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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
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So glad you all finally got to see the Paint the Night parade. Sorry though you had to share the space with some rude folks. We had breakfast and lunch at Jolly Holiday Bakery and loved both. But then I love Mary Poppins so I was just happy to be at her place.
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
I couldn't remember which restaurant had the ice cream nachos. We asked several CM's before the girl at Main Street Ice cream parlour directed us to Diamond Horseshoe. Oh my word, talk about best Disney treat ever!! It's not on the menu, so you have to know to ask. I noticed it showed as "Halloween Special" on my receipt. The four of us shared. It was so good that we got one more that evening!
We headed back for more pool time in the afternoon. I'm so glad we got to enjoy 4 visits to the pool area. That was one of the best parts of our trip! Temps were only low 70s, but it was nice and sunny for our last few days.
We decided to eat at Earl again before heading back to DL for our last evening. We wanted to take in a few rides while the parade was happening. We weren't overly successful since so many things shut down for the parade and wanted to get to Small World to see Disneyland Forever from there. We did time Test a Track FP's well for our third and final round of the trip.
Hubby did manage one more turn on Indiana Jones, while we briefly climbed Tarzan's Treehouse (cute to see after watching the movie again last month) and gorged on moreover ice cream nachos! Then we headed to Tomorrowland and caught a short line for Buzz.
We made our way over to Small World and caught most of the Paint the Night parade again without all the stress! Then we got awesome spots for Disneyland Forever, sitting on the ground behind the Small World fence. No rude guests or congested crowds! It was completely magical to see the projections on Small World and to be so relaxed! We sat and enjoyed the Kiss Goodnight as well.
We also took out time exiting the park so we could avoid the stampede. Abby found a couple more pressed pennies for her complete collection and I bought a diamond celebration tote bag. It was a great finale to our park time.
So glad you enjoyed your visit - I definitely enjoyed reading your TR. The ice cream nachos sound awesome. Glad you got 2 servings of those in. Watching from Small World seemed like a much better plan. Glad it all worked out. Slowing down this last day & thing it all in seemed to really work for you & your family.
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I was so glad we had an afternoon flight and didn't have to rush on our last morning. We got packed up and walked down to World of Disney for just a few more things. I picked up one last lunch from Earl and one last churro for the girls to enjoy. We parked our luggage by the fireplace outside Trader Sam's and enjoyed a leisurely lunch and last bake in the sun.
Then we were off to SNA. Excellent service from Super Shuttle both directions. Such a nice low stress airport. We had some mild stress over our tight Chicago connection and the plane bring 30 minutes behind. I decided to have faith we'd make it or be compensated well by Southwest.
It was a super easy 3.5 hour flight to Chicago. We wasted no time getting to the next gate and boarding was already well underway. Nice for us, the plane was only half full and we were able to spread out and be comfortable.
In just under 2 hours, we were back to New Hampshire. It was going on 1am local, but that was only 10pm on our bodies. We found the nearby Fairfield Inn and got to bed about 2am. Amazingly, the girls were awake just before 9am.
It was a nice mild sunny day (well high 50's), which made for a nice drive home. We couldn't resist another visit to the Disney outlet and a few more stops. We should've gotten ourselves well on the way home, as it was midnight when we got home.
Now comes the 4 hour time zone adjustment. The girls were wired and didn't get sleep until after 1am. Then we all slept until 11:25am, when sleeping in for us would be 8am! Here it is 12:45am and I'm not sure I'll be able to sleep. Reality hits on Monday and we are in trouble!
I cannot imagine the time change effects on a child. The daylight savings changes knocks JB for a loop every time which in turn messes mommy up too. Good luck having everyone reset by Monday morning.
I cannot imagine the time change effects on a child. The daylight savings changes knocks JB for a loop every time which in turn messes mommy up too. Good luck having everyone reset by Monday morning.
We really struggle with the time change too! It's a 4-day school week and we will be suffering through it! Hubby set the alarm for 8:45 am today and we had to pry ourselves out of bed!
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They are the best-kept food secret at DL! Pieces of waffle cone for the "chips", drizzled with chocolate syrup, 3 scoops of ice cream, whip cream, chocolate shavings, and a cherry on top!
They are the best-kept food secret at DL! Pieces of waffle cone for the "chips", drizzled with chocolate syrup, 3 scoops of ice cream, whip cream, chocolate shavings, and a cherry on top!