From the Authors: Newsletter Contest

Travel Feature: Timeshare Vacation Offers: Deal or Scam?

Disney Feature: Celebrating Birthdays at Disney: Top Ten Tips

Updates: What's New and Changed

Tips: Brita Water Bottles, Treat Your Feet, Wild Castle Views

Q&A: New Years Eve and Park Passes for Short Stays

Newsletter Contest Winner

Newsletter Feedback
 

Updates:
What's New and Changed

The Mituskoshi Department Store in the Japan pavilion at Epcot is getting a facelift. On our recent trip, we discovered the whole first half completely redecorated, and the back half screened while workers hammered away. Cast members expect the store to be completely re-opened in April. The renovation will keep the same merchandise and add a sake tasting area!

Reader Desiree reports that Hollywood & Vine is halting some meals this month. A call to Disney confirms that they will no longer serve breakfast or lunch beginning March 23. Dinner will continue but it will have no characters and cost $19.99/adult and $9.99/child. (Thanks also to Scott from http://www.pscalculator.net for confirming this info!)

The "100 Years of Magic" sign has been removed from in front of the Sorcerer Mickey hat at Disney-MGM Studios, and will be replaced by something else to be revealed after the construction fencing comes down.

The All Ears newsletter (http://www.allearsnet.com) reports that Epcot's Future World will close an hour earlier at 6:00 pm from March 23-April 11, 2003.

The BoardWalk's Harbor Club childcare center closes its doors on March 16. Guests at the BoardWalk who need nearby childcare can use the Sandcastle Club at the Beach Club.

Beginning March 23, Pleasure Island will remain closed during the day -- in the past, guests could walk through the nightclub area and browse the shops. Pleasure Island will open at 7:00 pm. Guests who need to walk between Downtown Disney Marketplace and West Side during the day can use the walkway that skirts Pleasure Island.

The Spa at the Disney Institute is now calling itself "The Spa at Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort." A drive by the former Disney Institute site last week showed lots of construction activity.

(Our thanks to All Ears Newsletter for alerting us to portions of this news. Be sure to subscribe to their excellent newsletter at http://www.allearsnet.com)

>Things To Do: Hear some news? Send it to us at
news@passporter.com.
 

Disney Tips: 
From Fellow Readers

BRING YOUR BRITA
"Purchase a personal Brita water bottle to use while you are in the parks. This allows you to have great tasting, inexpensive water from any fountain. The water is filtered as you drink it. Be sure to use your PassPorter bottle strap (free with an order)...it fits the bottle very well and we used it to hang on the back of our son's stroller. Best part of this hint is to fill the bottle half full the night before you tour and freeze it (without the cover which contains the filter). In the morning, fill the bottle, screw on the cap, and you've got cold refreshing water along for the ride! Very important to drink plenty of water, especially on those magical, sunny, warm Disney days!" -- contributed by Debbie V (djvpool@frontiernet.net)

SOAK YOUR FEET
"Bring along some foot soak. John's Foot Soap is my favorite. After a long day in the parks, fill your bathtub half full and add the foot soak. One or two can sit on the edge of the tub and soak those tired feet. You'll be amazed how great you'll feel afterwards." -- contributed by Susan F. (smf614@adelphia.net)

GET A WILD VIEW OF THE CASTLE
"There are about a handfull of rooms at the Wilderness Lodge Resort that have a view of Cinderella Castle. We requested and received a room with a view. Fax in your room request four days prior to arrival and ask for rooms: 4032, 4034, 5032, 5034, 6032, 6034, 6012, 6022. Good luck!!" -- contributed by Mark Smith (pajamasam21@hotmail.com)

>Notes: Send us your tips! You may see them in this newsletter and win a copy of PassPorter!
 

Q & A: 
With Jennifer and Dave

WDW1102 asks:
"We are toying with the idea of arriving at Disney on New Year's Eve, and staying for about a week. I would like to hear first hand experiences of what it is like at the resorts on New Year's Eve. We usually stay home on New Years, and I usually do not even stay awake to watch the ball drop! In other words--we are a very quiet family. I am wondering if the hotels are usually very noisy on this night."

Dave replies:
"I've only been there for one New Year's Eve--1999/2000. Fact of the matter is, nearly everyone who's celebrating is at the parks (that's where we were), so the resorts are probably quieter than usual. One of the benefits of staying on property is that Disney guarantees all resort guests admission to a park. Folks who stay off-property may not even be able to get on property, no less get into a park, depending on how busy things are.

