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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Okay packing is in full force at our house right now and I"ll do my big shopping trip for the rest tomorrow night. Need advice on that one thing you wish you'd brought but didn't.
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Disney Vacation Specialist Magical Memories Travel Chelsey
On my very first trip I wish I had packed blister pads/moleskin! I tore my feet up and had to take a special trip off property to the drug store to get those things. Ever since then, they are a must.
some sort of small bin/basket to coral our wallets/room keys/phones in while we were in the room - so that we would know right were these items were when we needed them!
And "neo-to-go" neosporin spray and band-aids. Though you can get help for cuts and scrapes at first-aid, sometimes they happen in line or on the other side of the park, and the new little neosporin spray fits in your purse/pocket/bag and has been a great addition to my bag.
And a power strip, this is one item I never travel without!
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Special ops issued us flip-flops, a guitar and a week or two! -Roger Clyne
I always travel with ziplock bags--to keep my phone/camera dry if it rains and on water rides--they are also helpful if you want to take your left overs with you!
Don't forget your chapstick/lip balm!
Hair clips!
More socks than you think you need.
I also really enjoy having bubble bath with me . . .
A wine opener--make sure you put it in your checked bag.
Extra shoes. We had a rainy trip once and ran out of shoes. We couldn't get our shoes to dry fast enough to wear them. Also, since you are going in 9 days and they are having some cold weather right now, I would make sure to pack a jacket and gloves. I didn't think to pack gloves for my trip last Dec. and I had to buy some. Have a great time
Glowsticks/light up toy from the dollar store, crayola colour wonder kit for rainy day...spare socks, extra memory cards, pre addressed labels for postcards, quarters for the washing machine (do they still use them or KTTW cards) - have fun!
My Brita Filter....to re-fill the old water bottles we had so that we didn't have to buy water every day.
Cold medicine - I forgot that once and got sick and had to pay crazy amounts of money for cold meds at the Disney stores. I always pack an assortment of meds just in case now.
I don't know where you're staying, but I always bring my garlic press and my vitamix. We use those two things daily in the kitchen and the villa never has a garlic press or a decent blender.
Didn't forget but two of my fav. tips...
**a product called Glide... you find it in sports stores. It looks like a deorderant stick and how it works is you apply it to where your shoe (or body) is rubbing and it prevents blisters / rub spots
and
**an over the door "shoe" bag... great for putting everyones washroom stuff ..it keeps your sinks "uncluttered"