Sarilas' O-fficial Pre-Trip Report -1/2009 (a.k.a. Vacation, Take TWO!) - Page 6 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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.
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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.
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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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That sounds like a smart move on your part switching to 2 rooms instead of the suite. Like Dyan said, make sure to request connecting rooms with your ADRs!
Thanks everyone! I called and talked to Disney reservations again and she said the words adjoining and connecting were interchangeable and that because we were one family reserving the two rooms they would definitely be connected by a door between. So no changes necessary! WHEW!
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So, yeah. I um, changed our room res. back to the Family Suite at ASMusic. Truthfully what did it for me was discovering that with the preferred room price and possible need for a fridge (I was caving on that one), the Family Suite was obviously the better deal. At about $17 per night for a preferred room, times two rooms especially! Not to mention that something just struck me as not Kosher when our original one reservation was split into two separate ones to allow for two rooms... that just left me wondering what horrible accidental charges and such might transpire! But nonetheless, we're back to one room, one res. number and I'm generally a happy girl. Still hoping I can be a happy girl with a AAA discount, but that'll have to wait till October apparently.
I DID get some creativity completed today though! I present to you... Our vacation travel binder!
Thanks to some scrapbooking paper pieced Disney characters and a fun travel sticker set (Are we there yet?), I think it turned out pretty darn cute! I bought dividers for the inside paperwork as well... though that whole thing about ACTUALLY organizing the papers still eludes me.
Oh! The binder looks great. Much nicer than my folder full of scratch paper. And I loved your bulletin board idea, too. That would be fun both before and after a trip.... I may have to borrow some of your ideas!
"I feel like I need an Excel spreadsheet for time and transportation management!"
Yes, I did start an excel spreadsheet to keep track of everything! Didn't want to book the ADR at the time of a parade or something.....I even color coded it! DH is now calling the Disney trip planning my part time job! And I already have a "real" part time job!
Seriously, I had no idea there was this much coordination involved in a Disney trip - but if we miss something, and hear about it later I'll be sooooo upset so Excel was the way to go!
Have fun with all your plans!
Kris
Oh! The binder looks great. Much nicer than my folder full of scratch paper. And I loved your bulletin board idea, too. That would be fun both before and after a trip.... I may have to borrow some of your ideas!
Beth
Thanks, Beth! I was coveting everyone else's binder creations and mine turned out pretty A-OK! Now if I can only get what's INSIDE to look as nice!
Quote:
Originally Posted by KrisS
"I feel like I need an Excel spreadsheet for time and transportation management!"
Yes, I did start an excel spreadsheet to keep track of everything! Didn't want to book the ADR at the time of a parade or something.....I even color coded it! DH is now calling the Disney trip planning my part time job! And I already have a "real" part time job!
Seriously, I had no idea there was this much coordination involved in a Disney trip - but if we miss something, and hear about it later I'll be sooooo upset so Excel was the way to go!
Have fun with all your plans!
Kris
Kris, my husband says the SAME thing to me! LOL If only I could parlay my OCD behavior into a paying job!
I love your binder. How creative. My DH thinks I may have just lost it. Every nite he comes home I have little scraps of paper in my Passporter that I pull out to ask him yet another question about the plans. I'm having a ball, but my binder is getting way to crowded so today I decided I needed to make some spreadsheets!!!
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Your binder looks great! Glad they were able to clarify adjoining/connecting - that must be a recent change for them. I always found it very confusing. I'm sure you'll staying in the family suite. Can't wait to hear more
I love your binder. How creative. My DH thinks I may have just lost it. Every nite he comes home I have little scraps of paper in my Passporter that I pull out to ask him yet another question about the plans. I'm having a ball, but my binder is getting way to crowded so today I decided I needed to make some spreadsheets!!!
I can't WAIT to get my PassPorter! I'm waiting for the 2009 version to come out in October-ish - that feels SO far away!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Starla4436
Your binder looks great...I am glad all of your plans are working out!
Thanks! I'm just waiting on January's hours to come out now - it's 6 months away... but still no hours!
Quote:
Originally Posted by DyanKJ130
Your binder looks great! Glad they were able to clarify adjoining/connecting - that must be a recent change for them. I always found it very confusing. I'm sure you'll staying in the family suite. Can't wait to hear more
I know, right?! All that trouble to switch rooms and I end up switching right back. LOL
Quote:
Originally Posted by piratefreak
Cool binder. Glad you sorted out the room situation...hope the rates come thru for you.
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You know how I'm just a WEE bit riled up about the January EMH not being available yet, right? Well I decided to try looking on the Disney World Moms Panel site to see if anyone else was trying to find out when they'd be released. Apparently I was the only basket case worrying about it, because nobody else had asked! So I KIND OF wrote and asked the Moms if anyone had an inkling...
And Kimberly chose to answer my question. (Thank you, Kimberlyyyyyyyyyy!)
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with your ADRs!
Truthfully what did it for me was discovering that with the preferred room price and possible need for a fridge (I was caving on that one), the Family Suite was obviously the better deal. At about $17 per night for a preferred room, times two rooms especially! Not to mention that something just struck me as not Kosher when our original one reservation was split into two separate ones to allow for two rooms... that just left me wondering what horrible accidental charges and such might transpire! But nonetheless, we're back to one room, one res. number and I'm generally a happy girl. Still hoping I can be a happy girl with a AAA discount, but that'll have to wait till October apparently. 
NYC-Canada Cruise Sept 2012
staying in the family suite. Can't wait to hear more
Margaret
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