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In
This Newsletter
From the Authors:
Summertime! Travel Feature:
Bermuda
Disney Feature: Grad
Nites at Disney
Updates: What's
New and Changed
Tips: Bright
Backpack, "Resort" to the Resort Monorail, Creative Crocs
Captain's Corner: Museum
in Morocco
Q&A: Can
I upgrade a park pass purchased through a loyalty program?
.
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Updates:
What's
New and Changed
Here are a few of the new developments at Disney:
Wyndham Worldwide has announced the construction
of the Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Hotel and Spa at Bonnet Creek, a
400-room hotel set to open in 2009. 80 of the 400 rooms will be designed
to comfortably sleep a family of six. (Good news for larger families struggling
to find rooms at Walt Disney World!) The hotel will be part of a larger
time share property, Fairfield Orlando at Bonnet Creek.
There are rumors circulating that the Who
Wants To Be A Millionaire - Play It! attraction at Walt Disney World
will be closing on August 19, 2006. While still just a rumor at this point,
this does seem to be pretty credible. Time will tell what will go in that
space
The Saratoga Springs Spa and Resort is
now offering horse-drawn carriage rides every evening. Reservations
can be made by calling 407-824-2832 up to 90 days in advance. The payment
of $35 is made to the driver at the time of your ride (cash or room charge
only). The carriages can hold up to four adults or two adults and two or three
children.
Our thanks to AllEarsNet.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:
BRIGHT BACKPACK
"The last time we went to Disney World in 2003,
my kids were five and eight. I bought the brightest, hottest pink, glittery
backpack I could find. That way if the boys got distracted looking at something
(easy to do at Disney!) they could look up, see mom's "glowing" back pack
and get right back with the family. I also have a neon-pink wind-breaker
that I plan to bring with us this fall. My kids say it glows in the dark!"
-- contributed by Kate F. (katefish74@...)
RESORT TO THE RESORT MONORAIL
"On our last trip to the Magic Kingdom we decided
to leave just after the SpectroMagic parade. Unfortunately, so did
hundreds of other people! The lines for the monorail and ferry were huge.
It probably would have taken over an hour just to get one of them. I happened
to notice that there was hardly anyone going to the monorails that were
going to the resorts. We hopped on one of those with no wait and were immediately
on our way to the parking area." -- contributed by Carrol S. (carrol1997@...)
CREATIVE CROCS
"Crocs are the latest shoe craze, and the most comfortable
shoes being worn in the parks (as well as cities and hospitals). Decorate
them for your visit to Disney by putting your Disney pins in the holes
on the Croc shoes! You can paint the backs with acrylic paint, add
glue and sparkles. You then have your own personalized Crocs to wear at
the parks!" -- contributed by Susan G. (sweetbdosg@...)
>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 new 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 treasure from Captain Skatt's
Journal:
"After my foray into Middle Eastern antiquities, I wandered around
in search of a light refreshment. I found just the thing at a little cafe named after some sort of European cake.
I ordered some "lefse" and a "veiled maiden," along some "Imsdal water." With my repast in hand, I looked
about for a place to eat it. Nearby I found a quaint seating area with tables and chairs. What was unusual about it
was the roof of the seating area, which was topped with ... (rest of text obscured by bread crumbs)"
"
What is atop with seating area beside the cafe?
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 Ric Flack who was the
winner of last week's treasure hunt game! Ric correctly identified "red"
as the color of the glass panes on the doors of the Batha Museum. To view
the original clues, 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
Skatt. The new "PassPorter's Treasure Hunts at Walt Disney World" book
is now available! You can order the book today at http://www.passporterstore.com.
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Q
& A:
With Jennifer and Dave
GoofyMom asks: "I have the opportunity to cash in
some customer loyalty reward points for Disney Magic Your Way tickets.
I thought I remembered reading a while back that you can upgrade Magic
Your Way tickets to Annual Passes or Premium Annual Passes but there was
some kind of a complication about the Plus Options. Am I remembering correctly?
If you have a non-expiring, Magic Your Way Parkhopper Pass with Water Parks,
etc. can you upgrade to an Annual Pass or do you have to upgrade to a Premium
Annual Pass so you don't lose credit for the Water Parks, etc. options?"
