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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I am considering opening a Disney Vacation Account to use for a trip we have planned next year, which I will be booking through my TA. I asked her if she would be able to use my account to make payments on my trip, and her answer was yes. However, I had also emailed DVA guest services regarding that, and their response was that TAs are not able to access clients' accounts.
Can any of you great TAs verify which is true? Has anyone had success with accessing a client's DV account to pay for their trip?
I can tell you there is so much contradictory information regarding this account, I have been advised by my agency owner not to bring it up to clients, as it is confusing for the agent, the client as well as Disney (as you get a different answer every time you ask etc.)
I do know that if you don't use all the $ in the account you cannot get it back in cash. You can get it in Disney gift card or use towards a future trip.
I would advise against using it and purchase Disney Gift Cards at Target with a discount if you can, or just use a regular bank account.
__________________
Lori
“I’m in a Disney state of mind……”
Authorized Disney Vacation Planner w/Fairy Godmother Travel For a Pixie Dust Sprinkled Trip!
I can tell you there is so much contradictory information regarding this account, I have been advised by my agency owner not to bring it up to clients, as it is confusing for the agent, the client as well as Disney (as you get a different answer every time you ask etc.)
I do know that if you don't use all the $ in the account you cannot get it back in cash. You can get it in Disney gift card or use towards a future trip.
I would advise against using it and purchase Disney Gift Cards at Target with a discount if you can, or just use a regular bank account.
Thank you! I agree, it's very confusing, there is so much contradictory info out there about these accounts. I had planned on buying Disney Gift Cards at my local BJs for a discount, and then entering those into our account to double dip and get the $20 giftcards that they are offering for every $1000 spent. Since we are doing a land/sea trip I could have accrued quite a few of them. In the end, I think I'm just going to do the gift cards and skip the vacation account, I'm just too worried about all of the negative stuff I've been reading about it on various websites.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Momof2Disneyboys
I have been able to use it for my clients with no problem! Your TA just needs your account number and to enter the payment as a gift card payment.
Thanks so much! It's frustrating that Disney doesn't seem to have their acts together with this vacation account thing, I've read that some people have had no problems with their TA's using their accounts, and then others have had nightmare problems with trying to do that.
Thanks so much! It's frustrating that Disney doesn't seem to have their acts together with this vacation account thing, I've read that some people have had no problems with their TA's using their accounts, and then others have had nightmare problems with trying to do that.
You're welcome!
__________________
Shelly
Disney Destinations Specialist
Magical Vacations Travel
Thank you! I agree, it's very confusing, there is so much contradictory info out there about these accounts. I had planned on buying Disney Gift Cards at my local BJs for a discount, and then entering those into our account to double dip and get the $20 giftcards that they are offering for every $1000 spent. Since we are doing a land/sea trip I could have accrued quite a few of them. In the end, I think I'm just going to do the gift cards and skip the vacation account, I'm just too worried about all of the negative stuff I've been reading about it on various websites.
Thanks so much! It's frustrating that Disney doesn't seem to have their acts together with this vacation account thing, I've read that some people have had no problems with their TA's using their accounts, and then others have had nightmare problems with trying to do that.
You're welcome and I think that's a great (and safe) saving strategy!
__________________
Lori
“I’m in a Disney state of mind……”
Authorized Disney Vacation Planner w/Fairy Godmother Travel For a Pixie Dust Sprinkled Trip!