AAA Worth it?

[dtr_angel]

We just got an offer in the mail to join AAA. We have State Farm auto insurance with roadside assistance & towing, do we *need* AAA? And what is the discounts for Disney World? Just wondering if its worth it to join or not.

 

[dfchelbay]

We just got an offer in the mail to join AAA. We have State Farm auto insurance with roadside assistance & towing, do we *need* AAA? And what is the discounts for Disney World? Just wondering if its worth it to join or not.

One of the benefits you get with AAA is discounts at many places. Travel, restaurants, stores, etc. Even discounts at WDW. I believe it's 10% discounts...but some places will discount more. Might want to ask about AAA auto insurance, homeowners insurance and life too. With multi-line discounts, you may spend less than you are now.

 

[Tink415]

We found out in the early 90s that if you use your insurance company towing it counts as an 'incident'. During a two year period we had to be towed out of snowbanks 3 times and my husband was also involved in 3 accidents. Our insurance company (USAA) sent a letter saying if there were any further 'incidents' than the 6 we had they would have to cancel our policy. A USAA rep asked me why we didn't have towing recently and I told her about what had happened in the past. She wasn't sure it was still the same but I didn't want her to bother checking.

We had AAA for all the years since. Used it and was pleased. I cancelled last year since we also have AMEX roadside assistance for free. Wouldn't you know, we had 2 car batteries that needed to be jumped, AMEX covered 1/2 the charges for various reasons. I signed up for AAA again! I feel its a good value.

The AAA discounts for WDW range from 10% to 20%. Lots of other hotels & businesses have discounts too. The AAA discount is not always the cheapest discount for hotels tho so you need to check.

 

[dogodisney]

We have State Farm and had the towing until we got AAA. Look at your policy because if I can remember correctly, you have to pay for the towing then you get reimbursed. That's not always convenient.
AAA also has discounts for many attraction tickets as well as different entertainment venues.
We recently rented a condo for 2 nights at Panama City Beach and was able to get a AAA discount. What we saved covered about 1/2 our membership fees for the year. By the time our year is up, I will probably break even or come out ahead.
As a member you can also get Tour books and maps for free.

 

[rflorek]

The money that we saved on tickets for 4 to HersheyPark & the hotel discount through AAA almost covered our annual Plus membership for 2 for the entire year!

I also saved an extra 10% on my Garmin GPS through the Target link on AAA (and I bought it when Target had it on sale and with free shipping).

I would also say that AAA is worth it when you get a flat, or your car dies on the side of the road and they tow you in to your favorite service station (and not just their selected repair facilities), or when you accidenatlly lock your keys inside your car or wake up to a dead battery on vacation.

 

[DLW8]

I agree with everyone - I have been a AAA member since 1990 and when we bought our house, I inquired about insurance (we had rental insurance and car insurance with someone else) and even though it was still going to be with Travelers Insurance, through AAA I saved more money on insurance!

I also use them for checking out discount passes to anywhere we want to go...used it for Sea World last year, have used them many times for Disney passes and/or packages (although you don't have to be a member to use the travel agency).

Movie passes are sold at a discount, and so many "show your card and save" places....

I definitely feel it is worth the annual fee...and whenever we are thinking about where to go, I will pop in and get a book and map (or order them online and they ship them to you!).

Check out the list of discounts and figure out if it's worth it, and as PP said, check your insurance coverage to see if it could potentially hurt you to use that for roadside assistance....

 

[MichaelColey]

It probably won't save you much at Disney since it doesn't apply to park tickets, packages, etc.

We saved $100 (10%) off the best price we could find on a hotel on a recent vacation to Hawaii. We've saved on a few things since then. If you travel much, it definitely pays for itself.

 

[WeLuvDiznee]

I like AAA. I use the discounts at payless shoes, I get maps,my car has been towed many times. I've had them for years. I think it's worth it, to me.

 

[nena]

I have had AAA for about 10 years. Besides having the assurance of roadside service, I can get a free plastic copy of my car keys, maps, tourbooks, special discounted prices on tickets to several Amusement Parks. Not only that but at our AAA, they have a DMV booth. So I can walk in and pay my registration fees, get my tags and not wait in line for hours at the regular DMV.

 

[Nicoleclaw]

We bought our tickets last time from the AAA office. They were a little cheaper than at the park!