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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Has anyone flown in the same day as embarkation day? I am big planner and researcher. My husband and i decided that we would fly in the same day with our 2.5 year old and I'm getting really nervous about the whole thing. we usually fly into a port a day ahead and get settled for our cruise but decided to do it differently this time.
Has anyone who's done this before have any tips to make the trip go smoothly as possible.
TIA for all your help and tips.
Last edited by Misskatr5; 10-27-2015 at 11:17 PM..
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We have done this twice--once for Port Canaveral and once for Los Angeles.
To make it go smoother, get an early flight. A direct flight is better. But if you have connecting flights, be sure to give yourself enough time to make the connections--we like an hour at least.
If you are flying into Orlando, you can tag your checked luggage to go directly to the ship.
I think it depends on things like the time of year and the weather. We fly from Indianapolis; I could fly in on departure day anytime but winter - I wouldn't risk a snow delay.
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No experience with this, but it would make me very nervous. (Of course, I am a worrier anyway when it comes to being on time to things.) If you are flying into Orlando, remember that it is about an hour to the port. I assume you would take Disney transport from the airport to the ship. That would make me feel a little easier. Of course, as mentioned, be sure you have plenty of time between connections and are arriving early in the day.
Fly in the day before!!!!! In the perfect world, and many of do live in that one, everything will go according to your plans however........ Folks do it both way all the time with good and bad results. You have to decide what works for you. I'd fly in the day before as you never what can happen.
I guess it really depends on where you are flying from and to. I have done same-day flights for a couple cruises, but I have only done them in the fall (minimal snow risk) and I always take the earliest direct flight. For example, for our cruise last month we flew from CT to Orlando, left at 6am and arrived at 8am. But, for our Alaska cruise 2 years ago we flew from Philadelphia and there were only connecting flights, so we opted to fly in the day before so we wouldn't have to worry about the timing (and we could get less expensive flights as well).
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The only time we have missed a connecting flight was in June. Thunder storms kept us on the tarmac for 1 1/2 hours, missed our connecting flight. We were a day before the cruise. Snow isn't the only potential delay when flying.
__________________
Kim
1984 WDW off-site, 2003 WDW ASS, Poly, Wonder, 2006 WDW PC, 2011 Wonder to Alaska,
2012 Wonder EBPC, 2014 Magic WBTA, 2016 WDW CSR
Here is a thought no one has mentioned yet. We flew in on the day of Embarkation once - On our first cruise - and decided we would never do that again. Coming in from Boston we had to get up at 4:00 AM and then a long day of travel and anticipation and we were wiped out by 8:00. One of the big reasons we always come in the day before is that we can settle in and get a reasonable night sleep (As much as anyone can waiting to get on a Disney Cruise !!!) and breakfast in the morning without feeling rushed. Here are a few pics to illustrate dinner on our first night on our first cruise. Just something additional to think about over and above the risk of travel troubles when traveling the day of the Cruise.
Hello my husband and I flew redeye same day on our Disney cruise last year 2014 Halloween on the high seas. We arrived at 9 AM on the same day our cruise sale, we pre-bought the Disney cruise line transfers from the airport to port Canaveral and it worked out for us with no problems ☺️
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
If it is possible to fly the day before I'd definitely do it. Any delays will not be met with an increase level of stress. In our travels we've our flight canceled, baggage lost, flight delayed (from half hour to more than 4 hours ) for many reasons (aircraft issue, weather conditions, and so on.
As we fly international we always plan to arrive at least one day before embarkation, so when we get to the cruise we are already refreshed and relaxed. As cfaletra pointed its not only delays to be considered. Depend on the departure time you will need to wake up before sunrise.
If there is no possibility of an earlier flight, then at least try to get a direct flight that leaves early with plenty of time for delays or any other technical problem. With enough time to embarkation limit its doable.