Annual pass changes coming........

[bcrook]

Isn't this American capitalism? Isn't "for lack of a better word.....GREED is good?". How many folks do you think Disney will lose because of this? It's dis-heartening to me.........but it won't stop me. Look at all the posts on how Sept is no longer a slow season.............look at the capacity of the resorts.......approaching 90%. More folks are going to WDW then ever before! Until that number begins to decline..........in a big way...........this is how things will go. Now America is a free country.........so we always have a choice.........to not go. BTW..........gotta pay for all those changes in HS

Doug

They definitely probing to find the ceiling.

But these are just AP prices. A bigger goal may be to wean people off APs so that they can start moving people towards dynamic pricing.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

the big difference with TIW is that it includes alcohol. There are other restaurant discounts associated with having an AP but none of them include alcohol. Which is very expensive.

 

[IceSkatingPrincess]

But I don't think they do that for any other upgrades now, do they? If you have an annual pass, and want to upgrade to premium annual pass, you pay the full difference in price, right?

I'm not sure. With that though, I had the opportunity to upgrade when I renewed last. So it's a my mistake kind of thing. This literally wasn't even an option until today, so I feel as though it's like paying for a service that didn't exist during those months.

 

[DisDadDVC]

They definitely probing to find the ceiling.

But these are just AP prices. A bigger goal may be to wean people off APs so that they can start moving people towards dynamic pricing.

In a way, blackout dates does almost the same thing. If you have an AP, you may be "really" paying $50 some days and $90 some others. But they blend it all into one price based on some statistics, etc. Adding in blackout dates and offering higher tier AP helps to handle the super high demand times.

 

[AngiTN]

So for us this actually saves us a little. We go twice a year and get MM. The increase in cost for the 3 of us renewal between old renewal price and new is $243 two memory makers are over $300 (1 for each of the 2 trips). I know we arent typical AP holders but for us this works out. (As long as the photopass downloads are the equivalent of Memory maker).

This is us. I realize we are not typical also but we always get Photopass. It is the only, and I mean only time I agree to photos being taken. If we didn't get them at Disney I'd never have them of DH and I. So I do them every trip. M sorry so many are angry but put me in the smaller happy group. Maybe a side benefit will be enough disappointed folks the crowds will drop. Doubtful I know

 

[TJA]

When you use the AP 10% at restaurants, do they add on the tip like with TiW?

 

[DisDadDVC]

When you use the AP 10% at restaurants, do they add on the tip like with TiW?

No

 

[ArtieMcD]

But I don't think they do that for any other upgrades now, do they? If you have an annual pass, and want to upgrade to premium annual pass, you pay the full difference in price, right?

Yes... but... in the past the old pass was valued at the current price on the day of the upgrade (if there were any price increases). In this case that's not possible because the old pass was discontinued and the upgrade are for benefits that the user could not have used during all 12 months of their pass (as before). They definitely should be prorating people who upgrade to the new equivalent medal passes.

This does hurt someone who may want to upgrade their pass to eliminate a blackout date, or gain the old premium benefits (waterparks, etc). IE, say a seasonal passholder has a change in plan and wants to visit the park over Christmas. That upgrade just got significantly more expensive for them.

 

[RachaelA]

This is us. I realize we are not typical also but we always get Photopass. It is the only, and I mean only time I agree to photos being taken. If we didn't get them at Disney I'd never have them of DH and I. So I do them every trip. M sorry so many are angry but put me in the smaller happy group. Maybe a side benefit will be enough disappointed folks the crowds will drop. Doubtful I know

We get memory maker every trip too even with APs. Its nice to let others take the pictures!

 

[DisDadDVC]

Yes... but... in the past the old pass was valued at the current price on the day of the upgrade (if there were any price increases). In this case that's not possible because the old pass was discontinued and the upgrade are for benefits that the user could not have used during all 12 months of their pass (as before). They definitely should be prorating people who upgrade to the new equivalent medal passes.

This does hurt someone who may want to upgrade their pass to eliminate a blackout date, or gain the old premium benefits (waterparks, etc). IE, say a seasonal passholder has a change in plan and wants to visit the park over Christmas. That upgrade just got significantly more expensive for them.

Well, only if you are talking about a gold "downgrade". If you had an AP, it now maps to platinum. If you want to upgrade to platinum to get the photo pass, they will apply the current price on the day of the upgrade.

