AP perks before activation

[zanzibar138]

This is purely a hypothetical question for now, as I have to wait until we get to DLR to upgrade my existing 10 day pass for a deluxe AP.

However, I was just wondering whether perks like early registration for RunDisney events are accessible to people who have bought an AP, but haven't yet activated it?

 

[SMD]

This is purely a hypothetical question for now, as I have to wait until we get to DLR to upgrade my existing 10 day pass for a deluxe AP.

However, I was just wondering whether perks like early registration for RunDisney events are accessible to people who have bought an AP, but haven't yet activated it?

No, you need the barcode on the back of the AP to access the AP areas of the site. If you know someone who has an AP, they can register additional runners.

This question gets asked a lot, and this isn't directly in response to your question, just my general opinion. APs pay for a year of perks and access to the site, and it's really not fair for people to expect access before their year starts.

 

[zanzibar138]

APs pay for a year of perks and access to the site, and it's really not fair for people to expect access before their year starts.

I totally get that. I'm such a 'play by the rules' type person and understand that everyone pays the same price for the APs, so it's only fair that everyone gets the same privileges from them. I know you weren't responding directly to me, but I want to explain the circumstances behind my question.

I live in Australia, and hope one day to do a coast to coast event with RunDisney. I would look at getting an AP to cover both WDW and DLR. There's no way I can afford to fly to the US twice in one year (would be doing back to back runs), so I wouldn't get any further use out of the AP after the trip. I'm not trying to get two years worth of perks for the price of one, I would be using the actual trip as the end of my year. If I didn't have to visit the parks in person to activate my AP, I would certainly be happy to do this 11 months before my trip.

I don't think it's unfair of me (or anyone else in a similar situation) to want to use an AP this way so that I actually get to use some of the discounts and perks.

 

[sonnyjane]

I totally get that. I'm such a 'play by the rules' type person and understand that everyone pays the same price for the APs, so it's only fair that everyone gets the same privileges from them. I know you weren't responding directly to me, but I want to explain the circumstances behind my question. I live in Australia, and hope one day to do a coast to coast event with RunDisney. I would look at getting an AP to cover both WDW and DLR. There's no way I can afford to fly to the US twice in one year (would be doing back to back runs), so I wouldn't get any further use out of the AP after the trip. I'm not trying to get two years worth of perks for the price of one, I would be using the actual trip as the end of my year. If I didn't have to visit the parks in person to activate my AP, I would certainly be happy to do this 11 months before my trip. I don't think it's unfair of me (or anyone else in a similar situation) to want to use an AP this way so that I actually get to use some of the discounts and perks.

I'm not familiar with the RunDisney registration but is it that important to have an AP? Because what you described - just one visit to WDW and one to DL won't cost you as much as the Premiere AP would. Unless you were staying for a very long time, it would be cheaper to get two separate park hopper passes. You won't get the discounts or perks, but the Premiere is very expensive (currently $1,029 plus tax on the FL portion)!

 

[whjensen]

. APs pay for a year of perks and access to the site, and it's really not fair for people to expect access before their year starts.

I totally get your viewpoint, but for those of us who are not paying for a year of access (ie, those not in SoCal but are planning vacations that may, for example, coincide with an event) lose value from the AP. We'll be going, for example, in October for a vacation and again in 2015 for a school choir performance. It makes sense to do the AP from a cost perspective...barely. But we cannot use the AP to get discounts to the Halloween events. That's not really fair either, is it?

Two different audiences - local and tourist - what is fair is different for each. Disney is just optimizing for the local audience since it is so big. Makes sense, but understand why the non-locals do not see it as fair.

 

[zanzibar138]

I'm not familiar with the RunDisney registration but is it that important to have an AP? Because what you described - just one visit to WDW and one to DL won't cost you as much as the Premiere AP would. Unless you were staying for a very long time, it would be cheaper to get two separate park hopper passes. You won't get the discounts or perks, but the Premiere is very expensive (currently $1,029 plus tax on the FL portion)!

It's all just hypothetical at the moment. But ideally I'd be spending about 2 weeks at WDW and another week at DLR. Getting an AP was just a thought and I haven't crunched the numbers yet. But whether I get access to these sorts of perks will make a difference about whether it's worth it, adding in the convenience viewpoint as well as the financial one.

 

[zanzibar138]

I totally get your viewpoint, but for those of us who are not paying for a year of access (ie, those not in SoCal but are planning vacations that may, for example, coincide with an event) lose value from the AP. We'll be going, for example, in October for a vacation and again in 2015 for a school choir performance. It makes sense to do the AP from a cost perspective...barely. But we cannot use the AP to get discounts to the Halloween events. That's not really fair either, is it?

