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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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DH and I are in the preliminary stages of planning a trip to Europe in 2008, probably the Sept/Oct timeframe. We're looking to spend about 15-17 days total: a few days each in London and Paris, day trips from both cities (Stonehenge/castles & Normandy) and at least 3 days at Disneyland Paris. We'd probably fly out of Chicago or Detroit (closest airports with nonstops).
We've looked at the London/Paris tour packages from Adventures by Disney and Rick Steves to give us some ideas for activities & price ranges - but it looks like we'd have to add on quite a bit to either of those to get what we want.
I'd like some advice on hotels -- where to look & how much to plan on spending to get the equivalent of a WDW value resort or Holiday Inn/Hampton Inn. The bit of research I've done so far seems to indicate that the Ibis chain is similar?
Transportation is also an issue - we don't plan on renting a car & are not terribly familiar with public transportation. How much of a hassle is it to carry luggage from the plane to the bus/train to your hotel & such? How light should we plan on packing?
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I can help with some of the answers. The Ibis is a lovely chain - we had a wonderful stay in their Brussels hotel a couple of years ago.
As for transport, getting to and from the airport isn't too much of an issue in London. The chances are you'd fly into Heathrow - and even if you fly into Gatwick, it's the same thing there. There's an express rail service into one of the capital's major train stations. From there, I'd then get a taxi to your hotel - I think that's the easiest way with luggage, rather than trying to navigate the Underground. I don't think that should be too much of a hassle and I'd imagine it's very similar in Paris. How are you planning to get to Paris? I can thoroughly recommend the Eurostar, it's the easiest way to travel between the two cities and is a lovely ride.
chezp - I was hoping you'd be one of the folks replying to my post! I appreciate the feedback on the Ibis chain. Can you recommend any good guidebooks for Disneyland Paris that might be available at amazon.co.uk?
I did a bit of digging after this post & found info on the Heathrow Connect/Express & that looks like a good option - especially if we end up staying near one of its stops.
We are planning on taking the Eurostar from London to Paris and will make sure to book tickets ahead of time! My brother & his wife were in Europe a few summers ago & weren't able to get on the Eurostar - they had to scramble to make alternate (ferry) plans!
Wow, yes you definitely want to take the Eurostar as opposed to the ferry - you just never know when you're going to get rough weather in the Channel.
As far as books about Disneyland Paris go, there is one called A Brit's Guide to Disneyland Paris by Simon Veness and although it's aimed at the British market, it's packed with useful information. That's the one I use whenever I'm planning trips there.
I do hope we'll get to meet up at some point during your trip when you get over here! waytogo:
If you can't make it on the Eurostar, you might look into some of the heavy discounters. Some of the things you have to consider with them is that they fly from outlying airports around London and other cities (but DeGaulle is already, IMnsHO, an "outlying" airport). Also, most have very light restrictions on weight and number of bags. Cheryl, I think it's Ryan that even charges you to check a bag, is this right? In fact, I think they charge you if you want to breath! But the base fares can be incredible (19 pounds RT to Paris for some flights).
There are some nice hotels in Paris that can be had "economically". Smaller ones. The one Carol stayed at was "dead cat" sized (you can't swing a dead cat by the tail without hitting the walls). But it was very affordable. Many of these hotels don't have any sort of booking system other than calling or faxing. If you find one you like, the best choice may be to fax. There may not be anyone who can speak English when you call, but if you give them a few hours, they can always contact you after someone translates. PM me for some hotel suggestions and I'll dig them up for you.
If you can't make it on the Eurostar, you might look into some of the heavy discounters. Some of the things you have to consider with them is that they fly from outlying airports around London and other cities (but DeGaulle is already, IMnsHO, an "outlying" airport). Also, most have very light restrictions on weight and number of bags. Cheryl, I think it's Ryan that even charges you to check a bag, is this right? In fact, I think they charge you if you want to breath! But the base fares can be incredible (19 pounds RT to Paris for some flights).
That's a good description. Ryanair are charging for everything they can and so are Easyjet, the other low cost carrier. You're charged to get on the plane first for example. Although they may be cheaper, I doubt they'd be easier, as I don't know what the rail links are like to Stansted, which is where their bases are and I suspect it would be quicker to take the Eurostar, as it's just over two hours door to door from city to city and you also only have to check in about an hour before, rather than the usual two hours before at the airport.
Oh yeah, Eurostar is definitely quicker. City center to city center it's much quicker. Carol said it was about a 30 minute ride from downtown Paris to CDG. She flew from Marsilles to Paris almost to Houston on September 11, 2001. Continental put them up in the Hilton for the first two nights.