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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 my passporter!!! I agree, read it cover to cover...you never know what you might come across!! I like the calender idea!! I take the time to write down in the back about my day before I forget....at least a summary!!
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I use the PP deluxe and agree with the others about reading it cover to cover. I have also added a calendar with the countdown to our next trip. I begin my research with park hours, extra magic hours and special events(most of this info is posted on Disney.com 7-8 months in advance. Once I schedule which park we are attending on which day I make our ADRs. Once our schedule is complete I transfer everything to our pockets so I may review each days itenerary. I remove unnecessary pages from my PP so that I may have room for the pockets. When we are two weeks away from our vacation I prepare our envelopes (Disney Dollar envelopes are perfect for this) for mousekeeping and put each one in the pocket for that day. I also keep a small amount of cash (again in a DD envelope) for each day in my pockets. An envelope is created for each child which contains their own spending money. At the end of the day I add all my receipts to the pocket so that I have them so I can review the total that I have spent for the day so I can make adjustments to our budget for the next day of our trip and to plan future trips. I use the DD envelopes to store cash and receipts for our travel to and from Disney and to again plan future trips and store these in our PP pockets set aside for our travel. Creating these pockets builds anticipation of the trip and keeps me organized which is hard enough to do when planning a trip for five people.
The Passporter is my Disney Bible. Can't live without it. The planning is just an extension of your vacation, its soooo much fun. My friend and I even had a Passporter Night at her house with food and snacks and planning our vacation, it was so much fun. The tips are great and if you join the Passporter Club you can download the greatest E-books and Worksheets that you can print and put into your Passporter. I love everything about it not one complaint.
I don't color code but should. The most important thing about the Passporter is always carry it!!! I know other advice is more important, but the PP has helped us decide on food places more then once. We use the maps a lot--maybe more then all the writing. And we love (ok I love) putting things in the envelopes to save for later!! I now write down what time we go on rides, so I can make a schedule later for the scrapbook.
Get the Deluxe PP, join the PassPorter's Club and use all those fabulous customizable worksheets to make it your PassPorter.
Then subscribe to the newsletter and use the "Tips" worksheet to capture and organize the great tips each week.
Get an empty deluxe binder to keep all the pages from your last trip as you plan the next one, then you won't miss any of the tips and ideas you picked up the last time. Use "Wallies" or embroidered scrapbook stickers to make each binder unique so you can keep them straight.
Put the daily Mousekeeping envelope in the PassPocket for that day, then when you're going over your plans for that day you'll remember to put out the envelope.
The PassPorter community has so much to offer....and it all makes planning and my trips to the "World" all the more magical.
I would up with two PP, lucky me. I took the maps out of the spiral bound and had them laminated. Part of our group find them much easier to read than the big park maps.
I went on my computer and used a picture editing software (Photoshop) to create personalized pages with little squares for notes that I can use when I call WDW for any info and I also write little reminders and ideas. I attached an example.
P.S. Notice the gray punch holes on the left, and since I can't find a 6 hole punch, I use a single punch and go by the guides I made. I got the size and location of the holes from one of the ebooks.
__________________
If you can dream it, you can do it. - Walt Disney
Last edited by watermelonpatty; 04-02-2008 at 03:12 AM..
Reason: Adding info.
I was brought up never to write in brought books and even though PP has been designed for writing in, I still can't make myself do it (my nan pops into my head and tells me off) so I photocopy the pages I want to scribble on and slot the loose pages in where i need them. They also act as bookmarkers.
Having just up graded to deluxe I would also now recommand this version. It is much more user friendly
My passporter is packed. Each day already has a park touring map, tip envelope, reservation #'s and anything else I need to remember. I have a bus schedule, Freebies at Disney, Dining menu's, Pocket guide to Disney Characters, and a pressed pennies guide.
I'd say Make sure to Read PassPorter from Cover to Cover, Highlight and/or Put Sticky notes on important info/pages.
I'd also say make sure since your plans can easily change to start by filling in all the Worksheets and Passpockets first with Pencil and then with Pen when they Are Finalized.
(I learned that 2nd Tip the Hard Way)
Another Tip I'd give (if your flying to WDW) is to look over your worksheets, passpockets and notes on the trip down. That way you have everything fresh in your mind when you arrive.
One more Thing- Always keep your PassPorter with you at all times once in the "World"
Even at the times we did not think we needed the passporter I would think of some tip or suggestion in the book that I'd like to use only to find I do not have my Book so now I always keep my PassPorter with me.
We go to Disney Word for a few days almost every year since we have family nearby. I buy a multiday pass for as many days as I can afford and include the no expiration option. A 10 day pass will give me 3 or 4 years of visits at the current price. Since ticket prices increase every year, I save quite a bit of money. We usually go to the parks 2 or 3 times each trip and since my father-in-law lives 45 minutes from Disney, we stay with him.
__________________
Love, April
Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass;
it's about learning to dance in the rain.
Don't know if someone else mentioned this already, but I put tabs that stick out on special pages or places where I have plans written in. For example, my Packing List pages says "List". This really helps me find what I need quickly. There is a place in the back of the passporter where you can find tabs or create your own labels. I use my own stickies, though, because they stick out more and seem easier to grab.
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