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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 family is considering the Outer Banks area for a reunion in 2017. There are about 25 of us give or take a handful depending on who comes. We are a small group but are spread out across the US so a typical reunion doesn't suit us. We like to vacation together for a week. We like to rent condos if possible, preferably in the same area or resort. Any info you can give me like where to look or where to avoid would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
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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My husband's side of the family rent a house each year, the last few years in the OBX. There are usually about 18 of us, sometimes more, sometimes less.
We stayed in Duck last year (really like that area....we could walk to town on the bike paths) and Southern Shores this year. We usually rent through Twiddy Realty. They are good to work with. We've also stayed in Corolla and Corova (needed 4 wheel drive to get there).
I would suggest trying for a big house that could fit you all instead of a group of condos. It makes getting together for meals and socializing so much easier. We take turns being in charge of dinner, so no one cooks more than once. Breakfast and lunch we do our own things most days (sometimes going out to restaurants).
Duck is a nice centrally located town. I personally like to be a little further north, but family complains about the drive to attractions and dining. It is probably possible to get 1 big house that would hold you all! Especially in the Pine Island area (a development) - those houses are huge and look cool! There are several reputable rental agencies down there that give you tons of search options to find the property(ies) right for your group.
Consider location on the OBX. We did Corolla two summers ago, and found the drive up the coastal road from where you cross over from the mainland (around Kitty Hawk) to be SO frustratingly slow!! Took two hours or more. Once there, we loved Corolla, did a wild horse tour that was fun. But this year we have a fantastic house in Kitty Hawk.
We used to head to Emerald Isle, until everyone else in DC discovered it, and it became too hard to find a good rental.
But there are LOTS of great rentals all over the OBX. Some even big enough for your whole group. Another option would be finding two properties close together, and maybe only one oceanfront.
Good luck!
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 agree that if you are planning a trip in summer, that the closer to Kitty Hawk, Nags Head the better. If you are more North on the islands (Duck, Corolla, etc) , it takes forever to travel. It's a one lane each way road up and down the island with everyone trying to get to their homes at the same times and its slow going.
We travel in late May, early June and miss the real summer traffic and still on Saturdays, it's slow moving.
We go to OBX every year and love it! I would choose Duck or Southern Shores. They are centrally located, but not in the more crowded areas/beaches.(Kitty Hawk, Nags Head, etc) We always stay at the same house in Southern Shores and it takes us about 20 minutes to get to the outlets/activities in Nags Head. If we head the other direction toward Corolla, it's about 40 minutes (small two lane road).
Duck has some restaurants and shops, along with walking/running paths.
There are plenty of houses for rent that are big enough for your family to stay together or you could look for a few smaller ones close together.
The previous year we went to North Topsail Island. I like the beaches a lot better there. Not quite as much to do as in the Outer Banks, but that doesn't bother me. Wilmington, where there is plenty to do, is not far away. This is also a much closer drive for us. http://www.treasurerealty.com/vacati...an-view-ln-104
We have several people in their 80s that travel with us, so we have some specific needs. The house has to have an elevator and we have to be beachfront, so the older folks can just sit out on the deck and watch the view. and towels and linens need to be included. This means we spend a bit more, but my FIL picks up a larger portion of the bill each year and we all pay an equal amount of the remaining fee.
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