AAA Members

[mamamac]

What type of discounts are available with them? Are they usually significant? Will it help at WDW if we don't stay on a resort? It seems you have to be a member to find any of this out. I know some hotels offer discounts but are they substantial? What about restaurants? What about Disney shopping?

 

[lisam427]

i know if you book w/ aaa they gave u a card that you get discounts at some disney restaurants and shops. you also get discounts on the tours at disney, and vouchers for a storytelling session with one of the characters. i think you also get a 15%-20% discount on your room depending on if you stay at value or moderate/deluxe.

 

[mamamac]

i know if you book w/ aaa they gave u a card that you get discounts at some disney restaurants and shops. you also get discounts on the tours at disney, and vouchers for a storytelling session with one of the characters. i think you also get a 15%-20% discount on your room depending on if you stay at value or moderate/deluxe.

Does it matter if we are staying offsite?

 

[Praying Colonel]

What type of discounts are available with them? Are they usually significant? Will it help at WDW if we don't stay on a resort? It seems you have to be a member to find any of this out. I know some hotels offer discounts but are they substantial? What about restaurants? What about Disney shopping?

It depends--how's that for a nice squishy answer?

In the past we've booked 2 WDW trips through AAA and we saved 5-8% on our overall package. That plus the Diamond parking pass and the World of Disney discounts made it worth it to us.

This time around we priced it through AAA and through another travel agency and AAA was actually about $20 more, so we booked through the other agency.

We get AAA for other reasons besides WDW discounts, so I can't tell you whether it's worth it for that alone.

 

[SandrA9810]

Most off-site hotels have AAA discount, as well as AARP and other member discounts like that.

If you don't already have some sort of towing service for you and your family, it is well worth the cost and piece of mind. Kari's parent's renew it every year for them and her, and just about every year it comes in handy. We also had a bad habit of locking the keys in the truck when we first got it because the other vehicle has keyless entry on it. (that's like 40-50$ if you have to call a locksmith, and Disney can't help you if you do that on property).
We've had to use the towing services often too. And while it might take a while for them to get to you, paying 5$ a mile for every mile after the first 5 is a lot better than the 10-15$ a towing company will charge.


When you're booking up your vacation, just ask if there's any AAA discounts. Most the time, they'll just tell you how much off. Then you can decide for yourself if that's something you think is worth the investment. And I know the discount is small, but you can buy vouchers at a AAA office for the theme parks.

 

[angwill]

AAA works at a lot of the off site hotels. I know it is good at Marriott and Hilton resorts but not sure of others. If you look at your hotel online and go to book if they take AAA it will have an area to get the AAA discount which is like 10%. You also get a discount at Earl of Sandwich. The membership is around $55 around here.

Personally, I feel the tow service is only worth if you don't want to find a towing company because where I live AAA towing companies charge double what other towing services charge unless you are less than 5 or 10 miles from home and then it is free. Considering everything around me is furthur than that it wasn't worth it for us. For like 45 cents a month we have the same service as AAA minus the hotel discounts through our car insurance company. We pay up front and they give us a check when we take it in a State Farm office afterward.

The person who said AAA was $20 more than booking elsewhere that is the AAA fee for booking for you. All you have to do is tell them they are higher and since you pay for the AAA card it should be free and they will take off the $20 fee rather than have you book elsewhere.

 

[buzz2400]

I am a very frugal person, always looking for the best price. I have AAA. I go to Disney every year. I don't book directly with AAA but get the AAA rates and book directly with disney. If I go again, I won't be staying onsite. I have always stayed at the all stars or pop century because it is the cheapest. We just found a beautiful hotel right near downtown disney which has free breakfast and free internet. Country Inn and Suites. got a good price at travelzoo.com. With AAA you get a discount at most hotels. All you have to do is tell them you are a AAA member and you do get a discount. You don't get any discounts with AAA at restaurants. I believe you are asking more is it worth getting AAA. I believe it is. You do get discount tickets to the movie theatres in your area. i.e. I pay $8 for the ticket and it costs something like $11 regular price. You also get a discount at most eyeglass places like lenscrafters. If you book a WDW trip directly with AAA, they do give you a discount at the big disney store at downtown disney but you still have to spend a lot to get a savings.

 

[MinnieForMe]

I highly recommend AAA.

It saved us the cost of a locksmith (the doors automatically lock with keyless entry) when our rental minivan battery went dead. We were in the Universal garage and to say they could care less would be an understatement. I'll never be without it when traveling again!

 

[SandrA9810]

It's really nice that it travels with the person, not the car. So even if your in a rental or a friend's car, AAA will still help you the customer.