New "Magic Your Way" tickets discourage no expiration folks

[amcnj]

The charts I have seen only mention figures for tickets up to 7 days in length for the new tickets. Are there charts showing pricing for the 10 day option out there?

[LIFERBABE]

Originally Posted by amcnj

The charts I have seen only mention figures for tickets up to 7 days in length for the new tickets. Are there charts showing pricing for the 10 day option out there?

Yes, Check mousesavers.com for 10 day pricing. THe advanced 10 day is not out yet but the rest of the pricing is complete.

[crazelion]

Now i am completely lost about tickets now. I am go study up the new tickets because I don't understand at all.

[pplasky]

For those who have old PHP's, remember they don't expire. You don't have to "upgrade" them. We always have plusses left, we had a plus left on a ticket from 1991 and used it in 2004. CM's had to check, but we used it. Save your plusses and use MYW tickets to fit around them.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by crisi

Who this is bad for is the people making a once in a lifetime trip to Central Florida who want to fit in Universal and Sea World and Cape Kennedy and the beach into their Disney vacation.

I'm not sure I agree crisi. The person you describe would currently have to buy 1 or more 1-day/1-park tickets as the shortest hopper is 4 days and they probably wouldn't need that many days. With the new tickets, they would have more options, though they would spend more money to get them. But now you will be able to buy a 1, 2 or 3-day base ticket and make it a hopper if you choose to. We've all seen lots of posts here like, "We're going to be at Disney for only 2 days - we've never been there before. Which 2 parks should we go to?" Those people can now get 2-day hoppers and hit all 4 parks. Yes, it will cost more but at least they now have that option.

[crisi]

You are right, they get more options, but they will cost them more.

I have a girlfriend who was visiting family in Florida last year. They took their daughter to one day at the MK. That was all they wanted to do. They may or may not ever go back. That ticket would now cost her a lot more.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by crisi

have a girlfriend who was visiting family in Florida last year. They took their daughter to one day at the MK. That was all they wanted to do. That ticket would now cost her a lot more.

Currently, 2 adult and 1 child 1-day tickets would be $163.21. The new way, it would be $178.38, only a difference of about $15. And of course that assumes that Disney wouldn't have raised ticket prices on the existing tickets anyway. So I agree that it would be more expensive but not by a whole lot.

[diznee25]

Magic Your Way Tickets seem to be inconvenient for folks who want to visit the parks for 1 or 2 days. But there are ways around that. If you go a few days through out the year, why not purchase a Magic Your Way Ticket with 6+ days and add the no expiration option. That way you could go to the parks for a day or two at a time and save money. Or look into purchasing an Annual Pass?

These new tickets are perfect for my husband and I! We never need the plus options and we always buy the exact number of park days needed for our trips. And since we're from Colorado and only go out every 3 or 4 years, we always stay at WDW for a whole week anyway. So we'll save a ton of money with the Magic Your Way Tickets.
Hope they are still around for our next trip.

Diznee25

[FoodLover]

Originally Posted by LIFERBABE

Yes, Check mousesavers.com for 10 day pricing. THe advanced 10 day is not out yet but the rest of the pricing is complete.

I just added the advance purchase prices for 10-day tickets.

If you like to "buy and hold" tickets to use over the course of two or more trips, and don't mind shelling out the money in advance, the new 10-day tickets with No Expiration option are definitely the way to go. The per-day price is incredible... beats the current 7+4 Park Hopper PLUS tickets by a mile.

Mary
MouseSavers.com

[lunchmomd]

I have three old tickets with three plusses left on each. Will I still be able to use them?

[disneyjunkie]

Originally Posted by FoodLover

I just added the advance purchase prices for 10-day tickets.

If you like to "buy and hold" tickets to use over the course of two or more trips, and don't mind shelling out the money in advance, the new 10-day tickets with No Expiration option are definitely the way to go. The per-day price is incredible... beats the current 7+4 Park Hopper PLUS tickets by a mile.

Mary
MouseSavers.com

If you purchase a package for 8 nights, can you buy the 10 day pass?

[Pigsty333]

This might clear some questions. This is from the Disney's Travel Agent Site:

Walt Disney World Revamps Vacations


Walt Disney World Resort has unveiled an innovative new product lineup that will allow travel agents to better tailor clients’ vacations by allowing them to build customized theme park tickets and packages.

New Magic Your Way Tickets and vacation packages will be available for booking and travel beginning Jan. 2, 2005, and will provide a wider range of options that allow travel agents to design a Walt Disney World vacation that matches clients’ needs and desires.

