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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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So we are planning our next trip for Dec 3-10, 2011. For those that have been to WDW duing that time, how are the crowds in the parks? I have heard that the POP Warner sports and cheer competition is going on during that time and the resorts are crazy full with kids.
Hi Beth, i have been there the last 2 years and im booked for dec 9th to the 11th Mousetactular this year . and honestly i can say it is a little more crowded then usual but nothing that interfered with my happiness of having a magical time .
We were at the parks Nov 30th to Dec 6th and found it not too bad. I have nothing to compare it with as this was our first visit, but I do know that we rarely had long waits for anything. I am planning on doing it all again this year! *Fingers Crossed* And I'm definitely signing up for mousetacular again if I get to go!! It was such a blast!
I was just there Nov 30th - Dec 4th and it was great! Our last day there we saw all the cheerleaders and it started getting a little crowded, but we had almost no wait in lines (if you went on the single rider lines on everest, test track, etc you could just walk right on). The Christmas party was great because it wasn't too busy either. It's a great time to go if you want to experience Disney at its Holiday best!
Haven't been in December since '03 (ouch), but loved it. I'll admit to changing the December week I chose, to mostly avoid Pop Warner. I'd heard negatives (and had experienced cheer team crowds/noise a few years prior), so decided to avoid it if I could. Would love to head back for another December visit~DH deserves to see WDW "all done up for the holidays", too (but only if I get to go, lol).
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Jane from MN~~In Need of Sunshine, Sand, and Pixie Dust...
We were at WDW Dec. 4th- Dec. 11th. We had no problems with Pop warner. All we saw at the parks were mainly families. The crowds were not too bad. We used touringplans.com to figure out which park to visit for the day. We stayed at the WL and did not have any problems.
We really enjoyed all the decorations. The light display (Osborne Family) at DHS was spectacular!
We did experience a cold snap, so bring the winter coats and gloves just in case!
Have fun planning!!!!!
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My boys:
My husband:www.totalbullgrit.com-- a Southern good ol' boy, dad, and geek.
Melissa
I love visiting in December. The crowds aren't that bad and the temps are usually good. But, since that is pop warner week, I'd try to get into a deluxe resort to avoid all groups of kids. I know they stay at the All-Stars, and there is usually overflow into one of the moderates as well.
We've been there three times (2006, 2007, and 2008) in mid December -right around December 9th on, and the crowds haven't been bad at all. I think that Pop Warner was there during at least one of those trips (normally it's the first week of December, but I think that one year they were there later). Anyway, we had no trouble with them at all. I'm sure that they're busy some of the time, and unless you're staying at the same resort (value resorts, primarily - and I'd avoid that if they're there), you should be fine. I just booked a trip for that same time - December 2nd through the 6th. DS and I will be staying at BLT, and we hope to attend the Christmas parade, too. See you there! Happy planning!!
My friend Val and I will be there at that same time. I have been at that time of year several times and have never had a problem. It is my favorite time to go.
Maybe we will meet up somewhere.
we're going 12/7-17, and i was curious about the crowds myself...thanks for posting this Q!
We went Dec 11th - 19th in 2009 and the weather and crowds were great. MK was like a ghost town during the week but weekends were definitely more crowded, though not overwhelming. Osborne Spectacle of lights was a total zoo but we went on a Friday night. I have to add though that Disney did a nice job of managing the crowd and forcing people to tour the lights by following a specific route but man, it was a sea of humanity.