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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 would love to add a couple days at the end of our August Disney trip to head over to Universal & IOA...I was looking into staying on site at Universal and it is telling me that the onsite hotels can't accomodate us in one room (we are a family of 6 - DH, me, DS11, DS7, DS3 and DD2)....any suggestions? I would really like to stay on-site since we'll only have a couple days and want to squeeze in as much as possible. Thanks!!
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~Katrina~
Last edited by katrina30; 10-27-2009 at 10:59 PM..
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Have you looked into the cabins at Ft. Wilderness? Pretty sure you can fit 6, and the price is very reasonable. They are really really nice, not roughing it at all.
Have you looked into the cabins at Ft. Wilderness? Pretty sure you can fit 6, and the price is very reasonable. They are really really nice, not roughing it at all.
Sorry, I meant onsite hotels at Universal...while at Disney we're staying at ASMU in a family suite.....
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Each of the three onsite Universal hotels have suites that can accomodate your family. Of course, you can always book two rooms and ask for them to connect via interior door.
I took a travel agent Fam tour of the hotels in June and saw the Kids Suites at Royal Pacific...just adorible!!! The kids room had a Jurassic Park theme...best theming I'd ever seen.
Universal really does it up right w/ their onsite hotels!
Each of the three onsite Universal hotels have suites that can accomodate your family. Of course, you can always book two rooms and ask for them to connect via interior door.
I took a travel agent Fam tour of the hotels in June and saw the Kids Suites at Royal Pacific...just adorible!!! The kids room had a Jurassic Park theme...best theming I'd ever seen.
Universal really does it up right w/ their onsite hotels!
Should I just leave off DD when making the reservation then because here is what is says about occupancy:
Maximum Occupancy Per Guest Room
Kids Suite - up to 5 guests* (rollaway rental needed for 5th person)
1 Bedroom Portofino Suite - up to 5 guests* (bedding for 5th person would require a rollaway rental or use of the sleeper sofa)
1 Bedroom Villa Suite - up to 5 guests* (bedding for 5th person would require a rollaway rental or use of the sleeper sofa)
1 Bedroom Hospitality Suite - up to 5 or 7 guests, depending on booked connecting room
I don't really want to do a huge room like the hospitality suite since we're only trying to Universal as an add-on at the end for 3 days....
I would probably call the hotel directly to see if they have the same policy as WDW resorts when you have a two year old in the party. I'm not 100% sure on this...it's been a while since I've run into this situation.
Leaving off your youngest DD isn't the best option.
If you're having trouble w/ their onsite hotels, why not try an offsite partner hotel nearby? We stayed at the Hyatt Place across the street from the entrance to Universal's property and it was a great location and had huge rooms.
I'm surprised the suites sleep only 5. We stayed one night (Oct 12) at the Royal Pacific and there were 5 of us. We had the boys squeeze into one bed so as not to pay for the roll away (boy were they happy ). They let us no problem. We got room keys for all 5 of us. I would call and ask if they allow 6 in a suite, with the 6th guest being a 2 year old. We found the staff friendly and helpful.
We stayed at Hard Rock two years ago in a deluxe room. The room had two king beds plus a queen hide a bed. Plenty of room. Contact the hotel and ask about the policy for infants
Good luck. I don't know what your best option would be, a suite or 2 connecting rooms price wise.
We stayed 1 night at Hard Rock to get 2 days of their Front of the Line Pass, then moved across the street to the Doubletree.
We've stayed at a Hyatt Place in I drive, and they are suites, with 2 beds in bedroom and a double pull out in living room. And they have a nice continental breakfast too. The one by Universal would be the same. But I don't know if they have a shuttle if you don't have a car.
We've stayed at a Hyatt Place in I drive, and they are suites, with 2 beds in bedroom and a double pull out in living room. And they have a nice continental breakfast too. The one by Universal would be the same. But I don't know if they have a shuttle if you don't have a car.
The Hyatt Place across from the entrance to UOR does have a shuttle.
The Hyatt Place across from the entrance to UOR does have a shuttle.
Good to know, cause the I Drive one didn't, and I didn't know that in advance, I just assumed!! It was a good thing we did have a car rental for that (Sea World) part of the trip. When we got to the Univ. part of town we returned rental.