Jennifer and Dave answer: "Your plan is to exchange
the reward points for a Magic Your Way (MYW) ticket, then immediately exchange
the MYW for an Annual Pass (AP)? If you upgrade to the AP within 14 days
of the first use of the ticket, you'll be upgrading, and the entire purchase
price can be applied to the cost of a new Annual Pass/Premium Annual Pass
(PAP) that has been backdated to the first day you used the MYW ticket.
In other words, it's as if you had gotten the AP/PAP in the first place.
If you wait more than 14 days (a MYW with no-expiration
option) before upgrading, then you get dollar credit for the remaining
value of the ticket towards the new pass. At that point, Plus Options have
no cash value. I know it doesn't sound fair, but that's the way Disney
is doing it.
Here's something for you to call and ask Disney about:
Since all upgrades are a matter of exchanging the cash value of the ticket, and
reward points cannot be exchanged for cash, there may be special rules for
exchanging tickets purchased with reward points. Call them and ask. Why am I
concerned? Disney does not permit upgrades of complimentary tickets, so if they
consider tickets acquired with reward points to be complimentary, you may be
totally out of luck."
(GoofyMom replied that she had no problem upgrading older
Park Hopper tickets purchased with rewards points, but for something as
important like this, it's worth checking the current rules.) 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 See Your Name in Print?
Big News! PassPorter News is now published
weekly. This means we need more articles than ever! 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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From
the Authors:
Summertime!
Hi, {{user("firstname")}}!
Summertime, but who says the livin' is easy? School's out just about
everywhere by now, gardens need tending, the sun has already lingered during the
evenings for as long as it's going to linger, July 4th is just around the bend,
camping gear is getting its annual workout... who's got time to hang out at the
computer, besides you and us?
Around here, we're busy preparing PassPorter
Walt Disney World 2007. Already? If it's going to be in the stores by November,
now's the time. It does take several months to check every fact, to fit in every
new feature, and run everything past our panel of peer reviewers. In another
couple of months everything will be in the hands of our printer! (Don't worry,
any change at Disney between now and when the presses start rolling will be
included.)
We've also gone to work on PassPorter's Field Guide to the Disney
Cruise Line 5th Edition (five, already?). With the Disney Magic headed for
Europe next summer, we've got a lot of work cut out for us - 11 new ports of
call, requiring about 84 pages of new information! In fact, early this fall
we'll be cruising the Mediterranean (on another cruise line), just so we can visit most of
the ports and destinations on next year's Disney itineraries to ensure we have
the best advice possible for our new guidebook. Oh, the sacrifices we make!
OK, back to matters closer to home. This edition
of the newsletter features veteran contributors Joy Gray and Dorie Haggerty. Joy
takes us on a family jaunt to Bermuda, and Dorie reports
on one of those mysterious events that few of us ever experience,
Disney's Grad Nights. As always, Captain Jack Skatt returns with a new treasure hunting game. Enjoy!
Jennifer
and Dave
PassPorter Authors and Publishers |
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Did
You Know?
PassPorter Disneyland is Here!
The brand-new
PassPorter Disneyland Resort and Southern California Attractions guidebook has arrived both
at our warehouse and in bookstores around the country. Our first edition contains all the great features
that have made our Walt Disney World guidebook so popular -- flap maps, full-color pages, resort maps,
fold-out park maps, photos, ratings, tips, memories, stickers, labels, tabs, and, of course, 14 organizer
PassPockets.
The guidebook covers the Disneyland Resort in super detailed depth, and also add in detailed information on
Universal Studios Hollywood, Universal CityWalk, Knott's Berry Farm, Knott's Soak City Water Park, Six Flags Magic Mountain, Six Flags Hurricane Harbor, and LEGOLAND. For readers on the grand tour, we also include San Diego Zoo, Wild Animal Park, and Balboa Park, as well as more attractions in the Anaheim area, Hollywood, along the Pacific Coast Highway, on California beaches, and in nearby San Diego.
We've heard back
from folks who've received their new books -- here are a few of our favorite
comments:
"I love the the way it helps me organize my vacation plans." -- Holly B.