Two different audiences - local and tourist - what is fair is different for each. Disney is just optimizing for the local audience since it is so big. Makes sense, but understand why the non-locals do not see it as fair.

I knew someone else would jump in here! There are many non-locals who buy APs for whatever reasons, and I think it's fair that we try to get the same value out of them that the locals do

 

[sonnyjane]

It's all just hypothetical at the moment. But ideally I'd be spending about 2 weeks at WDW and another week at DLR. Getting an AP was just a thought and I haven't crunched the numbers yet. But whether I get access to these sorts of perks will make a difference about whether it's worth it, adding in the convenience viewpoint as well as the financial one.

I was about to crunch the numbers for you but then I remembered that if you're coming from Australia I believe you have access to longer tickets than are sold here. For example, the longest ticket you can buy at Disneyland is 5 days but I think you guys over there can get longer so using the numbers for tickets here in the states wouldn't quite be best.

 

[zanzibar138]

I was about to crunch the numbers for you but then I remembered that if you're coming from Australia I believe you have access to longer tickets than are sold here. For example, the longest ticket you can buy at Disneyland is 5 days but I think you guys over there can get longer so using the numbers for tickets here in the states wouldn't quite be best.

Oh thanks! I really appreciate your thought This trip won't be happening until at least 2016 though, so the prices and special Aussie tickets will have all changed by then.

FWIW Aussies can get 10 day passes for DLR, but no special tickets for WDW.

 

[SMD]

I hope by 2016 that they will have something else in place for marathon registration, because they're selling out now in minutes. You should contact Active or runDisney and see if they have some kind of option for international runners. I assume they want to promote how many countries are represented in their race. I kind of suspect they're going to tell you to buy their travel package, though. When the time comes, you might also try checking with a running forum or another. Disney forum for Australian locals to see if someone will use their AP to register for you. Just be aware that the AP allotment is really small and might not be much of an advantage. The Rebel Challenge sold out in 11 minutes yesterday.

As far as locals getting more value out of the AP, that's the system that Disney set up. You get access to the AP site for 1 year when you activate. I don't think discounts or rare presages are the reason that most people have an AP anyway. If a $7 discount for Halloween party tickets on a weekday is imperative, there is the option to wait to buy them until you get to the resort, but there's a risk they'll sell out. It would be unfair to sell someone Halloween tickets in the AP presale in July, have them activate their AP in October and then let them use the same valid AP again next October. Disney does allow people to book AP rates at the hotels by calling, and people complain it's unfair that they can't book online. Seems pretty generous, to me. You could try calling and see if they'll make an exception for Halloween tickets when purchased over the phone, either access to the presale or honoring the AP price in the general sale.

 

[zanzibar138]

I hope by 2016 that they will have something else in place for marathon registration, because they're selling out now in minutes. You should contact Active or runDisney and see if they have some kind of option for international runners. I assume they want to promote how many countries are represented in their race. I kind of suspect they're going to tell you to buy their travel package, though. When the time comes, you might also try checking with a running forum or another. Disney forum for Australian locals to see if someone will use their AP to register for you. Just be aware that the AP allotment is really small and might not be much of an advantage. The Rebel Challenge sold out in 11 minutes yesterday.

We actually contacted RunDisney prior to registration for half marathon weekend this year, as I was concerned about missing out. They replied saying we could register on the RunDisney website for notification of when registration would open. I also kept a close eye on the half marathon threads on these boards (and still do - they're very helpful!). So I was at the computer at 4am on registration day (which was 9am PST for me) and kept refreshing until I could get in. I purchased all of our registrations with 1 minute to spare

As far as locals getting more value out of the AP, that's the system that Disney set up. You get access to the AP site for 1 year when you activate. I don't think discounts or rare presages are the reason that most people have an AP anyway. If a $7 discount for Halloween party tickets on a weekday is imperative, there is the option to wait to buy them until you get to the resort, but there's a risk they'll sell out. It would be unfair to sell someone Halloween tickets in the AP presale in July, have them activate their AP in October and then let them use the same valid AP again next October. Disney does allow people to book AP rates at the hotels by calling, and people complain it's unfair that they can't book online. Seems pretty generous, to me. You could try calling and see if they'll make an exception for Halloween tickets when purchased over the phone, either access to the presale or honoring the AP price in the general sale.

I'm doing a split visit to DLR this year (ie going for half marathon weekend, then doing a road trip around CA and returning just over a week later). It was the only way I could do the run and have my birthday at DLR, and I saved $900 on airfares by going on the Tuesday before the run. Unfortunately though, it means my first and last day at DLR will be more than 2 weeks apart. Circumstances mean that I don't want to miss the first or last few days at the parks, and getting an AP works out cheaper than getting an Aussie 10 day pass plus adding an additional 2 day pass. I'd like to stress that I will not be able to afford to visit DLR again within a year. So I will get exactly 3 weeks use out of my AP. There is absolutely NO benefit at all to me being able to access the AP website or any perks after this trip.

