Sep 26-Oct 3: MNSSHP + Food & Wine + More: The PTR - Page 4 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
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You make a beautiful Elsa! FastPass and dining plans look great! I just can't get over your amazing photos! Any quick tips for special shots in Disney?
That's so odd because I booked Anna & Elsa & have no idea if my DD even wants to see them. I haven't seem Frozen & I'm not sure if she even has, I definitely need to before our trip.
Congrats on getting your FP+ selections made, especially SDMT and Anna and Elsa! I really like your dining choices so far. We tried Top of the World Lounge for the first time in May and loved the view from up there. And as I seem to tell you every time, I truly enjoy every one of your photos.
Thanks, Cam - I am looking forward to showing. Lou the Top of the World Lounge. Somehow, I doubt he will be all that excited about Anna & Elsa
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Originally Posted by Jambo
Joining in! So glad you guys get to do this fall trip. I look forward to reading about the FWF. We haven't been able to go in several years. Can't wait to see all of your photos.
Thanks! I'm looking forward to reading about your trip as well.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheAyers
Signing on! I can't wait to hear more!
Thanks for joining in. I'll be following your plans and trip, too.
You make a beautiful Elsa! FastPass and dining plans look great! I just can't get over your amazing photos! Any quick tips for special shots in Disney?
Thanks! As for special shots, just patience and practice. Most of my photography is in the very early morning or evening - this is a lot more difficult to do when you travel with kids
Quote:
Originally Posted by PhilsEagles08
That's so odd because I booked Anna & Elsa & have no idea if my DD even wants to see them. I haven't seem Frozen & I'm not sure if she even has, I definitely need to before our trip.
Your pics are amazing!!! What's your secret?
Definitely see the movie before your trip. I enjoyed it. No real secrets on the photos -on our trips without the kids (and grandkids) I get a lot of time to wander around in the early morning and late at night. I also use a tripod a lot of the time.
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Originally Posted by MayraLR
Signing in! Great plans and dining choices!
Thanks! Trips are different when you don't have youngsters - which is why I enjoy reading TRs like yours - you get to do all of the kid stuff!
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Originally Posted by mcc0313
Love the dining choices for the first two days of your trip
Thanks. Your trip is almost here
More dining choices and plans coming up later today.
I will come back to ADRs, but will stray off topic briefly to describe a new event. I wasn't on the computer a lot yesterday, but today I see there are more premium events being offered for the F & W Festival. There is a new After Hours event offered on Tuesday and Thursdays, and they are also offering the Epcot Food & Wine Festival Premium Package
For $199 (each!!!) the Premium Package includes an in-room gift with a bottle of wine, Festival wine glass, box of truffles, and a special Magic Band. You get access to 10 small Premium Sitting areas in World Showcase, where someone supposedly will get your food items for you so you don't have to wait in line. You also get a $50 gift card, and entry to one of the After Hours events (a ($79 "value").
I immediately dismissed this as another Cash Grab. As I did more research, I found the access to the Premium seating is for Mon-Thursday. Ultimately, I went ahead and purchased the package for both of us. Part of my rationalization is that we aren't doing any other Premium Festival Events, and I was considering the After Hours Event. We will easily spend $50 each at the food booths.
I still feel torn about supporting yet another extra added fee event. Will the new Premium Seating areas (even though they are supposedly small) take away available seating for everyone else? Do we really need to have someone get our tastes from the booths? I dunno - I will be reporting back after the trip.
What do you think? Are all of these premium/ add-on events getting on your nerves? Will we soon have the opportunity to pay $50 for the elusive Anna & Elsa FP ticket?
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For me, this would definitely be worth the extra cost, as maneuvering driving the scooter to a seating area with my selections is not easy. I've often found very limited seating, too, so if you like to (or need to) sit rather than stand at one of the tall tables this would be great. I'm wondering where the seating areas are, though. Are they under cover if it rains? I don't really see this as a cash-grab, as you are actually getting something for the money that isn't available any other way. It's different from paying for special viewing areas, because if you're willing to put in the time, you can manage that without paying. The only reservation I'd have on this is whether or not I'd find enough to eat at the booths to justify it.
I'll be interested to hear what you think about this package afterwards.
I will definitely include a review in the TR.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lauriep
For me, this would definitely be worth the extra cost, as maneuvering driving the scooter to a seating area with my selections is not easy. I've often found very limited seating, too, so if you like to (or need to) sit rather than stand at one of the tall tables this would be great. I'm wondering where the seating areas are, though. Are they under cover if it rains? I don't really see this as a cash-grab, as you are actually getting something for the money that isn't available any other way. It's different from paying for special viewing areas, because if you're willing to put in the time, you can manage that without paying. The only reservation I'd have on this is whether or not I'd find enough to eat at the booths to justify it.
I do think it will be convenient. The one thing I am assuming is that these premium areas are going to have seating, and not just a roped off place to stand - which wouldn't make much sense, and would not be "relaxing" as advertised. Note - you still have to pay for your snacks, which is what the $50 gift card covers. Not hard for us to use that and more in 3-4 days, but for a non-drinking vegetarian, it is not a given.
I noticed these two extra bucks packages, too. I haven't mentioned either to Luke yet as I'm really trying to decide if I want to spen$400 more for us to do it.
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.
I am loving your photography! You do such great work. One day when my kids are older and I have more time to play with my camera, maybe I could be half as good.
It looks like we'll be at WDW the same time as you. We'll get down there on the 25th and leave on the 3rd. And we're going to MNSSHP on the 26th too! Keep your eyes peeled for a frantic looking mother of three trying to direct our group of 15+ people to the next activity, and that will probably be me.
I do think it will be convenient. The one thing I am assuming is that these premium areas are going to have seating, and not just a roped off place to stand - which wouldn't make much sense, and would not be "relaxing" as advertised. Note - you still have to pay for your snacks, which is what the $50 gift card covers. Not hard for us to use that and more in 3-4 days, but for a non-drinking vegetarian, it is not a given.
Right.... I'll look forward to hearing how it really works. I just assumed there would be seating, too. I don't usually spend much at the festival but would probably spend more if it were more comfortable for me.
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.
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I really like your dining choices so far. We tried Top of the World Lounge for the first time in May and loved the view from up there. 
And as I seem to tell you every time, I truly enjoy every one of your photos.
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