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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I'm thinking of taking a few days to enjoy Halloween at Universal. I have a few questions that maybe someone can help me with. 1. How are the crowds early in the week at the end of Sept./Begin, Oct.? 2. How much extra does the Halloween stuff cost? 3. Do ppl dress in costume/Is that required? Thank you.
I'm thinking of taking a few days to enjoy Halloween at Universal. I have a few questions that maybe someone can help me with. 1. How are the crowds early in the week at the end of Sept./Begin, Oct.? 2. How much extra does the Halloween stuff cost? 3. Do ppl dress in costume/Is that required? Thank you.
1. Halloween Horror Nights have gotten very popular over the last decade or so, so weekend nights often sell out - or nearly - all throughout the run. Weekday nights are usually a little lighter, but they also close earlier, so you don't get as long in the park. If you have the opportunity I HIGHLY recommend buying an Express Pass. Lines for the houses can reach 60-90 min easily, and when we had the Express Pass last year we went in every house and on every ride AND saw the shows and finished it all still with 2 hrs left. Our longest wait for a house was about 15 min. From someone who has waited in those 90+ min lines (in the rain, no less ) I will never go without an Express Pass again. Pricey? Yes. Worth it? Double Yes!
2. The price depends on which night you go and whether you want an Express Pass as well or not. The official prices won't be out till the dates come out this summer, but they are usually around $70 for a ticket and around $70 for an EP. Halloween Horror Nights is a seperate event, so you need a ticket specifically for it, and you won't be allowed in the park until it is time for the event. (Usually 7pm)
3.Not only is dressing up in costume not required - it is NOT allowed at all. No masks, no costumes, nothing. They are very strict on this rule, as they don't want anyone being mistaken for a CM.
I've been to HHN many, many years starting in 1994. It is a really fun Halloween experience for adults. IMO, I wouldn't take a kid younger than....16 or maybe even 18 to it. It is VERY scary. (And that's coming from someone who first went at the age of 14. ) ** Those ages are just my opinion though. There is not a specific age limit set by Universal required for admittance - or at least there hasn't been any year in the past.
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MNSSHP 2015: DH (Bane), Me (Batgirl), Genie, and our friends
Ashli is right, without an Express Pass, the night can be a bust! We went on a Sunday nite and the crowds weren't as bad but wait times for the houses were still ridiculous!! With EP, we walked right into all 8 houses!
I purchased a two day pass for Universal and we added on the Stay & Scream pkg and the HHN tix were only $35 each. EP were over $60 each.
One suggestion, if you plan on going to the parks during the day, go to US (or IOA if they move HHN over there) early and as closing nears, go to the Irish pub and grab some dinner. If you are in the park and have HHN passes, they actually scan your tix early and corral everyone into the area surrounding the pub and allow you to wait until the start of HHN. They opened one Haunted House early and let us in 30 minutes early!! We didn't have to leave the park and reenter (good thing since the lines outside the park were building rapidly).
Again, I also stress it is scary and gory and young children will probably be scared beyond belief. Alcohol is served throughout the park as well and while Universal doesn't tolerate any sort of rowdy behavior, it's very dark, foggy from the smoke machines and actors are jumping out everywhere!
If you are a big Halloween fan, this is the BEST event you can attend!!
As far as wheelchair accessible, some of the houses might be but the majority are very dark - some parts in complete darkness - with tight twists & turns, props hanging down and people are banging into each other in the darkness and huddling/clinging each other in fear. It could be very uncomfortable at a low level and I would imagine more of a hassle navigating than anything. Give Universal a call to verify.
Ashli: Are all of the houses and shows during Halloween wheelchair accessible?
That is a really good question. I don't know the definite answer, but my initial response would be No. As Jennie said, some of the houses have very tight passage-ways, corners, etc. and are very dark. I can't imagine trying to steer a wheel chair through the houses. For example, a few houses in various years have had a room you go into where there are a bunch of "things" hanging down from the ceiling. (Think punching bags, only furry and wet...yeah...ew.) They swing around quite a bit from the people who are walking through and trying to figure out how to get out of that room and who don't want those gross things touching them. I can imagine that would be a nightmare for someone in a wheel chair who is trying to avoid getting clocked in the face with one of those things. Those are just my impressions....Universal would be the only one who could tell you for sure the accessibility though. (As for the shows, I think they wouldn't be a problem for wheel chairs. They are held in the theaters with bleacher seating, but I'm sure that those have a wheel chair accessible area in the front/lowest row.)
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MNSSHP 2015: DH (Bane), Me (Batgirl), Genie, and our friends
Very disappointing. Doesn't sound like its worth going if I can't do the houses. Interesting too because I thought there was a law about handicap accessibility. I will call them then but if I cannot do the houses, I won't be going. I'm guessing that by law they can't deny me entrance to the houses if my husband is pushing a manual chair. Also, I can drive an ECV quite well, but they may say manual only. Disney is top notch at accomodating the disabled. I at least know that I can count on them.
I actually googled HHN wheelchair accessibility to see if there were reviews. A few and none were rave reviews. There were some that did complain about the hard to navigate houses and uneven flooring. I'm sorry that they are not more accomodating.
I agree with you that Disney is way above and beyond other parks with accomodating guests with special needs.
All HHN houses are handicapped accessible. It's not easy to navigate a wheelchair through the houses. I've seen it done, though. I was actually behind a wheelchair guest once in a house and it wasn't too bad, but it did slow down the line a little bit.
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Michelle - with my step sisters!
) I will never go without an Express Pass again. Pricey? Yes. Worth it? Double Yes!
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