Points make Paris... TRIP REPORT COMPLETED 6/29 - Page 7 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I hear you on the shirt sizes. When I was at WDW last month, I bought a F&G shirt in a L (my usual size). It was so tight that I returned it and eventually purchased one in a XXL! That's ridiculous and will discourage women from purchasing. We are too vain to buy XL sizes when that's not our normal!
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I hear you on the shirt sizes. When I was at WDW last month, I bought a F&G shirt in a L (my usual size). It was so tight that I returned it and eventually purchased one in a XXL! That's ridiculous and will discourage women from purchasing. We are too vain to buy XL sizes when that's not our normal!
Oh my goodness, you are so right! I get really annoyed when I have to go one size above. Over here, I can get a medium top and in Disney, it's either a large or an XL.
Saturday 30 April – part four: experiencing the first time reactions!
We went to sit down and wait for the others to arrive, and about 10 minutes later, we saw their cars coming. They pulled up, and Dave and Barb offloaded their small two cases for their stay, and Sara, Tom and the kids kept bringing more and more out. It was hysterical. I do not know how the baggage guys sorted it out, as they must’ve had about 20 plus pieces on there.
This time when we entered the hotel, anyone who had a bag had to walk over to the luggage check facility outside the hotel, rather than just having a search from a security guard when you walked in, as we’d done so far. Whatever! We then headed inside, and Mark and I got wanded, as did Daisy, who’s the younger sister, but not Evie. I don’t mind security, but guys show some consistency!
We got in line to check in (no line at the Disneyland Hotel ) and soon everyone was sorted out…
At this point, we split in two, with Mark taking his parents back to our hotel, given they’re so close to each other by car, while the rest of us set off on foot. I got this shot of all of them outside the hotel.
We then set off for the Disney Village…
I got asked if this was the balloon from Up, and while that would’ve been a nice idea, I had to sadly tell them it wasn’t.
Unbelievably, there was another security check before you got into the Disney Village, which I wasn’t sure I could see the point of. The only people who can get here are resort guests, and they should all have been searched when they entered the hotels, so why have another lot? This time bags went through the security detector, and so did you. While I fully understand the reasons for it, and I know what happened in Paris just a few short months ago, it did feel a bit like overkill…
We made our way through the Disney Village, and it was very cool to see everyone’s reactions, given they were all first time visitors to Disneyland Paris.
They had some spring displays set up here, which was neat…
Ironically, the shops were open, but there really wasn’t anywhere to eat. It was odd, although I understand that breakfast is included in with your hotel at a Disneyland Paris resort, but what happens if you’re arriving early off the train for the parks? They wouldn’t be open for a while, and surely Disney wants to sell food as well as merchandise? Well, apparently not. We’d had some flapjack bites and some chocolate chunks, but already I was feeling that I could do with a little something, as a certain bear might say…
We walked back past the Studios entrance…
… and into our hotel. They all kept saying how wonderful it was, and I think it’s fair to say they were pretty blown away by the lobby!
We couldn’t believe we’d made it over here first, but eventually we worked out why. They’d had to assemble Barb’s scooter, and she entered on it a couple of minutes after we arrived, so that was quite good timing.
Not even open at Earl Of Sandwich, wow! That's surprising. They serve breakfast at both DL and WDW.
I suppose they want to show they're not fooling around with the security. I can imagine for those with strollers, diaper bags, and more stuff it's a pretty big hassle though.
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Oh it is completely, but it is not cheap. When we paid cash in November 2014, we got a special deal and it cost just the two of us £1,500 ($2,100) for a four night stay. That was just the hotel and park tickets, nothing else.
From the quick poking around I've done, that would be the inexpensive part for us. The plane tickets are horrendous at this point. So, unless I save for a long time, or win the lotto, it looks like that trip is still just a dream.
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Waiting for our next adventure after enjoying our Alaska cruise. Jenn
That's a lot of security, but I guess I'd probably feel better knowing that was all in place given what has been happening in France & Belgium.
Nothing to eat?! Quelle horreur! (Horrendous spelling on that one, I'm sure. My French is pretty rusty at this point)
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Great pictures from Disney Village. It's very strange that there were no places to eat. Sometimes I feel like there is no rhyme or reason to Disney security. My sister and her family went to Disneyland about a month ago and she said that both her and her husband were searched, but they never looked through their bags or the stroller the kids were riding in. Doesn't make me feel safe!
Not even open at Earl Of Sandwich, wow! That's surprising. They serve breakfast at both DL and WDW.
I think it's because they assume everyone is on a package and therefore has breakfast included.
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I suppose they want to show they're not fooling around with the security. I can imagine for those with strollers, diaper bags, and more stuff it's a pretty big hassle though.
Oh my goodness and you wait until later in the trip, when you see the lines at peak times to clear security!
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I get really annoyed when I have to go one size above. Over here, I can get a medium top and in Disney, it's either a large or an XL. 
We then headed inside, and Mark and I got wanded, as did Daisy, who’s the younger sister, but not Evie. I don’t mind security, but guys show some consistency! 
Alaskan Mom aka Bonnie
When we paid cash in November 2014, we got a special deal and it cost just the two of us £1,500 ($2,100) for a four night stay. That was just the hotel and park tickets, nothing else.
Waiting for our next adventure after enjoying our Alaska cruise. 
Jenn
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