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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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It seems like I say this every year, but I think this was our best trip to Disney yet! I guess our favorite trip will always be the year we went with both the boys, but every year we go back proves to be even better than the year before. This year's trip was perfect....the weather was amazing, the food was outstanding, and each day was fun and relaxing. I took lots of pictures that I can't wait to post along with the details of each day's adventures! A big part of any vacation (for me) is the planning and then a trip report afterwards.
Who: Me (Susan - 50) & DH (Peter - 53) Where: All Star Music Resort When: March 3-10, 2016
Day 1 - 3/03/16 (part one)
We normally drive down, but ended up flying this year due to Peter's work schedule. We flew in 2008 on our very first family trip, and then Nathan and I flew again in 2012 for his Senior Trip. While I don't mind the drive, flying is, by far, the way to go! What normally takes us about 17 hours (stopping for the night and finishing up by mid-day the next day) by car, only took 2 hours by plane! Peter had dreaded flying, but is now a fan! The flight went smoothly, from parking, to checking our bags, to getting through security without any problems. We had thought about driving to Baltimore and spending the night, catching an early flight out, but in the end, we decided to just drive straight there and hop on a mid-day flight. We used the long-term airport parking for only $8.00 per night. In the long run, we figured it to be much cheaper than driving, since we weren't out any travel costs except for the $56.00 for parking and a little gas money!
Once we got through security, boarding was about to start for our flight. We had just enough time for a quick bathroom break, then it was time for us to line up. We had gotten C group #4 & #5, but still managed to get good seats about mid-plane. I chose a seat next to a woman with an infant, hoping the baby would keep Peter's mind off of the flight. The two hours flew by and Peter is now a HUGE fan of flying!!!!!! We took off at 1:15 and we landed exactly 2 hours later (a few minutes earlier than scheduled).
We got off the plane and started looking for Side B /Level 1 - Disney's Magical Express bus. It was super easy to find and we were soon in line. Peter checked his phone and saw that our room was ready and that we didn't even need to come to front desk. Our magic bands were already activated and we were set to go. It was 36 degrees when we took off in Baltimore, and was 82 when we landed!
We love using the DME bus system, since it is right there waiting for us, is free, and is just a great way to get you into Disney mode right from the start! Our bags were being taken care of for us, and would be delivered to our room later.
It wasn't long before we were entering the bubble!!
I had requested Calypso section, which is the closest to the buses and food court, etc, but we ended up getting the next section, JAZZ. Once off the bus, we quickly found our room, and realized that Section 2 of JAZZ (our location) was the next closest section to the front of the resort.
We found our room (#2641) on the third floor, and were very happy to see this king size bed (which we found out later was very, very comfortable). We our room!
Our plans were to head to Magic Kingdom for the remainder of the day, but we were starving by now and really couldn't wait any longer to eat. It was now almost 5:00 and all we had eaten all day was the snack on the plane! We decided to stop in the food court before heading to the park. I got the chicken nuggets & fries and a Mango Orange Tea. Peter got a burger & fries and a Coke. He got M&M's for his dessert choice, I didn't want dessert, so just got a pickle for Peter. (Disney pickles are Peter's favorite). It was very good (but then again, we were starving!).
$34.57 or 2 CS credits
We were now good to go! We got in the Magic Kingdom line at the bus stop and about 5 minutes later, we were on our way. There were lots of people entering Magic Kingdom tonight and there was even a separate line for the 25 Year DVC Annniversary special event.
We had just missed our FP time for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, but had a FP for 7 Dwarfs that was almost ripe, so we headed over to Fantasyland. We both loved the ride (our first time), but Peter said he thought it was a little wilder than BTMRR. After our ride, I wanted to ride the tea cups, which I hadn't done in years. Peter waited while I rode. I really love that ride, but keep the spinning to a minimum!
Sounds like a great day so far and glad that all went smooth on the flight.
The flight was great. I think Peter had built up in his mind that he hated flying. I was so happy when he said it wasn't bad at all and is already talking about flying again next year. We both enjoy the drive down, but it was so nice being in Disney in just two hours!!!
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.
It's so cool to leave home when it's cold and fly just a couple of hours to lots of warmth. Sounds like your room was in a great spot, and so great to get a comfy king-sized bed.
It's so cool to leave home when it's cold and fly just a couple of hours to lots of warmth. Sounds like your room was in a great spot, and so great to get a comfy king-sized bed.
I love going when it's cold at home (although VA was having a heat wave when we returned home last week). We loved our room, it was a comfortable size for the two of us and that bed.....we slept very well all week! It was just a few minutes walk to the main entrance.
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.
About This Page: 
Islandgirl's March 2016 Disney Vacation!
our room! 
Susan
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Pixie Dust
Can't wait to share!! 
Sounds like your room was in a great spot, and so great to get a comfy king-sized bed. 
PassPorter Guide Author
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