First Ever Disneyland Trip Updated 10/13 - Page 12 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Ooh I love those Pandora charms! I'm so excited to be there too for the 60th Anniversary celebration! I remember being blown away by the World of Color show it was such a cool show. I had forgotten they added a nighttime parade, thanks so much for reminding me and getting me psyched to see it too!
It sounds like your planning is all coming together! I love the Pandora charms that they're offering for the 60th celebration and it's going to be a tough decision which one to choose for your bracelet! The parades sound wonderful and I'm sure all the little touches around the park will make the 60th even more special! We were there for the 50th at DL and it was fun to see all the gold sprinkled around the park!
A little off topic Cam but finding the Disneyland express is not too difficult....it's right outside of baggage claim. I always fly southwest and it was right outside of the same terminal's baggage claim. The tickets the email you will also have somewhere on them exactly where they're located
My brother took his family to Disneyland for the first time in May. They love the experience so much they are planning another trip. My niece loved the trip more than her trip to WDW. They also took the Warner Brothers tour.
I just know this journey will be super awesome for you and Luke. Taking a trip to where the Mouse began has to be the most exciting time for people like us who love all of the Disney experiences.
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Great to read about what you are looking forward to for the 60th. My trip is in Dec, and initially I didn't realize it was a big anniversary year either. I was there for the 30th, age 8, but had no idea there was anything going on. My parents did, though.
I'm not watching any vids of the parade, WOC, or fireworks, cause I want to see them with fresh eyes, but I've seen stills of the parade, and it looks really great. I sure wish DL would get on FP+ and offer priority parade seating. Instead, I'm going to aim for the balcony outside the Jolly Holiday about 20 minute prior and see if we can nail a decent spot.
In any case, thanks for whetting my whistle for these special events! Good luck with the packages. Sheesh!
Ooh I love those Pandora charms! I'm so excited to be there too for the 60th Anniversary celebration! I remember being blown away by the World of Color show it was such a cool show. I had forgotten they added a nighttime parade, thanks so much for reminding me and getting me psyched to see it too!
The Pandora charms are my favorites of the 60th merchandise. I forgot to mention that the fireworks have been reworked, too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MayraLR
Disney offers lots of tempting items for the celebration of the 60th Anniversary.
They sure do, and I can't imagine how much money they will make off all this stuff.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lindawdw
It sounds like your planning is all coming together! I love the Pandora charms that they're offering for the 60th celebration and it's going to be a tough decision which one to choose for your bracelet! The parades sound wonderful and I'm sure all the little touches around the park will make the 60th even more special! We were there for the 50th at DL and it was fun to see all the gold sprinkled around the park!
The castle is supposed to look diamond encrusted so that should be beautiful.
A little off topic Cam but finding the Disneyland express is not too difficult....it's right outside of baggage claim. I always fly southwest and it was right outside of the same terminal's baggage claim. The tickets the email you will also have somewhere on them exactly where they're located
Thanks for the info! Luke had already discovered this, but not mentioned it to me yet.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Roxie2006
My brother took his family to Disneyland for the first time in May. They love the experience so much they are planning another trip. My niece loved the trip more than her trip to WDW. They also took the Warner Brothers tour.
I just know this journey will be super awesome for you and Luke. Taking a trip to where the Mouse began has to be the most exciting time for people like us who love all of the Disney experiences.
You are so right! I keep playing over in my mind: This is the park that Walt built. He actually came to this very park.
Quote:
Originally Posted by OCEANGRLLG
So cool that yall will be there for the 60th anniversary! DL don't seem to make the planning as easy or early as WDW
I'm definitely feeling a more laid-back planning vibe with DLR than WDW.
I am so excited for you and Luke! This sounds like such a great trip, staying at the Grand Californian is on my bucket list! Reading your PTR takes me back to planning our DL trip almost two years ago. It is very different from planning a trip to WDW. I had several issues getting our dinner package booked for WoC. It took a lot of patience, but it worked out in the end.
I shared your concerns about LAX when we flew with Southwest on points and had no other airport option, but in the end it wasn't a bad experience at all. Southwest was in a compact area, the worst part was the super long line to check luggage, but other than that it wasn't bad at all.
I'm still uncertain about most of the 60th merchandise, but the Pandora charms, at least one of them, is a definite.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lexiemom
I am so excited for you and Luke! This sounds like such a great trip, staying at the Grand Californian is on my bucket list! Reading your PTR takes me back to planning our DL trip almost two years ago. It is very different from planning a trip to WDW. I had several issues getting our dinner package booked for WoC. It took a lot of patience, but it worked out in the end.
I shared your concerns about LAX when we flew with Southwest on points and had no other airport option, but in the end it wasn't a bad experience at all. Southwest was in a compact area, the worst part was the super long line to check luggage, but other than that it wasn't bad at all.
Now I am off to YouTube the new parade and WoC!
so much for sharing both experiences. I knows it's bound to work out. Now if I could be more patient. I had hoped we wouldn't have to use LAX, but we needed to use our points to go, so that's where we're headed. But it does help me to know that others have done it and it's probably not as bad as I've imagined.
Paint The Night is AMAZING! My DH, who dislikes parades in general,loved it so much that had his cell phone out and was snapping picture after picture. I really loved WOC (there is a DVC viewing deck at the GC too, but it is small). I gave away our WOC FPs from the tour as our plans had us in Disneyland that night. The dining package reserved areas seem quite a bit better than the FP areas ( we did a dining package the following night). The Disneyland Forever fireworks made me cry.....very touching and well done. The only nighttime show we didn't see was Fantasmic. Sorry you haven't been able to get your dining packages yet. And how crazy that Luke waited so long on the phone to get Halloween party tickets! I'm missing Disneyland! I have to think about when I can get back there.
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I'm so excited to be there too for the 60th Anniversary celebration! I remember being blown away by the World of Color show it was such a cool show. I had forgotten they added a nighttime parade, thanks so much for reminding me and getting me psyched to see it too! 
so much for sharing both experiences. I knows it's bound to work out. Now if I could be more patient. 
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