From the Founders: Disney Vacation Club Guide E-Book Updated!

Travel Feature: Disney California Adventure and Cars Land

Disney Feature: Lessons Learned on a Disney Cruise to Alaska

Updates: What's New and Changed

Tips: Chat With Your Cruise Cast Members, Special Effects Photographs, Prince(ss) for the Day

Captain's Corner: Magical Memories

PassPorter PhotoPick: Star Wars Weekends' Troopers

Q and A: Captain EO still @ Epcot??

Our Sponsors:  We Recommend...
   

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Cool Links:
Stuff and Services

We encounter many Disney- and travel-related products and services. From among those we try, a few are good enough to use ourselves and recommend to you:

Orlando Scooter Rentals - Electric mobility scooter rentals for use in Disney World!

Owner's Locker - The Purple Place for Storing Your Vacation Stuff!

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Updates:
What's New and Changed

This week we have 4 news bulletins:

Candlelight Processional Packages Now Available Candlelight Processional Dinner Packages can now be booked both online at disneyworld.com/dining and by phone at 407-WDW-DINE. Guests wishing to see the 5:00 pm show will need to book a lunch reservation, guests wishing to see the 6:15 and 8:45 pm shows will book dinner reservations. Participating restaurants are Biergarten, Restaurant Marrakesh, Nine Dragons, Garden Grill, La Hacienda de San Angel, Rose & Crown, Tokyo Dining, Teppan Edo, Tutto Italia, Via Napoli, San Angel Inn, Les Chefs de France, Coral Reef, and Le Cellier.
Comments: 49
This updates page 266 of PassPorter's Walt Disney World guidebook

Disneyland Mickey's Halloween Party Dates Announced Mickey's Halloween Party will be held at Disneyland this fall on select evenings. Unlike Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party at Walt Disney World, hours for Mickey's Halloween Party at Disneyland vary by date. Ticket prices also vary depending on date, ranging from $54 - $69 per adult plus tax. Tickets will be available to the general public on July 16, 2012.

Friday, September 28 – 7 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Tuesday, October 2 – 6 to 11 p.m.
Friday, October 5 – 7 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Tuesday, October 9 – 6 to 11 p.m.
Friday, October 12 – 7 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Monday, October 15 – 6 to 11 p.m.
Friday, October 19 – 7 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Tuesday, October 23 – 6 to 11 p.m.
Friday, October 26 – 7 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Monday, October 29 – 6 to 11 p.m.
Wednesday, October 31 – 6 to 11 p.m.

Comments: 49
This updates page 239 of PassPorter's Disneyland Resort guidebook

Fourth of July Fireworks at Disney Celebrating Independence Day while at Walt Disney World? The Magic Kingdom will be showing "Disney's Celebrate America! A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky" on both July 3 and 4th at 9:00 pm. Epcot will be showing the "Heartbeat of Freedom"; extended version of IllumiNations at 10:00 pm on July 4th. Disney's Hollywood Studios has a new show this year, "Rockin' 4th of July Celebration" with Mulch, Sweat and Shears playing live along with fireworks at 9:45 pm, following the 9:00 pm showing of Fantasmic.
Comments: 49
This updates page 289 of PassPorter's Walt Disney World guidebook

Fall/Winter 2013 Itineraries Announced for Disney Cruise Line Disney Cruise Line has announced more itineraries for the Magic and the Wonder for late 2013. The Magic will be sailing out of Miami beginning October 27, 2013 and will be sailing three-, four-, and five night cruises to the Bahamas and Western Caribbean, and one six-night and one seven-night sailing to the Caribbean. The Wonder will be going to Galveston, Texas, beginning September 28, 2013 and will be sailing six-, seven-, and eight-night Caribbean cruises.
Comments: 49
This updates page 042 of PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line guidebook


Tip: Need more news? Read, sort, and search all the PassPorter news bulletins at the PassPorter News Desk!

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.

CHAT WITH YOUR CRUISE CAST MEMBERS
'Get to know your cruise staff. It's nice to have short conversations with them, and having someone recognize you in a "sea" of people is always a nice feeling. Sometimes they also help make some magic happen. ;)'
-- contributed by William
Save This Tip

SPECIAL EFFECTS PHOTOGRAPHS
'Lots of point and shoot cameras now come with special effects choices right at the top of the camera next to the shutter button. My new camera has a great feature that picks out one color to highlight and leaves the rest of the photo black and white just by turning the dial. Simple is great, but make sure you turn your dial back to the basic setting right after using your special effects buttons so you don't mess up a 'once in a life time' shot with unwanted effects on it.'
-- contributed by Karen
Save This Tip