I suggest that you don't arrive New Year's Eve unless you plan to be in the parks. The date of your check-in determines the rate you'll pay for the duration of your stay. If you check-in on the 31st you'll pay Holiday Season rates. If you check in New Year's Day, you'll be paying Value Season rates. One way to avoid this problem is to make two reservations, one for 12/31, and another one starting 1/1). The extra trouble of going to the desk to check in a second time will be worth the savings."

Tom & Lyn ask:
"If you are getting a stateroom with a verandah, which side of the ship gives you the best views, the port side or the starboard side?"

Jennifer replies:
"The general consensus from cruisers (and I agree) is that there is no best side. It's six of one, half a dozen of the other. Sometimes the ship docks on its port side, sometimes on its starboard side."

>Send us your questions about PassPorter, Walt Disney World, and Disney Cruise Line and we'll do our best to answer them!
E-mail: questions@passporter.com
 

Newsletter Contest
Winner Announcement

We are pleased to announce that the first winner in our PassPorter Newsletter Contest is...

ddmaking@... (full e-mail address concealed for privacy)

If you recognize this e-mail address as yours, send an e-mail to news@passporter.com to claim your $10 gift certificate to use anywhere in the PassPorter Travelers Store at http://www.passporter.com/store/

If you're subscribed to this newsletter, you're already entered into the contest. If not, what are you waiting for? Subscribe at http://www.passporter.com/news.htm
 
 

Newsletter Feedback
Your Comments

Thank you for all your helpful comments on the new newsletter format! Here is a bit of the e-mail we received:

"It's great! Easy to find things quick. More organized! "

"I was admiring the new look of your newsletter when I spotted this
link!!  I think it looks great.  Keep up the good work!!"

"I think the newsletter looks great.  You did an excellent job of not only improving the look but also making things easy to find.  I look forward to the next one."

"ILOVE the new newsletter!  My only complaint?  They don’t come out once a day!!!!!"

"I really like the new newsletter format!  It's much easier to read and very well organized. Thanks for all your hard work."

"Loved my newsest edition of the PassPorter News. Great colors (of course PassPorter colors), I was able to read and follow along easily, and the links were helpful. Thanks for the great changes."

We also received the following comments, which prompted us to make some improvements:

"I like the new layout. however the small type might be a problem for some folks. My mom, who is 82, had a hard time reading the stories."

[Based on this feedback and a few other e-mails like it, we made all type in our newsletter at least 12 point. If you don't feel this is large enough, let us know!]

"I used to be able to print out newsletters in the previous style.  Sometimes I'd take them with me, folded and stuck inside my passporter if they had particularly relevant information. I haven't figured out how to do the same with the current format newsletter."

[We added a link at the top of this newsletter which goes to the text-only version. If you want to print out the newsletter, click it to get a printer-friendly version.]

"I love receiving your newsletter!  The new format is a bit difficult to read on the computer screen, however.  Having 2 independent columns means that I have to read the left (or right) column first and then scroll back up to the top to read the other column.  I tried reading them simultaneously, but it just wasn't working out.  Maybe if you added a scroll bar to each column or kept it to one column it would be easier to read."

[Alas, we can't add a scrollbar to the columns. We figure since newspapers are formatted in this manner, this would also be okay. I you also disagree, please click the link at the top of the page to get the text-only newsletter.]
 

PassPorter News is growing! With our last issue we passed 9000 subscribers -- a big welcome to all our new subscribers, and a thank-you to our long-time readers. To celebrate, we're holding a newsletter contest. In each newsletter (starting with this issue), we'll randomly choose and announce one reader's name. If you see your name under "Contest Winner Announcement" near the bottom of the newsletter, send an e-mail to news@passporter.com and we'll send you a $10 gift certificate to use in the PassPorter Store.

We welcome new subscribers, so please feel free to pass the newsletter subscription information on to your friends and family. To subscribe, simply visit http://www.passporter.com/news.htm.

The contest runs until May 1, 2003. Winners have until June 1, 2003 to e-mail us and claim their gift certificate. To learn more and get the contest rules, visit http://www.passporter.com/news/subscribercontest.htm.

On a related note, we're considering going to a weekly newsletter distribution (right now we publish this newsletter once every other week). Before we decide, we need to know what you think. Should we go weekly? If yes, send a blank e-mail to news-more@passporter.com. If you'd rather it remained every other week, send a blank e-mail to news-same@passporter.com. Now, if we do go weekly, we'll need volunteers to contribute articles to our newsletter -- if we write all the articles ourselves, we'll have no time to write new books! If you're interested, send an e-mail to editor@passporter.com with your article idea(s).

