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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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This summer, our adventure travel plans take us to Bolivia!
Who:
Me (40)-I'm into plants and gardens, especially tropical and subtropical, speak pretty good Spanish, do NOT like being cold. Some risk is ok for me, but not as much as DH.
DH (will be 54)-avid bird watcher, risk taker, decreasing endurance due to muscle problem. Speaks enough Spanish to get by on his own.
DS (will be 10)-Mad to be going away for the summer. Wants to stay home with friends. Mostly into Legos and playing with other kids. Doesn't go for the outdoors too much, but can be distracted into enjoying himself. One aim is to settle for some time in a place where there are children for him to play with. He's had Spanish exposure, and I think a little more will get him speaking some.
When: Jun 21-Aug 4 (about 6 weeks).
Where: We are most excited about the tropical cloud forest Yungas region and the Amazon Basin. I'm not interested in the highlands because I don't like being cold.
Why: DH and I value seeing our planet's biomes and experiencing other cultures. We aim to visit places that are friendly, lower crime, and less expensive. We weren't sure where to go this year, as Cuba was the initial plan, but legal visits are no longer budget-friendly. A neighbor of our suggested Bolivia; it was his favorite among the many countries of S. America that he lived in as a street-vending artisan.
***On August 4th, we fly to Indiana to help out with MIL, then on August 16, we drive to WDW for 4-5 nights and take another 4-5 nights in the Keys before coming home on Aug 26th***
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Those are some amazing trips you have planned for the summer! You'll hardly be home!
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
Thanks for joining in, everyone. Dave, you are right. We leave 48 hrs after the last day of work for me, and get back the day before I report back to work. There are rumors flying that they may bring us back a few days earlier than usual this year. I'm going to take a political hit if that's the case, it's bad form to return late. BUT, it is done, so no use worrying about it now. Ooops!
Pam, Cam, Bonnie, and Cheryl, so glad the trip sounds exciting for you! I am much better at sharing my anticipation of a trip than I am in doing a TR afterwards. For SE Asia, I did a pretty good job of doing some live updates, and now that I have tapatalk, hopefully I can include photos without too much hassle.
Budget update:
Tickets Oregon-Bolivia and Bolivia-Indiana: 786 per person.
We will drive from IN to Orlando, with a 1-way rental. Should cost about 200 for the family.
Tickets Orlando-Oregon 127 each. WOW. That was the first ticket I bought!
More info:
DH does not have any interest in visiting Disney Parks. It's HARD to work trips to the parks in and have it feel ok. I'm the only money earner in the family, so it's a little easier than it could be, though!
To make this trip to WDW happen, I had to make some stars align. My DSis got a special deal, kind of like a bounce back, but not offered through Disney, offered through Hilton properties or something. It was for 3 nights at WDW area off site hotel. I told her about our dates, and she planned a trip around them. She's planning to rent a 2 BR timeshare for 4 nights after they use the 3 night Hilton deal, and has invited DS and I to stay with them for that time. Thanks, sis!
Cheryl, Cam, and Pam. Yes, I'm always looking to sneak Disney in! My sis loves to stay in luxury, and she knows how to work all the angles to bring the cost down, like going to timeshare presentations and belonging to members clubs and stuff. For me, it's just not in our budget, even at the steep discounts, but for her, absolutely. She's had a few really hard years with her son, who is adopted and has a trauma history. She needs this trip, and our sisterhood has strengthened through her difficult experiences. I'll buy her some dinners, and maybe offer to pay the tax on the room or something, as my share.
Ticket price increase is scheduled for tomorrow, so yesterday I bought 2 sets of 2 day tickets for DS and I. One park per day. I also booked us a budget hotel for August 16th, our arrival day. The 2 BR with sis will start on the 17th.
Parks we will visit are TBA at this point. DS remembers 3 Caballeros fondly, as well as Club Cool. (BTW, is soda tasting still available at Club Cool in EP?) He is eager to see Avatarland as well, though he hasn't seen the movie. He isn't a thrill ride guy, and probably wont even ride SDMT.
Bolivia Update: In typical fashion, DH is doing tons of research as well as watching tons of documentaries about the area, and I'm just binging on the Disney planning part of the trip.
Nice job getting your park passes before they increase.
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
Cam, thanks for the info! And thanks for the ticket congrats. I'm glad I got them! Dave, thanks! It seems crazy to only have 2 park days, but that's all DS can handle. AlaskanMom, Of course I agree with you! Disney IS important!
Disney Update: Sunday is my first ADR day. I'm aiming for Biergarten at 2pm. Wish me luck!!!
Bolivia update: DH has decided that we need to go to Peru to see Machu Picchu as well. I have never been someone that needs to visit specific sites to "check it off the list". DH is much more into that. I felt the same way about Angkor Wat when we went to SE Asia, but I'm really glad I went and saw it. I don't need to be picky. I'm totally happy with him figuring out our itinerary. The one thing I hope we get to do is settle in a few places for at least a week. Picking up and moving ever 3-4 days is hard after a while.
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Themed environment junkie
Last edited by KimmyAnn1147; 02-16-2018 at 09:41 AM..
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I cannot wait to hear about this. 
Alaskan Mom aka Bonnie
One park per day. I also booked us a budget hotel for August 16th, our arrival day. The 2 BR with sis will start on the 17th. 
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