Escaping The Brutal Northeast For Sunny, Warm Florida and Fun! Completed 7/12 - Page 36 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
Oh, we have taken them back! This is something that Remy's does as well, and also you get another box of chocolates in your stateroom the next day!
Just another excuse for myself to book my next cruise!
Quote:
Originally Posted by chezp
Oh wow, it sounds like the perfect finish to a perfect meal!
Yes, it certainly was! Next, time I'll bring my camera! Probably, better to use a camera in Queen Victoria's Room (four tables that are spread out) than the main dining room, which is much busier and may feel a bit more awkward taking photos of food porn there!
Quote:
Originally Posted by xwewhisper
What a delicious end to the meal!
Yes, it certainly was Marci and I know what you mean as I remember your experience there from your TR!
__________________
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!
It certainly was quite a meal and an exceptional one indeed!
__________________
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!
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.
I was up fairly early this morning at around 7 am as I had my final of three rounds of golf at the Disney courses. Today, would be at the Lake Buena Vista course. It’s located near Downtown Disney and the entrance to the course is within the Saratoga Springs Resort.
I walked over to the Riverside Mill at around 7:45 am for breakfast and it was quite crowded already. It looked like another nice, warm, sunny day to start with barely a cloud in the sky. It wasn’t as cool as it had been on previous mornings and didn’t need a jacket today. Had a pretty basic breakfast with a glass of orange juice, coffee, banana and a strawberry Greek yogurt. Enough to get me going for the day. I returned to my room for a bit in Alligator Bayou and got my things together, watched a bit of news and weather and then headed to the front of the resort at 9am to get a taxi to the golf course. Bell services hailed one from the parking lot and I was on my way shortly.
It’s only about a five minute ride to the golf course and we also pass Port Orleans-French Quarter and Old Key West Resorts before entering Saratoga Springs. This takes a bit of time as there is quite a bit of meandering through the resort to get to the drop off area in front of the pro shop. The Turf Club restaurant at SSR is located just above the pro shop. One of the CMs immediately greeted me and just instructed me to check in at the pro shop. I do know the procedure as I’ve played here so many times. I paid for my round and set up my golf bag, which was already on my golf cart. You cannot beat the personal service at Disney! I got some ice from the ice machine and proceeded to drive to the driving range for a bit of practice before my round as I had about 20 minutes or so to spare. After this I drove to the first hole and checked in with the starter. He said they were about five minutes behind schedule so it would just be a short wait.
I met three other golfers, whom I’d be playing with today. Darren from Chicago, Bruce from Rochester, NY and Bart from New Orleans. Bart, I would find out is quite a good player and belongs to the TPC New Orleans Golf Club and is one of the coordinators of the PGA tournament held here each year. After chatting for a bit with the others I was paired with Bruce to ride together for the round.
One thing I noticed, when I arrived at the first tee was some of the tall shrubbery that had been removed and there was now a great view of Downtown Disney from here. It was quite amazing and you could see much of the Westside area.
We teed off just after 10 am and enjoyed ourselves quite a bit with a nice and relaxing round of golf on a perfect day. I played fairly well, which made it more enjoyable. There was some waiting for other groups ahead of us as the course was quite busy today. One thing you’ll notice here is the various Disney resorts that line the course. Old Key West for the front nine and on the back nine Saratoga Springs, Treehouse Villas and the two Port Orleans resorts. There are also some nice views of the Sassagoula River and the boats heading to and from Downtown Disney.
During the round I had a bit of lunch with a hotdog, chips and a Powerade. The round was a bit long and we finished around 2:45 pm. After returning near the pro shop one of the CMs cleaned my clubs for me and asked if I needed transportation and if I needed my clubs stored for more rounds of golf. I told him, I’d be taking my clubs back with me and that I needed a taxi back to Riverside. The customer service is always top notch here as it is through all of WDW. They called a taxi for me and I waited inside till it arrived. Inside here, they claim to have the worlds most comfortable couch and I think they may be right about this as you just sink right into it! A nap would be quite easy! My taxi arrived in about ten minutes time. It’s always more of a wait at the golf courses as this service is complimentary for resort guests and is prepaid for fare and gratuity. Shortly, I was back at Riverside at around 3:15 and carried my golf bag back to my room. A bit of a walk with the bag, but not too bad! At least, I didn’t have to do this each day!
