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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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We will be driving through Philadelphia on our way to the Jersey shore. We were thinking of stopping by Reading Terminal Market for Lunch. Looking at Google Maps, it looks like a short walk to the Liberty Bell. I am hoping that someone familiar with the area can give me advice on this.
It's been several years since I was there, but I believe you have to go to the visitor's center and get a ticket for a time to see the Liberty Bell. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong here, or if they've changed it.
Have fun.
It's walkable if you don't mind walking...a few long blocks, but still walkable. It's one of those distances where if parking were easy, I'd drive, but since parking might not be so easy, I'd probably walk.
I love Reading Terminal! DeNic's has awesome sandwiches! Bassett's has great ice cream! So many great things to see and eat there!
When I was in Philly early last year (February), I didn't need a ticket to go see the Liberty Bell if I recall correctly. I don't know if that's because it was slow season because it wasn't busy at all.
Another great place to visit near the Liberty Bell is the Constitution Center. I really enjoyed walking through there (but it does require a ticket purchase).
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Huge Disney Fan...Always Have Been...Always Will Be!
Disneyland 60th Anniversary Celebration TR here!
2013 WDW trip here!
2011 trip to Hawaii here!
It's walkable if you don't mind walking...a few long blocks, but still walkable. It's one of those distances where if parking were easy, I'd drive, but since parking might not be so easy, I'd probably walk.
I love Reading Terminal! DeNic's has awesome sandwiches! Bassett's has great ice cream! So many great things to see and eat there!
When I was in Philly early last year (February), I didn't need a ticket to go see the Liberty Bell if I recall correctly. I don't know if that's because it was slow season because it wasn't busy at all.
Another great place to visit near the Liberty Bell is the Constitution Center. I really enjoyed walking through there (but it does require a ticket purchase).
Denic's is the reason for stopping at Reading Market.
I did a little research and you do need tickets to get in. They are free if you wait to get them there the day you want to go. You can also pay a small price and reserve them online. If we decide to go I am going to reserve the tickets online.
I don't mind a little walk. I am not familiar with Philadelphia. Is the neighborhood fairly safe?
We are staying the night before in King of Prussia. We can't check into our place in Ocean City until 2:00 so I thought this might be a good way to kill some time.
I did a little research and you do need tickets to get in. They are free if you wait to get them there the day you want to go. You can also pay a small price and reserve them online. If we decide to go I am going to reserve the tickets online.
I don't mind a little walk. I am not familiar with Philadelphia. Is the neighborhood fairly safe?
We are staying the night before in King of Prussia. We can't check into our place in Ocean City until 2:00 so I thought this might be a good way to kill some time.
I have a feeling I didn't need a ticket because it was very empty that day and I just walked right in. I wasn't planning on doing it because I had already seen it many times, but as I was passing by the area I was looking at some of the displays at the entrance and saw that they were just letting people walk in, so I did!
It's not an unsafe walk, but it's also an urban area. It's mostly office buildings between Reading Terminal and the historical area. It's about 7 blocks over and maybe 2 blocks down, if I recall correctly. Others who live there will probably give you better advice, but I think the last time I was there I walked out of Reading Terminal, headed east, and then took a right at some point until I hit Market (which is the next block over, I think), and then turned left and walked down Market until I got to the historical area. Market is a busy major street.
Ooo, by the way, King of Prussia mall...I hear it's pretty good!
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Huge Disney Fan...Always Have Been...Always Will Be!
Disneyland 60th Anniversary Celebration TR here!
2013 WDW trip here!
2011 trip to Hawaii here!
I avoid Reading Terminal. Granted I've only gone on weekends, but its a tourist trap. Maybe a weekday and after the lunch rush is better. But it isn't far at all from the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, which I also reccomend.
Center City is very safe, especially during the day due to so many tourists. If it was me, I'd skip the Liberty Bell and the Market and go to the Franklin Institute. Or at least go to the FI for an Imax show. They have an OMNIMax theatre which is the dome style. It's fantastic. Shows are around 12 dollars a person and last about an hour.
There is a PhillyPhlash trolly that you can take and it goes around to a ton of the tourist spots in Philly. It's cheap.