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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 have been reading about how hard it is to get ressies for Palo's for brunch. DH, DS9 and I are Castaway Club members and can make ressies at 90 days. We have 2 rooms in our party- DH and I are in one room, and my mom and both boys are in the other. Will I be able to make a ressie for a party of 3 at 90 days even though all 3 people dining are not Castaway Club members?
Sort of same question, at the 90 day point will I be able to book shore excurisions for all 5 of us or will I only be able to make them for the 3 of us that are actually members?
Hi Amy!
yes, if both staterooms are linked. my sister-in-law and kids are traveling with us in August. We're Castaway Club members, but she isn't. since her room was booked under our reservation, and therefore linked, we were able to make palo reservations for all of us and shore excursions for her family at the 90 day window. so you should be able to do this as well. you can check what your booking window is for each stateroom by pulling up your reservation online. The "cruise plans" page doesn't give a specific date, but the "My Online Check-in" page does. look under the first person's name and then underneath "Guest information". it will be greyed out, but should say "available xx/xx/xx". if you look at your calendar, you can confirm whether it is 75 or 90 days.
There is a difference between linked reservations and joined / concurrent (2 or 3-cabins) reservation, so it would depend on how the reservation was made.
If the reservations are created together at the same time, then you'll be able to book both Palo and shore excursions. When making the first reservation, you have the option of adding up to 2 staterooms with the first stateroom. If this is how the reservation was made, then it's a joined/concurrent reservation.
If the reservations are linked (two reservations made separately and then listed/linked together later), then you'll only be able to book Palo at the 90-day window. Shore excursion would be booked at the 75-day window.
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Lynn
Yes, I am a Disney Addict... and I'd rather be cruising!.
you shouldn't feel badly about calling your TA again. that's their job to help you and answer your questions. She can call DCL to confirm for you. i confirmed our booking windows with DCL directly. also, DCL will send you a pre-cruise packet about 4 months out. on the cover letter it gives you the specific dates for your booking window.
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.
That brings up a fabulous point, and a concern of mine. We typically have always preferred to deal directly with Disney. But, we are kind of shopping around on the Cruise thing.
If we do go through a third party (ie Sam's Club) or a travel agent, how much control will we have when it comes to changing things, booking things, etc? We are kind of control freaks and would hate to feel helpless when it comes to our trip.
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"I'm doing this because I want to do it better" -Walter Elias Disney, on creating Walt Disney World
If we do go through a third party (ie Sam's Club) or a travel agent, how much control will we have when it comes to changing things, booking things, etc? We are kind of control freaks and would hate to feel helpless when it comes to our trip.
If you use a travel agency, I think that your travel agent would need to take care of changes to the cruise reservation (for example, changes in dates or cabin category). However, whether or not you use a travel agent, you can go online yourself and book excursions, Palo meals, spa treatments, and childcare. You can also make changes online to any of those bookings.
I used a TA and it has been great! For whatever reason I have always used a TA, I usually end up telling them exactly what I want and they have very little to do. There is something a little less stressful about using a TA. They remind me when I due for payments etc. She provided me my reservation numbers immediately and I was able to go on-line and check everything out. I told her which rooms we wanted, and it happened. I would recommend using someone.
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"I'm doing this because I want to do it better" -Walter Elias Disney, on creating Walt Disney World
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