Annual Passes (again)

[Shropshire Saint]

Hi

I have been looking into buying an annual pass. There are some obvious benefits as home owners in the US, but my question is for those that have them.
Do you believe they give you genuine value for money?
Has anybody bought them as a Florida resident? I know I am not, but I have an address so I think I can get them a little cheaper.
Do you always buy them at the front gate?

Thanks in advance.

 

[SammieG]

You need to prove that you are a florida resident.. an address is not sufficient. We have friends who have a house in Florida, but it wasnt until they took their driving test that they were eligible for the passes. Now... that was a few years ago, so it could have changed..but I expect that they are v strict on the florida passes.

In terms of an AP giving value for money.. it depends on how often you go to disney. With the cheaper tickets (14 days) that are avail at present in the UK for £179 - its difficult to beat. You MUST make two trips to WdW for it to be worthwhile.
We try to get 3 trips from ours if at all possible.. but that one is a bit hit and miss!!

 

[Miffy2003]

As to whether they give you benefit - I think it depends on how long you were planning on being at a Disney park for.

We got 37 days' admission out of our APs (over 2 trips) and for us this was by far the cheapest ticket medium for so many WDW days.

Don't even get me started on the various discounts and the DDE it enabled me to buy

 

[Amyrlin]

There is also a BIG danger, when you have an annual pass you want to get back there to get value out of it. I have one, it was worth one of us getting one on out last trip for the room discounts and the disney dinning experience card, but it is like a magnet pulling you back.

 

[Miffy2003]

There is also a BIG danger, when you have an annual pass you want to get back there to get value out of it. I have one, it was worth one of us getting one on out last trip for the room discounts and the disney dinning experience card, but it is like a magnet pulling you back.

That's not a danger

 

[wilki32]

That's exactly why we got our APs last year, to make sure we do go back and well, here we go again!
Would be interested in getting the most out of them though, is there a website about what discounts, where etc. We did have a little booklet but it's in that safe place

 

[Pootle]

Would be interested in getting the most out of them though, is there a website about what discounts, where etc. We did have a little booklet but it's in that safe place

Try this link for current AP details http://allearsnet.com/pl/apass.htm#2005

We got our first APs in the early 90's and Disney made it a 'special' experience. We would go to Customer Services at MGM where we would be taken to a 1920's style waiting room/living room until someone came to take our photographs to go onto the laminated passes.

Easter tends to 'oblige' by being late one year and early the next and that was how we normally got in our 2 trips

 

[Shropshire Saint]

Thanks for your help. I think we will get them. We have 2 weeks booked at the end of October & 3 weeks booked at the end of May next year. We will probably be back after that as well, so we will get value for money.

 

[Eljay]

After many years as a Florida Resident AP holder, I can tell you that they require a current photo ID with a FL address in order to qualify. They also check my ID each year when I renew.

As I'm sure you saw in the AllEars info, you will enjoy lower resort rates with the AP, which often makes it worth purchasing. If you take any of the behind the scenes tours, they are also discounted with an AP.
http://allearsnet.com/btp/tours.htm

 

[JohnnySharp2]

We have an Annual Pass for Universal as we went on holiday twice this year.
The discounts are worthwhile , saved a fortune , however it's only really of benefit if you visit more than once in a year (as perviously advised).

The Disney Magic Your Way tickets you can buy in the US now give much more greater flexibility with passes that do not expire plus hopper option also.
We bought 10 day premium ticket and with the additional 5 water park visits we felt this was a better option for us.
The tickets should last us a few holidays as we do not spend an excessive amount of time round the Disney parks.