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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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i didn't hear of any trouble when i was onboard the boat about the clubs and i haven't read much about there being too much trouble. I'm not sure if adults can stay the whole time but i am sure they'd let you stay a little while.
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Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust! Studying Hard to Make a Difference!
You're welcome to stay with your child if they(or you)feel uncomfortable. I found the clubs to be well-staffed with someone always at the desk. Roll was taken when the group arrived at new spot, like when the kids walked to the buffet, wide world of sports, etc. The child/counselor ratios were very good and dependant upon the group's age. I think the most convincing thing for me was how by the second time my child attended, he was greeted by first name, and the counselors were genuinely happy to see him. Whenever we popped in, he was happily engaged in whatever activity was going on. Whenever he wanted us to pick him up (for swimming or ice cream usually ) they beeped us. Best of all, he had a great time, and so did we!
Yes, adults are welcome to stay with the kids in the Oceaneer's Club. I never tried staying with my older son at the Oceaneer's Lab, but I don't think it would have been a problem, except to him.
Every time I arrived at the Club with my daughter, a crew member checked her wristband and scanned my room key to make sure we belonged together before they let us through the gate. (I usually stayed for just a minute or two, but sometimes I stayed longer.) When I picked her up they did the same thing, plus I had to give the password I set when I registered her. The same sign-out with room key and password was used for the Lab as well. (They also checked my son's wristband when he signed in, but I don't remember whether they checked my room key because I didn't actually go through the gate.)
When children were being escorted back to the club from another site (e.g., lunch or the sports deck) they entered through a crew-only secure entrance. One time we saw our son traveling with a group from the Lab and he wanted to leave. We were told we had to wait until he arrived back at the Lab (with the computer system) before we could sign him out. When the kids' programming moves to Castaway Cay while the ship is in port there, the staff has handheld computers with each child's password and other information, so the same security protocols apply.
At registration we were given a pager which worked anywhere on the ship and had a limited range off the ship as well (although the one time we left our son onboard while we were in Cozumel, we weren't paged at all). All kids registered for the kids' clubs have wristbands with their name, age group, and pager number (but not room number in a readable form) so that if they should be "lost" anywhere or anytime onboard, a crew member can call the clubs and/or page the parents to find out where the children belong.
The security meant lengthy lines at times to sign kids in and out at the clubs, but it also gave us a strong degree of reassurance.
I didnt have any problem either with the clubs, however my son didnt want me to stay except for signing him in and out. I was beeped promptly if he needed me or wanted something. He was there most of the time, except in port we did the family thing...
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Jenn
Past Trips:
Disney Cruise: Sept. 2002
Pop Century: Easter 2006; 60s bldg, Aug. 24-29,07;50sbldg
If you want to familiarize yourself with the program more, you should watch all of the videos on this page. They're designed for people who are considering jobs with Disney Cruise Line, but I think they're better PR than anything official Disney puts out... Disney Cruise Line - Human Resources
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) they beeped us. Best of all, he had a great time, and so did we!
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