From no trip to celebrating 20 years together… planning it all in less than 100 days! UPDATED 6/30 - Page 71 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Trust me, we tried, but it didn't work to stay at WL for our next trip, and I was a bit whiny about it at first. Trying to be excited about where we are though.
That had to be the coolest ride up Main Street ever!
Trust me, we tried, but it didn't work to stay at WL for our next trip, and I was a bit whiny about it at first. Trying to be excited about where we are though.
So where will you be staying then?
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That had to be the coolest ride up Main Street ever!
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Friday 3 March – part four: “the spirits have a sixth sense about these things!”
When we got to the Haunted Mansion, we ended up with a group behind us who were first timers. It was mom (who wasn’t, she’d been when she was a child), dad and daughter, and daughter was a bit scared about the Haunted Mansion. I told her she’d need to be brave to look after her parents! We saw them afterwards, and they’d had a ball, which is always good to know.
When we went into the stretching room, all I can say is they needed to turn the air conditioning up in there, as my goodness, it was hot! I was glad to get out of there and on to our Doombuggy. I tried out the camera during the ride (no flash of course) to see what it could do in low light situations, and a few of the shots came out Ok, although most of the time, it was too dark…
When we got to the hitch hiking ghosts section, we got a shock, as the ghost was carrying a sign that said “United Kingdom”. Brilliant! We figured it was off our MagicBands, and stopped to ask a Cast Member. Oh my goodness, he was wonderful – so completely in character, and he just said in the most sombre of voices “the spirits have a sixth sense about these things!”
As we came out, we heard the horn of the Liberty Belle riverboat, so we haven’t been on that in forever, we figured we might as well get on the first trip of the day. While we were waiting to go, we saw a marching band, and yes, these photos were taken from the boat on full zoom.
Anyway, back to the Liberty Belle. It’s things like this that I think it’s very easy to forget about, and actually it’s such a peaceful and fun ride, and you get to see so much on it. You tend to come off thinking “we should do this more often”, but of course there are things that then compete for your time, and are more high profile, so it gets forgotten again, which is a shame.
I loved the commentary on this, particularly as it gives you a chance to learn about history, and there are also some good “in jokes” in there too. There was one point where they’re talking about too much development, and I couldn’t think that even today, that still holds true…
What a cool CM on the HM!! I love when those guys are immersed!! Your photos from the Liberty Belle are reminding me that we are also long overdue for a trip on her!!
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
That is so cool with the ghost! And then the CM's comments, perfect.
Were you able to grab one of the few seats on the Liberty Belle? As I recall, it's mostly standing. But I totally agree that it's worthwhile every few trips! It allows you to "hear" Disney for awhile instead of seeing it. Some of my favorite Disney things are the sounds around the parks!
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I noticed on our May trip that some of the doombuggies had signs of where they were from but we didn't get one. It's a pretty cool thing to add at the end of the ride! I have thought for a while now that we should give the riverboat a try since we haven't done it in years! Glad you enjoyed it.
That is so cool with the ghost! And then the CM's comments, perfect.
Were you able to grab one of the few seats on the Liberty Belle? As I recall, it's mostly standing.
Yes we were - on the middle deck, if I remember right. I did spend some of the trip walking around and taking photos.
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But I totally agree that it's worthwhile every few trips! It allows you to "hear" Disney for awhile instead of seeing it. Some of my favorite Disney things are the sounds around the parks!
And isn't it interesting how you can take them for granted as well? I bet there are loads that help immerse us into the various theming of all the parks, but often we don't notice them, yet if we didn't hear them, we'd miss them.
That was great what you said to the daughter of that family for some encouragement on HM! The Stretching Room can get quite hot with so many people just packed in there like sardines! Quite funny with the HH Ghost and the UK sign! Nice photos from the River Belle boat ride. In all my trips, I've never done that one as it was either in rehab or the next ride was a ways off and didn't want to wait as always doing other things! Must do this in October!
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
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I was glad to get out of there and on to our Doombuggy. I tried out the camera during the ride (no flash of course) to see what it could do in low light situations, and a few of the shots came out Ok, although most of the time, it was too dark… 
I love when those guys are immersed!! Your photos from the Liberty Belle are reminding me that we are also long overdue for a trip on her!!
It's a pretty cool thing to add at the end of the ride! I have thought for a while now that we should give the riverboat a try since we haven't done it in years! Glad you enjoyed it.
Quite funny with the HH Ghost and the UK sign! 
Must do this in October! 
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