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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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So, I'm so thrilled to find out that HHN is going to be there in September. I decided to add it on to our one Universal Day. We had originally planned on taking the Mears bus from AKL to Universal in the morning, because everyone has said to get to Harry Potter early. But now that we've added stay and scream at HHN, I'm torn.
If we aren't at Universal first thing, how bad do you think the waits will be for Harry Potter on a Thursday in September? Last time we went to Universal was around this time, and it was DEAD as can be.
How late does Mears pick up? I don't like the idea of being at Universal all day from sun up to sun down. I'm afraid that might be a tough day. But I also don't want to have to leave and come back. When we're tired I know we are going to want to go, and I know with Mears you have to call a few hours early to get a pick up.
Should I just rent a cab or a car? Thoughts?
One more question--how busy is HHN in September on a Thursday night? I've only been in October, and I know then, it's a mob.
I've been to HHN on different nights over the last 10 or so years. I've visited on Tuesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The only night that wasn't mobbed was Tuesday and the park was dead. Unfortunately, HHN has not been scheduled for a Tuesday night since then (about 8 years ago). Out of all the days, Saturdays tend to be insane in crowd levels, but you will experience crowds regardless of which night you choose. If you are going on a Thursday in September, then I would think comparatively, the crowds won't be as big, but then again, comparing crowds at HHN is like comparing two species of whales. They're both big.
I generally like to visit HHN on Fridays. The crowds are large, but they tend to thin off after midnight. Some houses have short waits after midnight.
I've heard that the best time to visit HP is late in the day, that the crowds were lower then. Not been myself, that is just what others have posted here.
We were there last week. We got to the park around 8:30 am (early entry as we were hotel guests) on a Weds. The posted wait for Forbidden Journey was 20 minutes, and I think it was more like 15. It got longer after 9 am, and we returned around 7 pm (park was open until 9 pm) and the wait was back to 20 minutes. The two roller coasters do have "Express Pass" lanes, so my boys rode them several times with short waits. If you try to ride first thing or late in the day the line should not be too bad.
The lines to get into the wand shop were loooooong all day.
The area is beautiful, I only wish they had more for kids or people who don't like intense rides. I rode Forbidden Journey and wow! Not what I expected. My 10 year old hated it. When I rode it a second time I enjoyed it more, but it is really an intense ride, and scary for the younger riders.
We were there mid-August this year and late is definitly the way to go. We never waited more 30mins for the HPFJ ride (did it 4 times and its great).
One thing to note is you cannot take bags on rides, you can get a ware with small bum bags. If you have a bag you have to line for a locker and those can be long and why many report long lines.
If you don't have a bag/need a locker then don't think you need to join the line outside the castle - you can jump all that - just skip up to the front and they will direct you.
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Michelle - with my step sisters!
NYC-Canada Cruise Sept 2012
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