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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
I haven't posted much here but I have received a lot of great information from everyone here. I have a question regarding our upcoming trip. This will be our first trip without kids, just the two of us. Would it be weird to do a character meal with no children? These meals have always been one of my favorite things to do, but I don't want to look "out of place" with no children.
DH & I have no kids and have done multiple character meals each trip (and plan on doing so for every trip) I guess we're big kids but we love it! We usually do a character breakfast at Ohana, but this year we're planning on trying Chef Mickey's.
If my DH and I were getting to go without our DD, I would still go to some character dinners. We enjoy them as much as she does. Every time we have been I have noticed many adults visiting with the characters -- and I don't think it's weird! Have a great trip!
I really think you would have a great time at a character meal. I'd definitely go to a meal without the kids!! Have a great time deciding which one to pick!!
DW and I have done them on prior trips without the kids.
Some of the characters ham it up even more with the adult couples.... Pluto tried to eat my head.
GO FOR IT!
I've seen plenty of childless adults at Character Meals... The characters interact with everyone- not just the kids. I'd say go for it and have a ball!!!
DH and I don't have kids and we've done plenty of character meals - they are great fun whether you have kids or not. I'd say definitely do one or two during your trip
[ QUOTE ]
DW and I have done them on prior trips without the kids.
Some of the characters ham it up even more with the adult couples.... Pluto tried to eat my head.
GO FOR IT!
[/ QUOTE ] That reminds of me of how Dale scooped off some of our anniversary cake at the Garden Grill and tried to feed it to me (well smear it on my nose until I grabbed hold of his paw!)
[/ QUOTE ] One of my mottos is to "live without regrets!" You don't want to go home & wish you had eaten with the characters!!! You'll be glad you did! Have fun!!!
Our kids are all grown up so even when we do a family trip, the youngest one in our group would be 23. We all still love doing character meals and I've found that often the characters play up even more with adults. We've had stuff happen from proposals (from both Goofy and Dale) to one of us being turned into a human Maypole by Tigger. If you love the characters then make sure you don't miss out on the fun and the magic of a Disney character meal.
Not only did we go to a character meal each time, but we also got autographs from all the characters we saw in the parks as well. (And rode Dumbo, the Carousel, etc.) In other words, we just acted like kids ourselves!
The characters are used to having adults-only groups at the meals, so it's no big deal for them. Plus, it is all part of the Disney experience, so go for it!!!
About This Page: 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
That reminds of me of how Dale scooped off some of our anniversary cake at the Garden Grill and tried to feed it to me (well smear it on my nose until I grabbed hold of his paw!)
One of my mottos is to "live without regrets!" You don't want to go home & wish you had eaten with the characters!!! You'll be glad you did! Have fun!!!
PassPorter Guide Author
Linear Mode