Jennifer and Dave
PassPorter Travel Press

P.S. Thank you to everyone who filled out a PassPorter Survey recently. The winner of the PassPorter Totebag filled with goodies was Michelle Leslie. Congratulations!
 

Our new Disney Cruise Line guidebook is making waves! In fact, we've had so many orders for our new guidebook that the first printing has just about sold out (we have just over 50 paperback copies left)... and the guide has only been available for one month! So if you haven't yet ordered your copy, get one now before it goes on backorder. We are reprinting, but it'll be about a month before we have them in hand again.

And don't forget that we're still giving away a free bottle strap with every order! Our thanks to MouseEarVacations.com for making this possible for our readers.

Learn more and place an order at:
http://www.passporter.com/store/

by Jennifer Watson

Have you ever received one of those "vacation offer" phone calls or e-mails? You know, the ones that promise lodging and park admission for a fraction of the regular cost if you attend a timeshare presentation. If so, you may have wondered about them and if they're worth pursuing. Well, I'm not embarrassed to stand up and say, "I did it!" My mother and I went on a vacation just last week, and for the first three days we took advantage of one of those too-good-to-be-true vacation offers. Here are my experiences:

Last spring, my grandma received an unsolicited phone call from an outfit offering cheap Orlando hotel rooms and Disney park tickets. My grandma had always wanted to go, so she phoned my mother and asked her to look into it. My mom learned that this company (Vacation Showroom, Inc.) was offering a $99/person "vacation package" for stays in any or all of several cities (Orlando, Ft. Lauderdale, Williamsburg, and Las Vegas). The Orlando stay promised 3 nights in a hotel only 5 minutes from the Disney parks plus one one-day park pass per person. She was also informed that she'd have to pay a $30 booking fee, that the Orlando location would cost an extra $29/person, and that she was required to attend a timeshare sales presentation breakfast. Thinking that this would be an affordable way to take my grandma on a vacation, she bought it. It cost her $228 to purchase the package.

Alas, my Grandma passed away last summer. At the funeral, my mother mentioned the trip to Disney she and Grandma wanted to take, and I offered to go in Grandma's place. We planned to go in March after the new PassPorter guidebooks came out. As the vacation package required a 45-day advance booking, she called and reserved three nights in Orlando, paying the additional $29/person. That brought her total for this package up to $286.

The package promised "quality" lodging within 10 minutes of attractions, such as the AmeriHost, Ramada Plaza 1000, or the Radisson Barcelo. We could not specify one of these hotels -- one would be selected for us based on availability at the time of reservation. As it turned out, we were booked into the Amerihost, which of the three hotels was the closest to Walt Disney World. I did some research before the trip and confirmed that the Amerihost did offer free shuttles to Walt Disney World. The reservation agent mentioned we'd need to confirm our late (8:00 p.m.) arrival on the morning of check-in day. Dutifully, my mother called before we left for the airport to confirm our arrival. So far, so good.

Our flight arrived in the early evening and Tiffany Town Car drove us to the Amerihost -- we did not rent a car, as the hotel had a shuttle to Walt Disney World. Upon arriving at the hotel, we wandered around a bit trying to find the vacation package check-in desk, which turned out to be WAY in the back of the hotel. We wasted a good half hour on this. Finally, my mother checked-in with the timeshare folks and received a hotel voucher. Voucher in hand, we went to the hotel's check-in desk to get our room and crash. Alas, this was not to be. When it came our turn to check-in, we were informed that even though we'd confirmed our stay just that morning, the hotel had overbooked and that we could stay at the Ramada Plaza 1000 instead. We both said, in unison, "We don't have transportation!" But the hotel staff wouldn't budge. After a lot of complaining and haggling, they finally agreed to give us transportation over to and back from the Ramada. We were instructed to go back to the timeshare office to book our timeshare presentation meeting (required to get the park tickets) and then go to the Ramada.

So we hauled our luggage back to the office, signed up for the presentation ($20 deposit required), and got a lift in a van from one of the employees ($5 tip). It was a good 20-25 minute drive over to the Ramada. When we checked in, we learned that not only was there no shuttle to Disney, but that the restaurant had just closed and there wasn't even an eatery within walking distance. So we trudged up to our room, ordered subs from a delivery place, and fell into exhausted sleep. Not an auspicious beginning to our trip.

