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 In This Newsletter
From the Authors: Back from Harrisburg!
Travel Feature: Marseilles
Disney Feature: Disneyland Paris
Updates:What's New and Changed
Tips: Deodorant Dilemma, Finding Figment, Keeping Cool
Captain's Corner: Ginger and Watermelons
Q&A: Are there a lot of bugs at Fort Wilderness?
Our Sponsors: We Recommend...
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Updates:
What's New and Changed
Here are a few items of relevant news:
CORRECTION: In last week's Wilderness Lodge article,
some incorrect information was published. The opening date of the Lodge
was 1994 not 1997 and the pricing structure of the soda mugs and
bike/boat rentals has changed. Mugs are now $11.99, bike/boat rental
is subject to change. Contact the resort for current pricing. We
regret the errors.
The Jedi Training Academy show that is part of Star Wars Weekends, continues to take place daily outside Star Tours at Disney-MGM Studios. Recent newspaper reports suggest this may become a permanent addition!
The queue at Soarin'
has some new games to keep guests busy while waiting in line. These
interactive games take place on the large video screens that previously
featured nature photos and trivia questions.
Tickets for the 2007 Disney Golf Classic, taking place at Disney's Palm & Magnolia golf courses November 1 - 4, 2007, are now on sale. Tickets are available for purchase at DisneyWorldSports.com.
Our thanks to AllEars.net and MousePlanet.com from which we get some of our news leads.
>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 deliver a wealth of information! Here are the winners in this month's tip contest:
DEODORANT DILEMMA
"If you are tent camping at Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground in
the summer months, make sure to put your stick deodorant in a
cooler. I had mine in my bag in the tent, and the hot summer days
melted it. Not only did I have to pay twice what I would have at home
for a new one, I had melted deodorant on many of the clothes I brought!
So keep your stick deodorant out of the heat!"
-- contributed by Michelle U.
FINDING FIGMENT
"If you are a fan of Figment from Journey Into Imagination, he has his
own air-conditioned place for having your picture taken with him. It is
called Figment's Place and it's located behind the jumping fountains
outside of the ride and lab. You walk on the outside of the rope
that leads to Honey, I Shrunk the Audience. There is information
on the door. Inside are some of the crazy signs that Figment has
on his house tour in the ride and some fun house mirrors to keep you
busy if there is a line."
-- contributed by Liz M.
KEEPING COOL
"Trying to stay cool at the Disney parks? Our family fills a two-gallon
zip lock bag with washcloths and ice from the machine at the resort.
It was easy to carry and definitely a refreshing way to beat that hot
Florida heat!"
-- contributed by Holly P.
Notes: Send us your tips ! You may see them in this newsletter and win a copy of PassPorter!
Want more Disney
tips? For Walt Disney World fans, we've collected 500 of the best tips
submitted by readers over the past six years. All have been edited for
accuracy and categorized. For details, visit the PassPorter Disney 500 info page or the PassPorter store. For Disney Cruise Line fans, we have an e-book with 250 cruiser tips, as well as a special cruise line comparison section and seven customized packing lists. For information, visit the Disney Cruise Clues info page.
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Captain's Corner:
Treasure Hunting Game
Play our fun and quirky treasure hunting game, hosted by Captain Jack Skatt from our book, "PassPorter's
Treasure Hunts at Walt Disney World."
The Captain makes a study of the delightful details -- sometimes
hidden, sometimes in plain sight but often overlooked -- at Walt Disney
World and aboard the Disney Cruise Line. Using notes from his journals,
he will lead you to this "treasure" at Disney with clues, questions,
photos, or riddles. Your challenge is to discover the answer by
searching your memory, visiting Disney, or even just looking really
hard on the Internet. If you think you've found the answer, e-mail it
to jackskatt@passporter.com
-- the first person to correctly submit the FULL answer will receive a
free PassPorter enamel pin or PassPorter name badge pin.
Here is this week's journal entry:
"Here are some interesting tidbits I learned on my wanderings today.
Ginger has long been used as a medicinal herb.
The Chinese produce 40% of the world's watermelon crop.
An apertif stimulates the appetite before dinner."
Fascinating stuff!"
Where in Walt Disney World will you find this information printed?
Send your full answer to jackskatt@passporter.com
-- the winner will be notified by e-mail and announced in the next
newsletter,
along with the correct answer!
Congratulations to Lisa Safko who was the
winner of last week's trivia contest! Lisa was the first person to
identify the carpet as being at the All Star Music Resort. To view the
original clue, see last
week's newsletter.