"Very comprehensive!" -- Alan T.
"Very informative about the Disneyland area." -- Sonia K.
"It is so helpful, I can hardly wait to go to Disneyland." -- Debbie C.
"I love the information and organization. The PassPorter has been a great help with planning my previous WDW trips. I am excited to use my new Passporter to plan for our Disneyland and Southern California vacation. Thanks!" -- Paula H.
Learn more and order today at:
http://www.passporter.com/dl/guidebook.htm |
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Travel
Feature:
Bermuda: Think Pink!
by Joy Gray, Guest
Contributor
Think pink! The pink sand beaches of Bermuda,
that is. There’s a lot to love about Bermuda, especially if you are traveling
from the east coast of the United States and/or traveling with kids. For
starters, it is one of the safest and cleanest islands you can visit, with
a notable lack of the pushy street vendors that populate the Caribbean
ports of call. It is nearby, a mere two-hour flight from several major
Eastern US cities. You can easily get there by cruise ship departing from
Boston, New York, Philadelphia or Charleston. Even if you are a veteran
cruiser, a Bermuda cruise is a totally different experience. You get the
benefits of a cruise ship, coupled with access to land for up to four straight
days. Cruising to Bermuda can be a bargain when compared to the cost of
airfare, lodging and meals for a land vacation.
I cruised to Bermuda recently with my 70
year-old mother and seven year-old daughter. We toured the island extensively
on our own, and never felt at all uncomfortable or unsafe. We sailed in
April on the Celebrity
Zenith - an older, smaller ship that departs from Cape Liberty Cruise
Terminal in Bayonne, NJ. Despite her small size, we found plenty to amuse
all three of us while onboard. I was particularly impressed by the wide
variety of family-friendly activities offered. We enjoyed trivia contests,
family bingo, some great Broadway-style shows, and the hot tubs that are
beautifully located at the rear of the ship. There were more than 200 children
onboard the ship the week we sailed, and Celebrity ran a full youth program
on both land and sea days. Some of the activities for the Cadets (ages
7-9) included arts and crafts activities, science journeys, pirate day,
stargazing, and a dinosaur night. They had a delightful Junior Cruisers
talent show at the end of the week that included group performances choreographed
by program counselors, so everyone who wanted to could participate. My daughter,
a frequent cruiser herself on lines including the Disney Cruise Line, gave
the Celebrity youth program a thumbs-up rating.
With the unpredictable April weather the
pools didn’t get a lot of use, but they would be a welcome relief from
the heat for summer travel. If you are considering a Bermuda cruise, keep
in mind that the North Atlantic waters are not quite as smooth as the Caribbean
– you may be in for a bit of a rough ride, particularly during early and
late season sailings (generally April and October). The first leg of our
trip from New Jersey to Bermuda had some rough seas but our return was
extremely smooth sailing.
Once in Bermuda, most ships dock for three
or four days. The Zenith docks first in Hamilton,
which is ideal – centrally located with lots of shopping nearby. We purchased
three-day transportation passes that allowed us unlimited travel on Bermuda’s
excellent bus and ferry services.
While the passes probably didn’t save us any money, they certainly were
convenient, as we didn’t have to worry about having correct change. Bermuda
has its own form of currency, the Bermuda dollar. It is that same rate
and system as the American dollar, i.e. one U.S. dollar is equal to one Bermuda
dollar, and there are 100 cents in a dollar. Both American and Bermuda dollars
are accepted on the island.
Family-friendly activities are easy to
find in Bermuda. With miles and miles of beaches to choose from, you can’t
go wrong with spending a day at the beach. Be sure to bring along water
shoes and sand toys for the kids, and lots of sunscreen! Also be sure to
identify which beaches are safe for swimming and which are not. Some of
the most scenic and popular beaches, like Horseshoe Bay Beach, can have
strong undercurrents. We preferred Tobacco Beach and Shelly Bay for wading
and swimming, even though they are not as scenic as Horseshoe Bay.
