Annual Pass -- Tables in Wonderland question

[mintwax]

My family usually only travels to Disney World at about 18 months or so. We usually only go for 7 days. So . . . at first glance, it didn't seem to make sense to buy an Annual Pass. With DVC discount, the Annual Pass costs about $424. In comparison, a 7-day park hopper costs about $301.

But this year, we're going to be a party of 9 people. And we usually spend a good sum of money on dining. Therefore, Im considering buying the Annual Pass for the sole purpose of being able to buy the Tables In Wonderland card.

If we spend approximately $1000 at restaurants, with the 20% Tables in Wonderland discount, it should cover the cost of the additional cost for the Annual Pass (about $125 more than the 7-day park hopper) and the cost of the TIW ($75). We're likely going to spend over the $1000 on dining, so with the 20% discount of TIW, it seems like a money-saving strategy to me. Am I missing something?

Thanks!

 

[daisyduck123]

Keep in mind that having an annual pass gets you a 10% discount right now in the gift shops. Having a Premium Annual Pass gets you 20% off.

That is a HUGE savings for me, as my family spends at least $500.00 on souvenirs type stuff each trip.

 

[Dacky619]

You seem to have the math correct. I'd be concerned if there is a limit to how many people can get the discount with the TIW card though? We're always a party of 2 or 4, but is 9 people too many?

 

[Dacky619]

You seem to have the math correct. I'd be concerned if there is a limit to how many people can get the discount with the TIW card though? We're always a party of 2 or 4, but is 9 people too many?

Just found the answer on the passholder website. The card is good for a party up to 10 people.

 

[mintwax]

Just found the answer on the passholder website. The card is good for a party up to 10 people.

Thanks! It looks like this could work for us!

 

[DenLo]

Just a heads up, some of the restaurants do not accept the TIW card or only accept it at lunch. Yak & Yeti's in AK doesn't take it all and Teppan Edo only accepts it weekdays at lunch. There are probably others too. But what we usually do is bring out our DVC member card, AP, Disney Visa card and TIW card and find out which card works and gives us the best discount. Usually it's the TIW card because most of the others are only 10% discounts and don't cover alcohol drinks.

FYI:

Resort valet services are complimentary to members, for the sole purpose of dining. This privilege will only be extended to one vehicle per membership card. Present your membership card with a valid dining receipt at the Valet Stand upon retrieving your vehicle.

 

[mintwax]

Just a heads up, some of the restaurants do not accept the TIW card or only accept it at lunch. Yak & Yeti's in AK doesn't take it all and Teppan Edo only accepts it weekdays at lunch. There are probably others too. But what we usually do is bring out our DVC member card, AP, Disney Visa card and TIW card and find out which card works and gives us the best discount. Usually it's the TIW card because most of the others are only 10% discounts and don't cover alcohol drinks.

FYI:

Good point. I just looked at the current list. While it doesn't include eveything it has a lot. I will make sure to pay attention to this. Thanks!

 

[erionm]

Just a heads up, some of the restaurants do not accept the TIW card or only accept it at lunch. Yak & Yeti's in AK doesn't take it all and Teppan Edo only accepts it weekdays at lunch. There are probably others too. But what we usually do is bring out our DVC member card, AP, Disney Visa card and TIW card and find out which card works and gives us the best discount. Usually it's the TIW card because most of the others are only 10% discounts and don't cover alcohol drinks.

FYI:

Teppan Edo does not offer the TiW discount, Toyko Dining does. Other then dinner shows (late shows only), there are no restrictions on when the TiW discount is valid. I've only seen the lunch only restriction on DVC & AP dining discounts.