For the first time ever, the new Magic Your Way Tickets will offer significant year-round savings that grow the more days a client visits. A seven-day theme park ticket, for instance, averages just $29 per day, or less than half the price of a single-day ticket ($59.75 per adult, before tax).



With the flexibility of adding options like Park Hopping or water park visits to theme park tickets or selecting a vacation package that includes meals, Disney’s Magic Your Way Vacations put travel counselors in control of framing the vacation that best suits their client’s desires and budgets.

“People today expect flexibility and customization whether they’re buying a computer or a cup of gourmet coffee,” said Randy A. Garfield, CTC, executive vice president of sales and travel operations, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, and president of the Walt Disney Travel Company. “And now travel agents will have that same ability to customize their clients’ dream vacations, creating the ticket or package that is just right for them.”

Some clients may choose the new affordability of a 7-day Magic Your Way Base Ticket to the four Walt Disney World theme parks. Others may be interested in the added flexibility and fun of a ticket that includes admission to water parks, Downtown Disney Pleasure Island and other great venues. Or some may even choose to maximize a single day at Walt Disney World with a ticket that lets them visit multiple parks in the same day. Ultimately, this expanded menu of ticket add-ons puts the power of building a customized Walt Disney World itinerary into the travel agent’s hands.

With Disney’s Magic Your Way Vacations, a Walt Disney World vacation also becomes even more affordable. A family of four will be able to enjoy a weeklong (6-night/7-day) Walt Disney World vacation – including a stay at an on-property Disney Value Resort hotel with tickets to all four theme parks during regular or value season – for less than $1,500.

“This new vacation product puts a weeklong Walt Disney World vacation within the financial reach of millions of additional families, literally growing the market of Disney fans that can benefit from a travel agent’s services,” added Garfield. “We think it will also result in increased client loyalty and an up-tick in business for those who successfully cultivate the new market of travelers Disney’s Magic Your Way Vacations will attract.”

The Walt Disney World Resort will switch to Magic Your Way tickets – available to all guests, whether or not they stay at a Disney resort hotel – beginning Jan. 2. The move is aimed at putting value, flexibility and relaxation back in family vacations while giving guests customized options, so they choose the ticket features they want.

“Recent research shows that longer vacations are high on the wish list for families,” Garfield added. “With so much to see and do at Walt Disney World, guests want to take a week to experience it all, at their own pace, without the rush. Now they can, at prices more affordable than they ever imagined, thanks to new value pricing that rewards longer stays.”

“Simply put,” he said, “the longer you play, the less you pay, per day.”

The Magic Your Way Tickets also offer clients more flexibility, allowing them to customize their tickets to create their dream vacation no matter its length.

With the Magic Your Way tickets, clients first choose the number of days they want on a base ticket that allows them to enter one theme park each day. Then, they can decide which options they want to add, paying for only those features they want, such as the ability to visit multiple Disney theme parks each day or to visit Disney water parks, Downtown Disney Pleasure Island or other exciting venues.

Add-on purchases to the base ticket include:


Park Hopper Option - Adding the Park-Hopper Option lets the guest come and go as they please through all four Disney theme parks on the same day or every day for each day of their pass. Extra cost to the base-price ticket: $35 – or just $5 per day on a seven-day ticket.

Magic Plus Pack - For Disney fun beyond the four theme parks, this option provides the choice of admission to Disney’s Blizzard Beach water park, Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park, DisneyQuest, Downtown Disney Pleasure Island or Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex. Extra cost to the base-price ticket: $45 (includes 2-5 visits to Magic Plus Pack attractions, depending on the number of base ticket days purchased).

No Expiration Option - New Magic Your Way Tickets expire 14 days after their first use. Electing the No Expiration Option means the guest is free to come back and take advantage of unused tickets at any time. Extra cost to the base-price ticket: $10 if 2-day ticket purchased, up to $55 if 7-day ticket purchased.

Magic Your Way Premium Ticket - To capture all that Walt Disney World has to offer, this ticket combines the benefits of the Park Hopper Option and the Magic Plus Pack Option.

Advance Purchase Savings Tickets - The savings get even sweeter when clients purchase select, multi-day Magic Your Way Tickets of 5-days in length or more with either the Park Hopper Option and/or the Magic Plus Pack Option in advance, before leaving home.


