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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Expert? No
Seasoned? Yes
Best tips/tricks? 1)Get a luggage rack like you find in hotels and use it for your luggage. 2) Weigh your bags. We use a normal scale--weigh the person, then weigh the person holding the bag. It works!
We stay perpetually packed for our next trip to the middle of the magic. I make a packing list and use it. Knowing what you already have and where it is located can keep costs down. It is amazing how many people purchase needed items that they already have but can't find.
I'm a great packer but I'm also a procrastinator. And I can honestly say I ALWAYS overpack. But at least I am always prepared. I need to be good at b packing bc I am always stuck packing for someone else who either can't pack for themselves (grandma, toddler) or the minimalist who thinks 3 pairs of undies & 2 pairs of pants are enough for 5 days! [emoji19]
As for packing hints...if traveling with a family we break our clothes up bw suitcases - all dress clothes & pj's in one, then the first few days in another and so on. This is great bc there is never more than 2 suitcases that need to be open at one time. It's easy to see what you are wearing that day and best reason is if the airport loses or misdirected a piece of luggage everyone still had clothes! I actually roll the clothes including socks, undies, everything together. This actually helps with wrinkles. Not sure how or why but it works. Also there is no rooting for the necessary accessories - it's actually ll there. Also the rolled bundles allow for the clothes to be packed closely together to eliminate wasted space or those inevitable holes. When one case gets emptied - I immediately start repacking it so to cut down on stuff laying around, misplaced items, and actually a shortened pack up time on the last day.
Also when deciding what needs to go, I do not pack directly into the suitcase. I spread out what I think should go onto a bed & match clothes up by day/activity. I also car par down the items better when they are spread out in front of me. This is also when I add the socks and such.
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I'm definitely a seasoned packer, but an expert? Not really. I'm a horror for packing and then having to remove a load to get it all to fit. I often over pack as well.
I am a good packer and while I don't overpack like many, I always find I packed more than I need. I am a firm believer that there is little that will be a problem if forgotten.
PassPorter Guide Community Rank: Legend Extraordinaire
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Chapel Hill, NC USA
Concierge Level: 6
Posts: 36,592
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I'm pretty good at packing up the car for a beach trip.
I'm kind of an underpacker when it comes to my own bags. I usually wish I'd brought a few more things with me. I tend to not give myself choices...just pack what I think I will need.
I'm a very good luggage packer, but I just love organizing and sorting, which are helpful in packing. My DSis June asked me once to explain what I do, and I couldn't. Maybe I should videotape myself packing.
I'm definitely seasoned. Although I wouldn't call myself an expert. My secrets? Where clothing is concerned everything goes with everything. From your hats/scarves to your socks & shoes everything goes with everything. And remember that unless you spill something on your pants or skirt you can wear them more than once. You don't need seven pairs of pants for a seven day trip. Actual putting stuff in to the suitcase. Get & use packing cubes. They keep your stuff sorted & contained & will compress soft items like clothing & scarves so they take up less space. Also, clean clothes are easier to pack than dirty clothes. Maybe it's just that I'm more likely to adopt the wad it up & shove it in method of packing with dirty clothes, but for whatever the reason I find it easier pack clean clothes. I do laundry a day or two before I leave to come home so that most of my clothing is clean when I pack it. When packing do not pack the bag you're going to check & your carry-on &/or personal bag(s) next to each other. It's too easy to accidentally pack the important it needs to be with you stuff (medications, electronics & chargers, id/passport, debit/credit cards, cash, trip documents etc.) in to your checked bag. I literally pack the bag I'm checking on my dining table (I've had it so long that I hate it & I swear the thing could withstand a nuclear explosion) & my personal & carry-on bags in my home office. Not only does this physically separate the bags making it impossible for me to accidentally pack my trip paperwork & medications in the bag I'm checking but it lets me pack them at the same time. Plus it puts the bags near where the stuff that's going in them is located. The dining table is close to the laundry closet & my bedroom & my home office is where things like trip paperwork, tablet, camera, medications etc. are. I also designate a bin or suitcase to act as a corral for stuff that I want to make sure I bring that I wont need before the trip as I think of it. Going to Disney in November & it's September since I live in Seattle I'm not going to need my capris before I leave in the bin/suitcase they go. I do sort through the bin/suitcase before I start packing & move the things to the appropriate space (dining table or home office) this also gives me a chance to discard stuff or add stuff before starting to pack.
I absolutely hate packing. I'm no expert, but I do pretty good. I over pack a bit especially when it comes to toiletries. I'm always thinking "what if we need this or that" so I throw it in. We're usually at least 10 lbs. underweight. DH weighs himself and then again with the suitcase. No way I'd get on the scales! I wait to pack everything the day before we leave.
Not sure what being an expert packer constitutes. I can pack a TON of stuff in a small bag. I also usually make sure that most everything goes with at least a few other pieces.
DH and I used to move back and forth between Europe and the US every year for his work, then we traveled by air for gigs for his prop-intensive juggling show during our time in Europe.
Tips:
-Anything very heavy but small goes in carry-on.
-Wear biggest shoes, heaviest clothes on plane if space is an issue
-roll socks, undies etc and stuff in shoes in luggage. This is also a good place to put fragile items.
-Squeeze excess air out of liquids bottles (like shampoo etc), then reclose and put in plastic bag.
-Pack clothes with lots of loft in zip locks, then squeeze out air and reseal.
-Put a sheet or sorang in carry on, it can be such a comfort to have a blankie on a long flight
-Take clothesline and pins
-Bring a bag to use for dirty laundry
We also spread all our crap out in one location before packing to get an idea of the best way to make it all fit, like another poster mentioned. And we weigh our bags for sure. If there is any question about weight, we make ourselves at home at any unmanned check-in station; the scales usually still work. So we can weigh our bags "in secret" and make last minute switches if needed.
That's the strategy for getting around baggage allowances, but I use a different strategy if there's no weight restriction, and I prioritize for convenience instead.
Suggestion for future question: How many pairs of undies do you pack on a longer trip?
I must say that I do consider myself a packing veteran!
We have our suitcases partially packed all year round. Some things only get used for Disney - pin lanyards, Disney shirts etc. Plus we always have "long trip" toiletry bags in the cases too. Things like fanny pack, power strip, fish scales that we use to weigh luggage and spare camera cards also live in the suitcase.
My packing tips include carrying a tshirt, spare undies and toothbrush in our carry on (in case all our luggage doesn't make it) and packing a few outfits for each person in each suitcase in case someone's luggage goes missing! Several of my family also take a large scarf to use as a blanket or wrap where needed.
We keep a laundry duffle bag in the suitcase and fill as we use items. We are also all "trained" to reuse jeans and other pants to save on packing space. Mix and match clothing is a must.
I think I'm a good packer, but not great. On the other hand, I don't stress over it, either. If I forget something, I know it will be replaceable on the trip. After so many trips, though, I don't forget much these days. At this point, it isn't exactly like trying to understand quantum physics for me to pack a bag.
I'm a pretty good packer, but not an expert.
I usually pack my clothes all rolled up. It takes less space, this is very good since I pack my three boys' clothes in the same big suitcase. And when I say boys, I mean pre-teens and teenager. So no small clothes here.
I also have a luggage weight and weigh my suitcases at home. That way I don't have to be opening them at the airport and distributing stuff to make them under the weight limits.
Also, I always put dryer sheets in the suitcases before putting any clothes. Luggage tends to get kind of smelly, even though I open them up to get fresh air before packing.
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I wait to pack everything the day before we leave.
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