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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 think with the ages of your kids, the Poly would work better for you. Maybe wait until AofA is completed so you won't be staying there during construction.
are are staying at AOA in october in the nemo section
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Heather - "I'm Tinkerbell's biggest fan!"
WDW - August 1997 Off Property
WDW - January 2005 AKL
WDW - May 2006 Pop Century
WDW- november-dec 2007 pop century
WDW- dec/jan 2009/2010 pop century
WDW- oct/nov 2012 art of animation
WDW- sept 2013 port Orleans riverside
WDW- july 2015 beach club
We're huge Poly fans!!! But, to save money and because I know my kids will love it, this time around we're staying at the Beach Club. That 3 acre pool has my kids salivating.
If you wanted to save even a bit more and still go Deluxe, take a look at the Garden Wing rooms at the Contemporary-- it's the cheapest Deluxe for a family of 5.
AoA simply makes no sense to me. It's a Value resort at moderate prices-- it's quite a bit more expensive than the family suites at All Star Music. I know it's brand new, but in my mind, that's not enough of a reason for the price difference.
As to aifare, I booked Jetblue on Friday for our August trip. Prices had been in the mid 1400s, but dropped to $1303, so I jumped.
I'd base my decision on what you value most about the resort. The Art of Animation rooms, being new, are going to be nicer than you'd expect for Pop (or I'd assume anyway), and it certainly is a decent amount of savings.
If having monorail access, a nicer pool, and the dining is important to you though, obviously that cannot be replaced in any way, shape or form at Art of Animation.
If those last parts aren't as important, save the cash and try something new. But if those other parts are important (as they would be for me), stick with the Poly!
Aliceacc how do you save money with the youth program? Are the ticket prices cheaper for the parks? I clicked on the link but wasn't quite sure how it would save money. If you have any info that would be great. Thanks so much Jen
Aliceacc how do you save money with the youth program? Are the ticket prices cheaper for the parks? I clicked on the link but wasn't quite sure how it would save money. If you have any info that would be great. Thanks so much Jen
The whole immediate family can buy incredibly discounted tickets if even one child takes a single 3 hour class. Of course, all 3 of my kids are planning to take a class-- this sounds like an incredible oppportunity for some behind-the-scenes type learning.
I'm anxiously awaiting the opening of registration for the summer classes!
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I think with the age of your children and your love of the Poly, you should stay where you feel comfortable. Although AOA sounds lovely I would rather stay at the resort my family loves and maybe visit AOA to see if it would be for you on a future trip. We are big Poly fans, we have stayed there twice and are lucky enough to stay there again this November.
My kids are 17 and 13 and they really want to stay at AOA when we are schedule to go the last week of June. Has anyone heard anything about the construction being ontime or delayed? I see they are taking reservations but I just am a bit worried. Help!
WDW - August 1997 Off Property
WDW - January 2005 AKL
WDW - May 2006 Pop Century
WDW- november-dec 2007 pop century
WDW- dec/jan 2009/2010 pop century
WDW- oct/nov 2012 art of animation
WDW- sept 2013 port Orleans riverside
WDW- july 2015 beach club
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I would stay at Poly. Monorail, boats, seeing MK from everywhere, watching Wishes and EWP from the beach, easy access to both MK by monorail, or Epcot by taking the path to TTC to catch Epcot monorail- no contest. Not to mention dining, and easy access to the other MK resorts for dining. And very cool Volcano pool, and huge rooms.
I don't think you'd be happy squished into a POR room, even though I love POR- I wouldn't with 5.