found it to be a huge improvement. We were basically only riding Maelstrom if the lines were low and as a filler. I would be happy to ride Frozen Ever after each visit at least once.
We headed outside and the Vikings were back out performing again.
With that done, we made our way towards the front and sat down and took a look at the app to see what might be available for Fastpasses at Magic Kingdom. I wasn’t sure how long it would take us to get over, so I held off making any right away.
And we were heading to the bus stop when I realized…..wait!!! We need the monorail. We turned around and made our way over to the station and just missed a train, but it didn’t take too long before another one arrived.
We sped along over to the Magic Kingdom and as we pulled into the station I took this picture.
I posted it to facebook a few minutes later and saw that Brook had posted almost the same exact picture. I asked her if she was arriving too and she said she was just leaving. She must have been in the station at the same time I was. I think she was heading for a dining reservation.
Claire and I got off and there was no bag check or security. I was kind of surprised.
Claire was disappointed to find out they no longer serve the orange ones….I totally understand. I am too.
We headed back over towards Buzz Lightyear as I made a fastpass for it. We got stopped by the Move it Shake it…or whatever name it may be going by these days.
We also then fastpassed Pooh. I can’t remember if we rode other rides or not, but I think everything we did was with fastpasses.
We needed a little bit of food now so we headed to Cosmic Rays for some dinner.
Brook messaged me that she was back in the park, so they came into Cosmic Rays, and once we made our order we went over and said a quick hello. We would be sailing together soon, so we didn’t spend much time, but it was nice to see her again. She was going to find a spot to watch the new Happily Ever After fireworks show.
It was good and hit the spot. We headed back out into the heat to look for a spot to watch the fireworks and it was packed! I mean CRAZY packed. As we walked to look for a spot The Cast Members were directing people to go up front via back stage and to find a spot to watch from up there. We said we were going somewhere else…because I really was hoping to find a better spot.
Nope! It was insane! So we headed up front via back stage and then we saw just how crowded it was up there as well. We made the decision to skip the show. I hated to do it, but we would have another chance after the cruise. It was hot and packed and we were super tired. We really didn’t feel like standing next to hundreds of other sweaty people for the next hour or so.
We headed to the bus stop and then had to make the decision of whether or not we wanted to head over to Animal Kingdom and do the Extra Magical hours in Pandora. The app was showing long wait times, but it wasn’t even EMH’s time yet. We still had a bit before it might lesson up. We decided a shower and sleep was more important, so we headed to the POR bus stop and made our way back.
We went straight to the room and Claire showered while I went up to get a snack and some drinks for us.
I got a crumb cake and some soft drinks and headed back to the room where we snacked a bit and just relaxed. I noticed the room was not cold like I like it and the temp had gone back up since I set it lower. UGH. I wonder if they turned it back up when they brought the suitcases in. I know motion sensors play a part in these rooms, but the actual setting was not where I had it. I then got my phone out and googled how to override the temp setting as I like it much lower than what they allow you to set it at. The override only let me go a few degrees less, but that worked well enough for me.
Our plan was to get up early tomorrow and head over to Animal Kingdom so we tried to get to sleep at a decent time, but I think it was still close to 11 or so when I actually turned the TV off.
It was a fun first day, even though it was long and super-hot. We did some new things and some of our old favorites.
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.
About This Page: 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
PassPorter Guide Author
.
Great that your room was ready! 
It's a great resort at POR as I've stayed a few times there. Looks like a good time in Epcot with the exception of the hot temps. Some good attractions in. I had the same thing happen to me with the FP+ line for SE, but they said the ride was down for a bit, which caused this.
Just read my post in your quoted snippet. What?! Can't fly with Wes?! Who's that?! Should've said 'when wet'. I think you got my point, though.
I hope it's quietened down by January...
Linear Mode
