Annual Pass vs. WDW package

[Tinkerbellah]

Hi Disers! Right now I am trying to figure out the pros & cons of getting an annual pass.I understand that if you have an AP you get discounts on dining & free parking. What I would like to know is if you get a discount on WDW Hotels as well. If so, what is the discount & what is the dining discount. [If the discount changes please just give me an idea.] I have always gotten a WDW package, but figure we can get 2-3 vacations out of an AP. This might mean staying off property. [we have never done] We love WDW restaurants but would pay cash if we stay off site & just wonder if there is a decent savings on that. So what would you do save longer & get the AP? Or should I just book a 10 day vaca & only go once? [note we just got back in Nov & felt 10 days was too short & vaca went so fast!]

 

[Crystal824]

We have also been debating AP or 10 day nonexpiring WP&M park hopper ticket. There isn't too much difference in price. We figure we can get several visits out of either. We typically only go once a year so AP would just take us through two trips. We figure the nonexpiring WP&M PH will take us through at least 4 trips with WP&M options although we will likely have to purchase a package or park tickets after two trips.

 

[Tinkerbellah]

Now that is an idea too. That might make sense for us as well. Thanks for the idea! Can u get the free dining w/ the no expiration tickets?? [that is, if it's offered @ time of booking]



Just checked....The savings seems very small on the no expiration tickets but if the price goes up lots over time then it could be a savings. I'd rather just use the ticket up, then buy a new one the next trip. It was only $10 on a 4 day ticket split in 2 trips. IDK just not for me. Still searching for the best deal..... lol!!!

 

[ValpoCory]

Hi Disers! Right now I am trying to figure out the pros & cons of getting an annual pass.I understand that if you have an AP you get discounts on dining & free parking. What I would like to know is if you get a discount on WDW Hotels as well. If so, what is the discount & what is the dining discount. [If the discount changes please just give me an idea.] I have always gotten a WDW package, but figure we can get 2-3 vacations out of an AP. This might mean staying off property. [we have never done] We love WDW restaurants but would pay cash if we stay off site & just wonder if there is a decent savings on that. So what would you do save longer & get the AP? Or should I just book a 10 day vaca & only go once? [note we just got back in Nov & felt 10 days was too short & vaca went so fast!]

In general, any savings from purchasing an annual pass would be dwarfed by the cost of two additional round trip flights from Pennsylvania for your family. Of course, if you have miles you need to use that make that expense irrelevant, then by all means ....

 

[puffkin]

With an AP you can get the Tables in Wonderland card that gives you a 20% discount (including alcohol) at most tableservice restaurants and bars in WDW. The membership is $75, but the card is good for over a year and the savings really add up quickly if you eat onsite a lot.

Don't forget there is also a merchandise discount with the AP's at pretty much any store in WDW. It is 10%, you just have to ask for it.

The dining discounts with just the AP card are not that great. Very limited choice of restaurants and usually just for lunches. Typically it is a 10% discount. I wouldn't factor that in my decision unless you eat mainly at those places.

Resort discounts are not all the time and can run usually in the 30-40% range. One thing to keep in mind is that the deals are sporadic, so you can't be horribly picky with your resort. Also, they usually are only released a few months in advance so if you like to plan farther out it may not work for you.

We have had AP's for years. We usually get 3 trips a year (2 per calendar year) on each pass. We are DVC but we also stay offsite when we are low on points. We love the flexibility of the AP's

 

[North of Mouse]

We have had the 10 day no expiration with water parks, also the AP. We prefer the AP because we can get 2-3 stays for about 10 days each and go and come when we please - most of the time we time it to get 3 trips - one right before the pass expires. Then we still have some of our non-expiring water park tickets and use those for the water parks. As others have said we get the Tables in Wonderland Card and pay for it at least in the first trip and save 20% extra on the other trips - definitely our way to go but each family is different and has to plan accordingly. The price is about the same. Oh, and there are other discounts. We enjoy some of the tours and there is usually about 20% off those with TIW card. Good Luck whatever you decide

 

[Crystal824]

Now that is an idea too. That might make sense for us as well. Thanks for the idea! Can u get the free dining w/ the no expiration tickets?? [that is, if it's offered @ time of booking]



Just checked....The savings seems very small on the no expiration tickets but if the price goes up lots over time then it could be a savings. I'd rather just use the ticket up, then buy a new one the next trip. It was only $10 on a 4 day ticket split in 2 trips. IDK just not for me. Still searching for the best deal..... lol!!!

