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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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We have our flights booked for DD4, myself and hubs. DS is only going to be 21 months at time of this trip so we did not buy him a seat, however now he is 34inches and 32lbs. And we still have till Sept before this trip. I'm thinking it may be easier to just buy him a seat??!? The other day our fares dropped in price and we changed them and got the credit, can I apply the credit towards a seat for DS, or are the credits only good for hubs, DD and myself for a later flight?
TIA
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Southwest only allows the credits to be used for the person the ticket was issued to.
From SW website:
"A Seat For The Baby Yes, they can fly for free in your lap until they're two but the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) strongly recommends that all children who fly, regardless of their age, use the appropriate restraint based on their size and weight. Children in approved restraint systems are far safer in turbulence or an accident. The American Academy of Pediatrics concurs. A baby will be a lot more comfortable in a familiar seat. You'll be more comfortable too. Under 20 pounds, they should be in a rear-facing seat; from 20 to 40 pounds in a forward-facing child restraint. Children over 40 pounds may safely use an aircraft seat belt. Read more recommendations from the FAA. Infant Fares Southwest was the first carrier to offer a fare that would give parents a low-cost alternative to traveling with a lap child. Southwest's affordable infant fares are available for children less than 2 years old who occupy a seat (with an FAA-approved child restraint system) and who are accompanied by a Customer age 12 or older. Infant fares are offered on every Southwest flight. Be sure to present proof of the baby's age at check in."
I would probably buy a seat for the baby, but then again, it's a shorter flight (you're flying from NJ?), and with three adults - assuming you all are able to get a good boarding position and sit together - should be able to manage a young child on your laps. Only you know your child though!
__________________
-Sherri
POR Grand Gathering Feb. 2013 **CSR Grand Gathering 2011, 2009 & 2007
I would book the seat for your DS and you can use the credit for his seat. That's
one reason I love SWA. My DD(4) always had her own seat from baby on. It was
just easier to let her be in her carseat and then with the seat belt. She enjoyed
having her own space and we enjoyed having ours. She is now a 42" and 40lb 4
year old and I'm glad she is used to having her own seat. She gets her stuff out
and sets up her area the way she likes it.
Now SWA only lets the person that the original ticket was for to use the credit. As far as getting a seat, all of the the southwest flights I have been on have only had 3 seats in a row so if there are 4 of you then someone would be in a different row, my hubby usually tries to get the isle seat close to us. The 4yo and 1yo would fit in one seat if you wanted a break from holding him on your lap. Personally I got pretty sick and tired of always having to deal with the kids the whole flight while my hubby was all nice and cozy by himself in another row. So this would probably be the last flight where all of you would be in the same row if he was a lap child.
I'm also a big fan of buying the seat. Southwest's statement (quoted above) puts things very well. It's about safety. If an adult needs a seatbelt, then why wouldn't a child?
Since SWA has open seating, it's usually not hard to get the family seated nearby each other. Someone sits across the aisle, or in the row in front of the family. Or, you sit two-and-two, one adult with each child. Parents can switch off if one is bearing the brunt of the burden.
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
Ha Ha Dave, that is funny about switching off. That would actually mean the hubby would be willing to switch seats during the flight. My hubby thinks he is following the rules by not getting up during the flight to switch seats. Annoying, I know. but normally he is amazing and takes the kids by himself to the park so I can have alone time but the flight is a whole different matter. But you are right the the parents should switch off if possible.
Thanks for the feedback, I wasn't aware of the infant pricing. I loked online today and they give you a number to call just for that. Will make that call tomorrow. We have used a carseat in the past but have also since that bought the CARES saftey harness which we really do love. We will more than likely try and sit two and two so DS in carseat is only kicking the back of the seat to someone in our family
That's a good decision to get your son his own seat. Southwest does have 'family boarding' as well:
"An adult traveling with a child four years old or younger may board during Family Boarding, which occurs between the "A" and "B" boarding groups. However, those Customers holding an "A" boarding pass should still board with the "A" boarding group. With an all-jet fleet outfitted with comfortable, leather seats, our families traveling with small children are easily accommodated together."
So don't purchase the extra $10 per ticket for early bird check-in, you won't need it. You can increase your chances of getting in the A group itself by checking in at exactly the 24 hour mark. (I want to say that I've even seen flights where they've allowed the families on BEFORE A group, but not 100% sure. Someone will chime in to confirm if i was dreaming.
__________________
-Sherri
POR Grand Gathering Feb. 2013 **CSR Grand Gathering 2011, 2009 & 2007
So don't purchase the extra $10 per ticket for early bird check-in, you won't need it. You can increase your chances of getting in the A group itself by checking in at exactly the 24 hour mark. (I want to say that I've even seen flights where they've allowed the families on BEFORE A group, but not 100% sure. Someone will chime in to confirm if i was dreaming.
Southwest used to allow families to board before the A but since they instituted Early Bird for a fee, they no longer do so. Also, Southwest has been known to cancel family boarding on flights to/from Orlando because there are so many families with young children. Family boarding would be the entire passenger list. Family boarding is not something they always offer, but a convenience they usually offer.
Bottom line: If you want to be guaranteed you'll sit together, either buy the EBCI or check in right at 24 hours. Do not rely on family boarding to get your family on the plane when you can still get seats together.
Southwest used to allow families to board before the A but since they instituted Early Bird for a fee, they no longer do so. Also, Southwest has been known to cancel family boarding on flights to/from Orlando because there are so many families with young children. Family boarding would be the entire passenger list. Family boarding is not something they always offer, but a convenience they usually offer.
Bottom line: If you want to be guaranteed you'll sit together, either buy the EBCI or check in right at 24 hours. Do not rely on family boarding to get your family on the plane when you can still get seats together.
I agree, and depending on what time your flight is and where it was coming from, it could already be half full by the time you get on. We always get early bird check in.
Thanks for the update on the family boarding procedures for SW: I didn't realize they would sometimes cancel that process and wish they would specify that on their site - that it's an "option" for each particular flight.
I myself always purchase EBCI for our family of three, although I was recently disaappointed when traveling to LAV and PHX seeing how many EBCI customers ahead of us were "saving" seats for those in their party who didn't buy it; with EBCI we were still in the back half of the plane.
__________________
-Sherri
POR Grand Gathering Feb. 2013 **CSR Grand Gathering 2011, 2009 & 2007
Most flights I've been on to or from MCO, regardless of the airline, have not had early boarding for families. As someone said upthread, that would mean probably half the plane boarding early.
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