The next morning we presented ourselves at the timeshare office at opening time (8:00 am) to inquire about the return transportation we were promised. My mother got deflected, so I tried. After insisting strongly, the rep said she was getting us transportation. It turned out that she'd called a town car company, and upon depositing us back at the Amerihost, the driver insisted on $40 for the trip. No way! I marched in and spoke to an employee at the check-in desk, and believe it or not, they paid the driver. We did give the driver a $5 tip, however.

Finally, we get to check-in to the Amerihost. (The hotel is actually pretty nice and really is just 5 minutes from Disney -- I will report on the hotel in another issue of this newsletter.) A "smoking" room was the only room available, but we took it so we could get on with our day. Unfortunately, by the time we'd hauled our luggage up to the room, the last morning shuttle had left -- Amerihost shuttles depart at 8:30 am, 9:40 am, and 4:50 pm, and they only go to Epcot. We asked at the concierge desk about transportation to Animal Kingdom, and we were told that their driver could take us both for $20. Eager to get going, we agreed. The trip was fine, and we tipped another $5.

The timeshare presentation was the following day. While we were both dreading this, we knew it had to be done to get the park tickets. So we showed up in the hotel lobby at the appointed time and got a ride over to the Silver Lake Resort. There we waited for the presentation. As it turned out, individual sales reps came out and called out individual names -- one sales rep for each party. Yikes! We thought we'd be in a safe, group setting.

Our sales rep led us into a large meeting room where 40 small tables and chairs were arranged. A very meager "breakfast buffet" was set up along the side -- it was the usual continental breakfast fare, and not very appetizing. After chit-chatting about his family, and accidentally spilling his coffee on my Mom, he began talking in general about how valuable vacations are and the value of saving money on them. All of this we knew, but hey, whatever. After about an hour of this, he gave us a tour of the two- and three-bedroom condos at the Silver Lake Resort. They looked okay -- nothing to compare to the Disney Vacation Club resorts, but still okay. Then it was time for the hard sell. He got out his calculator and told my Mom what her monthly payments would be when she bought the timeshare. My mother very politely asked questions and expressed genuine interest, but very firmly said she could not make a decision immediately. He pushed more, and more, and more. When my mother didn't budge, he got frustrated (he actually put his head in his hands and heave a huge sigh!). Eventually, after another hour, he got angry -- no kidding. He made it clear that we'd wasted his time. Ha! He'd kept us an hour longer than we'd been told the presentation would take. When he finally gave up and let us go, I smiled and thanked him for his time. He turned away gruffly. And because he'd run over his allotted time, we got back to the Amerihost late and missed the shuttle. We spent another $25 to get to Epcot.

We did, however, get the two one-day park tickets after the presentation. Well, they were actually vouchers, but we had no problem exchanging them for actual tickets at Guest Relations at the parks.

All in all, the experience cost us $346 when you add in the transportation costs. At regular rates, it would have cost $69/night to stay at the Amerihost, plus $53 x 2 for the tickets, for a total of $313. Plus, we wouldn't have had the overbooking hassle (regular customers were given rooms), the transportation mess, nor the wasted half-day and aggravation of the timeshare presentation.

Was it worth it? If we'd taken advantage of the lodging in the other cities (two nights each in Ft. Lauderdale, Williamsburg, and Las Vegas at no additional charge, if you don't count the time share presentation that comes with each visit) and had our own transportation, maybe -- but that's a big maybe. Otherwise? NO WAY! We hated the hassle, we hated the lack of control, and we hated the high-pressure sales presentation. This was no deal. And while I wouldn't call it a scam, I don't think "over-priced hype" is too far off the mark.

If you're interested in learning more about this particular program -- whether to use it or learn what to avoid -- you can visit their Web site at http://www.dzona.com/travel. Got questions? Feel free to write me at jennifer@passporter.com.

My mother's birthday coincided with our "Mom & Me" trip to Disney. We decided together that we'd celebrate her birthday while we were there by going out to a nice dinner. And being a loving daughter, I decided to take it a step further and make the entire trip a birthday celebration for my Mom! Here are the top ten things I did to make the trip special for her:

1. Have a Birthday Meal. Make a priority seating at a favorite restaurant and inform the cast member about the birthday. My Mom wanted to do Boma at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, and since it is a buffet, they don't offer birthday cakes like some other restaurants do. What she got, however, was a lovely birthday card from the staff of Boma -- in fact, all the servers had signed it for her!

