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 In This Newsletter
From the Editor: Holiday Wishes!
Travel Feature: A New Year In A New Disney Park: Hong Kong Disneyland
Disney Feature: Traveling Carry On to Walt Disney World
Updates: What's New and Changed
Tips: Aromatic Air, Ask About Allergies, Animal Assistants
Captain's Corner: Dream Granted!
PassPorter PhotoPick: Holiday Lightpost at the Magic Kingdom
Q and A: How do the wireless minutes work onboard the ship with an iPhone or iPod Touch?
Our Sponsors: We Recommend...
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Updates:
What's New and Changed
Here are a few items of relevant news:
The American Idol Experience at Disney's Hollywood Studios begins Annual Passholders previews next week. The official opening date is February 14, 2009. If you are one of the lucky passholders to attend a preview, let us know what you think! Send your review to news@passporter.com.
ESPN The Weekend Presented by Dick's Sporting Goods will take place February 27-March 1, 2009 at Disney's Hollywood Studios. The ESPN The Weekend 5k will take place February 28, 2009 with proceeds going to the V Foundation For Cancer Research. For details, check out ESPNTheWeekend.com.
On December 20, 2008, Mickey's Once Upon A Christmastime Parade will take place at 3:00 pm. Beginning December 21, the parade will take place at both noon and 3:00 pm daily. Wishes will appear nightly at 9:00 pm from December 20 - 27, 2008. Prior to these dates this year, these events were exclusive to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party attendees.
Our thanks to AllEars.net and MousePlanet.com from which we get some of our news leads.
Hear some news? Be a "PassPorter Reporter" and send it to us!
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Disney Tips:
From Fellow Readers
Our readers deliver a wealth of information! Send us your tips! You may see them in this newsletter and win a copy of PassPorter! And you never know -- your tip could even appear in a future edition of a PassPorter guidebook.
AROMATIC AIR
"When traveling on vacation I always bring my favorite air fresheners (not a spray can but the type that you open and set out) with me to use in the room/condo. It's a little bit of home while I'm away (and especially at my home away from home, Disney). At home just before we leave I also open fresh air fresheners so that when we return the air is not stale (we also run the ceiling fans on low for air flow). The mousekeeper at our resort commented on how fresh our room smelled!"
-- contributed by Desiree M.
ASK ABOUT ALLERGIES
"We travel with my brother who is extremely lactose intolerant (as in, can't eat anything even made in the same pan as something with lactose) and who loves to eat all the same. After a couple of days of not eating or being sick, he finally gave in and told our server at the restaurants that he had an allergy. The staff was awesome, and at each place the chef came to our table and talked to my brother about what he could and couldn't eat. In some cases, he even made special adjustments or a meal that wasn't on the menu to accommodate him. So my tip is to ASK. No one will ignore you, and you're going to have a much better experience overall!"
--contributed by Vanessa B.
ANIMAL ASSISTANTS
"I am disabled and use a motorized wheelchair and a service dog. Oz is a 3 1/2 year-old Standard black French Poodle. I have had him for a little over a year and initially was reluctant to take him to a theme park. His trainer told me to take him and I found that he enjoys it almost as much as I do. Yes, he can go on some of the rides! His favorite is It's A Small World but he also enjoys the Jungle Cruise and the Great Movie Ride. He has been on the train, monorail, ferryboat, steamboat, and the Haunted Mansion all in one day. The cast members are very helpful when boarding him and in restaurants they have even offered to give him water."
--contributed by Lynn B.
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. (Please note: Players can win once every three months.)
Here is this week's journal entry:
"Finally ... it's happened! I received a 'Dream' while I was the parks this past week. And just in time, too, as the Year of a Million Dreams celebration ends soon. I received a Dream FASTPASS for Epcot and I am STILL wearing it proudly around my neck. Yes, I've even been sleeping in it. And I hadn't the heart to use any of the FASTPASS tabs on it -- I just can't bear the thought of 'spoiling' it."
