Forums Closed
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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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
Best wishes for a wonderful and magical new year!
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Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
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12-01-2006, 08:32 AM
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#1
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Community Rank: Trailblazer 
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Maine
Posts: 5,893
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Thanksgiving on Marco Island: Update 1/26
The Travellers: Susan (me), DH Ben, DD Hayley 17, DD Evelyn 12
To be joined later in the week by DS Laura, DBIL John, DN Rachelle 10, DN Jaelyn 8, DN Sydney 7
Travel dates: November 19--28, 2006
Destination: Marco Island, Florida where my sister owns a house
Reason for travel: To visit Eckerd College; to spend some quality time with my sister and her family; to see my sister's Florida house for the first time
This trip was on again/off again several times due to many, many reasons. My sister was going to WDW and wanted us to join her. We thought about it, but it was out of the question, we just didn't have the money. Then she was going to her house in Florida after WDW and wanted us to join her there. Hayley wanted to see Eckerd College in St. Pete, so we were seriously considering it. I found out my girls had all of Thanksgiving week off from school this year, so the trip was looking even better because they wouldn't miss any school. Then my FIL died, and DH wanted to be with his mom at Thanksgiving, so the trip was off. Then DH changed his mind . . . and it goes on.
To sum up, we decided just a few weeks before that we were actually going to go. Looking at SW airfare, I discovered if I extended our visit by two days, our airfare would be 60% less, and we would avoid the rush at the airports after Thanksgiving. Hayley was allowed 2 days off to visit colleges, so it all fell into place.
Next: I realize I have just two weeks to plan a family vacation!
One of the many beautiful sunsets we saw on vacation
Last edited by poohmaine; 01-26-2007 at 10:33 AM..
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12-01-2006, 08:34 AM
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#2
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RED SOX NATION!!
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Connecticut
Concierge Level: 9
Posts: 136,854
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
Great start [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/zwavin.gif[/img] I remember you going back and forth on whether or not you were going, so I'm glad you got to go! Looking forward to more [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]
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12-01-2006, 09:02 AM
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#3
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Community Rank: Trailblazer
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Maine
Posts: 5,893
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
When we finally decided it was a go, we had so many things to do:
1. We had to decide where to fly in to, Tampa or Ft. Myers (Tampa was closer to the college and we could get direct flights; Ft. Myers was closer to Marco Island, but no direct flights) and book airfare.
2. We had to get the time off from work.
3. We had to call Eckerd College to arrange a tour and interview.
4. We had to book a rental car.
5. We had to call our daughter's employer and ask for time off.
6. I had to call the high school and inquire about permission to get Hayley out of school for two days. (She's a senior, and they have a very strict attendance policy, but allow time for college visits.)
We had kept this trip a secret from our daughters because we wanted to surprise them, and because we weren't sure we were even going and we didn't want to disappoint them if we didn't go.
Our daughter had to work Saturday the 18th, so the earliest we could leave was Sunday the 19th. Eckerd College preferred to meet with us after Thanksgiving. Southwest had amazing $59 airfare if we flew in and out of Tampa.
When everything was settled, we thought about whether or not to tell the girls at all. Wouldn't it be fun to just wake them up Sunday morning and say, "Get in the car, we're going to Florida?" But there were too many issues with the high school, so Hayley needed to be told so she could get all the forms done, so we decided to tell both of them. But how?
We had a Saturday night coming up when we would all be home for dinner (a rarity to be sure). Ben created this elaborate puzzle, that when solved, revealed the question, "Would you like to spend Thanksgiving with Auntie Laura--in Florida?" He stuck it under their plates, and after dinner, he said he had a special dessert for them under the plate. It took them almost 10 minutes to solve. But when they figured it out, they were screaming! They were very excited! And they couldn't believe we were leaving in just 2 weeks!
Next: Departure Day
On our charter fishing boat, the Blue Runner |
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12-01-2006, 09:27 AM
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#4
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Community Rank: Legend Extraordinaire 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Ohio Football Hall Of Fame
Posts: 42,304
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
Great start!!! Can't wait for more!!
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12-01-2006, 09:58 AM
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#5
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RED SOX NATION!!
