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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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We were thinking about driving but I am finding some good deals with some airlines. I have a question for y'all. Which Airline has a bad habit of canceling your flight? Do they do that or should i feel ok buying the tickets? I just don't want no last minute calls telling me that they have to switch me to another time.
Well, they all have schedule changes from time to time. And they should contact you when there is a change. However, I think this widely varies by individual/airline!!! Everyone will have personal experiences which have soured them on certain airlines. So I think the best thing for anyone to do is to regularly check your reservation on your own to verify any changes. Maybe just once a week, maybe 2-3 times a week. Be pro-active.
Personally, I've only had issues with AirTran. On two separate trips, they've made rather large schedule changes (by over 2 hours difference) and NOT contacted me. I only found out by checking every week. On one of those trips, the times did not work out at all for what we needed and they did refund our non refundable tickets! So I can't totally complain about that. On the other trip, they changed the flight to a different one that I preferred, no questions asked. So it's not all bad. Just be one step ahead of the game and be super nice over the phone and if you have any issues, they should work with you instead of against you.
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Tanya
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AirTran is the only one I've ever had problems with. They changed our flights multiple times and only once did I get an e-mail. I checked the schedule once a week or so and called whenever they changed us. Our return flight they changed from non-stop to one with a layover much earlier in the day so I ended up canceling that one and getting a refund. They were always very easy to work with but it was a pain so I avoid them now.
I LOVE Airtran never ever have had a problem with them. Now US Airways never again! They couldn't have made my trip any worse if they tried. Changed our times 3 times within a week delaying our trip there. Coming home flight was cancelled while sitting in airport, we asked numerous times and told it was an issue with something mechanical we would be in the air in no time. 2 hours in it was posted online it had been cancelled but they still said no cancellations were made. 4 hrs of sitting and waiting they annouced it was cancelled. Put us up in a hotel with food vouchers and then the bug infested hotel served me spoiled food ( ham and cheese sandwich). I took a shower and sat in the desk chair the rest of the night becuse the bugs were crawling everywhere. We were stranded in NC. When we arrived at airport the next morning I explained what happened at the hotel and I was rudely told "you didn't pay for it so whats the big deal?" I called when we got home and complained and I am still not satisfied. The only thing they said the could do was report the hotel and get back to me I am still waiting and its been a yr!
I don't have advice on which airline to use, as I have used a myriad of them. However, I do have some general flying advice in case you are not a frequent flyer. Here is how Val does airfare:
First I figure out which airport I am going to use (we have a close small one, and then one that is further that is large) I usually pick depending on the rates I'm getting.
Then I check the airline with the cheapest airfare.
THEN I choose the EARLIEST flight they offer. Why you ask? Because on more than one occassion our flight has been grounded for tech issues, or I was bumped, etc. If I'm at the airport at 6 AM, my chances of getting on another flight that morning is very good and won't end up at MCO at midnight.
I always pay attention to any connections, my region connects through either Atlanta, Charlotte or Memphis. Atlanta can get messy if you are flying in the winter, ALL weather in the US seems to effect ATL.
Be careful with regional carriers that advertise direct flights to Orlando, here we have Allegiant Air and they direct flight into Sanford airport which means no Magical Express.
I know this was lengthy but I think I covered alot...most of which you probably already knew! lol