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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Wow tough question as there are so many different things and am sure as I send my reply I will say 'oh I should have said this' but with all that being said my favorite and first park that I must go to is MK and for me just walking down Main Street and seeing the Castle and just let me slowly relaxing and smiling is my mood changer. So that is my favorite thing maybe strange but it is.
EPCOT is my favorite park so when we get there we head for Soarin' first. I know that will all change when we do the Magic band thing (we haven't had the opportunity to go since they started those) but that's how we start!
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We never do the same thing first. We've been known to arrive at very different times of day at MK, so sometimes a meal at Columbia Harbor House might be first, or we might go to Space Mountain if it's first thing in the morning. The possibilities are pretty varied.
I remember when the kids were small, that we had to wait for rope drop under the castle so that we could be among the first into Fantasyland to get on Dumbo or Peter Pan.
My favorite park is Animal Kingdom, and we make a beeline for the safari first! (Unless we have breakfast ressies at Tusker House, then we do that first.)
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MNSSHP 2015: DH (Bane), Me (Batgirl), Genie, and our friends
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Usually, our first park is the MK. That is Muffin and Logan's favorite so I guess the boys rule on this one! We normally make the Crystal Palace our first meal and then head to Fantasyland. It will be weird not hitting it until Day 2.
My favorite park is Animal Kingdom!! The first thing we usually do there is ride Kilimanjaro Safaris. This year, we are mixing it up though and doing the Tusker House first!
Magic Kingdom is my favorite park. In the days of the old fastpass, I headed straight to Fantasyland. But now, I'm not sure. I know I need a trip through the Laugh Floor, a ride on the People Mover, and a ride on the carousel. So I think it would be one of those.
The first thing I do in all the parks is simply absorb the atmosphere. Each of the parks has a very different feel and I just enjoy reminding myself before the haste of doing everything what that feeling is.
The first thing I do in all the parks is simply absorb the atmosphere. Each of the parks has a very different feel and I just enjoy reminding myself before the haste of doing everything what that feeling is.
Cam....I'm with ya there!
We normally arrive late in the afternoon/early evening so on our "first day," we typically head to DTD and just chill. After a 14 hour trip (including layovers etc) we usually just want to walk and stretch our legs and find real food after all the airport/airplane fare we have been stuck with.
For our first park day, it just depends on what strikes our fancy (or what I have decided we will be doing) - we don't have any specific tradition.
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Jennifer / Eeyore is my favorite!! OMG - He's sooooo grown up!!!! And an EAGLE SCOUT!! I can still remember my cute little Tiger Cub! 2016 Reading Goal - 75 books
The first park we hit is always MK. We just can't seeing it from Poly & not partaking. Where we start does however have to do with time of day, etc. Usually we explore Main Street then head to Fantasyland. If it is a laye day arrival then we just head off to DTD to explore. This next trip may end up a little differently bc it will be the first trip with my little boy (just shy of 4 at trip time). Another thing we always do upon arrival is a loop on the monorail to take it all in.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
That's a tough one. I think my favorite park is the one that I'm in at that moment in time. I am also one who soaks in the atmosphere. Then I take dozens of photos of whatever icon (castle, Spaceship Earth, Tree of Life and, yes, the Sorcerer's Hat). After that, it doesn't matter. I'm at Disney loving it all.
Our favorite park is Magic Kingdom. The first thing we do is stroll down (the middle of) Main Street and take in the castle. Then we head to Fantasyland. This year will be interesting, since we'll have my son's half-sister with us. She is über excited about this trip, and I hope we get photos with that excitement on her face.
My favorite park is MK and I think I am taking pictures before we even enter the park and that continues as we head inside. We usually head up Main Street as I am snapping away and then head to Pirate's of the Caribbean for our first ride of the trip as that is DH's favorite ride.
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We normally make the Crystal Palace our first meal and then head to Fantasyland. It will be weird not hitting it until Day 2.
The first thing we usually do there is ride Kilimanjaro Safaris. This year, we are mixing it up though and doing the Tusker House first!
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