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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Hi, my daughter has already done the Oceaneers Lab and she will be 12 on our next cruise. Does anyone know if they allow an almost 13 year old in the teen hangout?
My teenage sons had a great time there. She will just die if she has to go in with the "children"
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I don't know the answer to your question, but Disney is usually a stickler when it comes to rules & age. Hopefully someone will know a definite answer for you.
i believe dave has said that they'll sometimes allow a child into an older group (but not the reverse) on a case by case basis. i've mentioned this elsewhere and have seen a confirmation, but in that case and probably in this one, it may have helped that they were with older siblings that fit into the group as well.
How close is almost? Usually if her birthday is within 2 - 4 weeks, Disney will allow it. Note that I say usually as it is not guaranteed. If she is closer to 12 than to 13 though, the chances get lower.
They do seem to picky abut the ages. My girls were 8 and 10 when we cruised in March so they would have been sepearate groups. My experience was different from the response posted above. I was told that they older could go with the younger. Maybe I just got the wrong person. I think all you can do is ask.
If the child is near (open to interpretation) the age limit, they will sometimes allow her/him to move up (but not down). But I don't think that they are as flexible with the "teen" section.
Dave had mentioned that they will review it on a case-by case basis. My one son will be 3 months shy of his 13th birthday and he is a year ahead in school (going into the 8th grade). Someone who had responded to my question had said that they knew of "several" 12 year olds that were allowed on the teen deck due to close birthdays. Good Luck! I will find out on October 20th.
Oh wow, my son will only be about 6 wks shy of his 13th birthday, and he is *DYING* to go to the teen club. I didn't realize there might be a chance! He's very mature and calm, so hopefully they will let him in. He would be thrilled.
Susan, you have a 13 yo son? How old were you when he was born? Eight? You look like you should be getting carded all the time. (When I was 23 and the drinking age was 18, I shaved my mustache off and got carded that night. At the same bar I had been going to for 4 1/2 years!)
I am going to be 40 in a few months!!! All of my friends are in their late 20's or early 30's, though, so I think they're helping keep me young through my mid-life crisis! LOL
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I would certainly call and ask, and then ask again aboard the ship. Many 12 year olds were in the teen group when we cruised last November. They all turned 13 within a few weeks of the sailing, though (I know because my daughter sent cards.). We were on a cruise that wasn't packed full, and not so many kids as it was not a typical vacation time. That may have something to do with how many Disney decides to let shift groups.
My DD just turned 13 a few weeks ago and she is looking forward to going into the Lab with the 10-12 yo group in Feb. She is very boy crazy and I'm very happy that she wants to be with the younger kids instead of 15-16 yo boys at the teen club. On our last cruise 6 mo ago, she said several 13 yo were in the lab. I'm really hoping she can stay at the lab - I will have a more relaxing vacation that way
Two years ago, my DD was 7 weeks shy of being 13. Her older sister was 14, so when I went to register her, I asked if the almost 13 year old could join in, and they said ok. I think it is a case by case matter, who you talk to, and how full the teen club is at the time of the cruise. Good luck and have a great time.
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