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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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When will an updated version be available for Disneyland and DCA? My version is 2006 and I know it won't be much help at all in planning our trip for next year.
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I've wondered the same thing. We're headed in April this year, and my Disneyland Passporter is so outdated! I noticed that on our trip in Oct 2010, so I'm not even bothering to consult it this time.
I agree, a new DL Passporter would be great. I have traveled to DL quite a few times recently so if anyone has specific questions I can do my best to answer.
We are staying at the Holiday Inn Suites on S Walnut, next to the Mickey and Friends garage. I know there is a shuttle from the parking garage to the park. Is there a way we can get on the shuttle rather than walking around to the front?
I really wish I had an accurate passporter for our trip next week. It was great when it was current, but honestly it's been useless for the last 3 years. I've found alternatives for planning our trips, and I've gotten so used to them that I don't know if I'll go back to using a passporter again.
I really wish I had an accurate passporter for our trip next week. It was great when it was current, but honestly it's been useless for the last 3 years. I've found alternatives for planning our trips, and I've gotten so used to them that I don't know if I'll go back to using a passporter again.
Can I please ask what's the alternative? I'm going in September for the 1st time and I need more info...
Can I please ask what's the alternative? I'm going in September for the 1st time and I need more info...
The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2013 has the most current info. I bought it on my Kindle Fire and have been using that to plan my trip, and I also use a bunch of apps on my iphone. I even put the Unofficial Guide on the kindle app on my iphone, so I can look things up on the go.
I took pictures of all my travel documents or I scanned them and saved as a pdf that I transferred to my iphone. I bought a pack of small manila envelopes and labeled them for each day of our trip and used those like the pockets in the Passporter. To keep them from getting lost, I put a rubber band around all 4. They're small enough to fit in my purse or backpack.
For apps, I like E-ticket Disneyland and Magic Guide Disneyland for tracking trip details (dining schedule, etc.) and menus & maps. Disney Parks Mobile Magic has wait times, character locations, show times, etc. but the key features only work when you are in the park (wait times, characters, etc.).
And of course message boards like this one are a great resource! Asking questions here is a great place to get started. Feel free to ask me if you have any specific questions and I'll try to help.
I loved the passporters, and I'd probably buy one again if I were going to WDW, but it's so badly out of date for DL that I can't use it at all anymore. And now that I've found these other options, I've gotten so used to them I don't know that I'd go back to the passporter for Disneyland.
I think I read Dave and Jennifer are in the process of working on a new DL guide I was bummed to, not to have it for planning my trip. There is not much info online for DLR as there is for WDW. I've done a big part of the planning already with booking our hotel and such. I may still pick up the Unofficial guide.
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Stephanie- Mom to Jaden and Emerson, Wife to Keith, Novelist
I'm an independent agent with Fairytale Journeys, specializing in Disney vacations!
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We're not actively working on the Disneyland book update. But we have found someone to help us update it. When we have news, we'll make an announcement in the newsletter.
That is great news! I'm in the process of uploading a few (hundred!) new photos to the photo archive that can be used in any future update of the book....
I will cross my fingers. We are taking a surprise trip for DS's 8th birthday the last weekend of October! Waiting to score Halloween party tickets for DL. Booked at Paradise Pier Hotel (On Property?) or at least right across the street for 3 days, 4 nights. We are going to arrive late Friday night...so hopefully we will at least have all day Saturday at the parks also!