Now since I will have an AP, I think it's only fair that I be able to book a discounted hotel rate for my one and only stay. And it would be nice to be able to get early registration or discounts to hard ticketed events that might be on while I'm there. I realise that my AP will be of little use to me any time after 17th September, so I would be happy to activate my pass now in order to get those benefits. However, I can't physically get to Disneyland, and there is no other way to activate it (that I know of). If there was an option to activate it online or over the phone, I would be thrilled and would not hesitate to do it now! I don't want more than a year's worth of benefits. I just want my year to end with my trip, rather than start with it. I really don't see how this can possibly be considered an unfair advantage for me

If you still think it's unfair, you're entitled to your opinion, and I don't want to start any arguments. Especially since this is all hypothetical! I didn't realise this was a controversial topic and I certainly didn't mean to offend anyone.

 

[SMD]

We actually contacted RunDisney prior to registration for half marathon weekend this year, as I was concerned about missing out. They replied saying we could register on the RunDisney website for notification of when registration would open. I also kept a close eye on the half marathon threads on these boards (and still do - they're very helpful!). So I was at the computer at 4am on registration day (which was 9am PST for me) and kept refreshing until I could get in. I purchased all of our registrations with 1 minute to spare



I'm doing a split visit to DLR this year (ie going for half marathon weekend, then doing a road trip around CA and returning just over a week later). It was the only way I could do the run and have my birthday at DLR, and I saved $900 on airfares by going on the Tuesday before the run. Unfortunately though, it means my first and last day at DLR will be more than 2 weeks apart. Circumstances mean that I don't want to miss the first or last few days at the parks, and getting an AP works out cheaper than getting an Aussie 10 day pass plus adding an additional 2 day pass. I'd like to stress that I will not be able to afford to visit DLR again within a year. So I will get exactly 3 weeks use out of my AP. There is absolutely NO benefit at all to me being able to access the AP website or any perks after this trip.

Now since I will have an AP, I think it's only fair that I be able to book a discounted hotel rate for my one and only stay. And it would be nice to be able to get early registration or discounts to hard ticketed events that might be on while I'm there. I realise that my AP will be of little use to me any time after 17th September, so I would be happy to activate my pass now in order to get those benefits. However, I can't physically get to Disneyland, and there is no other way to activate it (that I know of). If there was an option to activate it online or over the phone, I would be thrilled and would not hesitate to do it now! I don't want more than a year's worth of benefits. I just want my year to end with my trip, rather than start with it. I really don't see how this can possibly be considered an unfair advantage for me

If you still think it's unfair, you're entitled to your opinion, and I don't want to start any arguments. Especially since this is all hypothetical! I didn't realise this was a controversial topic and I certainly didn't mean to offend anyone.

That sounds like a canned response about the marathon, which stinks. At least you managed to register. And by arriving early you can do the expo Thursday afternoon and avoid the chaos. Just curious, for the 10 day ticket, does it say they have to be consecutive days, or used within 14 days like a US hopper? I would hope they'd give a longer timeframe for those. Although with 10 days of hotels and food, the AP discount starts to look attractive.

The part about the Halloween party was more in response to the other poster. The reality is, if Disney allowed access to the website when someone purchases a voucher, people would hold onto those vouchers for up to 11 months to either get the perks or wait until the best time to activate. Anyone who's read DISboards know there's a large subset of people who find any way they can to game the system. Most hard ticket AP events require you to register in person. Sometimes the week before, sometimes the day of. Is it "fair" that locals got to go to the ticket booths to register for the WOC or Fantasmic events? Maybe not, but Disney set the conditions. As far as the hotels, it makes business sense to allow those to me booked ahead of time with the discount. Disney wants to sell those rooms, and if a 10% discount sells the room, great. But for the Halloween party or marathon, where it's just a presale and they'll sell out anyway, I see why Disney doesn't offer the same exception.

 

[zanzibar138]

That sounds like a canned response about the marathon, which stinks. At least you managed to register. And by arriving early you can do the expo Thursday afternoon and avoid the chaos. Just curious, for the 10 day ticket, does it say they have to be consecutive days, or used within 14 days like a US hopper? I would hope they'd give a longer timeframe for those. Although with 10 days of hotels and food, the AP discount starts to look attractive.

