AP Passes - when does it become worth it to buy?

[DaisyNY]

Planning on two-three trips in the next year...if on each of our visits we stay 4-5 days...is it worth it to buy an AP ticket? Is it valid from June to June or only calendar year? Thanks!

 

[WilsonFlyer]

I think the sweet spot is generally believed to be around 10-12 days.

They run activation/first-use calendar day thru calendar day+1 year.

 

[MrsH42608]

They're valid for one year from your first use. We go twice a year for 7-10days each trip and for us its worth it. We like having the park hopper option, but Im not sure it would be worth it if you didnt want the hopper option- and depends on how many days you plan on being in the parks.
I also like that even if we take a day off from the parks we can still do dinner in the parks & its not "wasting" a ticket day.

 

[lukikam]

Being DVC members, sometimes they have good deals.

When we went in December 2012, they were having a special for $399.00 for the premium AP which included water parks and disquest.

ALWAYS ask everyone you talk to if they're having any specials. A lot of time if you don't A-S-K you don't G-E-T! (My mom's saying! )

Also, remember you get discounts on restaurants, mini golf, etc, so don't forget to factor that in.
Good luck!

 

[AmyB2006]

It depends too if you buy the Annual Pass or Seasonal Pass. We live in FL and we get the Seasonal pass cause there is no way I am going to Disney in the summer. And we don't like the two weeks of Christmas or Spring Break because it's too crowded. So if you're ok not going during those times, it makes it much more valuable, IMO.

 

[goofy-4-ever]

When bought our Premium AP in December 2012, when they were having a special for $399.00 for them And will not use them until May. And yes, don't forget that the Premium AP includes the water parks, disquest, food discounts and also shopping discounts.

 

[DaisyNY]

Any suggestions on where to check for specials??? websites??? Links??? Thanks!

 

[abdgeek]

Any suggestions on where to check for specials??? websites??? Links??? Thanks!

I don't think the AP are discounted that often, if at all. DVC and I think FL residents usually get discounts. Other than that, you can check the WDW website and the boards to see what people are saying.

I'm a DVC member and I usually buy a pass whenever I know I will be at WDW at least three times during the year so that I get my monies worth out of the pass. I got the discounted DVC pass last year and will have visited WDW 5 times by the end of the summer. Most of my stays are weekly with two weekend trips thrown in. I always cost out what it would cost me to purchase weekly tickets and let that be the deciding factor as to how many times I need to go to WDW to break even. Keep in mind that the more times you go, the more money you spend(flights, food, etc.). It's really a double edged sword, but Disney knows how to keep you coming back!

 

[Minniesgal]

I think conventional wisdom is if you are going to do more than 10 park days in 1 year it is worth it because you can't buy more than a 10 day pass so you would be adding days at a more expensive per diem rate.

 

[Sandisw]

The $399 deal was unique and not something that has happened before. Many don't believe it will happen again..I am not sure myself. The price of a DVC AP is $425 plus tax and given the current price of tickets, I think it is worth it for your trip. You also get 10% off merchandise. Even though that may not be a lot, it can add up over the cost of the year.

 

[disfanforlife]

Wish I had bought one before the end of last year. We weren't planning two trips, but have since changed our plans and will be going twice in under 12 months. This will be our first time buying an AP. but even at 425 I think it is worth it for two 6 day trips. Does the 10% discount apply to all purchases on property or only those over $50 like the Disney visa?

 

[hakepb]

When bought our Premium AP in December 2012, when they were having a special for $399.00 for them And will not use them until May. And yes, don't forget that the Premium AP includes the water parks, disquest, food discounts and also shopping discounts.

I believed Disney stopped the extra PAP (20% total)shopping discount. Now everybody gets the 10% AP discount.

 

[Shellandscott]

The first time we bought an AP I looked at what it would cost for tickets for each trips if I bought them separately, and compared it to the AP price. In your case 4 day ticket is $313.00 +tax and a 5 day is $325.00 +tax for park hoppers. From above statement AP is $425. So two 4 day passes would be $626 +tax per person for two 4 day trips. AP saves about $200 and even more if you do two 5 day trips. I think AP is worth it. But it may cause you to want to “sneak in” another trip. I know it does for us.

 

[rutgers1]

I did the math one time, and as I recall, 10 days was the sweet spot for us where the annual pass made financial sense. With the DVC discount this year, it was a no-brainer. We decided to add a second trip to make sure that we would be there enough days to make it work.

I hope that they continue the DVC promotion. I was only going to come 1 time this year, and it got them to squeeze a second trip out of me.

 

[lesabrowning]

We have had APs for years, certainly since joining DVC and for as long as DL has offered them. (CA resident and past DL cast members zillion years ago) We now do WDW twice a year, but even when we did only one trip per year we would arrange it so it fell within the same AP year. (Take a trip the end of Oct this year and the beginning of Oct the following year, same AP but "two years" of vacation) With the DVC discount we always saved money.

 

[lilpooh108]

For us the only year it was worth it was when we got 3 trips out of the passes, regardless of the number of days used. This made it so that we were able to go whenever we felt like it. For only 2 trips a year, we stick with non expiring passes and we don't go into parks every day.

But we fly from CA so the flight itself is $$$$

 

[spiceycat]

here are tickets prices
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/tickets.htm#tickettypes

w/o tickets
the 4 day pass is $253.52
the 5 day pass is $262.91

the 10 day pass w/no expiration
$574.65

so any of your choices looks like the annual pass is a better deal.

 

[spiceycat]

for the current discounts - goto the dvcmember.com

member extras

stay informed - perks and discounts

 

[mrsR123]

Since they jacked up the price of the no-expiration option, nearly any year with two separate trips will make it easy to justify APs when you qualify for the DVC rate.


I'm hedging my bets for now by buying 5 day base tickets from UT for $25 off for my New Year's trip. If I can swing the Thanksgiving trip I'd like to do to see DS's marching band perform (airfare is so high anymore!), then I'll upgrade to AP's while we're there in November. I'll be able to upgrade for around $120, less if rack rates go up between now and then.

 

[Tamar]

They're valid for one year from your first use. We go twice a year for 7-10days each trip and for us its worth it. We like having the park hopper option, but Im not sure it would be worth it if you didnt want the hopper option- and depends on how many days you plan on being in the parks.
I also like that even if we take a day off from the parks we can still do dinner in the parks & its not "wasting" a ticket day.

This is exactly the way we feel. We have total freedom to go into a park even if it's only to see Illuminations or Wishes, or to ride a single ride. Once you get an annual pass, there's a good chance you will figure out how to never be without one when you have a trip.