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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Sea World has two tours listed that include an up-close encounter with penguins. Has anyone tried these? I'm trying to decide between the Penguin Spotlight and Behind-the-Scenes tours. Which one actually gives you a chance to *touch* a penguin?
Thanks for any extra info you can give!
Adesa in Virginia
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I think that if you are specifically interested in penguins, then the penguin spotlight seems to be the choice. I've never done either, so I don't know if they will let you touch the penguin. I don't see why not, they are a fairly docile animal (and softer than you would think they would be).
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We were able to actually touch a penguin during our tour in 2005. It was called Polar Animals or some such thing. We spent time with the Polar Bears/Beluga Whales/ and Penguins. My son (who is a huge penguin fanatic) was fairly disappointed in the tour, as he knew much more than the guide (at 6) and was not happy with some of the conditions of the animals behind the scenes. We've had more informative encounters (but they didn't involve petting) with penguins at Zoos and Aquariums.
It should say right in the tour description online whether or not you get to pet or not.
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Doing the Behind the Scenes tour on the 25th of March and will post details after the 29th, when we are home....
Thank you!!!
The tours were recently revamped (or at least, renamed), so I was hoping to find someone with recent experience.
I called Sea World, and the operator was very helpful. She said you get to touch a penguin on both tours and that while the Penguin Spotlight is obviously all about penguins, the Behind the Scenes tour also offers a lot of penguins. It's longer than the Penguin Spotlight, so even though it involves other animals, the penguin time is still a lot.
Ds is definitely focused on penguins, but he wants to rescure all the other animals, too. So, I'm leaning towards Behind the Scenes, but I'm looking forward to hearing from someone who's been there!
Thanks so much~
Adesa
__________________
"Too many people grow up. That's the real trouble with the world, too many people grow up. They forget. They don't remember what it's like to be 12 years old. They patronize, they treat children as inferiors. Well I won't do that." ~Walt Disney
Took this tour in March 2009 and was able to pet not only a penguin but also a small shark!
The tour was very informative and you got to see a lot of behind the scenes of different areas...you were able to take all the pictures you wanted to...saw sea turtles in rehab; manatees which was really cool, as they were feeding them...and that is an experience in itself. Saw behind the scenes at the polar bear enclosures...and saw one of the bears up close (behind glass of course!) For the money there was a lot to the tour and transportation by bus between buildings! I would definitely suggest anyone with kids would enjoy it!
I did the Behind the Scenes one- I am a huge penguin lover and we only got to briefly (and I mean very briefly- a couple of seconds) pet the penguin with two fingers. I knew the likely of me getting to snuggle one and take it home with me wasn't realistic (ha ha) but I was a bit disappointed with it.
However, when we go back, I will have to give the new tour a go!
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