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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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
Best wishes for a wonderful and magical new year!
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06-21-2013, 12:10 AM
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#1
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PassPorter Guide
 Community Rank: Globetrotter 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 3,041
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Feature Article: St. John Island Tour - A Disney Cruise Line Port Adventure Review
St. John Island Tour - A Disney Cruise Line Port Adventure Review
by Cheryl Pendry
One of the things I love most about Disney cruising is getting to see new parts of the world that we haven't visited before.
I have to be honest, the Caribbean doesn't hold that much wonder for me, as I'm not really a beach person. I like to explore, learn about a place, see the architecture or the natural beauty, so as a result we haven't seen much of the area. We set that right on our most recent cruise to the Eastern Caribbean. One of our stops were the islands of St. Thomas and St. John in the US Virgin Islands, the busiest cruise ship port in the Caribbean, according to my trusty PassPorter. I wasn't overly enthused by the description of the place from my PassPorter, but there was one excursion that stood out from all the others, so I knew immediately what we'd be doing on our day in port.
The St. John Island Tour gets a rating of 9 out of 10 in PassPorter, and the write-up even points out that "cruiser reviews are uniformly positive." Well, with ratings like that, you can't go wrong. I also liked the idea that there were plenty of stops for photo opportunities throughout the tour, and that you get to see a lot of the island, so we booked up as soon as our booking window opened up.
The tour started with a short walk, and by short, I mean no more than a couple of minutes, walk to the boat that we'd be taking over to St. John. I knew there was a boat ride, but I had no idea how long it would take. I would estimate it was around 45 minutes. It's silly really, as it does say this on the Disney Cruise Line website, which emphasises the importance of doing your research beforehand. We did bounce around a bit out there, and I was glad for my sea sickness medication. If you are prone to motion sickness, be sure to take something before setting out on this boat trip, just to be on the safe side. When we got to St. John, we boarded our “open-air safari bus”, as it’s described on the Disney Cruise Line website. In truth, although it was open air on the sides, we did have a covering above us, which is good just in case the weather wasn’t as perfect as the day we visited.
This tour really did take us around the island. We departed Cruz Bay, which appeared to be the biggest town on the island. We didn’t spend any time there on our tour, although we had time when the bus brought us back, so we visited the headquarters of the National Park Service, which is right by the boat dock, and some of the nearby shops.
Not long after we left the town, we were into National Park territory, as it takes up approximately half of the island. It was green, and lush, and although hot, it wasn’t too much to deal with, although we did visit in December. The tour has plenty of stops, and they all offer magnificent viewpoints, but the first really highlights to you just how many islands there are in the Caribbean. All we could see from our vantage point was a clear blue ocean in front of us, with green shoots of land poking out. It was just stunning, and exactly what you expect from the Caribbean.
I have nothing but praise for our driver, who I felt was an excellent guide, and a safe driver, but again for those who are prone to motion sickness, it’s probably just as well to have taken some medication before setting out on this tour, as the roads do twist and turn back on themselves. I can imagine if you have a driver who wasn’t as careful as ours that it might be a bit more of an unpleasant journey.
One of the stops on this tour is the former Annaberg Sugar Plantation, where you’re given 10 minutes to wander around the ruins. I thought it was the perfect amount of time, as there wasn’t that much to see, but once again, the views out to see were just breath taking.
Our next stop was Cinnamon Bay, where you again had adequate time to use the restrooms, before heading down to the beach. Some of our party even dipped their toes into the ocean, although a word of caution here, as at least one person came back with an injury from doing that. Once again, the views were just beautiful, and everything that I’d hoped to see in the Caribbean. Although the time we had for the stops was fine, part of me would’ve liked to have just stayed there all day, and looked at the scenery, as I don’t think I’d ever have got bored of the sight of white sand, clear blue sea, and lush green islands.
We had another couple of stops at various overlooks, and I loved the fact that every time we set off again, we got a lovely cool breeze from our open-sided vehicle. Whenever we stopped, you suddenly realised how hot it was.
As I mentioned, we had a bit of a wait to board our boat back to St. Thomas, but it was fine, as it allowed us some time to explore on our own before we departed. The journey back saw another treat, as we moored in a different spot, giving us the chance to pass by the Fantasy. From our small boat, it really brought home to you just how massive she is!
The St. John Island Tour really lived up to everything I'd read about it, and if you like to explore a destination, then this is a great choice for you. St. John is an absolutely beautiful island, and I'm so glad that we got to see it for ourselves.
Added to PassPorter's Article Collection on 06-18-2013 09:06 AM
What do you think? Please add your own comments, experiences, or news related to this article in this thread! Reader feedback is welcomed and encouraged.
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