From the Authors: Heigh Ho, Heigh Ho, to Disneyland We Go!

Adventures Feature: Geocaching: A New Way To Explore Disney Parks

Disney World Feature:  Character Dinners: An Over-looked Option

Updates: What's New and Changed

Tips: "Card" Carrying Member, Soda Bottle/ Detergent Switcheroo

Q&A: Walt Disney World With An Infant?
 

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Updates:
What's New and Changed

Here's a few of the new developments at Disney·

Be on the look-out for Lucky the Dinosaur at Disney's Animal Kingdom! Lucky is the first free-moving audio-animatronic of it's kind. Lucky is very friendly and loves children. She can sniffle, burp, hiccup, sneeze, yawn, cough, giggle, snort, purr, and talk. Try asking her for an "autograph"! 

A tentative schedule of appearances has been announced for the Star Wars Weekends taking place May 12 - June 20, 2005 at Disney's MGM Studios. Schedule is subject to change without notice!

May 20 - 22
Daniel Logan (Young Boba Fett)
John Goodson (Concept Model Maker)

May 27 - 29
Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca)
Rob Coleman (Animation Supervisor)

June 3 - 5
Warwick Davis (Wicket the Ewok) 
Don Bies (R2-D2 Operator)

June 10 - 12
Jerome Blake (Rune Haako)
Brian Gernand (Model Supervisor)

Peter Pan's Flight will be close for refurbishment from May 22 through May 26, 2005. 

You can view our page-by-page list of updates and corrections for the PassPorter Walt Disney World 2005 Edition at http://www.passporter.com/
customs/bookupdates.htm.

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

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Disney Tips:
From Fellow Readers

Our readers possess a wealth of information! Here are the winners in this month's tip contest:

"CARD" CARRYING MEMBER
"Create a phone card for all members of your group. Our last trip to Walt Disney World included my family of four, my mom, my brother, my sister, and her husband, and my aunt and uncle. Using the computer, I created a card the size of a business card with everyone's names and cell phone numbers on it.  I included our resort name/number and my aunt and uncle's home number (they are Florida residents and would be joining us at the park from home). I 'laminated' the cards using clear packing tape. Everyone carried the card with them, and some even programmed the numbers into their phones.  My kids still carry those cards with them in their wallets, two years later!"
-- contributed by Ellen G. 

SODA BOTTLE/ DETERGENT SWITCHEROO
"My husband and I have skin allergies and have to use a liquid detergent that is free of everything. This is hard to find when vacationing and having to do laundry on the go. What I like to do is take an empty soda bottle with a screw-on top and put my detergent in that. I fill up the detergent cap to the pre-measured amount and pour it into the bottle. I then mark the bottle at the fill line and pour another cap full in and mark the fill line on that. This way I know how much to pour in and never have to worry about not having enough detergent or too much in my load. And there's the added bonus of not having to worry about it leaking in my luggage because the cap stays secure!"
-- contributed by Shelley E. (h1bound@...)

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

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Q & A:
With Jennifer and Dave

disneyboundmay05 asks: "Our original plan was to wait two more years to take our first trip to Walt Disney World. But after thinking about it, we decided that our five year-old would miss out on the fun little kid stuff. By going now that means our youngest will be eight months. We know it will be hard but we thought we would make sacrifices for the five year-old. We told my parents that we were going and they offered to keep the baby as they are afraid we will not have a good time because the baby is so young. I can not imagine leaving him home because even though he is young he's a part of the family. So I was wondering what would you do? Also, if you have taken an infant how did it go? Any tips on making it a fun trip for the whole family with the baby? Thanks for your opinions."

Dave answers: "Well, Baby Alexander is just a tad over eight months now. His first trip to Walt Disney World and first Disney cruise was at four months. He went to Walt Disney World again at six months. And he went to Disneyland Paris, Paris and London at seven months. He'll be at Disneyland at around nine months, and he'll have several more long journeys before he's a year old. Soon after his first birthday he'll be sailing on a two-week Disney cruise.

If nothing else, Alexander has learned to be comfy and sleep in a wide variety of circumstances - on planes, London buses, Disney buses, the Paris Metro, ships at sea... and his presence is a major part of our memories of all of those trips. He has been very easy to travel with. Sure, there were challenges, but none of them seem like burdens to us. We can't imagine leaving him behind.

But Alexander doesn't have a five year-old sibling. When big sister Allie (12.5 years) is traveling with us she's self-reliant, and supportive of the baby's needs. You'll be splitting your attention between children who will both need your constant supervision.

Yes, your baby will be an extra complication, especially now, when he is probably becoming more mobile - crawling, maybe even toddling. When they're a bit younger, they're not quite so antsy. Your five year-old will need a lot of attention - will he be jealous if you have to attend to baby? The kids will probably need naps at different times. You'll have even less of an opportunity to experience some of the "big kid" attractions. Will you resent that? You'll probably have to dash out of at least one show because baby started crying... I can keep listing practical reasons not to do it.

