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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 written a pre trip or trip report before so I thought I would give it a shot!
My DS Austin will turn, OMG!, 13 on July 3rd. I have been thinking about what to do for his birthday considering it is somewhat of a milestone. Yes, I am freaking out that he will be an official teenager. Even though some days he thinks he's 30....
I thought about going to the beach, he loves it, but I am SO fare skinned and get very bored. I thought about a cruise, I would rather take a cruise in the winter months - it makes more sense. I thought about going to the Grand Canyon, then I thought again. Have you ever been there that time of year?! HOT, HOT, HOT! HOTTER than FL! So that was out.
He was sitting and looking at pictures of our last trip a while back. We had eaten @ Whispering Canyon 1 night and he turned to me and said "You know what would be fun?", I said "Tell me what would be fun?", He said "Being able to go to Disney World and staying at the hotel this restaurant was at.", I laughed and said "Yeah, that would be fun - if we won the lottery!".
Me being a single working full time mom, who also attends classes @ MTSU full time, who also pet sits for extra cash on the side, the only supporter of my wonderful only child, would NEVER be able to afford that kind of trip :-(
Sorry! I am home this week due to having surgery on my deviated septum and Austin only had a 1/2 day at school! You know how kids are....What are you doing? What is that website? BLAH, BLAH, BLAH! LOL! So, I had to stop until he was finished making sure I was ok and didn't need anything :-) He is happily watching "The Beverly Hillbillies" right now....Sigh....
So...With the 4/3 deal going on I got to thinking. I knew I couldn't afford WL so I emailed my TA, Judi with MEI-Mouse Fan Travel (TOTALLY recommend her! If you are thinking of using someone - use her!), with dates and three different hotels: Pop, POFQ & (being funny) WL. She emailed me back almost right away telling me she would get it all together and email it as soon as she had all the info :-) Maybe a day later I had the information! We love Pop, I have ALWAYS wanted to stay at POFQ and of course he REALLY, REALLY wants to stay @ WL.
I was going to choose Pop of course! Economically speaking it is the way to go for me. My Significant Other was over when I was looking at the email. I had already talked to the Significant Other about going...She said book the WL! I was like "say what?!". I had great pains over this because I do things for me and do not let a lot of people "help" me. If I needed it I would ask for help....but when it comes to a vacation, well....It's hard for me to let someone help me pay for it...But I finally relented and that is where we get to stay! WOOHOO!!!
We are getting a woods view w/ bunk beds :-) We may take my cousins son, who is also the same age. We also decided to get on the DDP :-)
I already have our ADR's ready to be made and have emailed them to Judi...lol...
Here they are:
6/27 - LeCellier dinner w/ Marrakesh or Akershus as a backup if we can't get it.
6/28 - Whispering Canyon dinner
6/29 - Tutto Italia dinner w/ Marrakesh or Akershus as a backup...etc...etc...
6/30 - Crystal Palace breakfast
7/1 - Sci-Fi dinner w/ 50's Prime Time as backup
7/2 - Tony's Town Square dinner w/ Liberty Tree Tavern as backup
7/3 - Coral Reef - Austin's birthday dinner :-) He's wanted to eat here EVERY time we have gone so far but we didn't get to...
I want to eat at CRT and if we can get in on one of the MK days for lunch that would be awesome but I am NOT holding my breath....LOL!
Next Up (Because he is getting nosy again!): The little white lie that he will be told......
I hope that you and your son have a magical time at the world
__________________
Heather - "I'm Tinkerbell's biggest fan!"
WDW - August 1997 Off Property
WDW - January 2005 AKL
WDW - May 2006 Pop Century
WDW- november-dec 2007 pop century
WDW- dec/jan 2009/2010 pop century
WDW- oct/nov 2012 art of animation
WDW- sept 2013 port Orleans riverside
WDW- july 2015 beach club
So...Since I work @ an Animal Hospital and occasionally have to work weekends....I am going to tell him that I have to work the weekend of the 27th. We usually get the Friday off before so....I am going to send him to the movies Thursday around lunch and pack EVERYTHING into suitcases AND into the car!
We are going to say since I have to work Saturday & Sunday we are going to go for a drive Thursday night and see where we end up! We will drive ALL the way to Orlando Thursday night :-) Find a cheap hotel near Sea World (cause he really wants to go there too!).
When we get up we will tell him we are in Orlando cause we knew he wanted to go to Sea World and that is where we are going for the day.....He is oblivious (I love him dearly but he does lack common sense & will NEVER think about us driving ALL that way just for a day....We will tell him we are going to sleep for a few hours before we have to drive all the way home.....
This is SO much fun! Of course we will wake up frantically the next day (we like to sleep in most days 9 or 10)....I will be "freaking out" about NOT being @ work and "calling" someone to see if they can go in for me...etc...etc...We will pack up our "overnight" bags and go for breakfast somewhere....Linger a bit and head on over to WL!
I can't WAIT to see the look on his face! Now I have a little over 3 months to sit here and wait and wait and wait.....Any ideas on what to do to pass the time?
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Austin's Surprise PRE Trip Report
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The Little White Lie I Have Concocted!
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