A Spring Adventure: Wilderness, Flowers, and the Force (with Cam and Luke) PTR Updated 5/22 - Page 18 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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"Luke and I both checked yesterday to see how easy it would be to change things from our smartphones. Doesn't look difficult at all!"
It might have just been user error :roll eyes: but I could not change fp things through the app on my phone. I probably could have done so by actually going to the web site, but never tried that on my phone, since I'm not real adept at using the internet on my phone. I had no trouble making changes through the web on my iPad, however. The app just kept telling me I already had a fp when I tried to change an experience or time.
Enjoy Artist Point! DD and I dined there several years ago, and one of my fondest memories was watching the server at the next table pull up a couple of straight back chairs and make a bed for a sleeping toddler. He used towels and such for bedding. It was so sweet to see him take all that extra time. To be fair, it was lunch time and they weren't crowded or busy.
Boy, lose the internet for a few days and you are far, far behind! I love the new bathroom - the wall color just makes me feel warm and cozy. Anytime I see anything with a giraffe on it, I think of you.
Seems like ya'll have the plans pretty well lined out. Love that you could help out your niece and nephew. Their excitement and nervousness is understandable. Hope they have a great trip.
I've just read through from the beginning, you often seem to go just before us so I always enjoy your PTRs and also view them as a sign that our own trip is near (this year we fly on 5/25 and check into AKLV on 28/5).
A few thoughts: I must confess that I teared up at the "first sighting of Wilderness Lodge" story too. The redo of the bathroom is absolutely gorgeous, really love the colour scheme. Artist Point is a great idea for your first night - we ate there for the first time last year and really enjoyed it and there's something really lovely about eating at the signature restaurant where you're staying - it's just so easy! Finally, how great that your niece & family are so receptive to asking "the experts" for advice - I know it's going to make their trip so much better.
How fun to be the family Disney expert! I agree you can have a great trip with little notice, it's all about your expectations!
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One of my DSiLs told her future DH that he would know Luke and me the first time he met us because we'd probably have something Disney on. Since they are just planning to go to the MK four days, FP+ should help them do pretty much everything they want to and leave plenty of pool time.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lauriep
It's so much fun to help others plan for a WDW trip. It can be frustrating, too, if they refuse to accept the need to plan and do a little research. Annie Laurie and Adrian sound like the perfect ones to help. I hope the spring break crowds aren't too bad for them and they have a great time!
I've actually gotten to help Annie Laurie's brother Dave and his wife Lauren, too. Lauren immediately purchased a 2013 PassPorter and now my great-nephew Mason thinks Stefanie and I are celebrities because we were on the cover.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erin1213
Looks like their going to have fun on their first vacation. I hope you told them they'll have to write a trip report about it.
I'm not sure with little kids if Annie Laurie will have time for a TR, but I'm sure she'll make a photobook to record their memories.
First of all, congrats on booking the adrs! Glad you were able to get all the ones you wanted, even the coveted BOG.
Glad you were able to help your niece with her Disney plans. Isn't great when you can share your knowledge with people who truly appreciate it.
I think it is so much fun to help others plan a trip as long as they are willing to listen, and my niece and her hubby are definitely listening.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pris
"Luke and I both checked yesterday to see how easy it would be to change things from our smartphones. Doesn't look difficult at all!"
It might have just been user error :roll eyes: but I could not change fp things through the app on my phone. I probably could have done so by actually going to the web site, but never tried that on my phone, since I'm not real adept at using the internet on my phone. I had no trouble making changes through the web on my iPad, however. The app just kept telling me I already had a fp when I tried to change an experience or time.
Enjoy Artist Point! DD and I dined there several years ago, and one of my fondest memories was watching the server at the next table pull up a couple of straight back chairs and make a bed for a sleeping toddler. He used towels and such for bedding. It was so sweet to see him take all that extra time. To be fair, it was lunch time and they weren't crowded or busy.
That is so sweet of that server!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colexis Mom
Great dining plans! How great to help your niece and nephew plan their trip!
I have enjoyed it, though I've also wished we could swing another trip in so we could go along.
Boy, lose the internet for a few days and you are far, far behind! I love the new bathroom - the wall color just makes me feel warm and cozy. Anytime I see anything with a giraffe on it, I think of you.
Seems like ya'll have the plans pretty well lined out. Love that you could help out your niece and nephew. Their excitement and nervousness is understandable. Hope they have a great trip.
Glad you got your Internet back! I think quite a few folks think of me when they see giraffe stuff.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KMB733
Great dining choices!!! How fun to be able to help your niece and nephew plan their first Disney trip!!
It has added extra fun to my own planning for our May trip.
Quote:
Originally Posted by greentie
I've just read through from the beginning, you often seem to go just before us so I always enjoy your PTRs and also view them as a sign that our own trip is near (this year we fly on 5/25 and check into AKLV on 28/5).
A few thoughts: I must confess that I teared up at the "first sighting of Wilderness Lodge" story too. The redo of the bathroom is absolutely gorgeous, really love the colour scheme. Artist Point is a great idea for your first night - we ate there for the first time last year and really enjoyed it and there's something really lovely about eating at the signature restaurant where you're staying - it's just so easy! Finally, how great that your niece & family are so receptive to asking "the experts" for advice - I know it's going to make their trip so much better.
Too bad our trips don't overlap. The fact that Artist Point was at our resort made it very easy to convince Luke.
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I came to the party late. LOL I am planning our June 13-20 trip to WDW. I am looking forward to your write up about the first weekend of SWW. Originally, we were going to just miss SWW, but now they have added the weekend we will be there. I'm hoping to surprise my fiance with it since he still thinks we will be missing it.
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How great to help your niece and nephew plan their trip! 
I love the new bathroom - the wall color just makes me feel warm and cozy. Anytime I see anything with a giraffe on it, I think of you.
Mary - not enough trips!
Previous trips: POFQ 2005 & 2007, Boardwalk 2008, BCV & AKLV 2009 (our honeymoon) & 2012, BCV & BLT 2011, BCV 2013, AKLV 2014
PassPorter Guide Author
Since they are just planning to go to the MK four days, FP+ should help them do pretty much everything they want to and leave plenty of pool time. 
I have enjoyed it, though I've also wished we could swing another trip in so we could go along. 
The fact that Artist Point was at our resort made it very easy to convince Luke. 
Disney Magic - Oct 2015
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