If you
enjoy treasure hunts, we've got an entire book with over 100 distinct
treasure hunts and over 1500 questions, complete with clues and
contributions from Captain Jack Skatt. Get more details on
"PassPorter's Treasure Hunts at Walt Disney World" book at http://www.passporterstore.com.
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Q
& A:
With
Jennifer and Dave
TheThomasFam asks: "Are there a lot of bugs at Fort Wilderness?"
Dave and Jennifer answer: "The only time we recall the bugs being bad was when
we were out in the boonies on an evening hayride (the presence of the horses
probably helped, too). Around the campsites and other public areas things are
remarkably tame. I can't say bug-free, but the only time we've wanted repellent
was on that hay ride. OK, the beach area can be a bit of a problem around
sunset, too -- think about repellent if you're planning to watch the Electrical
Water Pageant."
Have a question? Post questions 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 See Your Name in Print?
PassPorter News
is published weekly, and this means we're always in need of articles!
We're on the lookout for guest columnists who want to contribute
articles to this newsletter. No professional writing experience is
necessary, just a desire to share your experience with others! 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 use at www.passporter.com.
For details and our article submission guidelines, please e-mail news@passporter.com. Articles about Disney and general travel are welcomed!
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Our Sponsors:
We Recommend...
PassPorter
only accepts advertising from services of the highest quality -- we
recommend these companies because we use them ourselves. Please support
our sponsors and, in turn, support this newsletter! This week's
sponsors are (in order of appearance):
Mouse Fan Travel -- MouseFest 2007 Cruise Offer! Book by 7/31/07 & Get a Free Disney Gift Card
MouseEarVacations.com -- Disney Cruise Line special offers - MouseFest 2007 - Special Onboard Scrapbook Event - Supplies Provided!
Quicksilver Tours & Transportation -- Save $5 off airport round-trip transportation in a town car
Thank you, sponsors!
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From the Authors: Back from Harrisburg
Hi,
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A
whole week has gone by, and so has MagicMeets in Harrisburg, PA. We had
a great time there reconnecting with old friends and acquaintences and
making many new friends. Dave had a great turnout at his talk on Disney
Dining, loads of folks came by our exhibit table, and all in all, we
had a grand old time. Sunday we and about a hundred other MagicMeets
attendees reconvened at nearby Hershey Park, which is celebrating its
100th anniversary. Allie began and ended her day on some of the park's
big rides, while Mom, Dad, and Alexander took in some of the plentiful
toddler-friendly attractions. By mid-afternoon thunderclouds were
beginning to gather and we headed for the car for the eight-hour drive
back to Ann Arbor. We plan to attend next year's MagicMeets -- we hope to see you there, too!
PassPorter Store News: Our Free MediaMail Shipping Special
is back from now until Monday, July 23 at 11:59 pm ET. This is a great way to save on your PassPorter guidebooks! You can even use it to pre-order at 2008 edition, so long as you place your pre-order during the free shipping period. For details, visit http://www.passporterstore.com/store/freeshipping.aspx
Cool Stuff: We're pleased to welcome two new sponsors/partners to PassPorter.com: The first is the CARES flight belt, which you may remember from our travel gear review back in May. We use the CARES flight belt with our son Alexander (you can see him in the photo below) and highly recommend it to our readers who want to keep their young kids safe while flying. The second partner is Disney Movie Rewards, which is for those of us who buy/watch Disney movies (that'd probably be most of us!). It's a neat rewards program that gives you points which you can redeem for cool Disney stuff. Check them out when you get a chance.
 
On the Air: Dave will be interviewed for the JB & Morgan Show on WIRN - World Internet Radio Network. As soon as we know when the interview will be on the air (and be available for download), we'll let you know right here!
In Print:
Check Friday's USA Today (7/20/07) for an article on air travel with
young children. Dave was interviewed and, who knows, he may even make
it into the article.
MouseFest Park Schedule: For those of you joining us for MouseFest 2007, you can now consult the MouseFest Park of the Day schedule at http://www.mousefest.org -- stay tuned for more MouseFest announcements in the weeks and months to come.
In
this issue, it's off to France we go! Feature Columnist Cheryl Pendry returns to the Mediterranean for a tour of the port city of Marseilles, and Elizabeth Shannon sings the praises of Disneyland Paris. Finally, Jack Skatt is back with a brand-new Walt Disney World Treasure Hunt.
Enjoy!
Jennifer and Dave
PassPorter Publishers and Authors
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Travel
Feature:
Marseilles
by Cheryl Pendry, PassPorter Featured Columnist
Marseilles is a city that's in the midst of a huge change. That's practically the first thing we learned on the tour we took during our day in the city's port.