The thing to keep in mind is that you're not taking your infant on this trip for his benefit. He'll never know the difference. It's really a matter of what you think your family will get out of having him with you. There will undoubtedly be a few magic moments that become cherished memories, but those moments will cost something in the way of extra effort and/or stress. 

Close your eyes, imagine the vacation you want to have, and see how often your baby is an integral part of your imaginings. Then open your eyes, and see if you can plan a vacation that can live up to those dreams. By then, you'll have a clearer idea of whether this will work for your family. "

Have a question? Post it at http://www.passporterboards.com -- and if you're lucky, you may find that folks have already asked and answered the same question that's on your mind!

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Future Newsletters:
Want To Get Published?

We're on the lookout for guest columnists to contribute articles to this newsletter. Not only is this a great way to give something back to the PassPorter community, but you get to see your name in "print" and receive a $25 gift certificate. For details and our article guidelines, please e-mail news@passporter.com. Articles about Disney and general travel are welcomed!

The printing presses here in Ann Arbor are rolling and in one week, the Third Edition of PassPorter's Field Guide to the Disney Cruise Line and its Ports of Call will be in our warehouse, ready to ship! There's still time to pre-order this fully updated and expanded version of our popular cruise line guidebook and be among the first to receive it.

Everyone gets a 15% discount and if you've already got a copy of  any PassPorter, you can register it to get a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of any PassPorter guidebook.

Pre-order your copy today at:
http://www.passporterstore.com/store/dcl2005.aspx

Geocaching: A New Way to Explore Disney Parks
By Patty Winter, Guest Columnist

During your Disney vacations, you've probably spent some time looking for "Hidden Mickeys," those images of Mr. Mouse that Disney designers have worked into everything from bedspreads to golf courses. But did you know that there's another type of treasure hunt you can play - one that combines high-tech tools with good old fashioned detective work? 

The game is called "Geocaching," and although it started only five years ago, it's already a popular sport in more than 200 countries. In the most basic version of geocaching, one person hides a small container filled with prizes, then posts its geographic coordinates where other people can see them (usually on the geocaching.com web site). When you want to look for a cache, you enter its coordinates into a handheld Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver, and then watch the receiver's display as you move around to zero in on the cache's location. When you discover the cache, you prove that you found it by signing a logbook. If you have something appropriate to exchange, you can also trade for one of the items left by the original cache owner or by other finders.

Sounds simple, doesn't it? Not always! Sometimes you have to solve a puzzle to determine the coordinates, or find information at one place that helps you calculate the final location. Even when you do have the correct coordinates, the cache container may be very tiny. Or it may be disguised as something else, such as a piece of wood, a sprinkler, or a rock. Sometimes even reaching the cache location requires specialized skills, such as technical climbing or SCUBA diving. However, most caches are easily accessible, which makes geocaching a wonderful activity for everyone from kids to grandparents.

In places where placing a physical geocache isn't appropriate, a variation known as "virtual geocaching" is used. A virtual geocache is a place of particular interest or importance. Because there's no logbook, you prove your visit to a virtual cache by taking a photo of yourself at it, or by sending the cache owner certain information that can only be obtained at the cache site.

How did geocaching get started? GPS receivers get their location information from a fleet of satellites developed by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). DoD built into the system a way to make civilian GPS receivers less accurate than military receivers. When that "fuzzing" technique was in use, someone using a civilian receiver might see latitude and longitude readouts that were off by as much as 300 feet. Obviously, that didn't make for precise location-finding!

Five years ago, DoD determined that it could maintain military effectiveness without fuzzing the entire GPS system. (They came up with other ways to degrade GPS signals in selected regions as needed.) DoD realized that allowing civilian GPS receivers to be more accurate would have tremendous benefits to emergency responders, transportation companies, and the general public.

In May of 2000, two days after President Bill Clinton signed an order for DoD to stop signal degradation, a GPS user who was grateful for the improved accuracy of the system hid a container of goodies near Portland, Oregon. He then posted the container's coordinates to a GPS users' group on the Internet. Within days, two people had found the cache, and the "GPS Stash Hunt" - now commonly called geocaching - was off and running. There are now more than 150,000 active geocaches in over 200 countries.

Many geocachers create caches that are themed to their interests. For example, there are caches based on the Lord of the Rings books, the solar system, and train stations. So it isn't surprising that Disney fans who took up geocaching started looking for ways to combine those two passions. That's why there are now geocaches (mostly virtual) at Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris. (As of this writing, there are none at Tokyo Disneyland.) In fact, one of those caches makes use of a publicly accessible GPS unit at a Disney park. We aren't telling where that is; you'll have to pick the right geocache to find out!

So, are you ready to try some geocaching, Disney-style? It's easy to get started. Go to geocaching.com, click on "Hide & Seek a Cache," then use one of the search fields to search for caches in the Disney location you plan to visit. For example, you could enter "Disneyland" in the keyword field, or "32830" in the ZIP code field. Be sure to check the Getting Started section of the website, too. It provides the rules for the game, and also offers helpful suggestions for choosing a GPS receiver for geocaching, if you don't already own one.

