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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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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They are really two completely different experiences IMO.
Hoop Dee Doo is a dinner show offering ribs, fried chicken, baked beans, salad, and strawberry shortcake. The show features a cast of actors who tell silly slapstick jokes, sing, and dance. It is a fairly sedentary meal, but a favorite in my family.
Mickey's BBQ is a character experience/picnic offering hamburgers, hot dogs, picnic salads, and all the ice cream you can eat. The show allows you to get up and move, and dance with the characters.
Which one is best for you depends on which you feel your family will most enjoy. We prefer HDDR after having done the BBQ once and HDDR three times. The corny jokes and slapstick comedy even prompted my son to ask for it again and again for his birthdays in subsequent trips.
I hated the BBQ and will never return. It was chaotic getting mediocre food and keeping track of my kids while there.
They are really two completely different experiences IMO.
Hoop Dee Doo is a dinner show offering ribs, fried chicken, baked beans, salad, and strawberry shortcake. The show features a cast of actors who tell silly slapstick jokes, sing, and dance. It is a fairly sedentary meal, but a favorite in my family.
Mickey's BBQ is a character experience/picnic offering hamburgers, hot dogs, picnic salads, and all the ice cream you can eat. The show allows you to get up and move, and dance with the characters.
Which one is best for you depends on which you feel your family will most enjoy. We prefer HDDR after having done the BBQ once and HDDR three times. The corny jokes and slapstick comedy even prompted my son to ask for it again and again for his birthdays in subsequent trips.
I hated the BBQ and will never return. It was chaotic getting mediocre food and keeping track of my kids while there.
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I agree with Claudine in that they are definitely two different types of shows - just as she described.
We've done the BBQ twice - my girls were 8 & 5 and then 9 & 6 when we went. We really enjoyed it although I will again agree with Claudine that the food is just so-so - nothing out of the ordinary. However, we liked the party atmosphere. You sit wherever you want at long picnic tables that you share with others. There is a live country band with two emcees that host the night, plus a guy performs rope tricks and invites a few kids from the audience to learn how. I know we did some line dances as well. But the best part of it all is that Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip and Dale (at least as of 2007) spend a good part of the evening out on the dance floor - anyone can dance with them. My 3yo nephew came with us in '07 and he danced with them all! My 9 yo joined us on the floor supposedly to watch over her cousin - she's pretty shy and that was her way of feeling brave to be out there with us - when Mickey came up and grabbed her hand and spun her around! Great interaction! It can get pretty crowded on the dance floor and it's really not a place to be looking for character autographs b/c they do not come around to the tables. Still, we enjoyed the evening enough to do it twice and we still talk about going back.
That said, we tried the Hoop Dee Doo this past January and the girls LOVED that too! LOL We all giggled at the silly corny jokes - I was worried that they wouldn't "get" some of the humor but they did and thought it was silly. Plus we all had that Hoop Dee Doo song in our heads for a long time LOL It's very entertaining I think for all ages. You are assigned a table according to when you place your ADR and which tier/category you choose. We were in the second "row" of tables from the stage but as far as I could tell, there's really not a bad seat in the house. The entertainers perform on stage but they also travel throughout and mingle with the guests, making them part of the show - so beware! LOL The food is brought to you family style - pretty good, although certainly not gourmet. But I think it tasted fresher than at the BBQ b/c it is brought to you hot as opposed to food out in the buffet line.
So which should you do? LOL Really depends on your family's tastes in entertainment and food. Remember, you can always go back another time and do the other!
Thank you all so much for the great advice.
I think with all the chaos in the parks during Thanksgiving week, we will do the HDDR.
It will be nice to sit down and be entertained. Seems like at the BBQ, you're fighting the crowds.
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We did HDDR last year and it was great! One of our favorite meals! The food was excellent as was the entertainment. My boys were 9 and 10 and loved it! My 7 yr old daughter loved it also! Great for kids and adults!
We have wanted to try both of them but haven't yet. Since we go in the summer, the BBQ doesn't work for us, as I don't like to eat outside when its hot.
We will be there Thanksgiving week also. We are planing the BBQ for our first night there. Although, we are planning that mostly because it will be DBF's b-day and he loves Chip and Dale. Other than Garden Grill, BBQ is the only character meal with those two. We'll arrive that day, so a meal where we can get up and interact will be welcome since we are driving.
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Hoop De Doo Vs. Mickey's Backyard BBQ
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