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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
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My DS will be a little over 2 years old when we go. I am bringing his stroller, but I am sure he will want to walk around too. I am thinking about the harness.....good idea?
Also, he is too young for a bracelt or necklace, I think he will take them off.....can someone tell me where to get those labels for the clothes again?
We used the monkey backpack w/ ds (2yo) in December and it was WONDERFUL...I highly recommend it!
As far as tagging him w/ info. I picked up the laser engraved silicone bracelets from here. They were super cheap (less than $12 for four of them including shipping!) and worked great for both ds and dd (6.5yo). I put "If Lost Call Mom (cell) ###" and If Lost Call Dad (cell) ###." Dd wore hers on her wrist and ds wore his on his ANKLE!
To be honest, I thought about the labels but ds would have hated it. He wasn't overly thrilled w/ the bracelet on his ankle when we put it on each morning, but quickly forgot about it and didn't even notice it for the rest of the day. I also wasn't interested in the shoe options because dd wore her crocs through most of our trip and they won't work w/ crocs!
I love the bracelets, we just used them last weekend for a trip to the science museum!
With older kids I would also recommend playing "find the cast member." We played this w/ dd a few times every day!
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I haven't read all the posts on this yet, but read a few comments about cell phones for kids. We bought a Firefly phone for my ds to take when he goes to see his dad (not a great situation). It makes him feel closer to me while he is gone and He LOVES it. It is prepaid (actually a Cingular company) and there are only five buttons on it. A button w/ a girl (for mommy, nana, sis and so on) and a botton w/ a boy (for daddy, step-dad papaw, brother, etc), there are three other buttons that allow the parent to program the numbers in a select ringtone and fun stuff like that. There is also an emergency button that you can program w/ a number. We will be using this when we go in Sept for him to keep in his pocket (it is TINY). Just a thought, you can check them out at Firefly Mobile: The Mobile Phone for Mobile Kids
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
As far as the harnesses...we use these when we went on a disney cruise on the islands and airport when the children were 2 years old. I still have them but think they are too old for them and would just unzip them and out they'd go! I plan to rent a double stoller to rest their weary legs but still they can wander when out of them. I DO NOT plan to lose my children but I have taken some precautions for our trip next week.
I did find the identification tags (dog tags) on line and they come as doubles at a very reasonable price. Personally though, I wouldn't have cared how much they were, I was getting them for the kids. The first tag has their name and home address and phone number on it, the second one has please call mommy and my cell phone or my daddy and his cell phone. Hers have a purple covering on the sides and back and my son's has blue. They both think they are very cool and can't wait to wear them.
They also know that if they can't find mom, dad, or pap that they should find a mommy with children and show them their tags. Or, find a CM and I will show them how they are dressed each day.
You never anticipate that your child will be lost but I want them to know that it is a possibility and they should not be frightened....we will be frightened for them! I want them to understand that mommy and daddy don't think they will get lost but it is just a safety net since they are too young to remember our phone numbers.
When my DD was about 2, both my kids were playing in the squirting fountain at Downtown Disney and DH was off getting drinks. It way May and I was standing uder a tree that was swarming with Love Bugs. I turned literally for 2 seconds to grab the stroller and move to the other side of the fountain and she was gone. I grabbed DS's hand and started to run. A CM saw me in a panic and immediately got on his radio with a description. She was found within about 5 minutes. She was checking out the toys in the Rainforest Cafe gift shop. It was the worst 5 minutes of my life. I still get a knot in my stomach just thinking about it and that was 7 years ago.
The CM's were awesome in getting the word out and the other guests pitched in as well. It looked like a giant game of hide & seek. People looking all over calling "SAAAAAAMMMMY". Thank God she was OK.
We also got "family vacation shirts" everyone has their own design with their name on them and on the back they say "vacation 2008" I figure between the baclets, t-shirts,and tags on the kids lanyards I should be ok.....Do you think I went overboard?
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
You all have such great ideas. I am wondering, can I just write the info with a permanent marker on the inside of any silicone bracelet or will it rub/wash off?
We did the cell phone number necklace with DD when she was younger (5 or so) -- she also wore it to the State Fair, Mall of America, anywhere we might get separated.
We only use our cell phones in emergencies (outgoing calls), so DD wouldn't know the number on a good day. I'm not worried about her remembering her or my name, or finding a CM. But it would be nice if they could call!
Now that she's older, I like the silicone bracelet idea. You can buy a cheap one at Walmart and write the info inside it with a Sharpie.
I am making a tag for my 6 year old to wear, we had this conversation yesterday. He understands about security, police and disney employees but asked that since he can't remember the cell numbers to make him a tag like he has at school. It is worn around his neck and since he is used to something being there he won't be messing with it. I told someone that I was making a luggage tag for him to wear and they asked if he was riding with the baggage.
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
You all have such great ideas. I am wondering, can I just write the info with a permanent marker on the inside of any silicone bracelet or will it rub/wash off?
I think, becasue of the type of material, it would rub off.
You all have such great ideas. I am wondering, can I just write the info with a permanent marker on the inside of any silicone bracelet or will it rub/wash off?
The ones we used from Sharene are engraved w/ no coloring in the writing at all. I preferred this because no one can see the info unless they are very close to it.
We got the braclets from Sharene also...my kids love them so much they are already wearing them. I love that you can't see the writing uless you are practiclly holding the braclet.
When we go in July, we will have a cell phone for our 8 year old (he has been asking for one since he turned 8), just like his 14 year old brother [...]
They have cell phones now that specifically include a GPS feature that lets parents track and locate their kids; consider looking for that, when getting a phone for your eight year old.
They have cell phones now that specifically include a GPS feature that lets parents track and locate their kids; consider looking for that, when getting a phone for your eight year old.
Thanks, Sean, we are considering the Verizon Chaperone system!
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
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