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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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We just bought into AKV and our planning our first stay there for 12/09. Can anyone tell me what I need to know ... I've been reading that Mousekeeping doesn't come daily ... should I bring extra towels? I'm not sure what the weather will be either ... pool towels??
When going "home" - do you generally purchase a dining plan? I think this would be a good option for us - even though my hubby likes to dine @ Downtown Disney ... we can use it there or our DVC discount there ...
Our kidlets will be 2.5, 8 and 9 when we travel in Dec - is there anything we should or shouldn't get sucked into ?? Stroller ideas? The baby doesn't like the stroller here but I'm guessing after a long day at the park, she'll need it? I so don't feel like having to lug one from NJ ...
I have tons of other questions but I'll save them for another post so I don't scare anyone off.
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.
If you are staying in a One Bedroom or larger, you will have a washer/dryer in the room. There are public facilities for Studio guests, but it's first-come, first-served so you'll have to go out of your way to make sure you get access. Whether or not you feel you will need clean towels with greater frequency is up to you.
Similarly, the dining plans are personal decisions. You'll have to look at your dining habits and see if it makes sense.
I have never purchased one of Disney's dining plans and have no future plans to do so.. That's just too much restaurant food for me. I don't go to Disney to gain 10 pounds.
December weather can be anywhere from the 80s to the 40s during daylight hours. At night when the sun goes down it will get cold. In other words, you need to bring a little bit of everything including sweatshirts/sweaters, winter coats, hats, gloves, etc. You better believe those wide open theme parks can get very cold when the wind is blowing.
For a 2.5 year old I would highly recommend some sort of stroller. I know our kids weren't walking around the parks for long at that age. You can rent from Disney but that will run you about $15 per day. The Disney strollers are very durable and easy to handle, but expensive. There are third-party companies like magicstrollers.com who will also rent you a stroller or you can just bring from home.
We've never found we've never extra towels. We've always found plenty in the room and there are more provided by the resort pools.
We quite often opt for the Deluxe Dining Plan, but that's because we enjoy eating at the signature restaurants. It does depend on your dining habits, as to whether the Dining Plan is right for you and your family.
As for December weather - I think changeable best describes it! We've had days with highs in the 50s and into the 80s and lows in the 70s or the high 20s. It's a good idea to keep an eye on the forecast before you go to plan your packing accordingly.
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.
If you are in a one-bedroom or larger you may want to consider ordering groceries instead of doing the dining plan. You can order through DVC or there are websites like GardenGrocer.com, The Selection of a SUPERMARKET Delivered to Your Door! . They will deliver to your resort. I am assuming by the age of your youngest child that you will be going back to the resort in the middle of the day for a nap and pool time. Cereal, snacks, frozen pizza can be very convenient back at the villa! BTW - Welcome!
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
Kristie, Welcome to the group!
My DH & I love the dining plan, He loves Yak & Yeti, Le Cellier & lots of the
sit-down dining places. The cash prices are way more than the dining plan so we find it a great value..
A typical meal for 2 at Le Cellier can run 75.00 & up,
That's why we would rather go dining plan
Another strategy to look at whether you will travel to WDW every year. If so, you may want to try buying an annual pass and try do two trips within a year, for example, we would travel on March 26th one year and the next year travel March 20th. We would purchase an annual pass to cover park admission for the two trips, and the Tables In Wonderland card which is accessible to annual passholders at a cost of $75 was well worth it, combined with the DVC discounts. The Tables in Wonderland discount reduces the total bill, including alcohol, by 20%
We have only used the dining plan once and it did not suit our family's eating habits, so here is another option for you to consider.
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
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Another Newbie Question ... or two ...
Stroller ideas? The baby doesn't like the stroller here but I'm guessing after a long day at the park, she'll need it? I so don't feel like having to lug one from NJ ... 
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Pixie Dust
PassPorter Guide Author
We've had days with highs in the 50s and into the 80s and lows in the 70s or the high 20s. 
It's a good idea to keep an eye on the forecast before you go to plan your packing accordingly.
Kristie
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