What are the six tabs on the Epcot Dream FASTPASS?
For bonus credit, locate the photographic evidence in the PassPorter Photo Archive and post a comment with the photo!
Congratulations to Jennie H. who was the winner of last week's trivia contest! Jennie was the first person to identify the legendary relative of Donald Duck as Cornelius Coot. Bonus credit goes to home4us123 as the first person to locate the photo in our PassPorter Photo Archive. To view the original clue, see last week's newsletter.
Send your full answer to jackskatt@passporter.com -- the winner will be notified by e-mail and announced in a future newsletter, along with the correct answer!
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PassPorter PhotoPick
Each issue we choose a special photo from the PassPorter Photo Archive which highlights something beautiful, interesting, humorous, or timely at Disney or around the world. Here is this issue's PassPorter PhotoPick:
Holiday Lightpost at the Magic Kingdom
photo by GinaButtrfly
(click the photo or link to see a larger photo with details)
You can nominate photos as a PassPorter PhotoPick by giving ratings in the PassPorter Photo Archive (you'll need to be logged in to do this). If you'd like to contribute your own photos to the Photo Archive and be considered as a PhotoPick, please read our Photo Upload Guidelines for details and benefits.
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Q and A: With Jennifer and Dave
erikthewise asks: "If you use the onboard wireless with an iPhone or iPod Touch, how do they know how many minutes to bill you for? I don't really want to pay for 4000 minutes at 75 a minute! Suggestions?"
Dave answers: "You'll hit the login web page with your WiFi connection, the same as if you had a laptop, so you do have some control over Wi-Fi (as long as you remember to log-off), but your phone may try to connect to the high-priced cell service if you've confgured your iPhone to collect e-mail automatically. So yes, you can burn through the minutes if you leave WiFi and/or cell service turned on. One way to not go broke is to switch to Airplane mode when you don't want to connect (and vice versa)."
Did our message board members agree with Dave? To see other answers that erikthewise received, check out the rest of the thread on the PassPorter Message Boards.
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 -- New Walt Disney World Offer -- Book 4 Nights, Get 3 Free!
MouseEarVacations.com -- 2009 Disney Cruise offer
Quicksilver Tours & Transportation -- $5.00 off airport round-trip town car
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From the Authors: Holiday Wishes!
Hi, {{user('firstname')}}!
"Holiday Wishes" may be the name of the seasonal fireworks display at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, but we're not here to describe a fireworks show (even though we did enjoy it just a week ago tonight). We're coming to the close of a very eventful year, one that we suspect will be remembered by most of us for many years to come. We hope your good times have out-weighed the bad, and that the spirit of the season will bring warmth and joy to you all. Whether the next two weeks journeys bring you to grandmother's house, your far-flung loved ones back to your own house, or your whole family to Mickey's house, may the result be the best the season can bring. Happy Holidays!
PassPorter's Walt Disney World 2009 pre-orders have been mailed, and new orders are shipping on the next business day. Order at http://www.passporterstore.com/store/2009.aspx.
MouseFest 2008 Wrap-Up
We're now back in the office, after a whirlwind 11-day journey dedicated to MouseFest. We'd like to thank all of you who joined us for this annual event -- we saw so many familiar faces and made so many new friends, it's hard to know where to begin.
Three people in the PassPorter community deserve our special thanks: Even though PassPorter Guide Chrissi has yet to attend a MouseFest, every year she volunteers to lead PassPorter's meet-planning effort and spearheads our community's MouseFest planning discussions in our MouseFest Corner forum. We also want to thank Online Coordinator Belle* (Sara) and Guide WDWfan (Lesley) for a great job as Volunteer Coordinators for all of MouseFest. So many others helped-out in so many ways -- hosting meets, greeting arrivals at the MouseFest Kick-off and Mega Mouse Meet attendees, helping staff the PassPorter table at the Mega Mouse Meet, sharing joy with one and all ... we don't know where to begin, and we'd feel horrible if we left even one name out, so please, all of you, accept our thanks for helping to make MouseFest 2008 such a wonderful event for everyone!