It's certainly not a place that boasts many, if indeed any, guidebooks to its name and as a result, out of all our ports of call on the Disney Magic's tour of the Mediterranean, Marseilles was probably the one I knew the least about beforehand. Therefore, if I'm honest, I really wasn't expecting that much from the place. I mean, after all, if no one can be bothered to write an entire book about the place, there can't be that much to it, surely? How wrong you can be.
Our half-day tour of Marseilles quickly took us through the history of the city, as we drove towards it. The first thing we learned was that it's the oldest city in France, dating back to the sixth century BC and much of its trade over the years has come through its impressive port. As we made our way from that port, we were also told about the Marseilles of more recent times. Only a decade ago, it was known as a major stop in the illegal drug trade and the city was falling into disrepair. A lot of money from the European Union, and a fast train service linking Marseilles with much of the rest of France (and even London through the Eurostar train through the Channel Tunnel) has helped to change all that.
Today it's a thriving place, with much of city life centered around the beautiful Vieux Port (Old Port). As well as being a picture postcard, with hundreds of yachts docked here, it's also home to a daily fish market, with a series of restaurants and shops lining the harbor. City Hall is also here, dating from the 17th century, complete with a bust of King Louis XIV, best known for his extravagant palace Versailles, near Paris.
Vieux Port is a pleasant walk and allows you to mingle with local residents, but it's important to keep your wits about you, as there are unfortunately pickpockets at work, as there are in many parts of Europe. On our tour, one woman told us she had only put her camera down for a second, but that's all it took for it to disappear.
Despite the beauty of the Vieux Port area, you have to do some work to get the best views of Marseilles. If you look upwards from the harbor, you'll see a church, complete with a huge golden statue of the Virgin Mary, dominating the landscape. Set on top of a hill at the highest point of Marseilles, the Notre Dame de la Garde Basilica replaced a fort, which had previously been on this spot, with a chapel. Consecrated in 1864, it was another sixty seven years before the statue was added on to the church, in front of crowds estimated at 300,000 people. The statistics are truly staggering - at nearly 30 feet tall, a total of nearly 30,000 sheets of gold leaf were required to gild the statue.
This is another example of how the city is changing. We were told that a major restoration project on the church had only been completed a matter of weeks beforehand and the interior is certainly stunning, following all that repair work over the last couple of years. But perhaps the most stunning aspect to this church is actually what's outside it. As you'd expect from its position overlooking Marseilles, it offers spectacular views down to the city sprawling beneath you. Although it took quite a lot of energy to walk the 180 steps to reach the church, the view was well worth the exertion!
Having got your exercise for the day, a great way to unwind is by sampling some of the superb offerings at one of the local patisseries. Of course, France is famous for its cakes and desserts - and for good reason! There's certainly nothing more French than picking out some wickedly good treats in a cake shop and then enjoying them, sitting by one of the main city streets while watching the world go by.
Something else Marseilles is famed for is its soap. It may seem like an ordinary everyday product, but what they produce here is very different from what you usually find on the supermarket shelves, much bigger and more scented and makes for a good souvenir.
Although Marseilles is far from being a city that's familiar to most visitors to France, there's no doubt that's set to change over the next few years, as more and more people discover this beautiful port on the south coast of France. Despite any reservations I had beforehand, Disney definitely made a good choice when they decided to put into port here on their Mediterranean cruise.
About the Author: Cheryl and husband Mark live in England and love to travel, particularly to America. They were on the first 11-night sailing of the Disney Magic around the Mediterranean and are now looking forward to returning to Walt Disney World in December.
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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. Also check out our
Article Collection for more great information!
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Disney Feature:
Vive la Différence - Disneyland Paris
by Elizabeth Shannon, PassPorter Guest Contributor
It's been seven long years since I was in Walt Disney World. Living in southern England though, I have been able to keep my magic levels topped up with frequent visits to Disneyland Paris.
The question most Walt Disney World veterans have about the parks in Paris is "What is the difference?" So I thought I'd give you a flavor of all things French.
Where do I start? In Paris they have two parks; Disneyland Park, which is similar in layout to Magic Kingdom, and the Walt Disney Studios. Note the first difference -- no "MGM" here! There is also a small area of shops and restaurants called Disney Village and a range of Disney-owned resorts on site.
The main difference you notice is that this is a dual language resort -- French and English. It means that many of your favorite rides are dubbed into French. It's a bit disconcerting the first time you hear a French Pirate of the Caribbean or a French C3PO!
They actually do the language thing pretty well. You can play 'identify the ride' from the French name...so who can guess "Cherie, j'ai retreci le public"? (In case your French is as bad as mine it's 'Honey, I Shrunk the Audience.)