We also thoroughly enjoyed the Bermuda
Aquarium Museum and Zoo. It is easy to spend an entire day here enjoying
the living coral reef in the 140,000-gallon aquarium, visiting with animals
ranging from kangaroos to Galapagos Tortoises, and exploring the well designed
children’s playground. Add to that a touch pool and a children’s discovery
area where kids can dress up as a bee or a butterfly, and your family may
not want to leave at closing.
Another popular attraction is the Bermuda
Maritime Museum at the Royal Naval dockyards. You can enjoy incredible
views and displays that are both historic and yet appealing enough to keep
the kids engaged. This is also the home of Dolphin
Quest Bermuda, where you can enjoy Dolphin encounters for ages three
and up. My daughter, who is a strong swimmer, was a bit intimidated by
being in the water with the dolphins – you may prefer the shorter dockside
‘fins and flipper’ encounter as it allows kids to interact with these fascinating
animals without being in the water with them. It’s also easier on the wallet!
If you and your kids still have some energy
to burn after visiting these attractions, then head on over to Crystal
Caves. This is a great ‘starter cave’ for younger explorers as it is
smaller and does not require climbing quite as many steps as some of the
larger caves here in the U.S. You will still be rewarded with fabulous crystal
stalactites and stalagmites and an underground river, but you’ll only have
to climb about 100 steps!
After two full days in Hamilton, the Zenith
moves to St. George.
St. George is full of historic buildings and narrow streets, and has to
be accessed through a very narrow channel. It is far more scenic than Hamilton,
but not as convenient for exploring the island. Not far at all from the
town of St. George is Fort St. Catherine, with another museum and a great
view of Tobacco Beach. Note that none of the bus routes travel out to the
Fort, so your best bet may be to take a taxi to the Fort and walk from
there to the beach.
If you travel in the warmer summer months,
you may wish to explore underwater Bermuda. Even though Bermuda is not
particularly well-known as a dive location, it is a great place to learn
to dive. Thanks to numerous shipwrecks and a couple of nice coral reefs,
there is plenty to see underwater. For those who are not eager to try diving
but would like an underwater experience, there is Hartley’s
Undersea Walk. I can hardly wait to return to Bermuda so I can try
this out - and I’ve about got my daughter convinced to do it!
The one thing you won’t find on Bermuda
is a casino, and while cruise ships are in port they are required to keep
their casinos closed, so this is not the place for serious gamblers. Bermuda’s
nightlife also tends to be a bit subdued. Cruise ships are allowed to have
live performances onboard while in port, so we never found ourselves lacking
for evening entertainment. All in all, Bermuda is a delightful, friendly
island – I’m ready to go again!
Joy Gray is a travel agent
affiliated with CruisingCo.com
and MouseEarVacations.com.
She resides in NH with her husband Kevin Brey and their daughter Sydney.
She is busy planning a tenth anniversary cruise to Alaska, where she and
her husband were married atop a mountain in 1997.
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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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Disney
Feature:
Grad Nites @ Disney: The Ultimate Graduation
Party
by Dorie Haggerty,
Guest Contributor
Do you have a high school senior who will
be graduating next year? Do you want to send them off in Disney style?
Then Grad Nite is for you! We had the opportunity to attend Walt Disney
World’s Grad Nite 2006. The Magic Kingdom was turned into a party zone
from 10:00 pm until 4:00 am and the party rocked!
Grad Nite is an event held every spring on select
nights when the Magic Kingdom is reserved for the use of graduating seniors,
attending as part of an organized group.
But wait! It’s not just for school groups. Grad Nite is for any youth group:
Boy Scouts, church youth groups, and more! If your school is not participating,
it is easy for any Group Leader to register a group and join in on the
fun. Go to http://www.disneyyouthgroups.com
to find out how to register and join one of the greatest events at Walt
Disney World. As Group Leader, you arrange all transportation, tickets
and chaperones.
We didn’t know what to expect when we arrived at
the Magic Kingdom around 9:45 pm. But in true Disney style, everything
was planned to perfection. Upon arrival at the party, there are hundreds
of cast members to direct you. Right outside the parking lot entrance gate
(to the right), cast members will lead you down the road to your destination.
Depending on your mode of transportation, you are guided to parking. We
had a van and were sent to the handicapped parking at the Ticket and Transportation
Center. Disney buses were waiting to take us to the Magic Kingdom.