Here's the current list of TiW Participating locations from the FL Resident webpage:

Disney's All-Star Movies Resort – World Premiere Food Court
Disney's All-Star Music Resort – Intermission Food Court
Disney's All-Star Sports Resort – End Zone Food Court
Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge – Boma - The Flavors of Africa, Jiko - The Cooking Place, Sanaa, Victoria Falls
Disney's Beach Club Resort – Beaches & Cream Soda Shop (excludes take-out shop), Cape May Cafe, Martha's Vineyard Lounge
Disney's BoardWalk – Belle Vue Lounge, Big River Grille & Brewing Works, ESPN® Club, Flying Fish Cafe, Kouzzina by Cat Cora
Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort – Shutters at Old Port Royale
Disney's Contemporary Resort – California Grill, Chef Mickey's, Outer Rim, The Wave
Disney's Coronado Springs Resort – Maya Grill
Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground – Crockett's Tavern, Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue (9:30 p.m. show only), Trail's End Restaurant (Excludes take out shop)
Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa – 1900 Park Fare, Citricos, Garden View Tea Room, Grand Floridian Cafe, Mizner's Lounge, Narcoossee's, Victoria & Albert's (excludes Chef's Table and Queen Victoria Room)
Disney's Old Key West Resort – Olivia's Cafe
Disney's Osprey Ridge Golf Course – Sand Trap Bar & Grill
Disney's Polynesian Resort – 'Ohana, Kona Cafe, Disney's Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show (Late show only), Tambu Lounge
Disney's Pop Century Resort – Everything Pop Shopping and Dining (excludes merchandise from shop)
Disney's Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter - Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory, Scat Cat's Club
Disney's Port Orleans Resort – Riverside - Boatwright's Dining Hall, River Roost
Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort – The Artist's Palette, The Turf Club Bar & Grill; Turf Club Lounge
Disney's Vero Beach Resort – The Green Cabin Room, Shutter's, Sonya's (Excludes Sunday Brunch)
Disney's Wilderness Lodge – Artist Point, Territory Lounge, Whispering Canyon Cafe
Disney's Yacht Club Resort – Ale and Compass Lounge, Captain's Grille, Crews Cup Lounge, Yachtsman Steakhouse
Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort – Il Mulino New York Trattoria, Kimonos, Shula's Steak House, Todd English's bluezoo, Garden Grove

Magic Kingdom® Park – Cinderella's Royal Table, Liberty Tree Tavern, The Crystal Palace, The Plaza Restaurant, Tony's Town Square Restaurant
Epcot® – Akershus Royal Banquet Hall, Biergarten Restaurant, Bistro de Paris, Chefs de France, Coral Reef Restaurant, Le Cellier Steakhouse, Nine Dragons Restaurant, Restaurant Marrakesh, Rose & Crown Pub & Dining Room, San Angel Inn Restaurante, The Garden Grill Restaurant, Tokyo Dining, Tutto Italia Ristorante, Via Napoli
Disney's Hollywood Studios™ – 50's Prime Time Cafe, Hollywood & Vine, Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano, Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant, The Hollywood Brown Derby, Tune-In Lounge
Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park – Flame Tree Barbeque, Pizzafari, Restaurantosaurus, Tusker House Restaurant
DOWNTOWN DISNEY® – Marketplace - Cap'n Jack's Restaurant, Fulton's Crab House
DOWNTOWN DISNEY® – Pleasure Island – Paradiso 37, Portobello, Raglan Road" Irish Pub and Restaurant
DOWNTOWN DISNEY® – West side – Bongo's Cuban Café, House Of Blues® (Excludes Sunday Brunch), Planet Hollywood®, Wolfgang Puck Café
ESPN Wide World of Sports® Complex – ESPN Wide World of Sports® Grill

 

[KBoopaloo]

You will have no problem using the discount for the 9 members of your party. I just got back from a trip with a large group and we were sometimes 11 people at a meal, sometimes 14 plus an infant. We found that the server applied the discount to our whole party in several restaurants. It was a nice surprise and completely unexpected. Chefs de France was one restaurant where they were very strict about applying the discount only to 10 of us.

At any rate, with only 9, you will get the discount on everyone. It was fantastic. We saved something like $480 over 6 nights. This was our second trip using the card so we had already recouped our initial $75 cost.