Right but you also get 10 WP&M days, which you can use in future trips. We are leaning toward the non-expiring passes because I doubt we would do more than 10 park days with an annual pass anyway. We don't live close enough to get more days than that. If we lived closer or went more often an AP would definitely be the way to go. We typically go once a year for 5-10 days. We usually go to at least one non Disney park during that time and we generally do at least one waterpark or Disneyquest. This will probably give us at least two trips with park hoppers and there is no telling how many trips we can get out of the WP&M days.

 

[Tinkerbellah]

In general, any savings from purchasing an annual pass would be dwarfed by the cost of two additional round trip flights from Pennsylvania for your family. Of course, if you have miles you need to use that make that expense irrelevant, then by all means ....

I was going to fly once & drive 2x. LOL!!! At least that's the plan.

With an AP you can get the Tables in Wonderland card that gives you a 20% discount (including alcohol) at most tableservice restaurants and bars in WDW. The membership is $75, but the card is good for over a year and the savings really add up quickly if you eat onsite a lot.

Don't forget there is also a merchandise discount with the AP's at pretty much any store in WDW. It is 10%, you just have to ask for it.

The dining discounts with just the AP card are not that great. Very limited choice of restaurants and usually just for lunches. Typically it is a 10% discount. I wouldn't factor that in my decision unless you eat mainly at those places.

Resort discounts are not all the time and can run usually in the 30-40% range. One thing to keep in mind is that the deals are sporadic, so you can't be horribly picky with your resort. Also, they usually are only released a few months in advance so if you like to plan farther out it may not work for you.

We have had AP's for years. We usually get 3 trips a year (2 per calendar year) on each pass. We are DVC but we also stay offsite when we are low on points. We love the flexibility of the AP's

THanks for the info this is so very helpful, I'm taking my notes.

We have had the 10 day no expiration with water parks, also the AP. We prefer the AP because we can get 2-3 stays for about 10 days each and go and come when we please - most of the time we time it to get 3 trips - one right before the pass expires. Then we still have some of our non-expiring water park tickets and use those for the water parks. As others have said we get the Tables in Wonderland Card and pay for it at least in the first trip and save 20% extra on the other trips - definitely our way to go but each family is different and has to plan accordingly. The price is about the same. Oh, and there are other discounts. We enjoy some of the tours and there is usually about 20% off those with TIW card. Good Luck whatever you decide

THank you this was really helpful!!

Right but you also get 10 WP&M days, which you can use in future trips. We are leaning toward the non-expiring passes because I doubt we would do more than 10 park days with an annual pass anyway. We don't live close enough to get more days than that. If we lived closer or went more often an AP would definitely be the way to go. We typically go once a year for 5-10 days. We usually go to at least one non Disney park during that time and we generally do at least one waterpark or Disneyquest. This will probably give us at least two trips with park hoppers and there is no telling how many trips we can get out of the WP&M days.

Ok I see, so you'll actually get 10 days of theme parks & 10 days of waterparks & golf courses?? Can this be right???
Seems like a really good plan!!!

 

[North of Mouse]

If you add the option of water parks to your 10 day basic you will get them, but you do pay an extra charge as you do with each added perk.

 

[Crystal824]

Right you have to get the non-expiring Water Park and More Park tickets (we will probably also add the park hopper feature), which are roughly the same cost as an annual pass.