PassPorter's Decade of Dreams
PassPorter's Decade of Dreams Tour is going to Disneyland for the Backstage Magic Adventures by Disney on October 13-18, 2009! Our Adventures by Disney package is 6 days/5 nights of VIP treatment -- we'll visit Hollywood landmarks, see how the magic is made at Walt Disney Imagineering, eat lunch on the lot at the Walt Disney Studios, and get a peak behind the fantasy at the Disneyland(R) Resort. The price includes an exclusive group discount and there is an early booking bonus of a $75 Disney Gift Card for the first 10 bookings from our Decade of Dreams travel provider, Mouse Fan Travel. Get all the details, a day-by-day itinerary, and prices at the Decade of Dreams Tour Headquarters. This also means we have selected the dates for the Decade of Dreams Tour visit to Disneyland! Tour festivities at Disneyland will begin on Friday, October 16, 2009 and will continue through Tuesday, October 20. Stay tuned for the schedule of events!
What is PassPorter's Decade of Dreams Tour? PassPorter is celebrating our 10th anniversary in 2009 in a year-long celebration from coast-to-coast! Everyone is invited and all are warmly welcome to join us at all or part of our celebration. We are combining small parties (meets) with grand, multi-day trips, including a 7-night Disney Cruise, a 4-night stay at Walt Disney World, and a Disneyland visit that includes park time and an Adventures by Disney expedition. See our Tour Schedule for the latest details.
| PassPorter's Club Update More than 1450 vacationers are now enjoying access to all our e-books, e-worksheets, and super-sized photo archive images.Thank you for your continued support!
Passholders have a new benefit: Passholders have another new benefit: Unlimited photo uploading to their personal photo albums (non-passholders have a limit of 100 photos). To access your personal photo album, log in, click My Home, and click the Pictures & Albums link.
More details at http://www.passporter.com/club
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In this issue, PassPorter Featured Columnist Cheryl Pendry reports on the celebration of A New Year in a New Disney Park. Then, Guest Columnist Mary Albright shares her strategies and experience Traveling Carry-On to Walt Disney World. Finally, Jack Skatt is back with a brand-new Walt Disney World Treasure Hunt.
Jennifer & Dave
PassPorter Authors
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Did You Know?
*Offer is limited, subject to availability and restrictions apply - CST207807440
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Travel Feature:
A New Year In A New Disney Park
by Cheryl Pendry, PassPorter Featured Columnist Contributor
The start of a new year is always something worth celebrating, wherever you are in the world -- and let's be honest, Disney parks do usually tend to see the New Year in with a flourish.
We've only been at Walt Disney World once to see the New Year in and the version of IllumiNations that led up to midnight and the dawn of a new 12 months was quite something to see. It more than made up for the fact that Mother Nature had decided to play a cruel trick that New Year's Eve, with torrential rain for the previous five or six hours that had emptied the whole of Epcot out, with just a few foolish souls, like ourselves, left watching the celebrations.
Fortunately, things were very different when we visited Hong Kong Disneyland during the Chinese New Year celebrations. I think it's important to point out here that we weren't actually there for the moment when the New Year began, but that really didn't matter, as the celebrations go on for a number of weeks. The Year of the Rat had started on February 7, 2008 and we headed for the park just over a week later. As there's no mouse in the Chinese calendar, a rat was going to be about as close to Mickey as Disney would get, so unsurprisingly, they'd gone to town over the link.
The second we approached the park entrance, we could see the decorations everywhere. That's not out of keeping with the rest of Hong Kong, with lanterns and decorations displayed in many shops and homes while we were there. What was out of place was the number of rats we saw on display, although entertainingly, they had been created so that you could clearly see a resemblance to another famous rodent!
