Annual Pass & TIW! What should I do??

[rachdd]

We are going to Disney on March 2 and staying at Shades of Green this time. We have 2 adults, 2 Disney Adults, and 1 child. Also going are my parents and brother as well as my inlaws so 10 in all... (that is a whole other story). I need advice on if it will be worth it for just me to get an AP & possibly TIW?

We are getting 7 day hoppers for $296 at SOG. I have plans to bring my little one back to Disney sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas but that is not a definite yet. I know we can save on parking, dinning, and some purchases. We will have a car and we do like to drive to some of the parks so that would save us. We aren't doing a ton of reservations this time because we have realized we hate being tied down to go eat at a certain time but so far this is what we do have ressies for:
T-Rex, 50's Prime Time (lunch), LTT (lunch), Raglan Road, and Ohana.

NOW, do you think I should get the AP? TIW???

MY head hurts from trying to decide!!!

 

[rachdd]

C'mon!! I know someone has some insight!!!

 

[nyc2theworld]

TiW will also save you on alcohol. That is enough reason to get it.

 

[daber]

TiW will also save you on alcohol. That is enough reason to get it.

The AP pays for itself after I believe 7 days usage, so given that you are planning to go down within the next 12 months, the AP is the way to go. Then you get free parking in the parks (but you'd get that staying in a Disney resort). TIW gives you I think 18% off the bill for up to 10 people at table service restaurants. You need to have an AP to get it, but I've found it to be worth it. One year it paid for itself in one visit for my parents to Victoria and Alberts.

 

[seashoreCM]

... back to Disney sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas but that is not a definite yet ...

Not enough information to give insight.

You need to plan your theme park touring schedule for the full life of the annual pass. Only after doing this can you figure out whether alternatives (such a a dining package) will be a better deal.

A slight change in schedule can tip the balance way over to greatly favor a different kind of admission ticket or room selection. You may be able to get in 12 theme park days with hopping or 17 theme park days without hopping, spending less than the price of an AP, depending on how they are split between vacations.

One adult annual pass is enough to get the benefits such as free parking and some room discounts. Meanwhile staying on site already grants free parking.

 

[Hootch]

pass is $499 for an adult and TIW is $75 with a pass so you need to cover $275 in savings to make it worthwhile without the additional trip. With the 20% savings you need to spend $1,375 at TIW restaurants to be at break even. The good news is that a single card can be used for up to ten people if you are on the same check. That works out to just under $200 per day or $20.person day. If your group is eating together at one TS per day then it should pay for itself.

Look at the list of restaurants that take TIW. It's accepted at most TS restaurants but not all and typically at CS restaurants where a TS is not available. So a CS in MK, Epcot and DHS are not covered (for some reason Pizzafari and Flame Tree are covered in DAK) and no SOG restaurants are included.

See the bottom of this link for all of the restaurants

http://www.wdwinfo.com/disneydiningexperience.htm#TIWevents

 

[rachdd]

Just thinking all of this out but out of curiosity, since I am not 100% sure we are heading back at the end of the year could I buy DS an annual pass which would be a "child" and buy the TIW with that?? This scenario would save us approx $50. Is this allowed????

Think I just answered my own question... you have to be 21 to purchase TIW. Correct??

 

[Hootch]

it's a minimum age of 21.

 

[dzneelvr]

If you purchase an AP, try to get two trips into it so you only pay for the TIW card one time. It saves a straight 20% off everything, so you don't have to restrict yourself to special menu items or such. We've calculated savings in the $4-500 range for our trips but we do TS twice a day and use it at resorts too. For us, it's GREAT.

 

[racechick8293]

I believe that TIW gives you the discount, but also automatically adds on a tip at a specific percentage when dining with more than a certain number of people (6?). This could be a downside in the event of poor service.