Annual Pass help

[nolarookie]

I'm thinking of upgrading our MYW tickets for our May 2012 trip to APs. We are thinking about returning in Febraury 2013, and a friend of DH told him that if we upgrade, we could get a room discount for our next trip. After crunching the numbers, we would actually save about $2 for both trips buying APs, BUT it doesn't seem guaranteed that we would get a resort discount. do they roll out these discounts for AP holders regularly or is just luck of the draw? we would not be flexible with our February dates, but could possibly return in May of 2013 if february doesn't work out discount-wise Any advice?

[ke_page]

I'm thinking of upgrading our MYW tickets for our May 2012 trip to APs. We are thinking about returning in Febraury 2013, and a friend of DH told him that if we upgrade, we could get a room discount for our next trip. After crunching the numbers, we would actually save about $2 for both trips buying APs, BUT it doesn't seem guaranteed that we would get a resort discount. do they roll out these discounts for AP holders regularly or is just luck of the draw? we would not be flexible with our February dates, but could possibly return in May of 2013 if february doesn't work out discount-wise Any advice?

Historically AP rates are rolled out regularly. Although lately the % off has been less then in the past so it's hard to say when and what they will actually be. I think this year it's like 5% more than the general public. If your dates are flexible though I think you would be fine. I'd also look into the tables in wonderland card. That can save alot more than the dining plan.

[blyday]

For me....if the price is close....then getting the AP is a no brainer just because you also get discounts off of merchandise, etc. In the end....we save quite a bit more with the AP. I wouldn't get it in hopes of getting room discounts because you just never know.

[Canwegosoon]

I like it, even if all things are equal for the hopping and shopping discount. There is also a TS lunch discount

[gobbler]

I'd also look into the tables in wonderland card. That can save alot more than the dining plan.

[Craig]

BEWARE!!! The Annual Pass is like the Sirens Song. Once you have that little card in your hand it constantly beckons you, taunts you even. The time between trips gets shorter and shorter.
I'll always remember my first time...walking up to that Epcot turnstyle as an AP holder...(sigh)

[nolarookie]

BEWARE!!! The Annual Pass is like the Sirens Song. Once you have that little card in your hand it constantly beckons you, taunts you even. The time between trips gets shorter and shorter.
I'll always remember my first time...walking up to that Epcot turnstyle as an AP holder...(sigh)

haha, Yes, I can see that. every long weekend, I'll be checking rates... the kids get at least one random Friday off per month.... This could be bad (In a good way).

[Craig]

All joking aside, we've been AP'ers for 3 years and have never regretted it, not once. The room discounts, although not guaranteed, have always been there and we make 6 to 8 trips a year. The discounts have been as high as 45% off rack, not too shabby. You'll also get lots of little 10% to 20% discounts off food and merchandise at select locations. We just got in the habit of asking every time we make a purchase anywhere on property "do you give an AP discount?". Another neat little perk is the free subscription to the "Mickey Monitor" magazine that comes in the mail about every other month. It keeps you up to date on upcoming Disney World events and special offers for Passholders only. Also, having the "passholder only" website is neat too. You'll be looking at it every day to see if there's anything new.

[MichaelColey]

BEWARE!!! The Annual Pass is like the Sirens Song. Once you have that little card in your hand it constantly beckons you, taunts you even. The time between trips gets shorter and shorter.

SO true! We bought annual passes two years ago, planning to go twice for sure and possibly a third trip. We ended up going SIX times, for a total of 12 weeks.

Another advantage of annual passes is that you can stay OFF SITE (for quite a bit less) and still have free parking.

Another is that you get park hopping. We never bought or used park hopping before, and prefer to stay in one park most of the time, but there are situations where it can be really handy.

As long as you're definitely going twice in a 365 day period, I say go for it!

[nolarookie]

Yeah, I can see us going for Mardi Gras in 2013 (you know, if we haven't perished in the Mayan apocalypse), and if we upgrade to the AP, it would just make economic sense to go one more time (possibly for Thanksgiving, or Easter Break). And yes, it makes staying off-site very attractive too. Thanks for all you input!

[WDW Vet]

[QUOTE=Craig;58605]BEWARE!!! The Annual Pass is like the Sirens Song. Once you have that little card in your hand it constantly beckons you, taunts you even. The time between trips gets shorter and shorter.

So true, OMG I've got to tell you. Became AP in 95. Back then you didn't need to wait for Disney. AP holder had 30 to 50% all the time based on the season. Lived in NJ then and Kiwi always ran these $99 roundtrip deals. My kids were little so $400 for air, stay at CB for $49 a night with the AP discount. Take the kids out of school after 1 pm on a Thursday so they had a "full" day at school. Hit WDW about 5:30 pm that day and close Epcot. Stay Thur thru Sun and take a red eye home on Sunday. Kids needed to be in school by 11 am not to be marked absent but only late. I was off Mondays and my wife didn't work. So the kids only lost one day of school (Friday)and we did this as many times as we could. Think about it. The cost was like $850 a trip for air, car meals and hotel. Insane!

[ejs1027]

I have been pondering the whole AP thing for the past few months. I love the discounts, and if I go 2x it will save me $600. Question though does AP expire from the date of purchase, or from the date of first use? Say I buy now, because I have money, but don't use it until Aug 15, 2013. Will it expire August 15, 2014?

TIA
Missy

[George]

I have been pondering the whole AP thing for the past few months. I love the discounts, and if I go 2x it will save me $600. Question though does AP expire from the date of purchase, or from the date of first use? Say I buy now, because I have money, but don't use it until Aug 15, 2013. Will it expire August 15, 2014?

TIA
Missy

You can't get an AP through the mail - only a voucher, which needs to be exchanged onsite. Once exchanged, the AP one year clock will start ticking.

[vicki_c]

If you buy ahead of time, you get a voucher that you exchange in the parks. The start date is the day you exchange that voucher and it runs for one year from then (it's actually 366 days I believe). Unless you are trying to beat a price increase, I wouldn't bother with getting the voucher in advance.

[ejs1027]

Okay, I got it. I just was going to purchase 2 now and 2 later. But I could just put money aside and wait. So the Voucher is what you take to Guest Relations to get your AP. I have been reading boards for many years, but never paid attention to the AP's since it never worked for us.

This may be a stupid questions but if we go 8/15/13-8/25/13 we need to go prior to 8/15/14 right. I could not go the same dates again because AP will expire on 8/15/14 right?

[George]

This may be a stupid questions but if we go 8/15/13-8/25/13 we need to go prior to 8/15/14 right. I could not go the same dates again because AP will expire on 8/15/14 right?

That's correct. And if you go around the same time every year, you won't have to buy another AP until August, 2015.

[ejs1027]

That's correct. And if you go around the same time every year, you won't have to buy another AP until August, 2015.

Thank you!

[MichaelColey]

Great strategy. If you go every year and can stagger the trips so that two are within the 366 day window, you just have to buy APs every other year. You miss the renewal discount, but just buying one every other year is MUCH cheaper.

As several people have said, once you have APs you may end up going more often than you planned.