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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Ok I ripped off Hamlet but need some help planning. I am thinking about our flight next year to WDW! I am thinking about a 7 in the morning flight. This is one Southwest Airlines. 7 am is very early, but would get us into Orlando about 5 pm. Then we still need to get to our motel and all that. To fly at 7 I have to get to the airport by 5 am. Which means getting up at 4 am!!! I am no longer young and need my sleep. But maybe one night I can go to bed early to get up that early. How late can I check into a Disney resort?? Is it better to just stay up all night or to sleep at the airport??? Please give your advice!!!
I was just worried rather to leave at 7:00 am or 9:00 am soo it seems you have a long first day as long as you dont expect to do a park on the day of arrival!I only have a 2 hour flight ....
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WDW 2000,WDW 2003, wdw2006,WDL 2007,WDW 2008, planning aug 2009
You can check in anytime Scott The question is, do you want to spend your first whole day traveling? Not that you have much choice. Another option is to leave the night before, fly all night, get checked in, take a nap and maybe get some park time in before closing. If you can sleep on the plan this may be an option. Talk to our friend Tricia, too - she's a pro at these cross country trips
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We don't have to travel as far, so we find that the 7 AM Southwest flight is a good idea for us. We also have Stefanie who can't and won't sleep more than 2 - 4 hours the night before Disney anyway, so we don't get to sleep much either. and for making your decision.
I don't think we will go to a park the first day. If we take Jetblue-- it will take 7 and a half hours. That and the time difference will pretty much wipe out Saturday. We will hit the parks Sunday morning.
We will often get a Priceline room at the airport if we have an early flight. I have never paid over $50. and it is worth it not to have to worry about missing your flight. We have actually gotten the Hyatt's in the airport at MCO and Tampa for $50. or less. You will need to bid much closer to your travel date, but other than holiday weekends I have always gotten a room. Last year I stayed at the Burbank Airport Marriott for around $50. a night for 4 nights.
While some people love them I also hate red-eyes, especially if you ahve a stop. I flew back on one last year and even though I was flying alone and there was an empty seat, I still could not sleep.
We will often get a Priceline room at the airport if we have an early flight. I have never paid over $50. and it is worth it not to have to worry about missing your flight. We have actually gotten the Hyatt's in the airport at MCO and Tampa for $50. or less. You will need to bid much closer to your travel date, but other than holiday weekends I have always gotten a room. Last year I stayed at the Burbank Airport Marriott for around $50. a night for 4 nights.
While some people love them I also hate red-eyes, especially if you ahve a stop. I flew back on one last year and even though I was flying alone and there was an empty seat, I still could not sleep.
A Red eye does not sound good. If we get into Orlando at(say 7) in the morning we could not check into a resort till 3 in the afternoon. We would have to watch luggage all day. Not fun.
We checked in to WL at 10:30pm. It might have been a good thing that we checked in so late because we got upgraded to Club Level. My fifteen years in the hotel business tells me they gave our room category away, and gave us a "complimentary" upgrade when we actually did show up!
If you took the red-ey you could potentiall get the hotel to hold your luggage, if your staying on property they definatly would. If you could sleep on the plane, you might be able to get in early and hit the ground running...
Thanks Patty that is some useful information!!! If we could store our luggage somewhere and then check in at the normal time maybe we could just fly late Friday night.
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The question is, do you want to spend your first whole day traveling? Not that you have much choice. Another option is to leave the night before, fly all night, get checked in, take a nap and maybe get some park time in before closing. If you can sleep on the plan this may be an option. Talk to our friend Tricia, too - she's a pro at these cross country trips 
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for making your decision.
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