Annual Passes... your thoughts

[T16GEM]

Disney, Universal & Sea World.....do you think that the benefits of the AP warrant buying them?

We are already booked to go in May 2011, and have another trip on the cards for Jan/feb 2012. So we would use the APs for two trips. I don't really know a alot about the AP but I have been attempting to read up, I just wanted to see what you guys think about them.

Gems

 

[sullyandsid]

I think particularly for the Disney parks - taking into the consideration the costs alone an AP would be great for you - If you can justify a saving over a 12 month period if you are going on holiday twice within those 12 months i would do it.

 

[skelfbsfb]

If your a DVC member you will also receive a discount, cant remember exactly how much think it was $100. Someone maybe able to clarify.

 

[wayneg]

You need to look at the tickets you think you would buy if not buying AP's.
Are you going when free DDP is on and need to buy tix with hotel?

Universal are expensive for the 1st year at $220 + tax = £146 but then to renew each year the price is reduced to £100 ($150+tax) only about £20 more than a 14 day ticket.
http://www.universalorlando.com/Tickets/Annual_Passholders/annualpass.aspx

Seaworld, would you add Busch? we find the 2 year, 2 park passes the best buy at $225 + tax = £150, this works out at £37.50/park/year you can also pay on EZpay(interest free) we do costs us $30/month for 3 of us.
http://commerce.4adventure.com/eStore/scripts/skins/swf/ticketsPassportBuilder.aspx

Disney we have not renewed since we started doing free DDP, if we go back in May we will not do Disney, will stick to other parks we have AP's for, IMO Disney marketing should consider an offer of giving AP's instead of the 14 or 21 day tickets with free DDP, could just temp people like me to go into Disney more on a 2nd visit within the year and spend on Food and Merchandise. Sorry gone off topic now.
Disney has always been the hardest to justify for us, only had AP twice in all the years we have been going.

Other consideration is could you make a saving but just buying 1 AP within the family for free parking and discounts, rather than buying for all the family.
Happy number crunching

 

[yummymummywales]

It's certainly something I am considering for our trip - we are going this week and have already booked for Sept 2011 so trying to work out what's best. We stay off-site so no tie-in to tickets with DDP - I know I should really sit-down and work out the options...........I've just been a bit too lazy so far!!

We are a party of 2 adults and 2 children (3 and 6) so pay for everyone. I didn't think about the possibility of just buying 1 AP Wayne, thanks for that suggestion - just need to work out the price difference of buying 2 x 14day tickets over just upgrading the 1x14day tickets we have already purchased from Disney for this year.....now where's that calculator?!!

 

[ford family]

One of the best AP perks for us is the ability to buy the Tables in Wonderland (stupid name) card for $75. This gets you a 20% discount on virtually every table service and some counter service restaurants in the parks and in the resorts.

ford family

 

[T16GEM]

You need to look at the tickets you think you would buy if not buying AP's.
Are you going when free DDP is on and need to buy tix with hotel?

Universal are expensive for the 1st year at $220 + tax = £146 but then to renew each year the price is reduced to £100 ($150+tax) only about £20 more than a 14 day ticket.
http://www.universalorlando.com/Tickets/Annual_Passholders/annualpass.aspx

Seaworld, would you add Busch? we find the 2 year, 2 park passes the best buy at $225 + tax = £150, this works out at £37.50/park/year you can also pay on EZpay(interest free) we do costs us $30/month for 3 of us.
http://commerce.4adventure.com/eStore/scripts/skins/swf/ticketsPassportBuilder.aspx

Disney we have not renewed since we started doing free DDP, if we go back in May we will not do Disney, will stick to other parks we have AP's for, IMO Disney marketing should consider an offer of giving AP's instead of the 14 or 21 day tickets with free DDP, could just temp people like me to go into Disney more on a 2nd visit within the year and spend on Food and Merchandise. Sorry gone off topic now.
Disney has always been the hardest to justify for us, only had AP twice in all the years we have been going.