PRINCE(SS) FOR THE DAY
'I have gone to Disney and each time this little tip has worked without fail. We always make a 4:00 lunch reservation at Cinderella's Royal Table. I arrive 45 minutes early and check in at the desk. Then I ask if they have given out the prince and princess for the day stickers. They never have. (I have a son and a daughter) I ask if my children may be the prince and princess. They give them special stickers and invite them in 10 minutes before everyone else. They get private time with Cinderella, their picture taking then they get to lead all the other 4:00 dinner reservations into the dining area. '
-- contributed by Kimberly
Save This Tip


Want more Disney tips? Look for the concierge bell icon in future newsletters and throughout the PassPorter.com site. When you see the bell, tap it to view and save the tip to your personal tip collection!

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:

"Did you know you get can your magical MEMORY of a trip published in a PassPorter guidebook? At the end of each of the chapters is a memory from a reader. If your memory is picked, it will appear in a future edition (with your permission, of course) along with your name. PassPorter needs stories about YOUR magic, not magic made by a Disney cast member. For example, something special you did to plan or enjoy your trip. We love to hear about how a Disney cast member made your trip extra special, but we don't include these stories in PassPorter because we don't want our readers to think they will get the same treatment when they visit. If you've got something like this, submit it at http://www.passporter.com/customs/tipsandstories.asp"



For bonus credit, locate the photo in the PassPorter Photo Archive and post a comment with the photo!

Congratulations to who was the winner of last week's trivia contest! was the first person to identify the answer to last week's clue as in . Bonus credit goes to 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:


Star Wars Weekends' Troopers
Photo by handsite

(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.
 
 

Top 5 Photo Contributors
chezp	6064 photos
WDW_Fan	2030 photos
Dopey007	1393 photos
home4us123	799 photos
Meggera	773 photos

 

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Q and A: With Jennifer and Dave


Grumpyoldman asks: "Is this movie still showing in Epcot or has Disney come to it's senses and replaced it with something else? Will be driving down on Friday and wanted to know if we need to avoid this area of Epcot or not. Thanks......."

Dave Marx answers: "While I believe Disney is working on a replacement, Captain EO will probably be with us through the end of this year, at the least.

Here's my guess: Film director Jerry Rees, who has produced some of Disney's most-loved film-based attractions (most recently, the new Animation Magic show in Animator's Palate on the Disney Fantasy) has a Disney "Mystery Attraction - coming in 2013" listed on his personal web site. While he's not the only director qualified to do the job (the team that did Mickey's PhilharMagic is also a possibility), Jerry just feels "right" to me.

If Jerry's project required all-new construction, we'd have already found out about it. That means it's a rehab of an existing theater/show. The list of film-based shows at WDW that haven't been refreshed recently isn't all that short - Captain EO/Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Impressions of France, Spirit of Norway (separate reports suggest they'll use Scandinavian talent for that one, if it is refreshed), The American Adventure, and Ellen's Energy Adventure at Epcot, and Sounds Dangerous at Studios (Sounds Dangerous is also a Jerry Rees project). If there were plans to refresh Wonders of Life pavilion (none I've heard rumored), then Jerry Rees' very own Cranium Command would also be on the list. While Journey Into Imagination With Figment is another strong candidate, I think Disney already thinks they've poured too much money down that hole. While Stitch's Great Escape at MK ought to be on that list (Jerry also directed ExtraTerrorEstrial Alien Encounter, the show that preceded Stitch), I doubt it is.

OK, there are other possibilities - Jerry directed some of the best-loved films at Magic of Disney Animation (including "Back to Neverland" with Robin Williams and Walter Cronkite), and there's the filmed segment of Rock 'n' Roller Coaster (I think, "...Make that a super-stretch" isn't going anywhere fast, so to speak), Dinosaur at AK... in fact, all of those are Jerry Rees projects.

And there's the possibility that Jerry's latest project is not intended for WDW at all.

But... since Disney made it pretty clear from the start that Captain EO will have a limited engagement, and that there's very little chance they'd bring back Honey I Shrunk the Audience (it was already the replacement for Captain EO the first time around)... That's my A-number 1 choice. HISTA/Captain EO is found at Epcot, Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris, so if any project is likely to get funded of all those other attractions, this one makes the most sense - four birds with one film!"

Did our message board members agree with Dave Marx? To see other answers that Grumpyoldman 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):

MouseEarVacations.com - Exclusive Onboard Credit ~ up to $600!

Mouse Fan Travel - Special Verandah Offer on Disney Cruise Line Galveston Sailings!

Quicksilver Tours & Transportation - $5.00 off airport round-trip town car!

Orlando Scooter Rentals - Electric mobility scooter rentals for use in Disney World!

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