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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Is there anywhere that has a list of the places at WDW that offer the 10% merchandise discount?
Also, what's the deal with the redemption card? I'm trying to help my Mom (who is a cardholder) get ready for our trip in a few weeks, and I want to make sure she has everything!
No list that I'm aware of, although there may be. I only know that you must spend $50 or more to get 10% off. There are also some restaurants that give 10% off the bill. I've seen that mentioned on the All Ears menus. I didn't pay any attention to which since we use the dining plan.
The Disney Visa website explains how to redeem reward dollars earned. How many your mom has will be shown on her statement. If I remember right, she needs to request the redemption card about a month in advance of needing it to be sure of getting the card in time.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
I got my cards in about a week or so but I also did mine last month (and I don't go until next month). For a new card, your mom will have to put at least $20 on the card to start and then you can transfer more with a minimum of $10. That's what I usually do - start with just a little to get the card and then right before my trip, transfer everything else (if you call or do it on the computer, the money is on there is just a few minutes).
For the discount, usually a $50 purchase is required but not everyone gives the discount AFAIK. I know I've gotten it at Sir Mickey's before and I might have gotten one at World of Disney at DTD but I don't remember getting one anywhere else (we usually spend a lot at Mouse Gears and I don't think I get it). If I can find a list, I'll post it but when in doubt, just ask the CM when you check out if you get the discount.
If it is too late to get the rewards card in the mail, she can get it in DD. I don't remember exactly where unfortunately. After receiving that card, she will then have to call the number (on the back of the card) to transfer funds to it. Remember that the cards do have an expiration date on them (Dec. of the following year usually), and any unused funds on them disappear at that time. So be sure to use all the funds on the card while on the trip! I usually just apply my whole rewards points to my room payment when I check in. If that has already been paid, perhaps through a package, then I return to the check in desk several days into my trip and apply the funds to my balance at that time. I always charge everything to my room, so all my expenses are in one place.
Be sure she has transferred her funds to the card. You can do this online once you have the card. As for the discount, just ask at checkout each time. I know you can use it at the DD World of Disney.
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 wish Disney would offer a list of shops where the discount can be used. They have a list of restaurants!
At the bottom of this page (under #7), they list the places where it can't be used; it does say that it's not limited to those places, but basically it looks like it can't be used at places that aren't owned by Disney:
At the bottom of this page (under #7), they list the places where it can't be used; it does say that it's not limited to those places, but basically it looks like it can't be used at places that aren't owned by Disney:
Those are the places where the rewards card points can be used, which is virtually everywhere. I think the OP was really wondering where you can use the credit card to get a %off discount. That is a much more limited list, and I don't know if it is readily available or not.
Those are the places where the rewards card points can be used, which is virtually everywhere. I think the OP was really wondering where you can use the credit card to get a %off discount. That is a much more limited list, and I don't know if it is readily available or not.
That's right! I was curious about where the discount can be used.
Does she need to pay with the card to get the discount? I can't find that info on the site either!
I doesn't list the stores but we have used it at all the main merchandise locations with no problem. We often save our shopping for World of Disney at the end and one trip at the resort store to make sure we don't miss the $50 minimum on any of our purchases.
My experience has been that you must use the card to get the discount, and I have gotten it in most of the gift shops, including MouseGears. But you do have to ask for the discount. Each time I have gotten the redemption card, I've gotten it at Guest Services at the parks or DTD. Very easy to do, but make sure you have photo ID with you, like a driver's license.
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First trip DW--Nov. 1975; Senior Class Trip DW--Oct. 1979; First trip w/kids--Oct. 1995; Halloween at DW--Oct. 2002; Spring Break at DW--April 2004; Christmas/Pop Warner Nationals-POR--Dec. 2005;Cruisin'--April 2008; Mom/Son trip-POP--March 2010;Taggin' along w/DD on DH's conference-BWI--Oct. 2011; 50th birthday with the Gartner Geeks--Adults only!--BWI--Oct. 2012; The Trip That Almost Wasn't--BWI--Oct. 2013; We climbed The Summit (National Cheer Competition)--ASMovies--May 2014
My experience has been that you must use the card to get the discount, and I have gotten it in most of the gift shops, including MouseGears. But you do have to ask for the discount.
This has been my experience as well -you must make a minimum purchase ($50) to get the discount, you have to ask for the discount, and you have to pay for the purchase with you r Disney Visa card.
Those are the places where the rewards card points can be used, which is virtually everywhere. I think the OP was really wondering where you can use the credit card to get a %off discount. That is a much more limited list, and I don't know if it is readily available or not.
I don't see where you're seeing that. That page shows perks for using the Disney Visa. If you click where it says "Perks at Walt Disney World Resort" (under Visiting Disney Theme Parks and Resorts), one of the things listed is "10% Off Select Merchandise" with a 7 next to it. At the bottom of the page (next to the 7) it explains what's excluded. There's no mention of the rewards card on that page at all.
Good to know. I didn't actually go to the link (just thought that was it ). Upon checking the link, I see that you are absolutely correct.
Also, it seems to me that on my last trip, I wanted my Visa discount, but usually charged to my room (which was linked to the Disney visa, but the cashier wouldn't have any way of knowing that). I asked for the discount and pulled out my card. She actually allowed me to charge to my room, because I had the card as proof that I qualified. I would have been happy to do it either way, since it really didn't matter. It was all going the same place.
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That page shows perks for using the Disney Visa. If you click where it says "Perks at Walt Disney World Resort" (under Visiting Disney Theme Parks and Resorts), one of the things listed is "10% Off Select Merchandise" with a 7 next to it. At the bottom of the page (next to the 7) it explains what's excluded. There's no mention of the rewards card on that page at all.
). Upon checking the link, I see that you are absolutely correct. 
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