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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I have recently planned a trip to Orlando with my two girls (8 and 3) 6/17-6/24. Originally, it was 3 nights at Pop (to see the mouse), 2 nights at Nick (the girls have forever wanted to stay there--the pool area looks fantastic) and 2 nights at Portofino Bay at Universal (the Harry Potter park is now open and my 8 yr old is a huge fan). Well this trip has now expanded to 5 nights at Pop.
What would you do about transportation? I am a fan of the ME and Disney busses, and we don't mind using that while we are at WDW. But how do we get to Nick and then to Portofino and then to the aiport.
Do you think it is worth the money to rent a car and leave it parked while at WDW? Taxis? Shuttle?
I have to say we love having a rental. If you have a child who needs to leave for whatever reason, waiting for the bus is the last thing we want to do. We also like the freedom of running to Wal Mart to buy water or little things we might need along the way vs Disney prices. However we do use the bus transport at times and it works fine, just takes you longer to get there.
I don't find a need for a car when at Disney. Are you doing Disney parks (only) while you stay at Pop? I wouldn't rent a car until I was leaving Disney property. Enjoy your trip!
We love having a rental car, so I'd get one for your whole stay, if it's in the budget. It means no waiting around for DME and the freedom to do what you want when you want while you're at Disney. One thing we love is how easy it is to visit the other resorts with a rental car.
We've done it both ways and now I always rent a car. I love the flexibility of leaving the parks when we want to and being able to go to WalMart or Target to pick something up if we need to.
We do a sort of weird little thing at the airport, though. DH takes DME and the luggage. I rent the car and meet him back at the resort. That way we don't have to worry about the luggage and now we can do the resort check-in with Southwest, too.
We've never felt the need for a car while at WDW and it's money we could gladly spend elsewhere. I'd wait until the last day of the trip to rent a car.
We love having a rental car to pop over to DTD, one of the parks, or to a resort from our resort. The few times we used the buses we felt we used up so much time driving around on the bus to the various stops. My DH has bad motion sensitivities and the bus really does a job on him too. If it is in your budget, I would rent for the entire stay.
We have always rented a car. After you hear all the stories of the buses......... my DH has no patience. We usually do at least 2 to 3 days out of 7 out of Disney. We love the ability to just get out of the park, into a nice air conditioned car, put on our music, let the kid close his eyes and have a nice trip back to the hotel. In peace and quiet. I would do it if you can budget it. Use it as one of the "treats" for the trip.
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( 1990/ Disney Cruise/CBR, 1992 Disney Cruise, 2003 WV,2008 WV.
I would rent a car on your check out day for the remainder of your trip past WDW.
Save some $ with DME & WDW transportation. I find it's pretty efficient, and don't have a problem with it. Less stress then driving IMO. We always use WDW transportation, and like it.
You can rent Alamo at Disney Car Care Centre or Swan/Dolphin, they will come pick you up. DTD hotels also have car rental desks. Doubletree- Budget, Hilton- Avis, and Dollar is in one of the hotels, can't remember which.
Outside of last year's long-weekend trip where we used DME and WDW transportation exclusively, we've always had a car (whether our own or a rental). I like having the flexibility of picking up and going, and also the convenience of knowing that you'll be able to get somewhere by a certain time, instead of being anxious that the bus will come in a timely fashion.
If you can afford it - go with the car - like everyone else said the freedom it allows is wonderful and great at the end of a long day too - no standing the bus.
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