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Connecticut
Concierge Level: 9
Posts: 136,854
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
Another great update [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]
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12-01-2006, 11:20 AM
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#6
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The Original BagMan
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Shalimar, FL
Concierge Level: 6
Posts: 22,002
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
WOW!!!
Ya gotta [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/love.gif[/img] those Florida overwater sunsets!!!!
Looking forward to more of this report [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/082502yes_prv.gif[/img] [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/waytogo.gif[/img]
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12-01-2006, 12:26 PM
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#7
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Community Rank: Navigator 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Davidsonville, MD
Posts: 6,563
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
I'm so glad you all went. I bet it was a great trip and can't wait to hear all about it.
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12-01-2006, 12:49 PM
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#8
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PassPorter Message Board Manager
 PassPorter Guide Author
Community Rank: Legend VIP 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Maidstone, Kent, UK
Concierge Level: 3
Posts: 190,285
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
What a great way to tell them about the trip! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/waytogo.gif[/img] I can't wait to read more. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
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12-01-2006, 10:49 PM
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#9
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Tinkerbell's Aunt
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: McHenry IL
Concierge Level: 6
Posts: 13,254
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
Susan - Love your sig sunset picture! It's amazing. I've never been to Marco Island, but my parents to regularly and love it. I'm looking forward to hearing all about it!
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12-02-2006, 06:41 AM
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#10
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Wannabe Snowbird
Join Date: May 2002
Concierge Level: 7
Posts: 34,137
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
I love how you told the kids about the trip!!
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12-04-2006, 05:10 PM
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#11
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PassPorter and WDW Addict
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Texas
Concierge Level: 3
Posts: 12,489
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island
The picture of the sunset is beautiful! The way you told them with the puzzle was great...I think that is an awesome idea. I can't wait to hear more about your trip.
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12-06-2006, 07:04 AM
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#12
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Community Rank: Trailblazer
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Maine
Posts: 5,893
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island: Departure Day, Part 1
Evie and Koko, ready to go
How long a drive is it to Manchester, NH? I thought for sure +2 hours. Ben insists it is only 1.5 hours. You can guess who was right. We arrived for our 10:00 am flight at 8:50 am!
Luckily, we were already checked in with A boarding passes, and the lines at the Southwest self-service stations and security weren't very long. We went right into line at the gate from security. No time for any breakfast, just a quick run to the restroom to take Dramamine! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
Our plane was full, with lots of families and toddlers and infants. I put in my EarPlanes and tried to sleep, but Evie was so excited, she kept waking me up to look out the window. We flew down the East Coast and the weather was perfect the whole way. The pilot kept coming on to tell us what we were flying over now. Evie loved every minute, and by the end of the flight, she took over 75 photos out the window!
We landed right on time at 1:30. We got our bags and went to find the National Car rental shuttle. It was a 10 minute ride to the National lot, but then Ben had a bit of a line to wait in. We were supposed to have a Buick Lucerne, but instead we got a Chrysler Pacifica.
At this point we were all starving. Hayley saw an IHOP and wanted to go. I wanted to do something quicker, as I would prefer to arrive in Marco before dark. I was not happy, but everyone was cranky so I relented. *sigh*
Next: A long drive to Marco, and I forget something very important . . . |
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12-06-2006, 11:38 AM
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#13
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Community Rank: Legend Extraordinaire
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Ohio Football Hall Of Fame
Posts: 42,304
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island: Departure Day, Part 1
Great update!! Can't wait for more!!
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12-06-2006, 12:06 PM
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#14
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RED SOX NATION!!
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Connecticut
Concierge Level: 9
Posts: 136,854
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island: Departure Day, Part 1
Glad you've finally made it there! I hope it wasn't something too important you forgot [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/eek.gif[/img]
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12-06-2006, 01:52 PM
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#15
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PassPorter Message Board Manager
PassPorter Guide Author
Community Rank: Legend VIP
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Maidstone, Kent, UK
Concierge Level: 3
Posts: 190,285
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Re: Thanksgiving on Marco Island: Departure Day, Part 1
Great update - I don't like the sound of the next installment though... [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/ukid.gif[/img]
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