Packages
These same, new ticket options are the cornerstone of a new menu of Walt Disney World Resort vacation packages offered by the Walt Disney Travel Company and other Disney select wholesalers. These new vacation plans, which no longer require a minimum length of stay of at least three nights, also become available for sale and travel beginning Jan. 2, and include the following options:

Disney’s Magic Your Way Package – This base package helps clients experience the magic of a Walt Disney World vacation at an affordable rate. The package includes accommodations at a Disney-owned and –operated resort hotel, and Magic Your Way base tickets for everyone in the group.
Disney’s Magic Your Way Package Plus Dining – This exciting new package features a new option that seasoned Disney guests have longed for – the ability to include convenient and affordable meals in vacation plans. The package includes everything from the Disney’s Magic Your Way Package, and adds a dining plan that includes two meals and a snack per person, per package night at more than 100 restaurants across the Walt Disney World Resort.
Disney’s Magic Your Way Premium Package – This deluxe package includes everything from Disney’s Magic Your Way Package as well as breakfast, lunch and dinner per person, per package night, along with other exciting options like recreation, theme park tours, and admission to the Cirque du Soleil show La Nouba, and more.

Even More Choices: Disney Resorts, Benefits

Staying in the “middle of the magic” at a Walt Disney World Resort hotel is the best and most relaxing way to enjoy a Walt Disney World vacation. With 22 uniquely themed Resorts – Value, Moderate, Deluxe, Disney Vacation Club Resorts, and Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground – there’s one for every taste and budget. Now that a longer Disney vacation just became more affordable than ever, clients will be able to enjoy their hotel like never before – spending quality “R & R” hours between park visits, whether it’s swimming, napping, shopping or dining.

Benefits of staying at a Disney resort include more time in the parks, more convenient transportation and more magic all around:

Extra Magic Hours: Each day, one of Disney’s magical theme parks opens one hour early exclusively for resort guests, or, as a new feature, stays open up to three hours extra after regular park hours so Walt Disney World Resort hotel guests can enjoy select attractions (valid theme park ticket and Resort ID required).

Convenient Transportation at No Extra Charge: Motor coaches, monorails or boats arrive steps from any Disney resort door to get guests to and from Disney theme parks, water parks, Downtown Disney Area and more.

Dining Plan: Guests selecting accommodations at a Disney-owned and –operated resort hotel can book Disney’s Magic Your Way Package Plus Dining, which includes two meals per day and a snack per person, per package night at more than 100 select restaurants across the Vacation Kingdom.

[fdecker]

That's nice, but compare apples to apples. Most people on the planet are not going to go to Disney for more than a week their entire lives. It's the trip OF their lives. Others might get to go 2 or 3 times in their lives. So, buying multiple passes or 10 day passes isn't realistic. Compare a 5 to 7 day PHP today with a 5-7 day equivalent MYW ticket. It's a lot more. It makes my point that it only rewards people who are going to buy long stays.

-f

Originally Posted by disneysteve

This is a copy of a post I made to another thread, but it shows that the new tickets WITH the non-expiring option can actually save a tremendous amount.

Current prices:

5 day park hopper: $265
If I buy 3 this year and 3 more next year (assuming no price increase), I'll spend $1590.

New prices:

10 day non-expiring park hopper: $344
If I buy 3 this year and use 5 days this trip and 5 days next trip, I'll spend $1032.

Savings with the new system: $558.
And the actual savings is probably even more since the cost of the 5 day would likely go up during the year between visits.

Sounds great to me.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by fdecker

Most people on the planet are not going to go to Disney for more than a week their entire lives.

I think there is a significant percentage of Disney visitors that are repeat customers and lowering ticket prices for multi-day passes may encourage more people to come back again since it makes the trip more affordable. Obviously, that's what Disney is hoping too.

I agree that the new tickets reward longer stays - that's the idea. Disney has more competition than ever and anything they can do to keep people in their parks is a good business move.

Average length of stay has increased over the years as Disney has added new parks and attractions. It makes sense to me to make it more affordable for people to stay longer. That does result in higher costs for folks only visiting for a day or two, but Disney knows that that's not where the money is.

With the new tickets a 5-day hopper is $242.83. The current way, a 5-day hopper is $265.19. So the new tickets are cheaper anyway.

[fdecker]

Steve, I don't mean to sound like I am arguing about you, but this is a perfect example I think of how you can paint numbers so sound any way we like. But in this case, you aren't using the advance purchase discount, and you keep forgetting about comparing apples to apples with the "no expiration" options. All tickets now are "good for life". None of the new tickets are without an expensive option. To use a similar example:

Current 5 day PHP never expires: $300.33 (275.86 in advance)
New 5 day MYW PH w/Plus & no expire: 205.55 + 37.28 + 47.93 +37.28 = $328.56.

So you are trading days in the park and plus options to lose the no expiry. It can be a good deal for a lot of people, but it severely discourages buying expiration "insurance" as I now view it. If you can plan well, or buy many days and use them up, you do well.