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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I'm starting to have some concerns about formal night. I know you can skip it and eat somewhere else, but the dining was a huge factor in our enjoyment of our short cruise. DDs LOVED getting to eat "grown up" food in "grown up" restaurants (we don't eat out at home). We have no need for dresses, much less formals, so we own very few. I do have a dress that could pass for a formal, but the only other thing I have is a black knit dress (long sleeve, for holiday events). Younger DDs have exactly nothing. 8yo is easy enough, but 11yo HATES dresses (she is a tie-dye t-shirt kinda girl) and is very hard to fit in clothes as it is. What, exactly can kids get away with wearing on a formal/semi-formal night and will it matter if it's the same thing both nights?
The views and opinions expressed on this post are mine and do not necessarily represent or reflect those of The Walt Disney Company and Affiliated Companies
It will not matter at all if someone wears the same outfit more than one night. It's possible that your servers would notice, but they should be polite enough not to comment.
I also doubt that a child (or even an adult) would be turned away for wearing clothing that's not dressy enough. Nice pants (not jeans) should be just fine. Mostly it's a matter of what you're comfortable with -- if it won't bother you or your daughter that other people are very dressed up and she's not, then don't worry about it.
What about making a tie die dress for her have her help you make it so that way she feels part of it and makes it special just for her. I don't think anyone will say anything if you double up on outfits (i did for my cruise) so if you need to wear the same thing 2 times then go for it.
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We were on the 4-night and my DD wore a skort with a cute top. I wore capris, tank & blouse and my DH wore khakis and a dress shirt. Very few people were dressed up. There were some wearing suits and dresses but most wore something close to what we did and we did not feel out of place at all. In fact, a man even came in wearing a bathing suit and t-shirt.....yes.....on formal night!
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Off Property '72, '84, '89, '91, '95, Polynesian '79, Grand Floridian '90, Disney Village Resort '94, Caribbean Beach March '04, French Quarter November '04, Wilderness Lodge October '05, Pop Century - October '06, Boardwalk Inn - November '06, 4-Night Cruise, Disney Wonder - April '07, Yacht Club - May '07, Disneyland - April '08 UPCOMING TRIP: 3-Night Cruise, Disney Wonder & the Polynesian - December '08
Remember, too, that if they have any princess costumes, those are a big hit among kids on formal night!
You can wear your black dress with different accessories/shoes, even, if you wanted to change the look a bit. Can't go wrong with a timeless black dress!
Dresses aren't my thing either. I certainly didn't wear formal wear and never felt out of place. For our seven nighter, I only had three dinner outfits and rotated/wore a different blouse. I don't think anyone cares, and I'm all about packing light!
I double up on my slacks, as I only wear them for a few hours at night for dinner. Carol wore some nice slacks and a jacket on our first cruise. She's got a spangly skirt that she wears with a couple of different blouses, I wear the same suit with a different shirt and tie.
As long as you try, things won't be bad. Disney tends to be a little more relaxed. I'd be telling you something completely different if you were sailing on Celebrity.
I had dresses for two nights and a nice pants outfit one night-- but felt that I totaly could've gotten away with capris and a blouse. The black dress is good - like someone else said just jazz it up with a fun necklace. DD could do that too-- tell her if she doesn't want to wear a dress that is fine- she can wear pants and then give her a choice of (pre-selected-by-you) shirts/tanks that are "nice" to go with it. A little bling always jazzes something up-- even if you get some plain vneck shirts for her and have her do some "bedazzling" on them- that'll make the appearance more dressy. But like everyone said-- "Formal" on Disney is a whole different ball game than "formal" in general
Also,formal nights on the the Wonder are quite a bit different than on the Magic! On the Magic,people tend to "dress up" more (tuxes/suit and tie,formal gowns,cocktail dresses) whereas you'll see more "church-type" clothes on the Wonder. Does that help any?
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There really isn't even a formal night on the Wonder. Gentlemen are "encouraged" to wear a jacket or a tie to Lumerie's/Triton's, but that's as far as it goes for the Wonder. On the Magic you do have a "real" formal night. But not as "formal" as they used to be, or as they are on higher cruiselines (Celebrity, Princess, Holland America). A suit works for men and a nice dress for women. But you can really dress up and not really stand out. And get some nice formal pictures taken.
Oh, I see. I didn't realize the Wonder didn't have a formal night!
I'm glad a suit/nice dress works well. As much as I love to shop, I don't have a lifestyle that calls for formalwear, and I'd much rather buy a dress that I can get some use out of another time.
I'm glad a suit/nice dress works well. As much as I love to shop, I don't have a lifestyle that calls for formalwear, and I'd much rather buy a dress that I can get some use out of another time.
Ah, But if you bought one, then there is the excuse for another cruise! I found a lovely little black dress at Nordsrom's Rack (outlet) for $35....it's been on one cruise and will go on the other two we have booked. I think I'm getting my money's worth! I wore it to formal night and Palos. So, if you figure I do the same on the other cruises, that's 6 times!
Susan, do you mean you can't wear that sleek little black strapless number to work?
LOL!
I don't think people would know what to do if I did! I work out in the middle of nowhere, in an explosives area (I'd tell you more, but then I'd have to kill you ), and my normal work attire is jeans and a casual shirt!