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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
Abby chatted a little bit with Ariel and then we went and rode the little mermaid ride. It was only posted as a 10-minute wait. We enjoyed our musical under the sea adventure and then chose to go have another musical adventure at Philharmagic. After my nap... I mean Philharmagic, we headed to Main Street. I had fast passes for both Mickey and Tinkerbell which we planned to use back to back. Kate didn't want to join us with all the meet and greets so she was still doing whatever it was she was doing. As we approached the path on the right side of the castle, we spotted Suzy and Perla - the mice from Cinderella. Abby wanted to jump in line but before she did, I asked the cast member if the line was still open for them. She looked at her watch, she looked at another handler that was there and said "you'll be my last family for them." I thanked her and Abby and I got in line. The CM stood behind us and anyone else who tried to get in line was told it was closed.
After Cinderella's mice, we headed to the head mouse himself. I missed seeing talking Mickey but it did seem to make the line go a little bit quicker. Not to mention he did have limited phrases so he really didn't say anything to us that he didn't say to all the families in front of us back when he did talk. When we were done seeing Mickey, we exited the theater to go around and enter it again to see Tinkerbell. It didn't take long to meet her and in a short amount of time we were exiting the theater for a second time. My plan had us going to the Emporium next and just taking our time shopping. I texted Kate who eventually found us in the store. I don't think she bought anything but we bought two towels, a magnet, postcards, a WallE and Eve emoji pin set and a stuffed Pua from Moana. Thinking back, I'm surprised the cast member didn't offer me resort delivery or package pickup at the front of the park but I was okay taking everything with us.
From the Emporium, we walked through all the shops and then through Casey's. We continued on until we got to Liberty Square and the wheelchair viewing area for the parade. Today we were actually there early enough to see the entire Muppet Show and it was still funny. We stayed put after it was over and waited for the parade at 3. While we waited, I used my device to get a new fastpass. I got one for the Haunted Mansion at 6:15 for all four of us. Today it didn't rain but there was still a storm coming in. The parade started on time but it actually seemed rushed. During the Merida section, when the dancers all join hands and dance in the circle, Kate saw a cast member dressed all in black make some sort of hand gesture. As soon as he did that, the dancers stopped dancing and formed a line again to continue on. During the Rapunzel section, the guys weren't swinging back and forth. It was still good but it was our third time seeing the parade and the third time that it wasn't a "full" parade.
After the parade was over, we stopped to use the bathroom and then made our way to the Plaza restaurant. We had a 4 p.m. ADR for dinner and there wasn't enough time to do anything so we went to see if we could get in early. We could but the cast members there need to get on the same page. One told Lenny he could park the scooter in one spot. Someone else told him he needed to park it elsewhere. Then he was told he could move it to the first spot again but he just stayed where he was and got into the wheelchair. Then he was told it was a small location and the chair would have to stay outside "but we have a table ready for you right at the door" so he stood up to walk inside. Then we were told "it'll just be another minute or two" so he went to sit down again. As soon as he sat, we were told the table was ready. I don't know if it was more a comedy of errors or just frustrating but it sure was something. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZF6uMSE3yLpUfcXw7
Dinner was good, and we all enjoyed it. Lenny got the club sandwich with the vegetables which was broccoli. I got the burger also with the broccoli. Abby got the burger with fries. Kate also got a burger and fries but minus the roll. Since we've heard so much about the loaded fries at Disney, we also got those to start and we shared them. We didn't get a picture of them though. I actually didn't take any of this meal. Kate took them all. For as good as I've heard these fries are, I have to be honest. I like the ones I make at home better. They were good but not anything I would rush back for. The rest of the meal was good too. I would certainly eat there again. After we left the Plaza it was still dry out and we wanted to ride the train so what better place to get on then at the Main Street train station. Unfortunately there was lightning in the area so the train was not running.