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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 I am curious, with all these contest I see where you can win a trip to Disney....has anyone ever won? I have entered contests on Disney.com, hgtv and Disney movie rewards. But I have never seen that anyone wins these contests??? Just curious this morning.
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PassPorter Guide Community Rank: Legend Extraordinaire
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Chapel Hill, NC USA
Concierge Level: 6
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Back in 2002, I won a WDW trip through a local radio station.
It's much easier to win something local that has fewer people trying to win it. There are so many people trying to win the Sweepstakes that Disney offers, your chances are very slim. So, look for contests that have a smaller audience.
As for knowing who wins the contests/sweepstakes through Disney, HGTV, etc. They usually offer to send you the winner list if you write to them. That's usually one of the last things listed at the bottom of the rules.
While in my college years, I remember there was this one contest where whatever company was giving away a trip to WDW every day for 25 days. All you had to do was submit a 3 x 5 card with your info on it. Well, I was determined to win one and mailed in 10 cards every single day and I got nothing! Not even a t-shirt or anything, you know, those contests always seem to have Grand Prizes, 1st Prize, 2nd Price, etc. I gave up on entering any kind of contests after that.
It is possible. While I have never won a trip to Disney World (and not for a lack of trying as a young girl), I did win a Sci-Fi Channel sponsored trip to Space Camp as a 13 year old. It was back in the days of yore, aka pre Internet entries, and I do remembering decorating the heck out of the post card I mailed in to enter.
As someone said above, the chances of winning a national contest tend to be slimmer, especially if it's through a well known site.
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Yeah, I figure the same thing...it is slim to none to win a national contest. But thanks for the answers....sometimes my brain kicks and I need to see if anyone else ever wonders the same thing.
I have not won a trip (YET!) but I did win all new appliances for my kitchen last year. It was "how many jelly beans will fit inside this refrigerator?" contest by LG. I also remember someone on this forum winning a trip a few years back also. I also remember seeing on another board that a DCL cruise was won.
I'm not a winner either...I did win tickets to the CMA awards a couple of years ago (included gas cards and 1 night stay in Nashville) but that's it. I'm always entering anything that involves WDW.
I won a trip through my workplace to Disneyland in late 1998. Sadly I didn't go (I was pregnant but my DH and his best mate went).
Then just 6months later same best mate won a trip to WDW through a Lion King video promotion and he took his girlfriend! However they did buy lots of disney goodies for my kids.
My wife just got back from a cruise on the Fantasy paid for by our oldest son, he booked it cause one of the podcasts he listens to was on the cruise. The last nite of the cruise, they have a meet and greet with a prize drawing. Well she calls me this morning from the MK and tells me she won a 7 day 6 nite stay at WDW for some time next year.
Its going to be tough planning this trip (grinning from ear to ear) .
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