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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 was talking to DH tonight and we are thinking about adding an extra night to our next trip, which is in 10 days. We are staying at BLT and DH mentioned that it would be nice if we could just extend our stay there by one night but we have to pay cash because we have all our points tied up for this year and really do not want to borrow from next year's allotment.
I know I read somewhere that DVC members can get room discounts when they pay cash but I can't find a rough estimate of how much of a discount we get. We are also annual passholders so I'm trying to see if that discount might be better. Of course member services was already closed when I tried to call and ask which would be the better discount.
Does anyone here know? I am just being impatient and I know I'm going to have to call MS in the morning anyway but I like to hear what others have to say. Thanks!
DVC just started selling up to 25 one time use points so you don't have to borrow from next year. They are at a discount and good for only for that year.
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.
Thanks y'all! It sounds like the annual passholder discount would be much cheaper. I priced out how much it would cost to purchase the points for the one additional night and it was incredibly expensive!
When you get there, I would also check out the bounce back offer on the table, and see if it applies that soon.... It was like 45% Villa resorts 2 weeks ago, but I don't remember the dates.
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Been to WDW a million times... was even a Cast Member! Next Trip: March '12
Still thinking of going to the F&W Festival again....
If you book the cash portion through Member Services, the best they can offer is a 25% discount. And that discount is only available for periods when DVC projects that they will not be able to fill the resort with members wishing to stay on points.
The benefit to booking through Member Services is that they will link the cash night(s) to your points stay so that it appears to be one continuous reservation.
If you book through CRO you may get a better rate but the cash booking and DVC points bookings will be separate entities. You WILL have to check in twice. There is a chance that you may be asked to switch rooms even if you have the same type of accommodation booked for both legs. Also for the CRO cash night(s) you will be subject to CRO's rules for purchasing any of the dining plans (minimum stay, ticket purchase, etc.)
what size villa are you staying in? I would think the cost of 25 extra points would be less than a discounted villa.
It's a lake view studio and I looked at purchasing the points to cover just that night & it would be over $400. The AP discount would be roughly $320 with taxes and whatnot for that size room at BLT. So then I looked at the AP rate for a value resort and I was able to get 2 nights at Pop Century for less than 1 extra night at BLT so we decided to just go that route. I think the kids will get a kick out of staying there and we've never stayed in a value before so it will be a new experience for all of us.
Thanks for all your help! At least now we know for future reference!