2. Surprise Daily Goodie Bags. You can get small, inexpensive items at a party store and fill clear treat bags with the goods. Then print out tags and staple them to the top of the bags to identify them as birthday bags and keep the contents from spilling out in transit. I made one for each day of our trip, and themed them to the park or activity we had planned for the day. I left each day's bag out on my mom's bed while she was getting ready in the morning, and she was often surprised to find them.

3. Pamper With Birthday Turndown Service. Before leaving home, make up small cards with favorite sayings and Disney character clipart. Then print the cards and fold them in half like a tent. Pick up a small bag of Hershey's Kisses before traveling. Now each night while your birthday boy or girl is getting ready for bed, place one of the turndown cards and a couple of kisses on their pillow. I used famous Disney sayings and Tinkerbell on the turndown cards for my Mom, and she saved them all!

4. Decorate Your Room. A roll of streamers, a Happy Birthday banner, and some tape can go a long way to turn a drab hotel room into Party Central. Those of you sailing with Disney can also purchase Disney-themed decorations through the shopping booklet that comes with your cruise documents, or at Guest Services once aboard. I decorated the stateroom while my mom was doing the spa tour, and she was suitably surprised by it!

5. Magnetize Your Metal Door. Many hotel rooms and all the cruise line staterooms have metal doors, which make perfect backdrops for personalized magnets. Purchase magnet sheets (available for ink jet printers) from your local office supply store and print out appropriate birthday greetings, artwork, and photographs (just be carefuly not to include information that is too revealing or tempting). Once you're in your hotel or stateroom, just step out and decorate the door! It was fun to come back to our stateroom with Mom's birthday magnets all over it, and we had several "Happy Birthdays" from crew members and guests because of it!

6. Decorate Her/Him with a Birthday Button. Each of the four major Disney parks has a free birthday button available at Guest Relations inside the park. Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Animal Kingdom have unique button designs, while Disney-MGM Studios hands out Magic Kingdom's buttons. Once you've got the button, be sure he/she wears it! Cast members will shout out birthday greetings as you travel through the park. She/he may even get special treatment -- at Restaurant Akershus in Epcot, my Mom was surprised by our server with a huge birthday cake and a Magic Moment certificate!

Mom shows off her cake
and certificate at Akerhus

7. Do a Birthday Disney Cruise. If you're cruising with Disney, let your reservation rep/travel agent know about the upcoming birthday and the day you'd like to celebrate it. Once you're onboard, remind the head server or server about the birthday. Then at dinner, the birthday boy or girl will be serenaded by the crew members, presented with a cake she/he'll surely have no room to eat, and receive a collectible Disney Cruise birthday pin. My mom was all smiles when she got the special birthday treatment!

8. Collect Birthday Pins. Before I left home, a trip to the Disney Store yielded a Winnie the Pooh enamel pin with my mom's birthstone in it. And while we were at Disney, I found a "Happy Birthday" enamel pin and bought it for my mom. There's probably more birthday-themed pins you can collect for your birthday boy or girl.

9. Spread the Word. Let cast and crew members know about the birthday wherever you go. Not only may your birthday boy or girl get birthday greetings and smiles, but it gives the cast or crew member an opportunity to go the extra step. Everyone wins!

10. Plan a Special Birthday Event. Gifts of a Lifetime (http://www.giftsofalifetime.com) offers birthday events among its many special occasions. Before our trip, I contacted Gifts of a Lifetime to arrange a surprise for my Mom. Here's a brief account of the birthday event: At 1:00 pm, we found ourselves at the Snow White Wishing Well in the Magic Kingdom, where I ostensibly wanted to take some photos. As my Mom posed, she noticed a large, laminated "Pixie Dust Express" card propped on a nearby bench, with her name on it. With a little shriek of surprise, she opened it and discovered that Tinkerbell had "hidden" her birthday card and she had to find it before it disappeared forever. What followed was a fun scavenger hunt through the Magic Kingdom in search of the birthday card. The trail led her back to the wishing well, where she discovered her birthday card in a castle/Tinkerbell holder and some pixie dust. It was a real treat watching her romp around the Magic Kingdom, and she was overjoyed at the attention and fun. I HIGHLY recommend Gifts of a Lifetime for a special event -- they planned every step carefully and really went out of their way to make the day special. For a detailed account of the birthday event, complete with photos, visit http://www.passporter.com/giftsofalifetime.htm.

There are many fun and creative things you can do to celebrate a birthday! But no matter how big or small your budget is, you can make your birthday boy or girl happy. If you have experiences or ideas you'd like to share, send them to news@passporter.com and we'll include them in the next newsletter.