Once, I got to my room, I spent a bit of time packing up my golf bag and reorganized some of the contents to pack up for the return trip home in a couple of days. My original plan was to spend some time at Studios as I had a few Fastpass+ ressies for the afternoon and then take Disney transportation to Saratoga Springs and walk to Downtown Disney as I have an ADR there tonight and also wanted to see the ongoing improvements and new look of this area. I knew time was an element and wouldn’t be able to do this so I just relaxed a bit back at Riverside and explored the resort a bit with some photos on this lovely day.
My shower in Riverside’s Alligator Bayou. Like the rustic look of this.
Boat transportation to Downtown Disney and Port Orleans French Quarter in background
View of my building #38 in Alligator Bayou
Down the Sassagoula River, which is an Indian term (Native American) for Mississippi!
One of the mansions in Magnolia Bend
Next: Will I like the Downtown Disney Re-imagination?
__________________
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!
Such nice photos of the Sassagoula. I think it's really funny that they say the Sassagoula is named for an Indian word for Mississippi. Isn't that like saying it's and Indian word for an Indian word?
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.
What a lovely day so far and gorgeous photos!! I like how you are very flexible with your plans!
Glad you like the photos as I think they came out quite well! Riverside, I think is the most beautiful of the mods at WDW and probably why I have three stays there...so far and I'm sure more to come!
Quote:
Originally Posted by lauriep
Such nice photos of the Sassagoula. I think it's really funny that they say the Sassagoula is named for an Indian word for Mississippi. Isn't that like saying it's and Indian word for an Indian word?
The photos came out quite well with such a perfect day! Not sure if I read that about the translation on a Disney site or elsewhere (when I was researching river boat excursions in Memphis) regarding the Mississippi, but it was today. I'm going to Memphis with some friends on Thursday for a weekend getaway(three nights). It will be a great time as Memphis is a great town with bbq, other cuisine, great music of the blues, soul and Elvis and so much more! We will be staying at Elvis' Heartbreak Hotel in the Graceland Suite across the street from Graceland itself. We have six of us in a 1,100 sf suite. Quite cost effective with all of us. There are 7 TVs and even a mini waterfall in Elvis' famous Jungle Room.
This will be our second time here with 2005 being the first so we decided to do a 10th anniversary trip for 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!
Last edited by SuperDave; 05-03-2015 at 10:11 PM..
Glad you enjoyed your golf outing! Great pictures of Sassagoula.
It was a nice relaxing day there. It amazes me how beautiful the Sassagoula looks and is just such a great enhancement to the Port Orleans Resort!
__________________
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!
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.
It will be as Memphis is a fun and exciting town in the south!
Quote:
Originally Posted by MayraLR
Sounds like you had a great time golfing. Nice pictures around POR!
A fun and relaxing day on the golf course and glad you like the photos of Riverside!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colexis Mom
Glad you had another great round of golf! Looks like a stunning day!
A fun day and the weather was just absolutely perfect today! A great time of the year to go to WDW!
Quote:
Originally Posted by lfredsbo
Great photos!
Happy you are enjoying these!
__________________
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!
About This Page: 
Next, time I'll bring my camera! 
Probably, better to use a camera in Queen Victoria's Room (four tables that are spread out) than the main dining room, which is much busier and may feel a bit more awkward taking photos of food porn there! 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
The Turf Club restaurant at SSR is located just above the pro shop. One of the CMs immediately greeted me and just instructed me to check in at the pro shop. 
I got some ice from the ice machine and proceeded to drive to the driving range for a bit of practice before my round as I had about 20 minutes or so to spare. After this I drove to the first hole and checked in with the starter. He said they were about five minutes behind schedule so it would just be a short wait. 
It was quite amazing and you could see much of the Westside area. 
My taxi arrived in about ten minutes time. It’s always more of a wait at the golf courses as this service is complimentary for resort guests and is prepaid for fare and gratuity.
I'm going to Memphis with some friends on Thursday for a weekend getaway(three nights). 
PassPorter Guide Author
Linear Mode
