Annual pass question

[jdtopgun71]

I am getting ready to possibly take the plunge and buy APs for my DW and myself, but had a couple of questions. First are they still set up where you purchase the AP and the year starts on the first day of use?

Also I had heard a while back that they were contemplating allowing people to purchase and make payments? Did they ever do this or do you have to pay in full?

And lastly, how many days per year does everyone think is a good number of visits that will justify an AP? I used to hear 10 days, but I wonder with price increases and parking cost if this has changed.

Thanks for any input!

 

[Werd]

I just purchased an AP one week ago at the end of my WDW Vacation. I had many of the same questions but ultimately it came down to cost justification.

I bought a five day hopper for $360 from undercover tourist and upgraded that ticket to a AP for an additional $280. I'm going back for 7 days in February then again for my anniversary next September so it absolutely justifies the purchase. If you plan on going and hopping for 10 days in separate occurrence (5 days for one trip and 5 for another) then it's worth it. If you're just going once for ten days then it's probably not worth because of how steep the price of tickets drops after 7 days it and you probably don't need hoppers because you will get all you want from every park in 10 days.


The AP will expire one year after the purchase date, not one year after first use. It includes free parking at parks and a book of discounts I haven't read through yet. Mostly 10-20% off most restaurants. Hope this helps!

 

[dholmes1950]

Please double-check the information on the expiration of the annual pass. We purchased annual passes in June, but didn't activate until September and they expire September, 2015.

 

[auger]

It depends on how you purchase the pass.
If you get a voucher that has to be redeemed, then the pass will activate when the voucher is redeemed.
If you purchase the pass in person, it will be active from the time of purchase.
Expiration date is one year from date of activation.

 

[wdwfan1]

We used our 2013-2014 APs for 7 days in March, 7 days in October, 5 days in January and another 7 days in March 2014 for a total of 26 days. Well worth t.
Our new DVC annual passes will be used in October, December, March and September.

 

[doconeill]

As mentioned, if you purchased a "voucher" (also called an exchange certificate), or ordered your Annual Pass for will-call pickup, the pass will expire on the same day to get the REAL Annual Pass one year later. It does not matter if you use it that day or not.

In person, you can still purchase a voucher but you have to ask specifically for it. Otherwise they will sell you the activated pass.

Note...KNOW when the AP should expire, and have them confirm. Occasionally the CMs make a mistake, and it gets dated back to the purchase date.

 

[txvjc]

Yes, one year from activation if you buy the voucher...the above poster's was one year from date of purchase because they upgraded the 5-day hopper to an AP

The payment plan is only available to FL residents and you must have hard proof like a state issued ID or DL (people say they have gotten a FL resident AP by using other things but they cracked down on it when they started the payment plan)

Don't just consider days when thinking about the value either...you can get discounts on rooms or if staying offsite you get free parking which can add up quickly on lengthy stays (if you only stay on property though it's not really a perk as you park for free being a hotel guest)...also if you eat a lot of table-service dining on your trips you can get a Tables in Wonderland card as an AP holder and save 20% on food and alcohol (keep in mind they charge you an automatic 18% tip on the pre-discount price)...you get a few other discounts also on merch and certain Epcot restaurants at lunch (also 50% off at mini-golf!)

 

[richsole]

If you're not a Florida resident (would that I were!), can you still get Tables in Wonderland if you get the Annual Pass?

 

[doconeill]

If you're not a Florida resident (would that I were!), can you still get Tables in Wonderland if you get the Annual Pass?

Yes...Annual Passholders and DVC Members can get the TIW card for $150 ($25 less than a FL Resident)

 

[Accident]

The AP will expire one year after the purchase date, not one year after first use.

A guest relations cast member recently clarified what is really suppose to happen. It's is 1 year from the activation date. In the event of a ticket upgrade, the first day the ticket was used it officially should be that date however they don't usually adjust but officially don't be surprised if a cast member who is very by the book does adjust, that is the official what is suppose to happen. Now depending on where you got the ticket, it may not be worth full value until you've used it once which is why everyone says use to get into the park at least 1 day and upgrade before the ticket expires. That will lock the price the ticket is worth to whatever the price at the gate was that day and get you the lowest possible upgrade price..

Now with that said, I personally wouldn't wait until near the end of a trip to upgrade unless I was on the fence about the value if I came back. How I dine and purchase things, the discount has more cost savings then having to renew a couple days earlier to me. Your experience may differ. I was actually surprised how many places took the discount and my best advice is ignore the book/list and anything you purchase anything ask if they have a discount. Some discounts never appear anywhere, especially when all the vacation pacakges include tickets. Make sure you call up and ask if there is any additional AP discount offers before you finalize your plans.

I do not have TiW myself. Unless my math is off, I would have spend twice as much as I do on food before I break even on the cost vs the savings I'm already getting with AP. I also don't tend to eat often where they take TiW so it's really a lot more I need to spend. I am moving to the area soon though so while I can official call myself a non-resident, I'm going to give it a whirl for a year to really see what it would save me.