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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I love the pictures of the castle and all of the angles, just beautiful. And from all of your pictures, this seems like an absolutely beautiful park! But, the bathrooms....no Way!! Soy sauce and butter huh??? That facade for IASW is amazing. Thanks for all of the pics it's great to be 'touring' with you.
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Being half Japanese, I know I would love the soy and butter popcorn, and I'd probably like the curry flavor also. I've been thinking about the soy popcorn all day! I may have to experiment.
Yes, Cheryl did great planning. Never ever go on a Saturday . My DH waited 45 mins just for an egg roll at the egg roll cart . We couldn't believe our luck with the lines this trip - there were hardly any! I have been told that we really lucked out. I have a friend here that has been 3-4 times and has faced mobs every time and he has visited on different days of the week each time too. He didn't believe me when I told him how we could just walk up to the rides. It was awesome!
Sorry for hijacking the thread - just wanted to share that
No problem. I remember your tales of your first visit to Tokyo Disney - it sounded horrible.
Wednesday 8 April – part six: look who’s in the parade!
We headed out through Fantasyland and, on the way, I saw the Winnie the Pooh area, with Pooh’s Hunny Hunt, one of the most popular rides in the park, but sadly it was closed for rehab – the one real shame. Still, it gives us an excuse to come back, I guess!
From there, we walked over to Toontown and this has to be the best one of these I’ve seen. Just everything about it worked. I walked around taking lots of photos, while more rides took place on Gadget’s Go Coaster (this boy does have a one track mind!)
Before long, I realised that it was time for the parade and even though it was late, I thought I could still get a decent spot near the end of it and sure enough, I did find a great spot. I bet you can’t tell that I wasn’t front row, can you? I figured that the way the Japanese wait for the parades would help – look at this to see what I mean. They stake out their spots and put blankets on the floor and everyone else respects that and won’t go anywhere near their blanket, so they even up with space around them. If only it was like this at other Disney parks.
The costumes were so lovely and colourful and the floats were very striking. All in all, I thought this was an excellent parade and it was interesting to hear the reception for characters such as Stitch, the Monsters Inc. guys and the Toy Story characters, all of whom are obviously hugely popular out there. And best of all, I saw my donkey boy, which I wasn’t expecting. Bonus!
By the way, I did just want to add that the next installment will be worth waiting for - trust me, it really is the most magical Disney moment ever for us.
By the way, I did just want to add that the next installment will be worth waiting for - trust me, it really is the most magical Disney moment ever for us.
Can't wait, can't wait, can't wait!!!!! How about a hint?
Such amazing floats in that parade--you certainly did score a great spot to view it despite not being there really early.
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wow, another great update! those Towntown pics! Love all the detail, the different buildings, Chip-Dales's tree, etc. Would definitely love to see that in person. (Hmmm,you're making me start to think about a Tokyo trip of my own...) Also that parade looks fantastic. Looks like a mixture of all the parades at WDW. thanks!
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Okay...those pictures are absolutely beautiful. The theming at this park just seems to be a notch above the others. The colors, the whimsy (not often you get to use that word ) it just is amazing. And the parade looked fabulous!!! Although when I first saw this picture, I thought she had a ventriloquist's dummy on her arm
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Originally Posted by chezp
Thanks for so many GREAT pictures. And I can't wait to find out what the most magical Disney moment Ever is!!
Toon Town looks so awesome! The parade looks neat...I found it odd that you only saw it from one side of the street though...
That's probably because where I stood was literally right at the end of the parade route - about five or six metres further on, they disappeared backstage. I think, for the rest of the route, apart from the last bit through Toontown, you can view it from both sides.
I how Toontown is really a town there. The school, post office, & lots more houses! The parade pics were great! I have to agree with the other posts, there seems to be so much more detail atTokyo Disney. I how the cash register at the Pooh store was a honey pot! Can't wait for tomorrow's update!
Toontown reminded me a lot of the one at DL. I love the Gadget coaster! I see a lot of DL elements at Tokyo Disneyland. I love it. And I like how they put a different flavor on things. The parade looked great. I see some of the Pixar Parade in it (the Incredibles riding the Segway scooter things, and the Monsters Inc. decontaminators!)
I've been thinking about going within the next 2-3 years. Now I want to go even sooner.
Looking forward to your magical moment!!