The After a 12 year break...TWICE IN 10 MONTHS?!?! WOOHOO!! - UPDATED 7/7 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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The After a 12 year break...TWICE IN 10 MONTHS?!?! WOOHOO!! - UPDATED 7/7
Yes people, after not going for 12 LOOOOOOOOOOONG years, we're going for the 2nd time in 10 months. The Best news is, our DD HAS NO CLUE!! First, we need some background on how this trip came about.
We finally got to take our first family trip last year. We did a pkg deal of six nights at Pop Century, 7 day MYW hoppers, and the DDP. Here is a link to our 1st trip report: http://www.passporterboards.com/foru...te-8-24-a.html After booking the pkg the good people on this board helped me figure out that we could turn our MYW hoppers into AP's cheaper than we could buy more MYW hoppers for this year, since we were already thinking about the next trip. Once we got back, lots of things happened. Here's a partial list:
1. I got laid off from my job, without warning, 8 days after we got home. I wasn't out of work very long and I ended up with a better job, but it was still a shock, both to my psyche AND to our pocketbook.
2. Our Dodge Neon had to have $1000 worth of mechanical repairs. We got that done and the transmission went out, which was another $1500. This happened within 2 months of getting home from WDW. Needless to say, the quick trip we were planning for January did'nt happen.
After getting thru the car fiasco, job woes, and Christmas, we started to plan for a trip this summer.
Coming Soon: In our next episode, you'll find out why we had to rearrange our trip(more than once).
Barry
__________________
The early bird may get the worm...but the 2nd mouse gets the cheese
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In the words of the great philosopher David Bowie: Ch...Ch...Ch... Changes...
Orignally, our summer trip was scheduled for June 20 - 28. Being on a budget we swallowed hard and booked Comfort Inn LBV for $55 a night thru Stefffe's job. That gave us 7 full days to tour, with 4 adr's and plans to eat offsite and CS the rest of the trip. At work one day, Stefffe calls and tells me that her Dad is being installed as Worshipful Master of the local Masons lodge June 26th and my Mom informs me that I'm cooking for my Stepdad's 80th b-day party on June 28th. So its time for a change of plans.
We decide to move the trip up to May 30 - June 7, still staying at CILBV, and still with 4 adr's and plans to eat offsite and CS the rest of the trip. It actually might work to our advantage going sooner as hopefully the crowds will be smaller. Hey...a guy can dream, right??? A week or so later, Stefffe calls me at work again and asks me if I'm sitting down. After bracing myself for the worst I said yes, and my lovely wife informs me that she has snuck off to the casino at Delta Downs and WON $2000on a penny machine. That bears repeating here...$2000!!!!!!! Being the dutiful husband and Disney freak that I am, I tell her to take MY money out of the machine and go STRAIGHT TO THE BANK. I get visions of disney hotels dancing in my head, instead of offsite budget motels. So for us, that means Pop Century again. After a couple of phone calls, we're staying onsite AND its paid for.
Next episode: we're not through with the changes yet....
Barry
__________________
The early bird may get the worm...but the 2nd mouse gets the cheese
We go to Delta Downs often, but we usually watch the horses run. I NEVER have luck on the machines. I've won more on the horse races than on the machines. BTW - I'm taking Terry there in two weeks for a surprise birthday present. We'll be spending the night at the hotel and going to the Look-Out Resturant.
We go to Delta Downs often, but we usually watch the horses run. I NEVER have luck on the machines. I've won more on the horse races than on the machines. BTW - I'm taking Terry there in two weeks for a surprise birthday present. We'll be spending the night at the hotel and going to the Look-Out Resturant.
Great start to the trip - can't wait for more!!!
I don't have any luck with the machines either. I go to watch the ponies run and let Stefffe win all the money in the casino.
Barry
__________________
The early bird may get the worm...but the 2nd mouse gets the cheese
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Stefffe's Dad went to the doctor and a lump was found in one of his kidneys. A cancerous lump. The doctor said it was isolated and completely encapsulated, but the kidney would have to be removed, pronto. As it turns out, the docs idea of pronto and mine don't mesh, because the surgery was scheduled for June 2nd, a full month after the problem was discovered. Guess where we were supposed to be on June 2nd? So it was time for more changes... After debating different dates, we decided to move it back 16 days to fit it in between my family reunion and officer installation/b-day party week. Also about this time, AP rates came out, but with nothing available at Pop, we moved to ASSports. We'll have a car, so if the busses at the All Stars don't work for us, we'll drive where we need to go.
At the same time all of this was going on(last week of March-1st week of April) I got a job offer I could'nt turn down. So I started a new job on April 10th that had me working 75 hours a week for the 1st month, but allowed me to take my vacation 2 months after starting work.
Last Monday 6/2/08, Stefffe's Dad was in surgery for 3 1/2 hours, spent 30 minutes in recovery, bypassed ICU and went straight back to his regular room. The next day he was up walking, the day after that he walked the whole 4th floor at the hospital, and the day after that he was home...still sore, but home. Today, 6/7/08, we hung out at his house to watch the Belmont Stakes. He isn't back to normal yet, but he's doing better than we could have possibly hoped for at this stage. I told Stefffe when I walked in his house and he was sitting in his recliner, I would do a pre-trip report. That time has come:
Barry(me) - 41...certified nut, Disney and otherwise. 3rd trip total
Stefffe - 41...as nutty as me. 5th trip total
Kayla - 10...no longer a Disney rookie. 2nd trip
June 15 - 23 All Star Sports Resort plus one night at Masters Inn I-Drive departing on June 24. We added an extra night just because we could.
Celebration - Our 2nd trip as a family. AP'S RULE!!!!!! We love our ap's. They were so worth the investment.
Next episode: Our itenirary.
Barry
__________________
The early bird may get the worm...but the 2nd mouse gets the cheese
Glad Stefffe's Dad is doing well! Now you can enjoy your vacation.
You mentioned you are driving. What time are you leaving on June 15th?
We're planning on leaving EARLY...between 3 and 4 am. Hopefully we'll be past Baton Rouge before rush hour. Mapquest says the trip door to door is 13 hours and 2 minutes. Apparently, nobody at mapquest has made the trip with our 10 year old. I'm thinking 15 hours after potty breaks.
Barry
__________________
The early bird may get the worm...but the 2nd mouse gets the cheese
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
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The After a 12 year break...TWICE IN 10 MONTHS?!?! WOOHOO!! - UPDATED 7/7
Once we got back, lots of things happened. Here's a partial list:
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Pixie Dust
More please 
, 
I get visions of disney hotels dancing in my head, instead of offsite budget motels. So for us, that means Pop Century again. 
After a couple of phone calls, we're staying onsite AND its paid for. 
So it was time for more changes... After debating different dates, we decided to move it back 16 days to fit it in between my family reunion and officer installation/b-day party week. Also about this time, AP rates came out, but with nothing available at Pop, we moved to ASSports. We'll have a car, so if the busses at the All Stars don't work for us, we'll drive where we need to go. 
That time has come:
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