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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 went to WDW world last summer, and I was totally caught off guard by how much the characters meant to him, including and even especially princesses. I could just cry thinking how sweet it was when he told me that Belle had "signed my bookmark in her own handwriting". This trip, he was definitely "the magic age".
He knew it was all pretend, and yet he could totally believe it all for the moment. I know it won't always be that way.
What age does your baby boy become too big for these sweet little pretendings?
My next trip is planned for 1 yr from now, he'll be 7 1/2. This AM, I'm seriously considering bumping it up by 6 months!
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Our son was 11 1/2 this summer and still very much enjoyed meeting all of the characters including Princesses!
When will the magic end? Hopefully never!
Enjoy your upcoming trip!
My son is 17 and "The Magic" hasn't ended for him. This year's trip was as magical as all the other's. He actually was just reminiscing Friday night with his step-cousin (16 yrs old) about our 2012 trip as we took the step-cousin with us. We have already began our plans for our August 2015 trip and my son and his cousin (as we invited him again next year) is already so excited about going. I can't imagine "the Magic" never being there. Even for myself and my DH.
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Oh, you guys are warming my heart. I live in fear of my boy becoming "too cool" for so many things. Good to hear from some mom's who's boys haven't lost a sense of wonder.
My almost 6 year old DS was very into the characters this past trip (he is smitten by Anna & Elsa!) and I am hoping that he stays like my 13 year old daughter who still is very much into the "Magic". Half the fun for her this past trip was visiting the characters! She even asked me to make her an autograph book this time!
I don't think the magic ends. What I do think is that it changes and grows. Which is a good thing imho because we change and grow too even those of us that are adults
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We stopped planning on meeting characters when my kids were 6 and 8 (DS is oldest). They were always more interested in rides and shows anyway. We would occasionally stop for a unique character and still do on occasion.
I also have to say, I don't think my son ever believed the characters he was meeting were real. (Our first trip they were 4 and 6).
My 10 year old is still completely invested. While he isn't AS excited to see characters, he still loves all things Disney. The trips are different now but just as special. The magic has shifted to celebrating achievements like first rides on roller coasters that were too scary before!
My boys are 11, 8, and 3. We just got back from a cruise meeting all kinds of characters. The 11-year-old put up with it and was a great sport, but would rather have done other things. The 8-year-old was very into it, but wouldn't have minded missing them either. The 3-year-old was insistent on meeting every character, and many of them more than once. They all love that "Disney magic" though, regardless of their ages. I think I agree with other posters who noted that the magic just changes with them. The 11 (almost 12-year-old) never thinks he's too cool for Disney, he just wants to experience different aspects of Disney now that he's older...he can do things now he couldn't before, and he's already had the chance to meet characters many times so he's ready for something different. Not less Disney, just different Disney. The 8-year-old is at that great transition time where he still loves the younger stuff, but is starting to be more curious and aware of other things Disney offers. Of course, the 3-year-old is just ripe for all those sweet Disney moments and we are going to take as much advantage of that as possible cuz he's the last kid for us! Don't worry, chances are your kid will never be too cool or too old for Disney...after all, we aren't and we're much older
Ahh, I sure hope you are right. Sometimes I'm embarrassed by what a DA I am, DS even asked me the other day why I'm more into Disney Parks than he is! Perennial escapist, I guess.
I hope he will always love it. Every age is it's own delight, I know that...but I loved him sinking into the magic so deep. Ahh well, I'm probably just looking for a reason to go back sooner.
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While he isn't AS excited to see characters, he still loves all things Disney. The trips are different now but just as special. The magic has shifted to celebrating achievements like first rides on roller coasters that were too scary before!
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