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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Just looking for feedback on going to disney during FWF. Thinking it might be a fun get away for hubby and I. No kids ( though they may protest). For those of you that have been did you enjoy it? What were your favorite things, what do you wish you would have done differently. Thanks for any and all feedback. Oh ... I'm talking 2015 so still plenty of time to plan!
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Kathy Walton:
Me and the big guy on Disney Magic May 2004
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I say go for it - it's one of our favourite times of the year to visit. We love just grazing around the various Food and Wine Festival booths at Epcot. If you go before the end of October, you also have the chance to go to the Halloween Party at the Magic Kingdom, which is also well worth doing.
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I go every year by myself. This year for 2 weeks. I am a big foodie and love going to the seminars and a lot of the special events like party for the senses and the hibachi experience. I have been able to try a lot of new foods over the years. If you are interested in trying new foods and like to learn and watch chefs cook then it is a must do.
If you can go during the week (Mon - Thurs), I say yes! If you're talking about just a long weekend getaway, then I say no because it is CRAZY crowded on the weekends.
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WookiePants and I (see sig picture) are 2 adults, no kids. We LOVED the F&WF - the atmosphere is awesome and there's so much fun to be had. In fact, after our trip this year to experience the holiday season, we are planning on going back for F&WF.
Some "learn from our experience" things:
1. You will get a passport and get a stamp for every country you eat at. If you are like us and want to complete the ENTIRE passport, maybe the full DDP isn't the wisest decision. We were filled to the gills, sampling from every country AND having full meals. Even with all the park walking, I still gained weight! LOL
2. Gift card wrist bracelet. Get this and keep reloading the gift card. Sure, you can spend DDP snack credits, but those run out fast, and I personally like to save my snack credits for goodies that I can bring home (to keep the Disney magic a little longer). The gift card wristlet is convenient too; no need to keep track of credits, or pull out cash/credit card. And it makes a cute souvenir that you can keep in your trinket drawer or use in scrapbooking.
3. It helps to do some research! The Disney Food Blog has excellent reviews on each of the kiosks, what are "must haves", good deals, and what can be skipped if it's not to your taste.
4. Share everything. Most offerings, although are not meal-sized, are still pretty substantial enough to share. Unless you get the heebie jeebies from sharing a plate with your hubby, splitting each of your items means you get to taste twice as many awesome things.
5. Timing is everything. F&WF is super popular, and the locals will descend on Epcot over the weekends. If your schedule permits, try to avoid the F&WF on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays - the crowds are definitely lighter during the week.
6. Expect tomfoolery. For the most part, Disney guests behave themselves - at least that's been my experience. However, as people, especially locals, partake in the "Wine" portion of the F&WF, you may see a few tipsy patrons. This might be more of an issue if you have kids, but WookiePants and I saw a few knuckleheads who had a little too much Florida sun & liquor, Some people got all flustered and up in arms over it. Meh...Give them a wide berth, chuckle at how you used to be that goofy at their age, and let them be. Unless they're harming others, most people are just having fun.
We absolutely love this time of year. Enjoy the fall decorations, the MNSSHP if you can swing it, The weather is pretty awesome at this time of year, it's not as crowded as other times of year, and for my money, Disney is just perfect right now.
We have been there X2. We enjoy the bands that are part of your admission. However we never seem to try any of the food. We actually felt on a weekend it is beyond crowded and it was so hot, I thought if felt like summer weather and summer crowds. Only way I would find it worth is if you love different kinds of food and you love to drink alcohol.
Try the pork slider and pineapple wine in Hawaii - delicious! The platains in Puerto Rico were fabulous. The gyros in Greece and the corn cheesecake in Mexico were all to die for too! Just have fun, be patient with the lines, and enjoy!
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Saturday, October 9, 2014 - Kaitlyn and I before the Happy Haunted 5K at ESPN Wide World of Sports
My friends and I went for the first time this year and we loved it. We were there the 2nd day it was open. I agree with everyone that you have to go on a weekday or it is too crowded.
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Debbie
Many trips to WDW, too many to list. Going back in June 2017!
Definitely a must-do! Last year was DH's and my first time, but we're back this year. Look at the menus before you go, see what strikes your fancy. Or you can do what DH & I did last year: hit every booth for a little something. Like DisneyWitch said, try to do MNSSHP also, but I would absolutely recommend going!
Thank ya'll so much for your help and advise. We were planning on a week visit so that should help with crowds. It really sounds like something the two of us would enjoy so why not?! It is three of my favorite things all in one
place after all, food, wine, and disney. Thought skipping the meal plan this time might be wise.Too much food! For those of you that have been do you usually stay at one of the hotels near Epcot ? We love beach yacht cause it's so easy to walk to Epcot , but we were thinking of trying wilderness lodge since we've never stayed there. Would we regret not being so close? Thanks y'all!!
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Kathy Walton:
Me and the big guy on Disney Magic May 2004
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Just got back. Didn't have the dining plan, didn't miss it. We were there for 3 days - Sat., Sun., and Mon. - did it for dinner on Sun. and Mon. Each day arrived after 6 and were really done by 10. And we all left feeling sated, but not stuffed. Definitely do your homework. Josh over at EasyWDW.com did great reviews with loads of photos. And be sure to pick up the cookbook at the festival center. Not all the recipes, but a lot of them.
TFor those of you that have been do you usually stay at one of the hotels near Epcot ? We love beach yacht cause it's so easy to walk to Epcot , but we were thinking of trying wilderness lodge since we've never stayed there. Would we regret not being so close? Thanks y'all!!
We don't do the deluxe resorts, and we stayed at Caribbean Beach when we were at WDW during F&WF. Sure, it might take a little longer to get there, but I don't know if it's a big deal - it's not like you're traveling an hour each way to get to the park. Personally, I'd stay wherever you want to stay - whether it's at YC or WL.
We're not big drinkers, but even so, we had a blast there. You can still have a great time without getting soused, or even without drinking at all. Not everyone likes alcohol (that includes us), and some people don't partake due to personal reasons. It doesn't take anything away from the F&WF's awesomeness.
Food is not SUPER adventurous - that is, you won't be seeing fried crickets or ox eyeballs or anything you'd find on "Bizarre Foods" - but you will see a lot of dishes that you won't find at your local Outback Steakhouse! LOL If you're just going for a few days, I'd skip the DDP and use that money to load up your gift card. As long as you don't mind eating all your meals al fresco, it makes more sense and also better bang for your buck.
Lemme echo GATechGal - get the recipe book. Not only is it really neat if you enjoy cooking like we do, but it makes a fantastic gift for friends and family who cook as well.
Just got back too. It was my first time during the F & WF. I absolutely loved it. I stayed at POP. I am already making plans to go again next year since DH didn't go this time since it was a last minute solo trip for me. He would have loved it and I can't wait to bring him to experience it!!!! But it will also be our 15th anniversary celebration and I'm thinking of booking a savannah view at AKL! I too thought of staying at an Epcot resort, but I am going for the splurge!!!
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Epcot Wine and food festival worth it?
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Pixie Dust
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Like DisneyWitch said, try to do MNSSHP also, but I would absolutely recommend going!
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