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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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And I'm hoping that TT will have soft openings beginning sometime in November similar to the Fantasyland preview which begins on November 19.
Because we'll be leaving on December 5th
And I'm hoping that TT will have soft openings beginning sometime in November similar to the Fantasyland preview which begins on November 19.
Because we'll be leaving on December 5th
We leave on Dec 2. There may be some serious TT stalking on my trip... Anyone know how soft openings work? If you ask the CMs will they tell you what times "might" be running? We experienced a soft opening when Nemo's ride in the Living Seas was just testing, but it was complete dumb luck. I would be totally willing to plan my schedule around getting a chance to ride the new TT though.
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MNSSHP 2015: DH (Bane), Me (Batgirl), Genie, and our friends
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Anyone know how soft openings work? If you ask the CMs will they tell you what times "might" be running? We experienced a soft opening when Nemo's ride in the Living Seas was just testing, but it was complete dumb luck. I would be totally willing to plan my schedule around getting a chance to ride the new TT though.
Yes, asking the CMs outside the attraction is one way. Sometimes, those CMs are letting guests onto the ride when you arrive. Sometimes, the soft opening is right on the park's Tip Board. The brief, totally unannounced openings happen early on. If those go well, the attraction may be open nearly full time.
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
Yes, asking the CMs outside the attraction is one way. Sometimes, those CMs are letting guests onto the ride when you arrive. Sometimes, the soft opening is right on the park's Tip Board. The brief, totally unannounced openings happen early on. If those go well, the attraction may be open nearly full time.
Thanks for the info!!! This gets my hopes up a bit!
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MNSSHP 2015: DH (Bane), Me (Batgirl), Genie, and our friends
Bear in mind that soft openings are for Disney's needs, not the guests'. The CMs need to be trained, and the attraction needs to be "stressed" - used heavily enough to cause problems (if any) to emerge. If they're inviting guests for Previews (whether the general public or AP holders, DVC members, etc.), it means they're confident that things will run smoothly at those events (Disney really doesn't like to be embarrassed). Hence... there will be soft openings prior to previews. There always have been, there always will be. (CM previews will occur before soft openings begin for any kind of guest.) And once the attraction has been staffed... If the attraction is operational, they want that staff to earn its keep (and practice, practice, practice).
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
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We leave on Dec 2. 
Anyone know how soft openings work? If you ask the CMs will they tell you what times "might" be running? We experienced a soft opening when Nemo's ride in the Living Seas was just testing, but it was complete dumb luck. I would be totally willing to plan my schedule around getting a chance to ride the new TT though.
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