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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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While we all love to check out the new things at WDW, what rides, restaurants, character meets, etc. are your must-do's every time?
Which ones especially date back to your first trip or childhood trips to Disney?
Let's share some precious memories!
For me, it's that first sight up Main Street to the Castle. That says I'm really REALLY back in the most magical place on Earth.
And then, I just gotta ride Pirates of the Caribbean, because it was my favorite DL ride the very first time I went to DL a couple years after it opened.
For sheer nostalgia, I absolutely cannot leave WDW without a ride on the Carousel of Progress. It reminds me how marvelously fortunate we are to live in a time and place that has so many technological wonders that make life easier and more enjoyable. Besides, we always do the Carousel when we really need a short sitdown...and maybe a wee nap.
What are your "takes me back to when" things to do at Disney?
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
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My favorite thing to do is Spaceship Earth. Not sure why that slow ride does it for me but it does. I LOVE when it gets stuck. Must be just knowing I'm in that "big ball"
Now, when we go I have to do Pirates. It was my dads favorite ride and now that he's gone I ride it and can hear him singing right along.
My first first agenda item when we arrive is to ride the monorail around the MK area and then around Epcot. It gets me so excited to see it all. Very first ride at MK is the people mover, love love love it! I make my family ride it at least once every day we are in the MK. I remember riding that as a kid when it was the WEDway people mover.
My first first agenda item when we arrive is to ride the monorail around the MK area and then around Epcot. It gets me so excited to see it all. Very first ride at MK is the people mover, love love love it! I make my family ride it at least once every day we are in the MK. I remember riding that as a kid when it was the WEDway people mover.
Love the people mover too, my family makes fun of me but I also remember when it was the WedWay people mover too it's a classic.
We have started a tradition of trying new restaurants on property that we have never dined at before. There's so many places we still haven't been too which is hard to believe. I also always buy a Xmas ornament for the tree and I always have to buy a new disney coffee mug to add to the collection.
Which ones especially date back to your first trip or childhood trips to Disney?
Nothing dates back to then, sadly; when I first went to WDW, age 14, there were still only two parks (MGM opened up later that year). And, we went on a pretty shoestring budget, too. I actually had more spending money from saving my allowance and after-school-job money, than my mother had for herself (even AFTEr she realised, she didn't have to share it with me at all) ...!
Also, I just haven't been that often. Far more often than I ever expected to go, but ... this January will be only our fourth trip.
In 2001, DGF and I started our trip off in Animal Kingdom, and went to Donald Ducks' Breakfastosaurus to start the day off. In 2009, that meal was no longer happening ... but we stayed close in spirit, and started our trip off with Donald Duck's Breakfast Safari, still in AK.
But this year, I really really REALLY want to try and see the MK with all it's Christmas decorations still up - and our first full day, will also be the first Sunday after the New Year, so the decorations will definitely be down before the next morning. So we're shifting our "start it right" character meal to Crystal Palace this year.
(Each of us got a "put your foot down and insist" meal - that one was mine. We a even have pre-park-opening ADR, yayy!)
So, I guess that one, sole tradition is "start with a character breakfast".
I *ADORE* the monorail, the people mover and Spaceship earth. I also adored Figment when I was little. It wasn't as magical 13 years ago but, well, I still have to go.....my favorite part though is watching my kids and husband get caught up in the magic. That makes it the best.
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I always love spending time just wandering around Epcot, as it's my favourite park and we have to see IllumiNations as many times as we can during our trip, as we love it. And I always say a silent goodbye in my head to Epcot when we leave for the last time, and promise that we'll be back.
Now that I live in Orlando I don't have the trip traditions anymore, however I now try to spend my birthday at Bay Lake Towers--I've been successful getting a great room two years in a row! Last year I had just had my first interview for the job I now have in Orlando and drove over to Bay Lake to check in. This year I spent the night at Bay Lake and had a lovely dinner with friends from work!
We usually start out in EPCOT at the International Gateway to get our passes, then head over to get some pizza at Via Napoli. The atmosphere at World Showcase is so upbeat and I love all of the details at the different countries. Then we head over to. Spaceship Earth. Our first day we just try to take it all in.
No trip goes without a visit to Kona Cafe at the Polynesian!! This is the first hotel that I stayed at as a kid, and just the smell of the Polynesian and the beautiful waterfall and atrium bring it all back!!! Lots of good memories!!!
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Disney Trips: BLT & Poly Bungalow 2016, VGF 2015, Fantasy 2015, Saratoga Springs Resort 2014, Grand Villa at VGF 2013, Fantasy 2013, BWV and Kidani Village 2011, BWV and Kidani Village 2010, BWV and Saratoga Springs Resort 2008,Beach Club Villas 2008,Villas at Wilderness Lodge 2006, BWV 2006, BCV 2005, HHI 2004,Polynesian 2003,Grand Floridian 2000/concierge, Honeymoon at Polynesian 1994,Polynesian 1980,Polynesian 1978
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Sue
Hate to disappoint you, Sean, but I bet most of the Christmas stuff will be down by that Sunday since New Year's Day is on Wednesday this coming year.
We were at WDW shortly after New Year's in 2010. Jan. 1 was Friday; we arrived on Monday the 4th. Resort decorations came down that night. We were told that they stay up that long after New Year's only when the day falls out on the weekend. Otherwise, they're gone by 1/3. The only things still up during our stay were the huge trees in each park.
So, you may get to see the park trees, but those will most likely be all. Those were still in place late in the week of our stay, on 1/7 or 8, I forget just when.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
Last edited by Her Dotness; 09-27-2013 at 06:31 AM..
There is a couple of things for me. Seeing the castle for the first time walking around the corner on Main Street. I even look down at the good and won't look up until I can see it.
I HAVE to ride Peter Pan, Haunted Mansion, and Pirates of the Caribbean. As long as I ride those three rides I'm fine for the rest of the trip.
Those three rides really stick out in my mind from when I went my firs time. PP and HM really do it for me, and POTC is a close second to both. This last trip we rode HM 4 times, and POTC 4 times. But PP was just once.
I'm starting to really love walking around the World Showcase. Seeing things that represent the other countries. This will be a must do on our next trip. The kids even loved it.
My son and his father insist on IASW every trip because the song "drives mommy nuts"! The ice cream truck near the marina where our boat is plays only the theme song from the ride over and over all summer long so they have to sing it to me then, too! But it just would not be a trip to Disney without riding it at least once just to see their faces (I might even pretend it's worse than it really is just for them).
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What's becoming a tradition for us is based on our resort location: Boardwalk! We arrive in WDW around 3PM, wander around Epcot, hop on the Fiesta Tour ride, then catch our ADR at San Angel Inn. Not necessarily our favorite place to eat, but the ambiance really sets the mood for a great vacation.
Our first full day in WDW is MK regardless of how busy the park is! Walking down Main Street and seeing Cindy's Castle is so magical and tear-jerking!
Must do's are: HM, POTC, Biergarten, Kona Cafe, and LTT.
In addition, I don't think we would ever visit WDW any other time than the Fall as we love MNSSHP and F&WF. The weather is perfect too!
(BTW- it's snowing here... already 3" of wet snow and more to come and our trees haven't even changed color yet.)
MUST ride the carousel and stop by the sword in the stone. It all reminds me of my Dad. He took me for our first date to see "Sword in the Stone" when I was 3. Having Daddy to myself was very, very special.
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