Other consideration is could you make a saving but just buying 1 AP within the family for free parking and discounts, rather than buying for all the family.
Happy number crunching

Thanks Wayne! I know I need to get the calculator out and figure things out! We won't be staying on site with DDP so I need to look into all of that, I totally agree with you that they should give an AP with the DDP it would sell more merchanise for sure!

With SW yes we would add Busch (fave park) and have Aquatica as the third park, I was looking at the passes online last night and if you use the EZpay you save 60c over the 2 years! Well worth it! I think we would use the EZpay, how did you set that up? Did you use a local zip code?

It's certainly something I am considering for our trip - we are going this week and have already booked for Sept 2011 so trying to work out what's best. We stay off-site so no tie-in to tickets with DDP - I know I should really sit-down and work out the options...........I've just been a bit too lazy so far!!

We are a party of 2 adults and 2 children (3 and 6) so pay for everyone. I didn't think about the possibility of just buying 1 AP Wayne, thanks for that suggestion - just need to work out the price difference of buying 2 x 14day tickets over just upgrading the 1x14day tickets we have already purchased from Disney for this year.....now where's that calculator?!!

You sound a lot like us! Let me know how you get on with your numbers!

 

[wayneg]

I set up EZpay Easter this year, people on the forums were having trouble doing it online, some managed some didn't (not sure how they did it now) I decided to give in and do it there. Called in the Annual passport office and they sorted it all out in no time, I had all details written down to make it easier for them to enter into the computer.

Only downside to doing there is they are within their rights to charge parking when you go to buy them, we argued at the gate and got in (eventually) others have posted they had to pay & lost out, others like Netty have managed to get it back. No way was I going to pay parking for a day when I was spending over $700 with them.

 

[T16GEM]

I set up EZpay Easter this year, people on the forums were having trouble doing it online, some managed some didn't (not sure how they did it now) I decided to give in and do it there. Called in the Annual passport office and they sorted it all out in no time, I had all details written down to make it easier for them to enter into the computer.

Only downside to doing there is they are within their rights to charge parking when you go to buy them, we argued at the gate and got in (eventually) others have posted they had to pay & lost out, others like Netty have managed to get it back. No way was I going to pay parking for a day when I was spending over $700 with them.

Thanks Wayne.
We have been to SW previously just to pop into the shop and they have let us in with a red pass on the dash, without paying parking so we would prob do that again. Assuming that is where the annual passport office is?

 

[wayneg]

Yes its the building to the left as you go into SW.

 

[T16GEM]

Yes its the building to the left as you go into SW.

 

[Disneymad]

We won't be staying on site with DDP so I need to look into all of that

Note that as an AP holder you'd then be entitled to purchase a Tables in Wonderland card which gives a 20% discount (inc booze) at virtually all table service restaurants and a handful of counter service ones (only CS ones in a park are at Animal Kingdom though) for up to 10 people.

As you're staying off site this might not be a huge saver but I believe the break even point is somewhere around the $350 mark so if you think you'll be spending more than that in Disney table service restaurants over your 2 trips then it's a saving.

An additional bonus (I think) is the fact it includes 18% gratuity automatically which means no umming and ahhhhing doing the math at the end trying to figure out how much to leave - was way easier for us, we loved it.

Other factors to consider is that the regular AP gives a 10% discount and Premium 20% at WoD plus discounts at a few other shops in DTD, mini golf, backstage tours etc, and perhaps best of all as you're off site, free parking which is currently at $14 a day iirc so these are all factors to consider taking off your bottom line.

Personally we love our AP's, they allow us to be flexible and while paying out the lump sum initially hurts a bit, they pay it forward in other ways making the end cost fairly trivial in the grand scheme of things for our particular set of circumstances.

 

[T16GEM]

Other factors to consider is that the regular AP gives a 10% discount and Premium 20% at WoD

Say no more... it's a done deal! I could save the cost of an AP with 20% off in WoD with my two kids!

As we nearly always go for 3 weeks, we would get more than enough use out of an AP, we sometimes like to go to another park then go over to Disney for Wishes or Reflections of Earth, but if you've been in a non Disney park it does hurt to pay the parking at say US and then another $14 at MK, they seemslike such a good deal when you look at it like that!