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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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I just wanted to say hi, and introduce my family. We will hopefully be going on a 4 day cruise in January. And I am sure I will be in here with a lot of questions. So in advance I wanted to thank you all for your help and support!
My family consists of Me, Melissa, age 35, my DH age 46 and my DS age 6. This will be the first cruise ever for all of us.
We have to go in January because this year that is the only window between Advent and Lent. My DH is a Minister and has a really hard time taking time off, but he is currently on board for this adventure! I feel bad taking my son out of school right after the Christmas break, he will be in 1st grade, but this may be the last winter my parents are working at WDW. They keep threatening to go somewhere else for the winter but they just love working at WDW!
My parents are CMs at the gift shops in Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom and they really want to take us on a cruise. The only problem is that the discounted cruises for CMs don't open up until about a month before sailing. So I am a little concerned about getting airfare that close to the sail date. We can fly AlleigantAir out of our hometown, but with only 3 flights a week I am afraid they might be all booked up! One of the alternatives might be to go ahead and book the flight hoping to get on the cruise that week, but if we don't, just spend the week at WDW. What a great consolation prize that would be! We will have to wait and see.
But I have my trusty PassPorter in hand and am reading it cover to cover. I have also downloaded the Cruise Tips E book. I have skimmed over it, but need to get it printed so I can highlight and make notes! I am pouring over all the old trip reports I can find also and of course reading this message board.
Thanks again for all the help I know you will be giving me!
__________________
Donning my Wellies to cut Peat in Scotland
Melissa
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Welcome - you'll love the cruise! We have to take our 1st grader out of school for our trips - (I run "out-of school" camp programs, so if school is out, I'm "in"!) We are just up front with our teacher at the beginning of the year - ask about things we can do during the trip to reinforce what he might be missing, etc. We also had him journal during our cruise as well.
Hope it all falls into place! We take our DD's out of school every year we go; even in to high school. Quite frankly, there has never been a problem (kind of a sad statement towards the school). And we always make certain they do their assigned work, and do 'real life' work while they're there, to make up for it. [Darn, I have to go to WDW and do calculations on distance, time, money, language, etc. What a shame.]
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
You'll have a fantastic cruise and have certainly come to the right place to get your questions answered. I've only cruised once and learn something new from the posters here almost every day.
About This Page: 
Just Introducing Myself
So in advance I wanted to thank you all for your help and support!
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Thank
Pixie Dust
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--Susan
PassPorter Guide Author
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