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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Does anyone know where to stay. I have looked at homewood suites and they are full. Doesn't need to be downtown, just accessable to Pikes Pier. I am getting confused and frustrated because I have never been there before.
There's no lodging in the immediate area of the pier. The ship departs from Smith's Cove (Pier 92). That's outside of the downtown area (the pier downtown is the Bell St. Pier - Disney's not using it).
You can stay nearly anywhere and arrange shuttle transportation to/from the pier for the same price. Shuttle Express is just one of several companies offering the service. Hotels in the area of Seattle Center are about the closest to the pier, although anyplace downtown is no more than a mile or so farther than that. There are plenty of decent possibilities. At this stage, I'd just shop Kayak.com or Expedia.com and see what's available. Setting your sights on one or a handful of spots could cost you. There are two hotels in the South Lake Union area - they're about the same distance from the cruise pier, and still very convenient to downtown. Meantime, the rates tend to be a bit lower for the value delivered.
If you're planning to do some in-town sightseeing, I suggest you do stay in town. If you just need a place to rest your head before the cruise, there are plenty of decent, reasonably-priced places near the airport. The shuttle services serve those as well.
Here are hotels I've personally stayed at:
Executive Hotel Pacific - rates here tend to be low for downtown. It's clean, basic lodging, in an older building
Warwick Hotel - Closer to the cruise pier - it's a 60s-vintage hotel that shows its age a bit, but still clean, comfy, and well-run
Hotel 1000 - If you have the bucks - boutique-style high rise. Large, well-appointed rooms, amazing bathrooms. Ranks very highly in guest surveys, and I have to agree.
Hotel Monaco - Across the street from Executive Pacific, much nicer. A Kimpton hotel, so near the higher end of the price range.
Belltown Inn - Can be bargain-priced, but also very quirky. Very basic furnishing, no air conditioning (but it's not essential in Seattle). Otherwise, clean and well run.
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
Most of the hotels are north of downtown as mentioned above. Trying to get the best located one for you could present a problem. Where are you coming from, flying, how long are you staying in Seattle before heading to the DCL Terminal?
This can make a big difference in picking a hotel, inn or suite room for you. For instance you mentioned that Homewood Suites was full. The $64.00 question (old term) is "which Homewood Suites was full?" There are two (2) Homewood Suites in the Seattle area one being close to the center of Seattle and the other is further from the center of Seattle but closer to the DCL Terminal. Depending upon where you are coming from either could be closer. One is full but the other one? You previously mentioned Homewood Suites so you must have researched it or know of it. Do you have the address of the one that is full to chech the other's availability?
I can then list the lodging hear to where you want to stay in Seattle for sightseeing or closer to the terminal. Then if you want better rates you can contact Kayal, Priceline or other related sites.
If you were going to stay in Seattle what transportation were you going to use to the DCL Terminal?
Possibly one of the hotels have a shuttle to DCL. The DCL Terminal is within about 2 1/2 to 3 miles of most all of the hotels and a taxi would suffice.