 

[rentayenta]

I found this list on AllEars for 2011. Ignore the blue bolded, just highlighted places I want to try on our next trip to post in my ptr.


Tables in Wonderland Restaurant List Participating Restaurants and Lounges as of March 2011:

All-Star Movies Resort
World Premiere Food Court


All-Star Music Resort
Intermission Food Court


All-Star Sports Resort
End Zone Food Court


Animal Kingdom Lodge
Boma-Flavors of Africa
Jiko-The Cooking Place
Sanaa
Victoria Falls


Beach Club Resort
Beaches & Cream Soda Shop (eat-in only)Cape May Cafe
Martha's Vineyard Lounge


BoardWalk
Belle Vue Lounge
Big River Grille and Brewing Works
ESPN Club
Flying Fish Cafe
Kouzzina by Cat Cora


Osprey Ridge Golf Club
Sand trap Bar & Grill


Caribbean Beach Resort
Shutters at Old Port Royale


Contemporary Resort
California Grill
Chef Mickey's
Outer Rim Lounge
The Wave


Coronado Springs Resort
Maya Grill


Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground
Crockett's Tavern
Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue (9:30 p.m. show only, offered seasonally)
trail's End Restaurant (Excludes take-out)


Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
1900 Park Fare
Cítricos
Garden View Lounge
Grand Floridian Cafe
Mizner's Lounge
Narcoossee's
Victoria & Albert's (excluding Chef's Table and Queen Victoria Room)


Old Key West Resort
Olivia's Cafe


Polynesian Resort
'Ohana
Kona Cafe
Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show (late show only)
Tambu Lounge


Pop Century Resort
Everything Pop Dining (excluding merchandise)

Port Orleans Resort
Riverside:
Boatwright's Dining Hall
River Roost

French Quarter:
Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory
Scat Cat's Club


Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
Artist's Palette
The Turf Club Bar and Grill
The Turf Club Lounge


Wilderness Lodge
Artist Point
Territory Lounge
Whispering Canyon Cafe


Yacht Club Resort
Ale and Compass Lounge
Captain's Grille
Crew's Cup Lounge
Yachtsman Steakhouse



DOWNTOWN DISNEY Marketplace
Cap'n Jack's Restaurant
Fulton's Crab House


DOWNTOWN DISNEY Pleasure Island
Paradiso 37
Portobello
Raglan Road


DOWNTOWN DISNEY West Side
Bongo's Cuban Cafe
House of Blues (excludes Sunday brunch)
Planet Hollywood
Wolfgang Puck Cafe

Epcot
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
Biergarten Restaurant
Bistro de Paris Restaurant
Chefs de France Restaurant
Coral Reef Restaurant
Garden Grill Restaurant
La Hacienda
Le Cellier Steakhouse
Nine Dragons Restaurant
Restaurant Marrakesh
Rose & Crown Pub & Dining Room
San Angel Inn Restaurante
Tokyo Dining
Tutto Italia Ristorante
Via Napoli




Disney's Hollywood Studios
50's Prime Time Cafe
Hollywood & Vine
Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano
Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant
The Hollywood Brown Derby
Tune-In Lounge


Magic Kingdom
Cinderella's Royal Table
Liberty tree Tavern
The Crystal Palace
The Plaza Restaurant
Tony's Town Square Restaurant


Animal Kingdom
Flame tree Barbecue
Pizzafari
Restaurantosaurus
Tusker House Restaurant




Disney's Vero Beach Resort
The Green Cabin Room
Shutters Restaurant
Sonya's Fine Steaks & Chops (Sunday Brunch not included)


Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort
Il Mulino New York trattoria
Garden Grove
Kimonos
Shula's Steak House
Todd English's bluezoo

ESPN Wide World of Sports
ESPN Wide World of Sports Grill




I did the math and it's so worth it for one of us to get a PAP and the TiW card. After the water park discount, merchandise discount, I think we have to spend a total of $300 in drink and food to break even. That's not hard with a family of 5 on a 12 day trip, even with some cooking in our villa.