Interested in creating your own Disney-themed geocache? You don't need to leave your own hometown to do that! There are currently Disney-themed caches in Quebec, Texas, Arizona, New York, and Denmark, among other places. All you have to do is think up a fun theme (maybe Disneyana in general, or your favorite Disney movie), put a few inexpensive Disney souvenirs in the cache to get things started, and you're on your way. Under the right circumstances, you may even be able to establish a virtual cache at one of the Disney locations. Check the relevant regional Geocaching.com discussion board for more information on this. (For example, the best place to ask questions about Walt Disney World would be the "South and Southeast" forum.)

Next time you take a vacation to a Disney destination, why not try a little geocaching while you're at it? Hunting for the caches will be fun, and you might learn something in the process. Happy caching!

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Did you enjoy this article? Have questions? E-mail us at news@passporter.com or visit http://www.passporterboards.com to discuss your travel plans.

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Character Dinners: An Over-Looked Option
by Eric J. Weinstein, Guest Columnist

Inevitably, when friends or family call to tell me about their upcoming trip to Walt Disney World, they all ask the same question,  "Which character breakfast should we make reservations for?" 

I'll tell you what I always tell them. First, you need to decide if character dining is even for you.  Most character dining experiences are buffet, or all you can eat family style meals.  If you do not like that kind of dining, I suggest you skip the character meals altogether. Second, know your audience (your kids) and choose a character meal that the kids will enjoy.  Make sure you know the characters that appear at your meal - don't take 9 year old boys to Cinderella's castle for the princess breakfast. Last, understand that meeting the characters face to face comes with a price - a family of four may spend $60 for most breakfasts and over $100 for most dinners. (Prices are always subject to change, but dinners average around $25.00 per adult and $12.00 per child, not including alcohol and tip, with breakfasts averaging $17.00 per adult and $9.00 per child.)

If you have decided that you want the character dining experience, my response is usually: "Make a character dinner reservation." 

My wife and I have been to Walt Disney World seven times since 1989, with three trips since 1999 with kids.  Prior to having kids I would never had considered a character meal, but when you go to Walt Disney World with children you go to see it through their eyes, and meeting the characters can be a big thrill for kids.  My wife and I learned early on with our son that getting up early for a breakfast and rushing to the park with a lot of other little kids was just too overwhelming.  The first two reservations we had, at the Crystal Palace (in Magic Kingdom) and at Chef Mickey's (nearby at the Contemporary Resort), we missed completely; it could not be done.  But when we discovered the character dinner, the whole concept changed for us.

I believe a character dinner can be a much more relaxing and enjoyable dining experience.  First, it can come after a long day of park hopping, when, after being on your feet and in line all day; you can finally sit down and let the characters come to you.  The beauty of most of the dining experiences is that the characters move from table to table, making sure to hit each one, sometimes making multiple visits during your meal.  This gives the kids plenty of opportunity to get autographs and pictures with their favorites.  Personally, I like to refresh myself with a decent meal at the end of the day, rather than eat more fast food at the park; so while the kids are interacting with the characters, my wife and I can just enjoy the moment and the meal.

When calling the meal reservation line, (407) WDW-DINE (or 407-939-3463) the cast member on the phone can be a tremendous help in finding the dining experience just right for you.  We originally called for Cinderella's Royal Table in the castle at Magic Kingdom, but after a very long discussion we settled on other locales that were both available at times that were better for us, and had characters that were more appropriate for our children.  These cast members know the "ins and outs" of these meals, their menus and their popularity.  Frankly, just because a meal isn't that popular may mean that it's just undiscovered.  One note on popularity - if you want one of the most popular locales, like breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table, be on the phone exactly 90 days before your intended meal; these book fast.  Don't despair if you do not get a reservation, just keep calling looking for a cancellation.

Our personal favorite, from our recent trip during Thanksgiving 2004, is 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian.  Designed in the turn-of-the-century style of "Mary Poppins," there are carousel horses on the walls, and a huge pipe organ mounted close to the ceiling.  While my nine year-old son was not enthusiastic, our four year-old daughter enjoyed meeting Cinderella and Friends (which included the Fairy Godmother, Prince Charming and some other special visitors, like Goofy).  The food was exceptionally good for a buffet, with some high-end items like mussels in garlic sauce and prime rib.  I have recommended this dinner location to several friends and so far, they have all returned high marks for the entire experience, from the characters to the food and environment.

Another very popular dinner spot is Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary Resort.  This breakfast/dinner locale is right in the heart of the Contemporary resort. All the standard Disney characters make an appearance, including the Mouse himself, and it is very lively.  This is a great location if you want a party during dinner, but it can be hectic.  In my opinion, the food can be hit or miss, but with a tremendous location, and the classic Disney characters, it's a good bet.

When making a decision about a character meal, whether breakfast or dinner, make sure it will be worth it to you, both within budget and experience. Think carefully, do your research and find the best character meal for your family and you'll have a great time. 

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Did you enjoy this article? Have questions? E-mail us at news@passporter.com or visit http://www.passporterboards.com to discuss planning your Disney vacation.