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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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DD and I are going to Disney May 17-22 2009. Plan on this being sort of low budget trip:
Staying on points DVC at AKV concierge, Annual passes already paid for, DDE card already paid for, Disney rewards Visa racking up points will be cashed in for this trip, Capitol One rewards will be used for as much of the airfare as I can squeeze out of those points. SO I am hoping it won't cost a lot out of pocket.
Here is my question: Should I book ONE night at a Universal Hotel (probably the cheapest) so we can do a two day Universal package and get the front of the line passes? DD has AAA so we might get a better hotel rate with that (Unless you guys know of a better way to get a hotel deal at Universal!) Plus I know there are always good deals for tickets at Universal, so I'm not too worried about that.
BIGGEST problem is transportation - how to get from Disney to Universal. How to get from Universal to Airport. We would stay at the end of our Disney stay (May 22-23) so no DME back to the airport .
the only thing i think i can help with is the tickets .
gate price is 74.10
they have an internet special for i think 99.00 for 7 concecutive days . other then that i cannot help sorry .
I just did that, & stayed 1 night at Hard Rock with an AAA discount. The front of the line express pass is so worth it. We went on the Simpsons 3 times in a row, minimal wait.
PassPorter Guide Community Rank: Legend Extraordinaire
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Chapel Hill, NC USA
Concierge Level: 6
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We did a low budget trip a few years ago. We opted not to stay at Universal and did the parks without front of the line (during spring break...late march). We did just fine without it. Just make sure you get there before park opening and head to the headliners right away in each park (do one park each day) and you should be fine.
Staying at Universal's onsite hotels is definitely a budget buster....even with AAA you are looking at close to $300 for one night.
Be sure and sign up on Universal's website - I get promotional emails from time to time with hotel discounts. I also get mailers with discounts from time to time.
Also - keep checking with Universal for AAA rates. I was told by a Universal operator that deeper discounts open up closer to reservation date. I've called back later and got a better AAA rate than what was quoted months before. Call Universal directly - the operators are always very helpful with finding any available discounts.
I would stay if you can swing it. We love staying at Universal the couple times we did it. The front of line access is great. Plus I really enjoyed the hotels. SOmetime the prices do come down and are reasonable. I also suggest subscribing to Lowes hotel chains email. They are the ones who run Hard Rock and Royal Pacific at Universal and I always get emails from them with good deals.
Sue, how far is Universal Doubletree from the Royal Pacific? Do you get the front of the line passes if you stay at the Doubletree? That would be my whole reason for staying there.
Thanks!!
PassPorter Guide Community Rank: Legend Extraordinaire
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Chapel Hill, NC USA
Concierge Level: 6
Posts: 36,592
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tinker_me_happy
Sue, how far is Universal Doubletree from the Royal Pacific? Do you get the front of the line passes if you stay at the Doubletree? That would be my whole reason for staying there.
Thanks!!
No, Front of Line passes are only for those staying at Portofino, Hard Rock and Royal Pacific.
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