 

[dmoore22]

The most important thing that TIW covers --- Adult Beverages!

 

[SilverMouseEars]

The most important thing that TIW covers --- Adult Beverages!

Couldn't agree more! But too bad it doesn't cover drinks around the pool at AKL, SSR...and especially the tequila bar in Mexico.

 

[DVCAmy]

Most of our Disney trips are with our extended family 12-16 people and those trips are every 2 years. We have always upgraded 1 ticket to an annual pass and purchased the TiW card and all 3 families split the cost of the card and the upgraded pass. The card is so worth it for us during the trip, especially for those adult dinners with nice wine and cocktails. It never takes us long to make up the cost.

Amy

 

[mintwax]

I'm convinced. So how do I buy the AP and TIW? Do I just call member services? Also, when does the AP become active -- the day I buy it or the first day I use it?

Thanks, and I'm looking forward to these savings!

 

[erionm]

I'm convinced. So how do I buy the AP and TIW? Do I just call member services? Also, when does the AP become active -- the day I buy it or the first day I use it?

Thanks, and I'm looking forward to these savings!

For APs, you can prepurchase an exchange voucher by call MS or using the DVC member website. You can also purchase APs at any Theme Park Ticket Window, Guest Relations Location and as of recently the Resorts. If you prepurchase, you still have to go to one of these locations to exchange for the actual AP. The clock starts ticking on the APs once the CM at one of these locations hands it to you.

You have to have an active AP to purchase the TiW card. You can do this while purchasing (or exchanging for) your AP at any Guest Relations location.

 

[KBoopaloo]

We bought our TIW card at Guest Relations outside MK when we traded in our AP vouchers for the actual APs. It was quick and painless!

 

[jkevinmcg]

Couldn't agree more! But too bad it doesn't cover drinks around the pool at AKL, SSR...and especially the tequila bar in Mexico.

Agree with you agreeing

 

[Brandis]

If you buy a discounted Multi-Day Hopper ticket(for example from Undercover Tourist) which does not exceed the value of the AP you would like to buy and then use that ticket at least once you will be credited the full non-discounted amount of that ticket for the purchase of your DVC AP.

The procedure is described in detail on the boards in the ticketing FAQ.

I calculated the following for myself:

8 day Hopper plus Waterparks option from UT (with Mousesavers discount: $354.95

Full price value for this ticket, if bought from WDW: $383.40 (And the UT ticket is updated to this value if used at least once)

The regular AP with DVC discount costs: $424.94

So, handing over the once used hopper plus $41.54 gets you the DVC AP.

Saving $28.45 on the Hopper ticket and then whatever the difference is between a non-discounted AP and the DVC AP.

 

[erionm]

If you buy a discounted Multi-Day Hopper ticket(for example from Undercover Tourist) which does not exceed the value of the AP you would like to buy and then use that ticket at least once you will be credited the full non-discounted amount of that ticket for the purchase of your DVC AP.

The procedure is described in detail on the boards in the ticketing FAQ.

I calculated the following for myself:

8 day Hopper plus Waterparks option from UT (with Mousesavers discount: $354.95

Full price value for this ticket, if bought from WDW: $383.40 (And the UT ticket is updated to this value if used at least once)

The regular AP with DVC discount costs: $424.94

So, handing over the once used hopper plus $41.54 gets you the DVC AP.

Saving $28.45 on the Hopper ticket and then whatever the difference is between a non-discounted AP and the DVC AP.

A word of caution to anyone that plans on doing this type of upgrade. If you don't plan on upgrading to a Premium AP, do not use one of the Waterparks & More Fun options. If you use a WP&M option your only AP upgrade option will be a Premium AP.

 

[Brandis]

A word of caution to anyone that plans on doing this type of upgrade. If you don't plan on upgrading to a Premium AP, do not use one of the Waterparks & More Fun options. If you use a WP&M option your only AP upgrade option will be a Premium AP.

Thanks for mentioning that, I forgot, as I was actually planning to just quickly enter Epcot, leave again and then have the upgrade done...