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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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 planning our vacation for next year and have booked a Disney Cruise and unlike most we want to spend a few days at Universal after our cruise (we have already done the WDW land sea vaca). I'm having trouble with the logistics of getting from the port to Universal and finding the best place to stay as we will not have a car. I'm a huge planner and though our trip is not until next fall I want to start getting things lined out. Any suggestions would be great,
Last edited by Belle*; 10-11-2011 at 11:17 AM..
Reason: newsletter10132011
How many are in your party? Three or more and a town car service like Quicksilver becomes cheaper than Disney transportation would have been, had it been available. A one-way, one-day car rental is another possibility. Possibly cheaper still, but more trouble.
Hotels near Universal is not my topic, but the easy answer would be one of Universal's on-property hotels. You have the no-car convenience, plus the special benefits included.
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
We used Happy Limo to go from the Boardwalk to the cruise terminal. We opted for a rental car back to the airport. The ride from Happy Limo was great, and I'm sure they would pick you up at Universal as well. It was a heck of lot cheaper for the 6 of us than the Disney transport would have been (I know that's not an option for you).
The car rental allowed us to stop at WDW before heading to the airport - we had a late flight. It worked well for our plans, but the ride with Happy Limo was less of a headache than the rental car. I would definitely recommend them and use them again!
At Universal, we love the Royal Pacific. The perks for being onsite at Universal are great, so we always stay on site. The Royal Pacific is gorgeous and the cheapest Universal resort. We've been there 3 times, I think, and will be back for a few days next summer.
My bro and I used The Flordia Express Bus four times during our trip to Florida last November/December. We made advanced reservations with them before leaving for our holiday, and were so impressed with their service, that we made two more bookings with them during our holiday.
They work to your schedule, are punctual, the phone operator was really nice, courtesy calls are made the day before your reservation to confirm details, and our driver was awesome. Our driver on all four occasions, was Keith - you seriously couldn't wish to meet a nicer person. On our way back 'home' to the Pop Century Resort one night, he went out of his way at no extra cost, to find a place that sold Twinkies, on learning that we had never tried them before (they're not available in Oz.) Keith also works part-time for WDW, so had a lot of fantastic tales to regale us with during our two day trips to Tampa.
Services we used The Florida Express Bus for, were:
A return day trip from the Pop Century Resort to Busch Gardens, Tampa
A return day trip from the Pop Century Resort to Big Cat Rescue, Tampa
Transfer from the Pop Century Resort to the Hard Rock Hotel, Universal Orlando
Transfer from the Hard Rock Hotel to Orlando Airport
I know for certain that they do runs from Cape Canaveral to Orlando area hotels, as Keith would also talk about how many runs he would do back-and-forth from when he last saw us.
I can say with all certainty that I'll be definitely using this company the next time we're in Florida - I recommend them 100%
I don't have any specific advice to give on getting from the port to Universal, and this may sound silly, but I wanted to point out that one thing to keep in mind if you consider a town car or rental car, is how much luggage you will have with you. My family is made up of over-packers (myself included), and there have been a couple of times when we wanted to rent a car and even if the people would have fit, the people AND the luggage wouldn't have! Those big suitcases take up a lot of room, so remember to consider the trunk space you'll need! Happy travels!
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I don't have any specific advice to give on getting from the port to Universal, and this may sound silly, but I wanted to point out that one thing to keep in mind if you consider a town car or rental car, is how much luggage you will have with you. My family is made up of over-packers (myself included), and there have been a couple of times when we wanted to rent a car and even if the people would have fit, the people AND the luggage wouldn't have! Those big suitcases take up a lot of room, so remember to consider the trunk space you'll need! Happy travels!
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