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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I have never traveled on Southwest, I do watch the Airline show and find it appealing. I was checking the flights at Christmas time and they are quite reasonable. We are thinking about taking a trip next year at New Year's Eve time. My kids are older (16 and 19), but I still want to sit with them. I have this fear of it being a free for all with seating. How does it work, has anybody had trouble getting to sit together? I don't care if we can't all be together, just two and two.
Thanks for suggestions [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
You can check in for your flight up to 24 hours in advance. Boarding is in three classes, A, B, and C. Those first to check in are in the A group, then B, then C.
As long as you get into the A group (which frankly I think over half the plane is) then you shouldn't have a problem sitting together. The same for halfway thru the B group.
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of course, you also need to be at the departing gate to line up and board the plane early enough to get prime seating.
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Yes, please do get there on time. My last SW flight a man w/ 3 teens showed up at the very last minute and then tried to make everyone on the plane move around so they could sit together. He wasn't very popular, to say the least.
And to answer your quetsion about how it works, I too was afraid it would be a free-for-all, but people are pretty cool about it. The gate will have lines for A,B,C. The night before your flight, go to their website and print your boarding pass so you can be in group A. When your group boards, people just find a seat wherever. I was in B group on my last trip and still had no problem. Also, single travelers are usually pretty good about switching around if you ask nicely. Enjoy your trip!
I am a huge SWA fan and have flown with them many times, frequently with our family of five. I have also been in "c" when I've had to switch flights. while there have been times when as a family we've split up 2 and 3, we have never been scattered around the plane.
Even in C group my DD and I sat together.
I've found the flight attendants to be very good about getting other's to accommodate families and have never seen a young child sitting alone.
I just want to say that I agree with what everyone else has said. I fly SWA all the time. If you print your boarding passes the day before and get and A seating then you should be fine. Then just make sure to get in line at least an hour before your flight under your group.
SWA is a great airline and I have always found everyone to be very helpful and nice.
Well, I feel much better now. I will more than likely check in on my 24 hour mark. We are always early. Thanks for all the helpful information. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
We had "C" seats the last time we flew Southwest(I forgot to check in the night before [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif[/img] ) and DH and I still got seats together, and it was a very full flight.
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We had a group of 7 on our first SW flight. I was very worried about how seating worked too. We checked in 24 hours ahead and got A group. Then we were in line early. All 7 of us got seats together!
Amy
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Re: Getting a seat on Southwest
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of course, you also need to be at the departing gate to line up and board the plane early enough to get prime seating.
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This is not really the case unless you are shooting for an exit row -- as long as you are in the A group. As long as you are an A - there will be open rows for the 3 of you to sit together in.
I fly Southwest ALL THE TIME for work - and I never have a problem getting an aisle seat (my preference). I only line up an hour or more early if I am shooting for the exit row (extra leg room).
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