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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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'm starting to think about budgets for our trip, which is only just over two months away now and I wondered if those of you who've stayed at Aulani can help me with something.
We've got both breakfast and dinner booked at both Makahiki and 'Ama Ama. Although I've found prices online for items, it would be a huge help to hear from those of you who've eaten there as to how much roughly a meal cost per person, as that would give me a good steer.
I appreciate that it can differ from person to person, but what I'm looking for is something similar to the prices you get in your PassPorter, as that gives you a good idea of what you're likely to spend and I've used those to budget before and find they're a good starting point.
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.
I'm pulling together my TR so I will grab the actual receipts and be more specific but we did the Makahiki breakfast and it seems that was no more than what is posted online and then the tip so maybe $80ish. We didnt have any alcoholic beverages.
Now Ama Ama for dinner ran $175 but we both had 5 cocktails between the 2 of us, appetizer platter, entrees, and one dessert. Obviously you could do less damage but this was our big splurge. And yes, worth every penny ... The view itself is priceless.
The sticker shock for me was more for lunch or snack items like a salad, hot dog, etc. I expected it, but still ... ouch. We bought groceries at Target on the way from the airport and are most breakfasts on our balcony, in our PJs, looking at the ocean ... Inexpensive, but Again, priceless.
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Don't let your heart be filled with sorrow, for all you know, tomorrow, the dream that you wish will come true.
I'm pulling together my TR so I will grab the actual receipts and be more specific but we did the Makahiki breakfast and it seems that was no more than what is posted online and then the tip so maybe $80ish. We didnt have any alcoholic beverages.
Now Ama Ama for dinner ran $175 but we both had 5 cocktails between the 2 of us, appetizer platter, entrees, and one dessert. Obviously you could do less damage but this was our big splurge. And yes, worth every penny ... The view itself is priceless.
The sticker shock for me was more for lunch or snack items like a salad, hot dog, etc. I expected it, but still ... ouch. We bought groceries at Target on the way from the airport and are most breakfasts on our balcony, in our PJs, looking at the ocean ... Inexpensive, but Again, priceless.
Oh cool - I didn't realise there was a Target... that's really good to know. I'll have to get the details of it and I look forward to reading your trip report!
Food at the resort is freakishly expensive. With that said, very close to the resort there are two major shopping areas. With a rental car you can find a few good grocery stores, a Wal Mart, Target, K-Mart, Costco, Fed-Ex, many restaurants, etc. We had a baby with us, so for some reason I found myself shopping a lot! We bought groceries and did a lot of breakfast and lunch in our villa. We still did the resort restaurants each a few times and they were wonderful. We also walked across the street to Roy's for dinner and it was great. But sticker shock is an accurate way to describe it.
Cindy seems to be more organized with her receipts than I am so I will let her give you the actual prices : )
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