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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Oh yes, that report would be helpful. I'll enjoy it afterwards as well, I am sure.
My most urgent question is how far is the Newport Beach hotel from the exit of the RER train? I can't access the DLP site easily to find out, flash player required and I am on a device that doesn't use it. So I am not being lazy and not just looking myself. I have been to DLP once, but did not stay on site. I will be coming from central Paris, not Roissy so I can not just take the Disney bus. What do you think? Is there maybe a taxi stand there, or can we walk? It will be me, DS14 and very little luggage.
Which two restaurants should we do? We like table service, don't mind 2 hour meals and don't need characters.
Thanks for any advice you have time to give!
You can walk it - it's probably a good 20 minute walk. I suspect it's the same as it was about a month ago, you have to walk the longer way round, past the New York and Sequoia Lodge hotels, as the other walkway is closed off for the arrival of the Earl of Sandwich in 2011. That's how it was a few weeks ago.
We made bookings when we checked in for restaurants - we did the California Grill and Inventions at the Disneyland Hotel. Inventions was the best character meal we've ever done - absolutely stunning food, although you do pay for it.
Previously, we've done the Blue Lagoon and Plaza Gardens in the Disneyland Park (2008) and Cafe Mickey in the Disney Village (2008) - all were very good. Cafe Mickey was a riot with the characters and the food was pretty good as well. That trip, we also went to Cape Cod at the Newport Bay Club and that was a good buffet as well.
If you don't want to walk to the Newport Bay Club, another option is to take the free Disney shuttle. The bus stop is right by the RER station, and busses run at least every 20 minutes.
As far as restaurants are concerned, my personal favorites are Café Mickey (awesome food even if you don't care about the character interaction) and Annette's Diner (huge selection of diner-style food, large portions, a lot of bang for your buck).
You can walk it - it's probably a good 20 minute walk. I suspect it's the same as it was about a month ago, you have to walk the longer way round, past the New York and Sequoia Lodge hotels, as the other walkway is closed off for the arrival of the Earl of Sandwich in 2011. That's how it was a few weeks ago.
We made bookings when we checked in for restaurants - we did the California Grill and Inventions at the Disneyland Hotel. Inventions was the best character meal we've ever done - absolutely stunning food, although you do pay for it.
Previously, we've done the Blue Lagoon and Plaza Gardens in the Disneyland Park (2008) and Cafe Mickey in the Disney Village (2008) - all were very good. Cafe Mickey was a riot with the characters and the food was pretty good as well. That trip, we also went to Cape Cod at the Newport Bay Club and that was a good buffet as well.
Oh great, there is a shuttle bus from the RER as well (thanks Disneybine). Since I just spent today walking all over the Versailles gardens and Paris by the Seine tonight, that will be very welcome. Thank you both for the restaurant tips! I'll share my experiences in future posts!
Last edited by Principessa; 07-17-2010 at 08:25 PM..
Reason: Corrections