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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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MY daughter joined the military so she could obtain a military scholarship to medical school. She is a LT right now and will remain so through medical school after which she becomes a captain.
I just realized she is eligible for Shades of Gray. I have been looking for information on it (I just bought annual passes for our end of April trip). It seems really hard to find.
Does anyone have an idea how much a room runs? Does it follow seasons like Disney?
Any other information on the resort will be appreciated.
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Last edited by HiddenMickey; 03-13-2015 at 10:23 AM..
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Shades of green has their own website that has information on prices and seasons. It's shadesofgreen.org. I know the prices depends on military rank. I've looked into staying there because my dad is retired military.
I looked at that website but couldn't figure out what catagory she would be. I assume when they talk about O-1 to O 6, they are talking about officers ranks.
I am just curious as to how much of a discount it is over another WDW property. I do like the rooms are large but they don't appear particularly attractive to me.
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LOL, I wondered why you were asking about that naughty book/movie (Shades of Grey, vs. Shades of Green)
I love SOG--the rooms are huge, and there's also a mini PX (Post Exchange store) , where you can get souvenirs, snacks, & other gift-shop type items at a big discount, as well as tax free. And the buses have a schedule they follow so you know when to catch
them, & the military guests are extraordinarily polite. It counts as a Disney resort for EMH, too. However, I'm fairly sure they don't do the magic bands for rooms; you can't charge to your room at the parks. Don't know about MDX. Oh, and no dining plan, but very cheap park tickets.
On the rates.. a 2nd lt. is an O-1, first lt. is O-2. And those are tax free as well.
Another thing to consider--a cast member told me the military rates are the absolute best rates.
Thanks Ginger. I am getting more excited all the time. I was not thrilled when she decided to take this route and know nothing about the military. I have a hard time remembering 1st Lt. is better than 2nd. The army is paying her $72,500 per year tuition as well as giving her a stipend and medical so she will graduate debt free (and also an officer). I have been told she will not be in direct harms way as doctors tend to not be too close to the action these days-her schooling around will cost the army around a half a million dollars.
My DD corrected me last night when I mentioned this revelation to her.
Neither she nor I (nor Disney) am into that book but with the movie just out. I may get more information if I google shades of green.
LOL, I wondered why you were asking about that naughty book/movie (Shades of Grey, vs. Shades of Green)
I just have to: Shades of Grey is actually a fantastic novel by Jasper Fforde that happens to be one of my favorite novels of all time. It has NO relation whatsoever to 50 Shades of Grey. It drives me crazy on a daily basis that the 50 author chose a title that was so close to the already published SoG and often confuses people about the two.
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I'm going to change the Header to read the correct name.
BTW, Ashli, if you try to Google the book you talked about, it doesn't come up....only the trilogy shows on first page of results. Ugh.
The book I read that has a similar name (and liked a lot) was called "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys; a book about a girl in Russia during WWII.
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I didn't explain too well on my first post (I blame post-surgery drugs), but I intended to say that Disney's military rate for all their resorts are the best deals they offer, according to a CM.
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Huntermom,
Congrats on your daughter getting med school paid for! That's awesome, and I'm sure that program is extremely hard to get into.
Btw, I retired as an AF officer about 6 years ago, and never regretted joining for a minute. She'll be fine, as I'm sure you know.
Oh, and the SOG rates are the same all year round.
Thanks, Ginger. I was not thrilled with the idea at first but she is excited about it and will be a fine officer. I have decided to take advantage of the many benefits but am finding with all the cutbacks, some things like a PX are hard to find.
She seriously considered the Air Force but the application process is pretty intense and she knew she had a good chance of getting the army scholarship so just applied to the one. I have been surprised at how many health professionals can get scholarships through the military. It's really not well publicized.
I still haven't figured ut why she gets a $20K signing bonus. She was thrilled with just having her tuition paid. All the rest is gravy. And she hopes to do her residency at Walter Reed but that is a bit off in the future.
Shades of Green is a great place to stay...DH and I usually stay there. I just wanted to add that the pictures on the SOG website and AllEars.net are great if you want to visualize the resort. Also, www.militarydisneytips.com also has a lot of great information. Shades of Green does not follow "seasons". The price stays the same year round. Also, remember that the price you see is what you pay. You pay no additional taxes. The two pools on property have recently been refurbished/upgraded and they are beautiful. SOG runs their own busses. You can also walk over to the Polynesian and catch the monorail. Buses run on military time so you always know when to expect them. The rooms are huge (about 450 square feet) and while there is no theme to the rooms, they are always comfortable and clean. All rooms have either a usable balcony or patio. As you know, if you check the Disney website, you can also see what discounts are available for military. I believe that the current discounts end on September 30th and at this point it is unknown if the Disney discounts/promotions will be continued. SOG also offers specials throughout the year. However, the discounts/promotions are quick to go just like the ones at Disney. Good luck with your planning.
Thanks Kathy. I had actually already book our April may trip and bought annual passes (DD and I) and hoppers for our stay (son and DDin Law), Then I stumble upon military discounts. I will probably take advantage of annual pass discounts while we have them but did like the room size at Shades of Green.
I just wish that hotel participated in Magical Express. Last time I called they didn't because it technically isn't a disney owned hotel.
Yes, it is a bummer that they don't participate in DME. However, I must admit that I really like using a Town Car Service. They meet you right at luggage pick-up, help take all your luggage to the car and some will even make a 30 minute stop at the grocery store if you want to pick up water, snacks and etc.
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