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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Location: after years of cold IL winters I'm happy to now be in sunny Cocoa, FL
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Party of 5: Cabin or POR?
So now that the youngest isn't under 3 anymore we have to look into other accomodations - we've price-shopped a few options with the free dining offer and looks like we can stay in a room at POR with the plus dining for about the same cost as the family suite at ASMu with only QS dining... but for about $500 more we can also do the cabins - which seem like they may give us more room for the kiddos as well as being able to 'seperate' the kids at night if we want to put them to bed and be able to have some quiet time watching a movie or something...
I would really like to stay at AKL but I just don't think that is in our budget this next time around...
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"With kids the days are long - but the years are short."
As a family of 5, we stayed in POR many times. It was nice, but we definitely appreciate more space. I think the cabins or the family suite would be a more relaxing vacation for you. Good luck with your decision!
The Cabins would give you more room inside and outside. Transportation would take longer at the cabins, cause you'd have to take an internal bus to get to the park bus. Something to consider.
POR would be more squished, but if you're at the park all day it may not be a big deal. I've seen some people pull out the room chairs at POR and sit outside the room on the walkway, while the kids are sleeping.
AKL wouldn't sleep 5 in a standard room. You'd have to go with a villa there.
While we are yet to stay at POR (we check in for our first stay there on 11/24) I can say that the cabins have much more space than a standard room at any resort.
We really enjoyed staying in the cabins and having an actual bedroom that was separate from the living space. We could put DD to bed and watch TV in the living room and not disturb her. It was also great that there was a second TV in the bedroom, so if she wanted to watch TV while falling asleep, she could.
$500 is a lot of extra money to spend, but the extra space for the family may very well be worth it.
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During our 2009 trip we looked at POR or ASMu with free dining. We ended with ASMu, since it was only a little more than POR and we would have 2 bathrooms. We had 3 adults and 2 children, so having the extra bathroom was nice. We also had the kitchenette, which was nice for breakfast. Good luck with your decision.
The cabins are a great option for a family of your size, because of all the space and the separate bedroom! I would also add that having the kitchen is great - if you're on the DDP you can use the kitchen for breakfast in the morning before you head into the park! And the best part is - you leave your dishes and the kitchen a mess and when you come back, Mousekeeping has done the dishes and tidied up for you
Location: after years of cold IL winters I'm happy to now be in sunny Cocoa, FL
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Thanks for your opinions everyone - it sounds like the cabins really would be great for us. I think that by booking a year out gives time to make up the extra $500... if we are paying a little every month or bi-weekly it really doesn't seem so bad!
I entertained the thought of the family suite at ASMu, but they we'd still have to pay to upgrade from QS to the plus dining plan... so it would really be able the same cost as the cabins...
As far as transportation, we usually drive our own car around instead of taking disney transportation simply because we have this big double stroller and its hard to get on and off buses... I thought I read that in the cabins you can park your vehicle right at your individual cabin- anyone know if this is true?
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"With kids the days are long - but the years are short."
Save the $500 and go with POR -- we are a family of 5 and it works just fine for us. We just know going in what to expect -- and anyway, we barely spend 2-3 hours awake in our room so I would rather spend $500 on something else or apply it to our next trip!
You will love the cabins and YES you can park one car right at your cabin and it really makes it nice when bringing in sleeping kids at night, not to mention carrying your luggage and all in. As previously stated, you will have plenty of room, inside & out, a grill should you decide to cook and the mousekeeping at the cabins has always been great when we are there!!!
It is still my favorite place to stay. You will not regret the extra $$$ once you see what you get in return. You feel like you are in another world once you get to the campground and don't forget the free nightly movies and campfire with Chip & Dale!!!
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