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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Hi with the changes in airline luggage regulations, I was wondering about having items you buy shipped home. Has anyone done this? Will each individual store do this? I was especially thinking of the different contries in Epcot.I was going to buy a figurine or doll as a gift. I just don't know if I would have room to fit something bigger in my luggage. I use to bring an extra bag for taking home some of the stuff you buy.
Thanks
Debbe
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It can be a little pricey to ship from each store. I would suggest getting the biggest FLAT rate box that the post office has. They will tell you how much it will coast to mail it back home. You can always fill it up and on check out day ask the CM at the desk to put it in the out going mail. The box will fit in the bottom of your luggage on the way down.
We had Christmas ornaments shipped on our trip last month from the DTD Christmas store. They arrived four days after we got home. They are careful to make sure they are not shipped while you still may be traveling; they specifically ask when you will be returning home. They were in perfect condition.
In the past, I've checked out all the stores and bought as much as I could in World of Disney, and had it shipped. If it were something big and delicate, I would ship it back. I tried to do the shopping at the beginning of my trip, so it would arrive soon after I got home. I've also shipped birthday presents directly to the recipient from WDW, so I didn't have to bother shipping them when I got home. Every store will ship for you.
We usually have fragile Christmas ornaments shipped home because we're so afraid of them breaking. However, I believe the prices shot up last year. The stores used to have a maximum ship rate, but they changed the system and it became much more expensive. I can't recall the specifics, but I definitely had some sticker shock!
We have shipped from POFQ home. The lobby concierge gave us a box, tape and the shipping label for UPS. It was easy. We have also shipped from stores, noteably the Christmas shop. Doing one big trip to the World of Disney works well, but if I remember correctly, if you have lots of packages with you with receipts, one store will ship all the purchases for you, not just what you buy in that shop. With the airlines charging for extra bags and not being totally dependable with getting luggare to arrive with the passenger, I'm shipping more than ever this trip.
Remember, if you ship a package out of the state of Florida at point of sale, you do not pay any sales tax. Depending on the purchase amount, that will sometimes offset the cost of the shipping. This can only be done at point of sale. If you gather all your items for shipping at one time, they cannot take off the sales tax.
Remember, if you ship a package out of the state of Florida at point of sale, you do not pay any sales tax. Depending on the purchase amount, that will sometimes offset the cost of the shipping. This can only be done at point of sale. If you gather all your items for shipping at one time, they cannot take off the sales tax.
Oh yes, I forgot about that... thanks for the explanation!