Sparky's Gone to the World- A TR 9/13/11-9/20/11 - Page 14 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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.
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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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Hello again friends! I am back to say that I just had another payment go through which makes our balance $120.08!! Plus the insurance when we add it. I know that went up. So for us it will add another $133.90 so we are actually at $253.98. But that is still FABULOUS for our final payment!
Also, my DH's profit sharing check came yesterday so that will go in the bank tomorrow. By Tuesday I should be ordering some more gift cards. I have decided with what is left I am just buying gift cards so we don't have to put anything on the credit cards, other than what we HAVE to. So I will buy a gift card or two each for DH and I and one for tips. That should cover that! Question my friends....
I plan for tips, snacks, extra meals....$250. $200 spending money for me and $150 for DH. How would you buy the gift cards? I thought about breaking them into 2 cards. I am so afraid of losing them...but I don't want to carry around a crap load of cards either. Though, I could just go to the front desk and pay some of whatever does get charged off with the gift cards and not even carry them at all. Hmmmm.....
WWYD?
Yay on the payment! Almost there!
Here's what we do. I put $$$$ on a "travel card". It's like a pre-paid Visa or MC you get from the bank (credit union). I take that and some cash. Most everything goes on the card. We paid our DxDP and Annual Passes that way (we are DVC so our hotel is covered). That way everything is paid up front like a debit card (but they don't have access to my checking/savings account like they would if I used a debit card). We use cash for travel expenses like gas/tolls/food etc. when we drive down. So we only have to carry one extra card.
Yay on the payment! Almost there!
Here's what we do. I put $$$$ on a "travel card". It's like a pre-paid Visa or MC you get from the bank (credit union). I take that and some cash. Most everything goes on the card. We paid our DxDP and Annual Passes that way (we are DVC so our hotel is covered). That way everything is paid up front like a debit card (but they don't have access to my checking/savings account like they would if I used a debit card). We use cash for travel expenses like gas/tolls/food etc. when we drive down. So we only have to carry one extra card.
I'll have to look into that. Maybe my bank does it. Thanks Coop!
few more hours and I'll be at 73 days!
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I would probably bring 2 gift cards. That way, like you said, you are not carrying around a bunch of cards.
Thanks Kathy. I am thinking that I will just have one for the tips, extra meals, snacks, etc. and I will get one with both my and DH's money on it. 2 cards...easy. Idk...bc that still has me carrying around 3-4 giftcards and 3 KTTW cards. I carry all 3 of ours. Maybe I'll go back to the original plan of putting the money on the cc and using it. IDK....
I keep the cash in the room safe and charge everything to the room. The night before we check out I pay off the charges with cash and then just carry my cc on the last day to pay for any additional things. You could do the same with the gift cards. Leave them in the room and just have them applied to your charges at the end of the trip. I believe each card can be loaded to as much as $500.
I keep the cash in the room safe and charge everything to the room. The night before we check out I pay off the charges with cash and then just carry my cc on the last day to pay for any additional things. You could do the same with the gift cards. Leave them in the room and just have them applied to your charges at the end of the trip. I believe each card can be loaded to as much as $500.
This is what I was thinking. I would have to get down there before they charge off on my cc though right? Bc I do intend to connect my room to my cc. I don't know....I have to think on this a bit. But I will definately let everyone know what I come up with. Thanks for you imput, I appreciate it!
I just got a letter yesterday about a vacation acct/card and of course thought DISNEY!! As of now, I have a cc that i keep at $500 acct limit which is strictly for vacations ONLY. It's sitting at $0 just waiting for October.
As soon as moving expenses are paid, I'm socking $$$ in that vacation account.
Congrats on the PP meets!! Sorry IT2BAB is closed. I like it but always find myself lifting my feet and sitting forward in my seat at certain moments
I just got a letter yesterday about a vacation acct/card and of course thought DISNEY!! As of now, I have a cc that i keep at $500 acct limit which is strictly for vacations ONLY. It's sitting at $0 just waiting for October.
As soon as moving expenses are paid, I'm socking $$$ in that vacation account.
Congrats on the PP meets!! Sorry IT2BAB is closed. I like it but always find myself lifting my feet and sitting forward in my seat at certain moments
Sounds like a good plan!
Quote:
Originally Posted by DisneyDana
I haven't heard that about Ohana, but I hope that's not true. ugh!
Yeah, that is what I heard. But who knows really if it's true. I still plan to ask my TA when I talk to her and make my final payment in a couple weeks.
Well friends, I worked on some of my WDW budgeting this morning. DH's profit sharing check came in and so I set to work...spending if of course! JK...well not really.
I have decided to get gift cards for a couple things and just credit card it the rest of the way. It's not like I don't have the money. So, I pulled up my budgeting lists and decided right away that I needed to get the Photopass cd pre-offer and CRT payment out of the way. I figured if I get a gift card for CRT, then it won't go on the credit card at the time. That's 2 things knocked off the list! Yipppeee!
I will be calling my TA in the next week to make my final payment of $253.08. I will be PIF before my final payment date! I never thought I would see the day! LOL
DH is getting a new pair of boots (he landscapes in the summer), he needs them! I told him to go to the store pick the boots he wants, then note the size, product #, and price. With this info, I am hoping I can find them online cheaper. Once that is taken care of, along with a couple minor car issues so he can get his car inspected this month. The rest will go straight onto the credit card. I am feeling pretty happy today.
In one hour I will officially be at 69 days! I can't believe how fast the time is going by.
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So for us it will add another $133.90 so we are actually at $253.98. But that is still FABULOUS for our final payment!
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"Sparky"(My first trip.)
Not much left now! 
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