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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Does anyone have a certain bag that they carry comfortably when they are in Disney? I would love to find something that can fit the basic things I need along with my camera rather than carry 2 different bags. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
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My mom is carrying the baggalini. She has used it for Washington DC and will be using it for the first time for Disney in Sept. She really likes it and had no issues with it in DC.
I also have a baggallini that I have used on our past 4 trips. This year makes 5 and I'm thinking I may look for something else for next year. But I love my baggallini.
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what do you plan on taking into the parks?
this time I only want to have a lanyard with a purse and my camara. last time I took a little bag about the size of a standard paperback I cant remember the make.
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I like to carry a small messenger bag when I'm in the parks. Its nice because it fits all that I need, but not so big that I feel like I'm carrying around a suitcase.
I got a Buxton bag from walmart. It is like a wallet on a belt. Not a obvious as a fanny pack though. Dh carrys the camera. (since he is contantly using it)
So all I really have to take is my KTTW card, a little bit of cash and chapstick. And an extra memory card for the camera.
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I always take a mini backpack. It is about a third of the size of a regular backpack. Everything I need fits perfectly without being a hassle to carry. I always carry my camera, a couple of ponchos, sunblock, and my refillable mug in the "large" pocket. In the "small" pocket I carry my wallet, sunglasses, chapstick, and Tylenol. There is always plenty of room left over. I could probably roll up a sweatshirt in there if I needed to. I usually wear it by throwing it over one shoulder. It also fits in the nets on the rides perfectly. It is also small enough for my DD (6) to carry comfortably if she wants to.
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Le Sportsac bags are very light, and they come in all sizes and have cute patterns. I've used Baggalinis in the past.and those worked well. But I'm addicted to Le S right now. Also have Ameribag Healthy Back bags. Those are good if I plan to carry a lot at the parks. They are very comfy. I have it in 4 sizes.
We used a small backpack on our honeymoon (almost 9 years ago ) and it worked great. As long as we didn't load it up too heavy, it was really nice to have free hands.
Do you have a small, compact point-and-shoot camera? Or an SLR/DSLR?
If you have a small one, you could stick your camera in a pocket or use a wrist or neck strap with it so it is handy whenever you want to take a photo. Otherwise, use a bag that isn't a backpack so you can access your camera quickly when there's something you want to snap a photo of.
If you have an SLR/DSLR, I'd recommend your camera bag so you can carry your camera, lenses, cleaning cloths/Lenspens, and any other needed accessories. Then you can use a small bag for your other items (or, if they aren't things that could leak or otherwise damage your camera/accessories, you could put them in your camera bag if it is large enough).
For a small bag, on my last trip I used a Baggalini brand bag that is a thin bag with a main compartment and two little pockets (one on the front and one on the back) and had convertible straps (could zip up into a single strap for using as a sling bag or maybe across-the-shoulders bag and could unzip into two straps for traditional backpack-style usage). I think it was called a City Bag or something - I got it on eBags.com (they have great prices and I also get flyer miles by shopping on there) and got the lime green ripstop nylon fabric (but it came in other fabrics, too, as well as other colors).
I used a baggalini and found I only needed camera, money, key cards. I carried rain ponchos and water bottles too but really didn't need them. I have since gotten a Vera Bradley and I think it would be more comfortable to carry around. Check out ebags.com
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) and it worked great. As long as we didn't load it up too heavy, it was really nice to have free hands.
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