I had already seen on the website that the main characters, such as Minnie, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, and Chip and Dale would be out in special Chinese New Year costumes, and that's exactly the sight that greeted us in Main Street. The costumes were all as beautiful and colorful as you'd expect and made for some wonderful keepsake photos. Mickey and Minnie were all dressed in red, a very traditional color, as the Chinese believe that it wards off bad fortune. It's also tradition for people to wear new clothes to symbolize the New Year and, although I've no way of knowing for sure, I would imagine that this probably was a new addition to both Mickey's and Minnie's wardrobe.
Chinese New Year has many traditions and one of those is the presence of a lion dance troupe, which is a symbolic ritual for evicting bad spirits from the home and welcoming in the forthcoming year. Of course, Disney also had one parading around Main Street, ensuring that the only spirits present were good ones. Another lovely touch was the decorations on the tree, with lots of red packets. At first, we weren't sure what they were, but we soon discovered that younger members of the family often receive these packets, containing cash, for Chinese New Year.
Our tour took us next to the hub in front of the castle, where mini Mickey statuettes had been added, with each representing the signs of good fortune, such as health, love, and prosperity that you want to usher in at this time of year.
With it being the Year of the Rat, Mickey certainly took center stage in these celebrations and even a version of his house from Toontown in Walt Disney World had arrived just for these few weeks. Walking through it, it was hard to believe that this was only a temporary addition to the park, but it is, although it does make appearances other times of the year, with the most recent one being as Mickey's Christmas House.
A Chinese New Year storyteller was also wandering around the Main Street area, spreading tales of joy, but one thing that wasn't specific to the New Year was the afternoon parade. I was surprised by that, given how Walt Disney World has its own special parade for Christmas, probably America's biggest celebration. The Chinese New Year is probably the biggest celebration in Hong Kong, so it was interesting to see them continue with their usual performance in the afternoon. Having said that, it was still unique, with a wonderfully Oriental feel to it, so we didn't feel deprived at all.
Chinese New Year turned out to be a wonderful time to visit Hong Kong Disneyland. The temperatures were lovely, with some beautiful weather while we were there and the added bonus of so many extras that really made the park stand out. As it's still the baby of the Disney theme parks, in all honesty, it is lacking in attractions, but what it lacks there, it more than makes up for in additional entertainment when the New Year arrives.
About the Author: Cheryl and husband Mark live in England and love to travel, particularly to America. They are in the process of visiting every Disney theme park around the world, having already been to Disneyland Resort Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland and both American Disney resorts. They are now planning for their trip to Japan in the spring to visit the Tokyo Disney Resort.
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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:
Traveling Carry-On to Walt Disney World
by Mary Albright, PassPorter Guest Contributor
It seems that almost every airline is charging you something just to check a bag when you travel. And if you have two suitcases or an overweight item? Forget about it! For me, having to pay to check a bag is a little like running my fingernails on a chalkboard.
I've traveled with my family to Walt Disney World twice in 2008 with carry-on baggage only - once for 4 days, and once for 7 days. We are a family of four; two adults, a 12-year-old son, and an 11-year-old daughter.
At first glance, you may think, "I can't possibly only take a carry-on! There's too much I have to bring!" My first piece of advice is seriously examine the items you "have" to bring. I'd bet a bunch of us can probably say we over-pack.
Most airlines allow each person to bring one carry on item - backpack, a carry-on sized suitcase (see your airlines web site for size requirements), or tote bag, and one personal item - camera bag, diaper bag, laptop bag, briefcase, purse, etc.
That means for a family of 4, you can potentially carry on eight items. If you plan to use the largest size bag allowable, you will find you can work wonders!
Clothing: This is probably one of the biggest places where you can save space. If you are traveling for a week, I suggest you make time to do laundry. This can halve the amount of clothing you pack if you take a break mid-stay to do some wash. All onsite Disney resorts have laundry facilities, and they are reasonably priced. At most, I do two loads; one colored and one white. For vacation, that's enough. You can find travel-sized laundry detergents at your local store and the liquid versions are even small enough to not cross the 3 oz. threshold that the TSA has set. Place a few dryer sheets in a zip lock bag and you are ready.
