AP is it worth it?? (TiW)

[davidann]

I am going nuts! I was wondering if by buying an AP (I live in Italy, so I am not coming back unfortunately)I could use the TiW dining card to save money on food . It would have to be more than the difference between the AP and the 8 day ticket and the 75$ that the TiW costs. How much could I spend on dining OOP? so I can figure out if its worth it or not?

Second question, is it possible that Expedia has better offers than the Travel Agent?? I requested a quote for WL for 10 days and I got 400 dollars less off Expedia! Is it safe?
I am thinking about booking the hotel w/Expedia.
An AP to save money on dining (20%)
and Undercover tourist for other tickets!
As I said before, I live abroad, I'm afraid something might go wrong, but I really want to get the best deal possible
HELP
Ann

 

[vicki_c]

Unfortunately, the only way to figure out how much dining will cost you is to review the menus (try allears.net as one place) and try to estimate what you will most likely eat and total it up. Then deduct the discount.

The TiW card does include an automatic 18% gratuity on your table service meals, though, so make sure you factor that into your calculations.

For a week, my family of 4 (2 adults, 2 kids) easily spends $1000 on dining at WDW. We do table service meals on average of 1 per day, and 1-2 character meals, with the balance being counter service.

That isn't the only reason to get an AP though (aside from how many days you're visiting the parks, I mean) - you could get a room discount with an AP as well. You are going soon, I think? I would check to see if there are any AP discounts on rooms being offered for your dates.

www.mousesavers.com has all the discounts available and their dates and the requirements for booking listed.

Personally, I would not book with Expedia. I like to control my own stuff. If you want to change anything on your reservation, you will have to do it through Expedia, and I hear that's not as simple as it sounds sometimes. They will also have more stringent cancellation policies than Disney does, in most or all cases. If none of those things bother you, then I guess you should do it.

Undercover Tourist, using the link provided in the Mousesavers e-mail newsletter is a great place to get discounted park tickets - very reliable. Sign up for the Mousesavers newsletter now as it comes out on the 15th of every month and has the link in it to get the additional discount.

 

[camlace]

Unfortunately, the only way to figure out how much dining will cost you is to review the menus (try allears.net as one place)

minor correction... allearsnet.com is the website

 

[vicki_c]

I just checked - there are AP rates out for August as follows (found on Mousesavers):

6/4-8/14 (this has been out a while I think, so you might not find availability for this deal) - 30% off values, 35% mods, 40% deluxe/DVC.

8/15-10/2 - 35% at values & mods, 42% deluxe/DVC.

Rack rate at the Wilderness Lodge in a standard room is $240, so your room through this deal would run about $140/night.

There is also a general public deal for the same dates (8/15-10/2) that is only a tiny bit more expensive - 30% at value/mod, 40% at deluxe/DVC.

So depending on resort availability, you might not need to have an AP to get a good room deal - but it's late in the game, so you might want to call.

 

[vicki_c]

minor correction... allearsnet.com is the website

allears.net is what I use and type in my browser - works just fine. If you type in what you wrote, it reverts back to allears.net in the browser address line.