 

[hamilkm]

This is us. I realize we are not typical also but we always get Photopass. It is the only, and I mean only time I agree to photos being taken. If we didn't get them at Disney I'd never have them of DH and I. So I do them every trip. M sorry so many are angry but put me in the smaller happy group. Maybe a side benefit will be enough disappointed folks the crowds will drop. Doubtful I know

I upgraded today and I am getting ride photos, videos, and photos just like with memory maker. The expiration date on the photos is like a year from now. So far I'm happy.

 

[ArtieMcD]

When you use the AP 10% at restaurants, do they add on the tip like with TiW?

Does it matter? The tip is the same either way right? (Unless one plans to tip less than 18%)

 

[MakiraMarlena]

When you use the AP 10% at restaurants, do they add on the tip like with TiW?

Not unless you are a party of six or more.

 

[TJA]

I wish for the first year of AP change, they would've just had a minimal price increase. I bought the MM once and liked it, so I'm not totally opposed to this new set-up.

Also, we won't be purchasing the TiW anymore. Our particular family will not get our money's worth, might not even break even considering one week we always go to Disney is Easter week and it was a blackout and I'm assuming still is. We don't buy alcohol at restaurants either. I think the 10% AP discount will work just fine for us.

 

[ArtieMcD]

Well, only if you are talking about a gold "downgrade". If you had an AP, it now maps to platinum. If you want to upgrade to platinum to get the photo pass, they will apply the current price on the day of the upgrade.

That is not true... At least that's not what's being reported. People with non-DVC/FLA "Annual" passes are being asked to pay $95+tax to switch to the Platinum pass that expires on the same day as their current annual pass. The current value of the "Annual" pass they are using to calculate the differential is still the old $654. (Of course, those upgrading who bough their passes before the February increase did see their old passed value bump up to the $654 amount).

If you had an AP, it now maps to platinum.

We're definitely in new territory here. This is the first time I can remember where Disney is flat out Discontinuing a ticket class and replacing it with whole new ones. They are explicitly stating this time that there IS NO mapping between the old tickets and new ones.

The Annual and Platinum passes sure do look similar to us. But Disney has made it clear, that PhotoPass benefit is enough for them not to grandfather benefits and treat the two passes as separate products.

 

[ArtieMcD]

So once I activate my vouchers does that lock in the 'gate' price like it used to? And then I can just pay the $20 or whatever to upgrade (downgrade) my DVC Ap? My vouchers are pre Feb price increase so I don't want to lose that savings.

Your price is already locked in whether you activate or not. Your DVC-AP vouchers are worth exactly $529.00+tax at the moment. So you can either choose to use them as is with the original benefits. Or apply that $529 toward one of the new passes and get the new benefits.

 

[DisDadDVC]

That is not true... At least that's not what's being reported. People with non-DVC/FLA "Annual" passes are being asked to pay $95+tax to switch to the Platinum pass that expires on the same day as their current annual pass. The current value of the "Annual" pass they are using to calculate the differential is still the old $654. (Of course, those upgrading who bough their passes before the February increase did see their old passed value bump up to the $654 amount).



We're definitely in new territory here. This is the first time I can remember where Disney is flat out Discontinuing a ticket class and replacing it with whole new ones. They are explicitly stating this time that there IS NO mapping between the old tickets and new ones.

The Annual and Platinum passes sure do look similar to us. But Disney has made it clear, that PhotoPass benefit is enough for them not to grandfather benefits and treat the two passes as separate products.

I don't understand anything that you are saying. No one is being forced to upgrade. It doesn't matter if this product has never been offered. Disney is allowing you to upgrade to the new product and giving you full credit for your existing ticket. It is no different than going from a AP to a PAP. Just because it wasn't offered before today doesn't mean that Disney should prorate anything. You can keep the ticket you have and all of the benefits that you got with it.

 

[DisDadDVC]

Your price is already locked in whether you activate or not. Your DVC-AP vouchers are worth exactly $529.00+tax at the moment. So you can either choose to use them as is with the original benefits. Or apply that $529 toward one of the new passes and get the new benefits.

This is all I am trying to say. The same thing goes for already activated tickets.

 

[PirateD]

I already purchased Memory Maker for our group in December. My brother and his family were going to upgrade to an AP once there (we have a FD package). I'm wondering now if I should cancel my Memory Maker. If they have it and we are all linked to it, then we should be able to get photos from them. Is that how it would work?

 

[wisblue]

Thank you for the chart. So the people that have the most invested in Disney (locals and DVC members) are the ones getting screwed in the price hikes.

Not that it helps us because we often have to travel on school schedules, but for DVC members who don't mind skipping the Easter and Christmas blockout dates, the DVC member AP is only $20 higher than last year (if I'm reading the chart correctly).