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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 am going to be in Orlando from the 30th of Dec 2007 till the 2nd Jan 2008. I am thinking about buying the $86 7 day park hopper ticket to go to IoA and UStudios. I am a little worried about the crowds over NYE though. Does anyone know what they will be like? During the 3 days will i get enough done at the 2 parks to make it worth the money???
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I went to Universal the week before New Year's and it was packed! The good thing is that the parks open at 8 am during the weeks of Christmas and New Year's. The burnt of the crowds arrived between 11 am to 12 noon. If you arrive at opening, you have a good 2-3 hours to do the rides and attractions with a short wait.
It will definitely be crowded at that time of year, but you should be able to do everything in the 2 parks if you are planning on spending 3 days there.
Thanks for the advice so far. Has anyone been there over NYE?
Our flight arrives on the 30th of December at around 6:30. I assume that by 8:30pm we will be checked in and hopefully at one of the parks. It is open till 10pm that night so i figure we can get in a ride or two. DO you think this is possible?
We then have the whole next day 31st of December. I realise that it is NYE that day but if we are there at 8am i am hoping to get alot done and we will then hop from the parks.
We also have the 1st of January to hop between the two parks.
DOes this sound possible? I figure for $86....we cant really go wrong. Even if we only get there to take photos i guess it is all about the experience!!!!
If you're arriving at 8:30 pm, head over to USF and get a ride done (or two). Check the queue boards in front of Lucy: A Tribute and ride the stuff with relatively short waits. At around 9:45 or 10 pm, you can watch Universal 360, the nighttime show.
On your other days, I would be sure to arrive at the parks at 7 am. Get into the parking lot and ride the thrilling moving sidealks to the park. Get in line and wait for the gates to open. They may open at 7:30 or 8 am. The entrance line may move slow due to fingerprint scanning. If you can, look for the Universal Team Member with the PDA that's scanning tickets. This Team Member does not require any fingerprint scanning. He or she will scan your ticket and let you in. Usually, this Team Member will be on the gates to the right of the ticket booths.
If the gates open at 7:30 and you go to IOA, you can probably do the 3 major rides before 8 am. These rides are: Spider-Man, Hulk coaster, and Dr. Doom's Fearfall. Be aware the lines for Spider-Man and the Hulk tend to grow very quickly, so get your re-rides in early for these rides if you want.
Thanks for all of the advice and help Barry, I really appreciate it.
You're welcome! Please ask all the questions you want.
Oh, I don't think you mentioned it, but are you staying onsite at Universal or offsite? If you're onsite, you have the key to give you unlimited Universal Express access.
You're welcome! Please ask all the questions you want.
Oh, I don't think you mentioned it, but are you staying onsite at Universal or offsite? If you're onsite, you have the key to give you unlimited Universal Express access.
We are staying off site. We are staying at the fairfield inn and suites on canada ave off I4. DO you know where that is? They said it was pretty close to universal and they have a shuttle service. I just hope that we will be able to get everything done in just 2 1/2 days.
DO you think it is worth trying to do it anyway.....or just skiping it all together? I guess even if i just get photos, that will be enough to satisfy me!
We are staying off site. We are staying at the fairfield inn and suites on canada ave off I4. DO you know where that is? They said it was pretty close to universal and they have a shuttle service. I just hope that we will be able to get everything done in just 2 1/2 days.
I know where that is, and it is very close to Universal, probably a 5 minute drive. I think you should get most done in that time period.