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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 have a chance to go to Las Vegas president's weekend in Feb. We can get decent rates at Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand and Luxor. We're a family of 4, DDs are teens, we're there to see the sights in/around the Strip and try to see Hoover Dam and maybe Red Rock Canyon or the Valley of Fire. Any thoughts would be great, thanks!
I was just in Vegas a few weekends ago and had a fun whirlwind trip. I stayed in NY-NY but spent a lot of time in MGM because of the monorail.
The monorail runs along the west side of the strip from MGM on the south to the far north end. It runs "behind" the casinos. I highly suggest checking this out as you can save lots of walking by riding one way. There are discounts available on line for unlimited 24 hour passes.
Luxor is on the extreme south end of the strip and I would almost avoid it just for that.
I can't help with the hotels, as on our stays we've been at the Venetian and Bellagio, but I thoroughly recommend Hoover Dam, Red Rock Canyon and Valley of Fire. All are definitely worth seeing!
We had a rental car for our stay in Vegas and the only nightmare is picking it up/dropping it back from the airport, as the car rental place is in a separate location away from the terminals and it's a pain to get to and from it. However, we enjoyed having the car with us, as valet parking is free at the resorts (nice change from Disney ) and we were told about the back roads that run parallel to the Strip, and we just took those and got everywhere pretty quickly.
We've stayed an Mandalay Bay in the past and it worked out great. It worked out because we weren't in all the traffic just to get out to site see. You are near the end of the strip and can go right out of the parking and you are near the freeways. You can always walk or drive to the other hotels if you want.
One evening we drove up towards Bellagio and parked and walked around up there. We were able to get into the car and drive back later on.
Another great place to check out is Death Valley. You can check out Chez's last trip report for pictures. We have driven up there everytime we have been out to Vegas.
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My parents have stayed at the Luxor and really liked it because it was out of the way. Mandalay Bay seems to offer a lot for the teens (or at least it did when we were out there a few years back).
Many hotels offer on-sight car rental companies. We stayed at Aladdins (It's now Planet Hollywood) and were able to get a decent price on a one day rental to head out to tour the Hoover Dam. There was also a pretty good chocolate factory friends have toured - but I can't remember much beyond that now.
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The Fun, Old-Fashioned Family Vacation, 3.0 http://www.passporterboards.com/foru...ml#post4472933
Ch-Ch-Changes July 2015
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I've been the Las Vegas in February and it wasn't warm enough to swim. The average high that time of year is in the 60s, but it could be warmer. Mandalay Bay has an amazing pool if you have a chance to use it. It is farther south on the strip than Luxor (they're next to each other). MGM is a little farther north, but still on the south end. It is huge with lots of restaurants and things to do within walking distance. Of those 3 I would recommend either Mandalay Bay or MGM. Both have lots of restaurants, things to do and are good places on the strip to stay with a family.
I prefer to stay mid strip and can recommend the Mirage for families. They have a nice pool and some of my favorite restaurants - and it's easy walking distance from many sights on the strip.
People have mentioned the monorail. It is a good way to get around, but not cheap and it can be a long walk from the strip to the monorail stations. I agree a rental car is a good idea if you want to get out away from the strip area.
There are so many things to see and do in Las Vegas that you'll have no problem filling your days, just prepare your daughters - it is a city that caters to adults - and if you walk down the strip DON'T take anything from people who are handing out fliers!
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Back in 2005, we stayed at the Luxor. It was fine but I found it too dark, and rather loud since the pyramid is open all the way to the top inside. The location isn't ideal if you want to walk but it's fine if you have a car. Personally, I'd probably pick Mandala Bay. We visited the rest and liked the looks of it. MGM looked nice, too, and is more centrally located. I can't really say why but it just didn't appeal to me all that much.
I've only stayed at the Bellagio, but getting around the strip is easy. There are plenty of taxi's around and I've found the Vegas taxi drivers the friendliest I've run into on my travels.
I've stayed at both the MGM Grand and the Luxor and I prefer the MGM--it's nicer and has FAR better restaurants. However, Mandalay Bay is probably the nicest of the three. Have you checked Hotwire? I've stayed at the Wynn Tower Suites for less than a $100 a night--just make sure you pick a 5 star hotel--you'll end up at Wynn, Venetian, Bellagio, or hmm there's one more it's either Trump or Casesar's I don't remember which.
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) and we were told about the back roads that run parallel to the Strip, and we just took those and got everywhere pretty quickly.
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