As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Chrissi is to Knoebels as All PassPorters are to WDW. Fanatic barely scratches the surface in my case. I love WDW, but I have a special kind of fanatic insanity reserved just for Knoebels.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Ohhhhhhh!! That looks like fun!!!! How expensive are the hotels in the area Chrissi? I saw the website and I want more info!!!
Umm...what hotels? Hear me out before you run screaming in the opposite direction.
Your best options are renting a cottage for a full week during high season, weekends during mid-season, or staying at the campground in a tent, an RV, or a VERY, VERY rustic cabin.
Cottages are mostly located within or around the boundaries of the park, but have no A/C, no TV, and no linens. They do have indoor plumbing and cable, so you can bring your own small tv for your stay. And you can rent linens for your stay, but there's no housekeeping and no laundry facilities for the cottages. But it's dirt cheap! A cottage is the high-end option at about $750/week - 7 nights and you check in when they tell you - no choosing your days - just your week. Each cottage has a pre-determined check-in and check-out day so that they rotate through turnover at the cottages over several days rather than having everyone check in and out on the same day. All of the cottages have names (no street addresses) and some are even themed. The Covered Wagon is very quaint! By any hotel or rental home standard - even the cottages are fairly rustic and out-dated. Think 70's decor, ancient, thin, wood paneling in nearly every room, slamming screen doors, and 50 year old double beds that they claim will sleep 2 adults. BUT - we walk out our front door and ten feet away is the Ol' Smokey Train Station in Kiddieland. And Knoebels-owned cottages provide a perk only they get - 18 free pool passes to use by the end of the season.
Cabins (at the campground) have no indoor plumbing, no A/C, no TV, and no linens. Cabins work out at about the same price as the cottages per night, but the dates are more flexible and you can choose the length of your stay.
Most of Knoebels' overnight visitors camp there for a couple of nights and we've heard pretty good things about the campground. But there's no general/gate admission at the park (you can buy limited-access passes/wristbands for the day Mon-Fri, but some rides are excluded), so you save a lot just on ride tickets. We can stretch $100 worth of ride tickets out to cover an entire week and we still bring some home at the end of every trip to use the following year.
There are private cottages for rent, but the prices are higher, the waitlist is long with no promise of actually getting a week at the cottage, and they don't provide access to Knoebels Crystal Pool with the rental. (And the beds are awful, but they suck everywhere. ) Some have TVs and A/C, but you'd still have to provide your own linens at most places.
I heard the Knoebels are running a bed and breakfast (the only one remaining that I know of within walking distance), but there's no info about it on their website. You might be able to call the park office to get more info. I bet the prices are crazy. There's supposed to be a honeymooners cabin at the campground, but at several hundred $/night, probably not a feasable option. (Not to mention the inevitable waiting list!) It's comparable in amenities to a Ft. W cabin, but the price is a bit higher per night if I remember correctly.
I'm not trying to be negative! It sounds like a total hole-in-the-wall, but it's a charming, little, old fashioned park and the lodging options reflect the attitude of the average visitor. They're there for an inexpensive family vacation or for a day or 2 to get in as many rides on Knoebels' award-winning coasters as possible.
As far as I know, Knoebels does NOT rent ECVS, but adults can rent a kind of wheelchair that looks like an adult stroller. Single and double strollers are available for rent by the day for kids. As are comfy little plastic wagons. The park is clean, well-kept, and very well-shaded, but not commercialized like so many amusement parks are now. There's free entertainment, award-winning food (awesome variety! ), and ride prices are really inexpensive.
If you have any other questions, please ask. I love talking about Knoebels!
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Oh, I forgot to mention - some of you might remember - last year we had to postpone our trip for 6 weeks because of the high flood waters. About 4 feet of water in the first floor of the house we were renting. Knoebels has a tendency to flood during times of high rainfall. We were REALLY lucky there was a week available later in the summer to rebook at the same cottage.
You ain't been to Knoebels if you haven't had a trip disrupted by a flood. There are high water markers all over the park from the last 50 or so years. I'll try to take pictures of those this year.
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We're gonna need another Timmy!
I nearly wet myself when I found this photo of the progress on the new rollercoaster at Knoebels. 
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Pixie Dust
I love WDW, but I have a special kind of fanatic insanity reserved just for Knoebels. 
PassPorter Guide Author
: it looks fantastic!!!
I think you have a little time to wait before you get to ride on that thing! 
Hear me out before you run screaming in the opposite direction. 
By any hotel or rental home standard - even the cottages are fairly rustic and out-dated. 
And Knoebels-owned cottages provide a perk only they get - 18 free pool passes to use by the end of the season.
(And the beds are awful, but they suck everywhere. 
There's supposed to be a honeymooners cabin at the campground, but at several hundred $/night, probably not a feasable option. (Not to mention the inevitable waiting list!) It's comparable in amenities to a Ft. W cabin, but the price is a bit higher per night if I remember correctly.
There are high water markers all over the park from the last 50 or so years. I'll try to take pictures of those this year. 
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