The next thing many people notice is the castle. It's not Cinderella Castle, but Sleeping Beauty's Castle (Chateau de la Belle au Bois Dormant). It is smaller than the Magic Kingdom's castle; a pink confection of towers and turrets much loved by little girls and those of us who are a tad older.
There is no restaurant in the castle, but in the dungeons beneath you find a most impressive, enormous and very realistic Audio-Animatronics dragon. From time to time he awakes, roars, and blows steam from his nostrils. Lying in a pool in the cavernous dungeon, he is scary enough to frighten many a young guest.
Have I mentioned the weather yet? Well I'm not sure if the Disney executives knew when they chose Paris for their European park, but it has a higher rainfall than Glasgow in Scotland! Unlike the torrential but brief downpours in Florida, the rain can go on all day and is often accompanied by COLD weather.
However, Disney has been most clever in designing the park. There are covered walkways behind both sides of the shops that line Main Street, and these continue on into Adventureland, Frontierland, and Fantasyland with hardly a gap.
And let me tell you of some of my favorite cold weather days. There is the time it snowed -- Main Street has never looked so pretty -- though riding Thunder Mountain was akin to having high speed dermabrasion! Nor is there anything better than warming your hands on a cup of hot chocolate and eating a delicious French pastry from the Main Street Bakehouse. Then was the time when we came out in the evening and it was really misty. We rode on the Thunder Mesa Riverboat and the park, twinkling out of the haze, looked so romantic and magical I could have cried.
Now did I mention my favorite ride, Thunder Mountain? It's called Thunder Mesa in Disneyland Paris, and ... I have to break it to you ... this ride is much better than the Florida version, in my opinion. The ride is located in the middle of a lake and you go under the water on the outbound and return journeys at a terrific speed. I draw the line at Space Mountain but my husband Mike rides it. They fire you out of a huge canon on the side of the ride and he says the start is very similar to the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster take off -- once again it exceeds its Orlando counterpart in our opinion.
Other than the languages, many of the rides are just the same as in Florida, but Walt Disney Studios Paris does boast a couple of unique theatre shows. In CineMagique a member of the audience, who is being berated by a cast member for using his cell phone, ends up going through the screen and appearing in the film! The film shows the history of cinema by having him interact with the on-screen characters first in a silent movie (where he realizes he can't speak and is in black and white), and then with the same leading lady he travels through different genres of film until they reach a happy ending.
Now for a whirlwind trip around some more differences ... hold on tight!
Tomorrowland is transformed into Discoveryland and is decorated with Jules Verne-style theming.
The entrance to Walt Disney Studios is a huge undercover area that looks like Hollywood by starlight.
Sad to say but the French just don't wear ears -- if you see anyone in Mickey Ears they are almost certainly British or American!
In the parks you can hold unlimited FASTPASSes, so first thing the most speedy runners rush around and collect handfuls of them.
The cast members do their best but struggle to get the ethos; no-one does Disney like a keen American cast member!
There are no room-only reservations at the resorts; in common with most European hotels, all serve an inclusive and delicious Continental buffet breakfast.
The Disneyland Paris premier resort is the Disneyland Hotel, which is right part of the park gates and looks at the railway and down Main Street beyond. At this resort characters come to breakfast every morning -- that's right, a free character breakfast!
And last of all, Disneyland Park is the only 'Magic Kingdom' park worldwide that serves alcohol. (The French will not eat a meal without wine, and who can blame them?)
And on that subject, I have to finish with a quick restaurant review! The most beautiful place to eat in Disneyland Paris is undoubtedly the Blue Lagoon Restaurant. The diners sit in a Caribbean nighttime scene that overlooks the river at the start of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. In some ways like the San Angel Inn at Epcot [Ed: but even more like the Blue Bayou Restaurant at California's Disneyland], the boats drift by, fireflies flicker, and the sounds and smells of a Caribbean evening surround you. The food is good but the ambiance is better! Nothing beats coming in from a cold Paris evening, peeling off layers of coats, hats, scarves, and sweaters and sitting down to enjoy a tropical evening.
So which would I choose to visit? Well for me nothing beats Walt Disney World. It is big, beautiful and full of the Disney spirit...but I must admit, Disneyland Paris does have a magic all its own.
About the Author: Erin is an Executive Assistant and long time Disney enthusiast. She is looking forward to her next visit and first stay at Pop Century in October 2007 before returning to the Wilderness Lodge for the holiday season in December 2008.
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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 Disney vacation plans. Also check out our
Article Collection for more great information!
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Did
You Know?
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Free 30-minute grocery stop with airport round-trip
Special! $5.00 off airport round-trip
Use Discount Code: PassPorter News
Call 888-GO TO WDW
or visit quicksilver-tours.com
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