The part about the Halloween party was more in response to the other poster. The reality is, if Disney allowed access to the website when someone purchases a voucher, people would hold onto those vouchers for up to 11 months to either get the perks or wait until the best time to activate. Anyone who's read DISboards know there's a large subset of people who find any way they can to game the system. Most hard ticket AP events require you to register in person. Sometimes the week before, sometimes the day of. Is it "fair" that locals got to go to the ticket booths to register for the WOC or Fantasmic events? Maybe not, but Disney set the conditions. As far as the hotels, it makes business sense to allow those to me booked ahead of time with the discount. Disney wants to sell those rooms, and if a 10% discount sells the room, great. But for the Halloween party or marathon, where it's just a presale and they'll sell out anyway, I see why Disney doesn't offer the same exception.

The 10 day passes have to be used within 14 days, just like the other regular passes. I'm actually quite pleased to be arriving on the Tuesday. It will allow me to explore the parks a bit before the run without burning me out, plus I'm hoping the expo will be a bit quieter on the Thursday!

Unfortunately the hotels was just a hypothetical point, as even with a 30% discount I wouldn't be able to afford those sorts of rates for that long!

I realise that APs are of course primarily for locals, and that there are many benefits that non-locals will just not be able to take advantage of (but still hopeful that there will some sort of AP event I can attend while I'm there ). I was just trying to make a point that not everyone who wants to access benefits before their trip is trying to bend the rules. It would be ideal if Disney would realise the international market for their APs, and provide some sort of online activation link. Then people like me could choose to activate theirs in advance to take advantage of AP discounts and advance purchases, and people who want to use their AP for multiple trips could wait until they arrived at the park to maximise the time available for a return visit

 

[whjensen]

That sounds like a canned response about the marathon, which stinks. At least you managed to register. And by arriving early you can do the expo Thursday afternoon and avoid the chaos. Just curious, for the 10 day ticket, does it say they have to be consecutive days, or used within 14 days like a US hopper? I would hope they'd give a longer timeframe for those. Although with 10 days of hotels and food, the AP discount starts to look attractive. The part about the Halloween party was more in response to the other poster. The reality is, if Disney allowed access to the website when someone purchases a voucher, people would hold onto those vouchers for up to 11 months to either get the perks or wait until the best time to activate. Anyone who's read DISboards know there's a large subset of people who find any way they can to game the system. Most hard ticket AP events require you to register in person. Sometimes the week before, sometimes the day of. Is it "fair" that locals got to go to the ticket booths to register for the WOC or Fantasmic events? Maybe not, but Disney set the conditions. As far as the hotels, it makes business sense to allow those to me booked ahead of time with the discount. Disney wants to sell those rooms, and if a 10% discount sells the room, great. But for the Halloween party or marathon, where it's just a presale and they'll sell out anyway, I see why Disney doesn't offer the same exception.

Let's be realistic. There's not a large subset of people who would do this. Most people don't have the time to care. Look, I agreed that they've set the optimization around locals and therefore stopping locals from gaming the system (even if a minority.) . My point is that they chose a criteria and that criteria adversely affects another group. Don't use the word fair. It's not. It's optimized, not fair.

 

[zanzibar138]

Let's be realistic. There's not a large subset of people who would do this. Most people don't have the time to care. Look, I agreed that they've set the optimization around locals and therefore stopping locals from gaming the system (even if a minority.) . My point is that they chose a criteria and that criteria adversely affects another group. Don't use the word fair. It's not. It's optimized, not fair.

Sadly, most of the time it's a small minority trying to bend the rules that ruin it for everyone Like the new photo system to try to stop ticket fraud.

 

[starshine514]

So, a couple of years ago, my friend wanted to buy APs for her family when the price increase was announced, but she wanted to use her Disney Rewards dollars. However, I guess the website didn't have that option, so she called and purchased them instead. Shortly thereafter, she received an envelope in the mail with their APs. Not AP vouchers, APs. They were active with an expiration in July, rather than being activated when they arrived at the resort in October. They were able to get it worked out when they arrived, but the point is that they sent her active APs when she ordered them over the phone. So, It was possible a couple of years ago, though that may have just been an error.

Now, I don't think the vouchers work that way. My parents bought vouchers, intending to activate them a year ago November, then my dad had a heart attack and couldn't go before the end of the year. When I called, activating them remotely was not an option - they said my parents had to come in person. So, they ended up activating them and paying the difference when they went in April.

 

[whjensen]

. So, they ended up activating them and paying the difference when they went in April.

So...paying what difference? ,

 

[SMD]

So...paying what difference? ,

AP vouchers have a redeem by date. If you buy a voucher, and the price goes up, you can still redeem it by that date. If you redeem it past that date, you get the value that you paid, but you owe the difference if the AP price has increased.