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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Glad we sold our Disney stock
After yesterdays report I am glad my DH sold our Disney Stock just before 4pm yesterday! DH told me park attendance was down 9% and park merchandise was down 19%. He also told me they missed the projected earnings by as he put it a large amount. We will buy it back soon as it has already gone down over $1 since he sold it. I am not at all surprised by the merchandise angle. When we go in a few days we will only have around $300 for pirate league, snacks and maybe a little something from the gift shops. Thats way less than our norm of $450 just for merchandise(not including mickey bars and water) But I honestly didn't think park attendance would be down by 9%. I figured it would be down a little 3% or so. Does anyone think this will affect package/ticket prices for next year? Sorry if this was already posted elsewhere
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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Originally Posted by Caldercup
Actually, I'm thinking "down by 9%" is pretty great -- other parks are (and have been) losing attendance by double-digits.
Eileen
Oh no I'm not saying 9% is bad I just thought it would be less with all the incentives to travel to WDW. I know that all the parks are hurting. In our area Six Flags is escaping bankruptcy by the skin of there teeth if they haven't already filed for chapter 11.
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It still surprises me somewhat. I've been in the parks three times this year and have found the crowds higher than I expected each trip, given that they keep talking about attendance being lower.
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.
Total park revenue was down 9%. Operating profit was down 19%. Per capita spending fell a further 6%. People are taking avantage of the 4/3 deals and free dining, but not spending as much as in previous years
I wonder if the higher-than-expected crowds many of us have perceived are that, for those of us who go during the lower-crowd seasons, we're seeing bigger crowds at those times because there are more promotions or deeper discounts then... People are thinking "heck, if I have to take Johnny out of school to save $400, it's worth it!" However, during the historically more-crowded times, they are seeing more of a drop because the discounts aren't as great then...
The 9% is spread across the whole year -- and since few of us are lucky enough to be there the whole year , we're only seeing samplings.
Eileen
Does that mean they will lower the price to try to draw more people in or raise the price to get more out of each person?
I believe they raise prices each year, and are about to in August this year. So it doesn't seem to matter to them. I have to assume some day the $$ will be so high they won't raise it again, who knows when/where that ceiling is though.
It still surprises me somewhat. I've been in the parks three times this year and have found the crowds higher than I expected each trip, given that they keep talking about attendance being lower.
I'm with you on this one! I've also noticed it to be extremely crowded even during the slow time.
People are staying for 7 day nights, paying for 4, getting free dining and not buying as much merchandise. It would have been a lot sorse with the 4/3 deals and free dining but the numbers are still not good
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Originally Posted by jimmymac
People are staying for 7 day nights, paying for 4, getting free dining and not buying as much merchandise. It would have been a lot sorse with the 4/3 deals and free dining but the numbers are still not good
Just as a personal example I posted above how we will bring FAR less money for extras and most of the money we do bring will be for snacks. We will also spend less on dinning. We have ordered from Garden Grocer so breakfast will be in the room and we will have sandwiches for lunch. We also ordered most of our drinks for the stay as it is so expensive to buy in the parks. Normally we do a TS each night for dinner. This time we will do 6 TS and 2 CS meals. This is a huge savings for us and a loss in revenue for Disney.
I'd like to say I will not be spending as much $$ as last, but it will be more. Since we're celebrating 30 years of marriage, I'll bite the bullet before and after, but baby, I'm CELEBRATING!
I'm not surprised by the 9% loss at all - the extension of free dining and all the other offers they've been doing this year shows the parks have been struggling...
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and water) But I honestly didn't think park attendance would be down by 9%. I figured it would be down a little 3% or so. Does anyone think this will affect package/ticket prices for next year? Sorry if this was already posted elsewhere
-Amanda 
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, we're only seeing samplings.
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