At the entrance to the Magic Kingdom, security lines
were set up. Be prepared - there is a dress
code and thorough security checks including a bag and body check. They
not only check your bag, they empty out your bag. Hand wands were used,
shirts pulled out of pants, shoes checked. Despite the thorough checks,
it only took about five minutes to gain entrance to the park.
The Group Leader has to register at the Chaperone
Headquarters located at Tony’s Town Square Restaurant. Cast members will
take your cell phone number for emergencies. If you do not have a cell
phone, they will give you a pager. If any member of your group is in trouble
or needs you, a Disney cast member will call you.
Now the party begins! Most chaperones let the teens
go explore on their own. We set a time and location to meet up for some
of the special events. By this time, we (the chaperones that is) were thirsty
and Disney was kind enough to provide a complimentary chaperone lounge
inside Tony’s Town Square Restaurant. They had drinks (cans of soft drinks,
coffee, tea, water) and snacks (popcorn, fresh fruit and cookies). A complimentary
breakfast is also served for chaperones at the Crystal Palace. Beware,
the breakfast closes early and fills up quickly. A good time to attend
is around 1:30 am.
So what is there to do? Oh, not much. Just attractions,
eating, dancing, fun zones, and fireworks! Most of the attractions are
open and had a five to ten minute wait. Of course the longest line was
Space Mountain! The arcade games were free, making the Tomorrowland Arcade
a very popular place. A few restaurants are open; our group ate at Cosmic
Ray’s Starlight Café. And from the moment you enter Main Street
to every nook and cranny of the park, there was music and dancing! A song
would begin and about 90% of the teens would dance their way down the street.
The teens absolutely loved the special zones: Suds
Foam Zone in Fantasyland (Yes, so many suds that the teens were soaked
all the way through!); Dance Zone in Tomorrowland; and the Coca-Cola Interactive
Zone in Adventureland (They had a basketball contest that drew a huge crowd!).
There was also a Karaoke Party in Adventureland and the teens would line
up to sing on a stage at Disney! The Galaxy Palace Theater was showing
music videos and movies. At 12:30 am they showed “The Chronicles of Narnia:
The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe."
Our favorite part of the night was the Celebration
in the Sky Fireworks. At 12 midnight, the show began. It is a fireworks
dance to the top hits of today. It was spectacular!
To capture all the fun during Disney Grad Nite 2006,
Disney had PhotoPass Photographers everywhere. They offered 50% discount
on all 5x7 pictures. Now that’s Disney service!
Characters in graduation dress were all around the
park. Think your teen is too cool for characters? No way! They took pictures
with all of the characters.
The biggest draw for the night was the group Simple
Plan. At 1:45 am the front of Cinderella’s Castle was filled with teens attending
the concert. Chaperones were able to walk on just about any ride we wanted! Other groups performing various times throughout the party
were Frankie J, Omarion, FeFe Dobson, and Teddy Geiger.
Our chaperones thought that the night would drag
on, but it was so exciting and action-filled that we didn’t even realize
it was time to end! At 4:00 am, everything stopped. The music turned off
all around the park and everyone was escorted out of the Magic Kingdom
and led to the ferry boat. While we were inside the park having fun, all
of the buses and other vehicles were moved into the Ticket and Transportation
Center parking lot. As you exit the Ticket and Transportation Center, there
are billboards with your school/group name and the location of your vehicle.
You walk out to the parking lot to find it. Our bus was located in the
Sleepy section of the lot. At about 4:20 am, you would think we would be
sleepy, but nope - we had too much fun. Our teens were still smiling once
we made it to our van.
And now it’s all over, but the memories are priceless.
When I ask them, “How was Grad Nite?” I get an instant smile and a twinkling
eye. Yes! Disney has worked their magic!
Want to join the ultimate graduation party in 2007?
Grad Nite 2007 dates have already been set. Don’t miss out on the fun!
Dorie Haggerty previously
contributed an article in September 2004 chronicling her Grand
Gathering to Walt Disney World. Oddly enough the contributor of the
travel article for that issue was Joy Gray who contributed the above article
about Bermuda! .
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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. |
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