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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Our cruise departs on November 29, 2009, and we have been known to have a good blizzard or two by then up here in Michigan. So we don't want to take any chances with delayed flights, etc. We have decided to fly in the day before and spend the night at the Hyatt Orlando Airport, and then have transfers from there to the port the next morning. I am thinking of surprising the kids with a limo from Quicksilver, since the price is similar to the Disney transfers.
Has anyone stayed at the Hyatt? How was it? Anything interesting to share? Has anyone used Quicksilver transfers for their cruise? Anything to share there?
DH and I did a cruise with RCCL for our honeymoon long ago (and I cruised with Admiral Cruise Lines much longer ago than that). This is our first cruise with DCL, and the boys' first cruise - so I want to make it perfect!
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We stayed at the Hyatt the night before our girls cruise. Had a nice room and it was fun going up to the pool area and watching the planes take off and land. I like the Hyatt for it's convenient location (all three of us came in from different locations at different times) and we had a nice dinner in one of the airport restaurants. The price is higher than hotels off-site near the airport but the convenience was worth the price.
Quicksilver picked us up the next morning. We arranged for them to pick us up at 9:30 and met them in the garage area of the Hyatt. Our driver was pleasant (always is!) and we quickly made the trip there without any problems. He dropped us off at the curb, helped give our luggage to the porters and we were quickly on our way into the terminal. When the cruise was over, we had no problems locating our driver and again they helped with the luggage and had me back to the airport (and the other girls to WDW).
The Hyatt and Quicksilver are the perfect combination - enjoy your first Disney cruise!
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Lynn
Yes, I am a Disney Addict... and I'd rather be cruising!.
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Excellent, Lynn - thanks so much. We were wondering what time to have our driver pick us up. I was thinking between 9:30 and 10:00 - did that time work out well for you? I really appreciate your feedback!
9:30 worked perfectly - we were there by 10:30 and were the first ones into the terminal. I don't always recommend that but I was with two cruise newbies who wanted to enjoy every minute! The check-in desks weren't even open yet but we managed to amuse ourselves
AAA-offers a good rate - while Don's senior rate sounds good, I'm not ready to qualify for that!
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Lynn
Yes, I am a Disney Addict... and I'd rather be cruising!.
Especially since you won't be depending on DCL transportation... you may want to price some of the other hotels near the airport, like the Marriott. You may be able to get a better deal (sometimes a whole lot better deal). We and others have bid on Priceline and gotten some incredibly low rates on very good hotels. If you bid on 3-star or higher hotels in the neighborhood of the airport, you can't go too far wrong - there aren't that many of them. Most have a free airport shuttle. Those that don't are still a pretty cheap cab ride away.
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
I'll be doing the same thing for the upcoming Mousefest cruise Dec 7-11. Already got my Hyatt ressies set up, and my DCL ground transfers and DME will take care of the rest.
I can't wait! First cruise for me!
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Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah...Tip for Today!
Proud DVC Member since December 2010
Home Resort: Bay Lake Towers
Diagnosed Sleep Apnea June 2012
We and others have bid on Priceline and gotten some incredibly low rates on very good hotels. If you bid on 3-star or higher hotels in the neighborhood of the airport, you can't go too far wrong - there aren't that many of them.
We have had excellent luck with priceline.com! We got the Marriott Renaissance for $38/night and the Marriott for $48/night. We were even allowed to add our Marriott rewards card to the reservation when we checked in!
We stayed at the Hyatt before both our Disney cruises and loved it. Breakfast the next morning at the top floor restaurant is a must also! The food is great and the view is amazing.