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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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There is a line for 'dining manager',with no total given. What is the expected tip for this?
I believe the dining manager would normally be referred to as the maitre d'. This is normally a salaried/officer position so the person filling it does not generally receive gratuities.
Right. Dining Manager's the kind of person you might tip for having done an extraordinary service for you, but not for doing their day-to-day responsibilities. Most of the time, though, the only time you'll see him/her is when you enter the dining room (he/she will be the person at the podium, staring down at a computer screen or notebook), and your only interaction may be a "good evening" as you enter the restaurant. But this is generally the person you'll speak to if you want your table assignment changed.
My most interesting maitre d' story comes from another cruise line. Originally, I was noticed by the maitre d' because I was a solo traveler on that trip, and for the first two nights, I was the only one at the table (one party was just getting over jet lag the first night and chose to do specialty dining the next, but we never even saw the other couple at the table), so I spoke to him to make sure I actually had table mates. It was especially, uh, interesting to be wearing a tux on Formal Night and be the only person at the table. Again, he noticed my solo status, and came over to be sure everything was OK. We were actually forming a relationship! On around the fourth night, the maitre 'd comes over to ask if I'd be interested in dining at the captain's table the next night. Not because I'm a modestly well-known travel journalist (who knew?), but because they had an odd number at table (which is not permissible), I was traveling solo, and he knew I had a tux!
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
We are going on our first cruise December 2012 (7days Eastern Carribean) but we have decided to start saving weekly some money to pay for the extras (port excursions, tips, etc.). The link provided is great but could someone tell me what is a reasonable tip for Remy and Palo?
Thanks!
My general recommendation is to tip based on your estimate of the meal's value when compared to a shore-side restaurant. So, if you think your Palo dinner would cost $65 at a fine dining establishment ashore, tip as you would ashore - 15-20% of $65. Remy? The meal there is equal to the meal served at Victoria & Albert's at Walt Disney World. The price at "V&A's" is $125 per person, and even that's on the low side for meals of that kind.
Note that there's an automatic gratuity added to all alcoholic beverage service, so you don't have to figure beverages into the value of the meal. Just work from the food service.
While folks sometimes think that the $20 fee for Palo is given to the serving staff... $5 goes to the staff (everyone from busboys to maitre d'), the rest goes to Disney, so it shouldn't be a major factor in how much you tip.
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
Thanks for the information. That will help us budget.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Marx
Welcome!
My general recommendation is to tip based on your estimate of the meal's value when compared to a shore-side restaurant. So, if you think your Palo dinner would cost $65 at a fine dining establishment ashore, tip as you would ashore - 15-20% of $65. Remy? The meal there is equal to the meal served at Victoria & Albert's at Walt Disney World. The price at "V&A's" is $125 per person, and even that's on the low side for meals of that kind.
Note that there's an automatic gratuity added to all alcoholic beverage service, so you don't have to figure beverages into the value of the meal. Just work from the food service.
While folks sometimes think that the $20 fee for Palo is given to the serving staff... $5 goes to the staff (everyone from busboys to maitre d'), the rest goes to Disney, so it shouldn't be a major factor in how much you tip.
We are coming up on our 1st Disney cruise next month and I'm budgeting out our tip money. The link to the tip calculator is a huge help, but I'm concerned about why there is a "?" behind Disney. The site mentions that Disney raised their suggested amount to align with other cruise lines, but does this mean they are guessing on Disney's suggested tip amounts?
While folks sometimes think that the $20 fee for Palo is given to the serving staff... $5 goes to the staff (everyone from busboys to maitre d'), the rest goes to Disney, so it shouldn't be a major factor in how much you tip.
REALLY?!? Wow. I tipped $20 both times we ate at Palo. Had I known only $5 was going to our awesome CM/server, would have really been upset!
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Saturday, October 9, 2014 - Kaitlyn and I before the Happy Haunted 5K at ESPN Wide World of Sports
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Tipping for Remy and Palo
REALLY?!? Wow. I tipped $20 both times we ate at Palo. Had I known only $5 was going to our awesome CM/server, would have really been upset! 
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