Robin's 1st Time West of Chicago and DL Girls Trip!! *Updated 3/26* - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
Robin's 1st Time West of Chicago and DL Girls Trip!! *Updated 3/26*
Destination: Disneyland, Hollywood & San Deigo
Date: February 27 to March 5
Adventurers: Me (first time West of Chicago)
Resort/Hotel: Howard Johnson Plaza Anaheim (1 block from DL!)
Celebration: First time West of Chicago
Meetings: The whole trip is a meet!!! I am staying with Cindy (Lumieregirl)!
I have been to Walt Disney World 13 times (11 since 1999) and I LOVE it but I was looking to go somewhere different. Since I was a little girl I have been fascinated by California and “Tinseltown”. When Disney announced they were having a celebration for Disneyland’s 50th Anniversary I REALLY wanted to celebrate at the park that started it all. I chatted with Amy (iamgrumpy) and mentioned to a couple of other Passporter friends that maybe a group trip to Disneyland was in order. Chatter was started and messages were posted in the Backyard. After going back and forth for a week or so the dates were set. As time went on people joined and then dropped out throughout the months leading up to the trip. Sadly my room-mate (buzzspal) would not be able to make the trip due to family issues. so I was without a roommate…no roommate no trip. I posted on the DL board that I was searching for a roommate for the DL trip and listed the dates. Cindy (lumiergirl) sent me an IM saying she would be interested in being my roomie! Yippie!
I tried to get a room on property but nothing was open So I went on htt://www.mousesavers.com and saw they had two preferred hotels. I called Howard Johnson and booked a room with a Visa card rate. I contacted Cindy and let her know the dates I booked. Fares to California were still a bit steep so I waited to see if the prices went down. Finally they did so I booked a flight from Detroit to John Wayne arriving on 2/27 and departing on 3/5. As soon as I booked I sent Cindy and IM. She booked her flight and we were good to go.
I was debating if I wanted to rent a car for part of the vacation. Since I had never been out West I really wanted to go see the ocean. About 6 weeks out I snagged a deal on a rental car. Cindy and I agreed that she would drive and I would navigate. Origionally I was going to pick the car up at John Wayne but Cindy and I decided it would be better to pick the car up in Anaheim at the National Rental Car office.
Sarah (Dopygirl) and Tina (loobyoxlip) were nice enough to book ADR for several restaurants for the group. The meals I opted to participate in are:
Tortilla Jo’s on Tuesday Dinner Napa Rose on Thursday Dinner Storybook Café on Saturday Breakfast Hook’s Point on Saturday Dinner
Also Cindy and I are doing Goofy’s Kitchen on Thursday for Brunch. I might book more meals as the time gets closer but I am not sure, it all depends on timing.
About a month out Delta called me to let me know there had been a few changed in my flights. UGH!! That is news I didn’t want to hear. After spending about 20 minutes on the phone with the Delta rep we picked out flights that would work with my schedule. I rebooked on a later flight leaving Detroit and ended up on the SAME flight to LAX (yes I changed arrival airport) as Cindy. How cool is that! My departure flight had also changed and I did some messing around with the times and ended up on a red-eye back to Detroit. I can sleep just about anywhere so that works out great for me. The best part about that is…I get a whole extra day in California!
Since the room, my flight, meals and the rental car were booked Cindy and I wanted to map out our week. Both of us wanted to do the tour of Hollywood that Cheryl (Chezp) mentioned in her trip report. With so many meals booked it was hard to decide on a day
After a two hour phone conversation Cindy and I decided to do three park day, one day in Hollywood, one day at the San Diego Zoo and one day to sleep in and explore the resorts. Here is how things panned out:
Tuesday 2/27: Arrival 2:24 Disneyland Express to HoJo Tortilla Jo’s Dinner Downtown Disney
Wednesday 2/28: Walk in Walt’s Footsteps tour at 9:00 Disney Parks
Thursday 3/1: Goofy’s Kitchen Brunch Explore resorts Downtown Disney Napa Rose Dinner
Friday 3/2: Pick up Rental Car Disney Parks
Saturday 3/3: Storytellers Breakfast Parks Hook’s Point Dinner
Sunday 3/4: San Diego Zoo
Monday 3/5: Hollywood Tour Drop off Rental Car Disneyland Express to SNA Depart 8:30 PM
Since I work at Disney Store I get three free Hopper tickets each year. I have not gotten my conformation that my tickets are reserved. Hopefully that will be coming soon! My manager submitted the WRONG form....and had to resend it. If I can't get the ticket in time I will just have to buy tickets and use the CM hopper tickets at WDW.
Next on my list was care for my pets. Since I have done every type of vacation care for animals there is (pet sitting, cage free boarding, caged boarding) I know what will work best for my dog. My friend used a guy right in Lansing who boards dogs at his home. I met him in October at a doggy event and he was very nice. Since my friend has used him I decided to give him a try. This same friend is going to come and check in on Mr. Max a few times during the week. All the change I have been collecting since September will pay for my dog and cat care for the week (yes over $150 in change!!).
Sooooo….now I just wait…..and wait….and wait. Is it February 27 yet? BTW This is not going to be a boring non-photo trip report for long.
__________________
Robin Twitter name: @NKsDogwalker Find me on FB: robinkay6573@yahoo.com 38th Birthday with Mom, Dad and friends 2011 Next Trip: Cruise on Jewel of the Seas for Christmas 2012
OMG I can hardly sit still I'm soooo excited and I'm so glad to see your TR, Robin! I'd love to write one but I have that pesky schoolwork to do
I'd seen the messages about a DL Girls' Trip for a long time and didn't think much of it - no way I could possibly schedule that .... then, my position got eliminated at work and I became unemployed. Right around that same time, I saw Robin's post: unless she could find a roomie, no DL trip for her. Now, how could I possibly let that happen ?! that would just be cruel - so, I decided to help her out
I last went to Disneyland when I was 6 years old, and have almost no memory of it. So, its basically all new to me, too. This will also be my first time meeting any Passporters in person. I'll meet Robin at the gate for OUR (isn't that neat how that worked out ?!) flight from Atlanta to LAX, and we'll be off on our adventure
__________________
Don't let your heart be filled with sorrow, for all you know, tomorrow, the dream that you wish will come true.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
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.
About This Page: 
so I was without a roommate…no roommate no trip. I posted on the DL board that I was searching for a roommate for the DL trip and listed the dates. Cindy (lumiergirl) sent me an IM saying she would be interested in being my roomie! 
Yippie! 
So I went on htt://www.mousesavers.com and saw they had two preferred hotels. I called Howard Johnson and booked a room with a Visa card rate. I contacted Cindy and let her know the dates I booked. Fares to California were still a bit steep so I waited to see if the prices went down. Finally they did so I booked a flight from Detroit to John Wayne arriving on 2/27 and departing on 3/5. As soon as I booked I sent Cindy and IM. She booked her flight and we were good to go. 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
This trip just keeps sounding better and better!
PassPorter Guide Author
I can't wait to hear about all of the fun and laughs! Enjoy!
Linear Mode
