Annual Pass: Renewal vs. Lapse

[crocko]

I've been doing some thinking/figuring regarding annual pass costs....both initial and renewal.

Conclusion? I rarely think it makes sense to renew your annual pass.
The cost difference between an initial buy and a renewal is not very much. (Currently @ $43 for an adult)

Based on the "monthly" cost of a renewal pass, you are paying @ $38/month. From that I conclude, that unless you want to take a trip within 5 weeks of your current pass' expiration date, it doesn't make fiscal sense to renew your pass.

Annual pass renewal = $457...on a per-month-basis that is $38/month.
Annual pass = $499.

Example. Let's say you renewed your pass 5 times over a 5-year period.
That would be $457 x 5 = $2,285.

OR...instead, you buy a pass ($499). When it expires, let's say your next trip after expiration is 3 months. Then buy another ($499). Next trip after that expiration is 5 months. Then buy another ($499). Next trip after that expiration is 4 months. Then buy another ($499).
Over the same 60-month period, you have spent $499 x 4 = $1,996.

Again....you'd have to consider your own scheduling, but from a budget standpoint I think this is something important to consider.

For my family, I plan on simply letting our passes expire after 1 year. Then, whenever we're ready to take another trip, we'll try and plan 2 or 3 trips in a 365-day period to better maximize an annual pass.

Any other thoughts?

 

[lucigo]

Sounds like a wise decision. We do seasonal passes because we are FL residents, but same concept, and we usually try to schedule a cruise or two in between Disney "years". The problem is the severe withdrawal we experience after our passes expire! LOL

 

[singnring]

I have also looked at this "math".

We allowed our passes to expire last year and did not renew them.
Rather, we waited until our next trip, whihc came three months later, and chose to get new AP's at that time so we would have the ability to use them for a full year. We will make three trips on them, whereas, had we renewed, we would have only gotten 2.

We do the same thing with Sea World passes.

It just doesn't make sense to do a renewal unless you go quite frequently - or live in Florida or a neighboring state.

But I don't think a lot of people really think through the entire scenario that you showed in your post.
Most people see that they are saving the $43 and figure they should jump on the renewal.

I have found that when dealing with Disney and their "deals", it is always wise to do the math and find your real costs and benefits!!

 

[PrincessSuzanne]

We did just that. Our passes expired in December and we knew we wouldn't be back until June, but I couldn't wait, so we bought a 1 day for the 1 day we went down in March and low and behold Disney came out with the 4/3 package in which I got a 10 day NE (but paid for 7) and the 10% for the new AP, so we saved a ton by waiting.

Suzanne