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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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There are others who visit Universal more often than I, but I have not seen much at all in the way of discounts. For our upcoming trip, I purchased tickets through Undercover Tourist and hotel (onsite) through Trivago. That saved me several dollars. I used Universal's site to get Halloween Horror Nights tickets, because they had a Coca Cola promo that saved a few dollars, something like $12, maybe even a bit more, per ticket.
Purchasing through third parties plus the Coca Cola promo saved me about $100, but I had to go to more trouble.
I get email promos from Universal all the time, but they are never special offers, really. They're basically just advertising/solicitation.
There are others who visit Universal more often than I, but I have not seen much at all in the way of discounts. For our upcoming trip, I purchased tickets through Undercover Tourist and hotel (onsite) through Trivago. That saved me several dollars. I used Universal's site to get Halloween Horror Nights tickets, because they had a Coca Cola promo that saved a few dollars, something like $12, maybe even a bit more, per ticket.
Purchasing through third parties plus the Coca Cola promo saved me about $100, but I had to go to more trouble.
I get email promos from Universal all the time, but they are never special offers, really. They're basically just advertising/solicitation.
Thanks Susan! We haven't been to US yet but I was thinking I have never noticed discounts for their hotels.
There are discounts offered. You should get on Universal's mailing list. I recently got a 35% off at Sapphire bay that was offered for some Fall dates into December. There are rarely discounts in October because of the Halloween parties popularity, but you can often get them at other times of year. I had one this year in late May at Cababa Bay (Sapphire was also a choice). Usually you need to stay three nights to get the rate.
Also, the have Annual Pass rates at all their resorts that come out a few months in advance just like at Disney. You can get the rate before you buy the AP just like a Disney, just have it when you check in.
They also have Stay More, Play More discounts, the longer you stay, the longer the discount. To see if they are offered you should just pretend to do a reservation and see if they come up during your dates. Three nights gets a small discount and it gets bigger all the way to seven night (and maybe longer).
There are discounts offered. You should get on Universal's mailing list. I recently got a 35% off at Sapphire bay that was offered for some Fall dates into December. There are rarely discounts in October because of the Halloween parties popularity, but you can often get them at other times of year. I had one this year in late May at Cababa Bay (Sapphire was also a choice). Usually you need to stay three nights to get the rate.
Also, the have Annual Pass rates at all their resorts that come out a few months in advance just like at Disney. You can get the rate before you buy the AP just like a Disney, just have it when you check in.
They also have Stay More, Play More discounts, the longer you stay, the longer the discount. To see if they are offered you should just pretend to do a reservation and see if they come up during your dates. Three nights gets a small discount and it gets bigger all the way to seven night (and maybe longer).
Hope this helps.
Yes, this does help. Thanks! I recently signed up for the Universal newsletter. I will keep an eye out for discounts. Is there anything else I should sign up for?
I would keep an eye on the Universal resort boards over on the Disboards. They usually have folks that will post about specials. I haven't been on there for months, so have no idea if there is anything posted now.
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