Toiletries: The TSA has the 3-1-1 rule: 3 oz. containers of liquids and gels fitting in one quart-sized zip lock bag for each person. Get your travel-sized toiletries, including sunscreen, at your local Target, Walmart or your favorite store and follow this rule. I purchased several 3 oz. sunscreen tubes for each trip and that was one of my kid's zip lock bags. Ladies, my first advice is to leave the giant make-up bag at home. Seriously, you are on vacation. And in Florida's heat and humidity, it begins to sweat off anyway. Save yourself some aggravation. Bring a sun blocking moisturizer and call it a day. If you have a special evening planned at Victoria & Albert's or another upscale dining establishment, consider only what you truly need to make yourself presentable. Your goal is to not have one bag full of make-up and hair products.
As far as shampoos, conditioners, and soaps go, the Disney resorts and most hotels in the Orlando area do provide those for you in your room. Use them. We all have our favorite shampoos and such, but you are on vacation. This can be a big space saver if you can use what is provided.
Shoes: Wear the shoes you plan to wear on vacation onto the plane. If you are traveling during a cold part of the year, pack your sandals and wear other comfortable shoes on the plane.
Cold Weather Gear: Layers are good. It's usually not too cold in Florida, but it can be when you go back home. Layer up with a nice hooded sweatshirt or fleece jacket. Something that can keep you warm, yet can breathe in the warm Florida weather.
Other clothing tips: Consider getting what my husband calls "Zip pants." You can find them easily for men and boys and it's a bit of a challenge for women and girls. These are usually cargo type pants where the legs can zip off somewhere above the knees. Great 2-in-1 bottoms that can be used for just about any weather condition. I've found these usually at sporting goods stores like Cabela's or REI.
Snacks and Sundries: For those traveling with an infant or toddler, there are always so many supplies that are needed to care for them. And many of us seem to need snacks or plan breakfasts in the room. However, you too can still travel carry-on. Pack your diaper bag with the supplies you need for your travel day. Diapers, wipes, formula, etc. There are many places in and around Walt Disney World where you can get your supplies at a reasonable cost. If you have a rental car, there are several Super Targets, a Walmart Supercenter and local grocery stores like Publix and Wynn Dixie where you can stock up on what's needed. If you are taking Magical Express or another service, consider GardenGrocer.com or WeGoShop.com. These are delivery services that, for a small fee, can shop for your supplies for you and deliver them to you at your resort or hotel.
What about my souvenirs? Unless you tend to bring home larger items, most of the time, you can wrap and pad your souvenirs in the clothing in your bag and not have it be a significant problem. However, if you find that you have acquired too many items to fit, know that you can have all your items shipped home to you. The front desk of the Disney resorts will help you package and ship your items home for a surcharge. If you have a rental car and prefer to do your own work, there is a FedEx/Kinkos just north of the intersection of Hwy 535 and Hotel Plaza Blvd.
The benefits to traveling carry-on are many.
- You don't incur the additional costs of checking a bag.
- Most airlines have dedicated check-in lines for passengers with carry-on luggage only. This means a short line for you to check-in and get your boarding pass at the airport, if needed. If you are printing your boarding pass from home, you are set to go right to security. This can be a huge time saver.
- You get off the plane and you don't have to wait for your bags. You can walk directly to Magical Express, your rental car, or other transportation.You are on your way a lot faster!
- All your gear is with you. You don't have to worry about losing your bags in transit or how long it will take Magical Express to get your bags to your room.
We all have choices and I want you to know that you can choose to travel carry-on, be in complete control of your belongings, and still have a completely enjoyable vacation in Walt Disney World.
About the Author: Mary Albright is a previous PassPorter News Guest Contributor. Married with two children, she lives in Minnesota and works as a director for a direct sales company. She has visited Walt Disney World 13 times since 2000.
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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?
You Can Arrive at Walt Disney World in Style!
Airport Meet & Greet, luggage help, free car seat
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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