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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
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Whenever I talk about our last day plans, Stefanie moans and reminds me, "We aren't even there yet." I enjoy saying in two weeks or one week we'll be doing whatever, except for that last day.
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.
Well, we got the laundry done today, found the camera that was missing (thank goodness, as it is the better fo teh 2 we have!), attempted to get the yard mowed (mower won't start, and we can't figure out why....it's got gas and oil, it's spark plug's firing, battery is NOW dead, but was turning over, it just won't catch), DH is right now finishing getting his suitcase together, and DD still believes in camping. Tomorrow will be cleaning out the car and getting the stuff that we need to take down to my parents and in-laws into it. Then, tomorrow night, we go to the fireworks display. We didnt' buy fireworks this year, so we'll go to one of the several fairs in the area. 5 MORE DAYS!!!!!
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Congrats on 5 more days! Amazing that you've managed to keep it a secret, when do you think he'll figure it out!
Well, I thnk we've got it pretty well planned. The story is this: DFIL is going to be nice to give me a ride back to Jackson Wednesday when we go to the coast to drop off the car, and I've got DD convinced to ask him if he would like to go camping with us. Well, of course he can deny her nothing, so he will give in, and we will pick up the van (because we now have an extra person and we won't all fit in the car) on Thursday after taking DH to work for his 1/2 day. DFIL and I will pack the van, then we'll get DH from work, and head south to pick up DS16. About the time we get 1/2 an hour or so from his mom's, we'll call and have her give him his first treasure hunt clue. DD will have gotten hers when we go get the van. They'll think we're going camping right up until the point the 2nd staged conversation happens as we cross into FL, which will sound like this:
DFIL: "Hey, Donna, Mike, since we're this close, why don't we go ahead and go to family reunion for the weekend, then go camping afterwards for the week."
Me or DH: "That would be great, Grumpy! What do you think, kids?"
Then, we'll do family reunion, and Sunday morning we will check out of the hotel and head to Disney. As long as they don't realize we're headed South instead of North, they won't figure it out until we drive under the Welcome sign.
The introductory treasure hunt cards read:
For DD5: "With an extra person on our exciting adventure, we will definately need a larger vehicle! So, let's go see if we can find a Fairy Godmother who would be willing to loan us a larger carriage!"
For DS16: "Keep a weathered eye to the SouthWest, for a larger than expected ship is about to dock. It is captained and crewed by all the usual scalawags, but an unexpected Ol' Salt has commandeered a spot of his own!"