Breakeven Point for Annual Passes

[aribelle]

Where can I find info on discounts offered to AP people?

http://allears.net/pl/apass.htm#bene2014

 

[akayek31]

We got an AP in February. We saved 25% on the room at Pop. We also stayed 14 days. We are going again in October for 10 days. When I had one back in 2012 I used it for 33 days or three trips. We live in North Georgia.

 

[tndisneyfan]

For us we usually try to take three trips out of it to help justify the cost. It does save money on tickets, and there can be good room discounts. But at times the room discount isn't much. Also there have been times that we have missed out on a really good deal that May have saved us more overall. One example is free dining, it's not availed to AP holders. Yes you can buy park tickets seperate and get free dining but that's a cost. Overall I think you save money with AP with two trips, but there are some exceptions.

 

[I Love Pluto]

I did not do the math - I am only repeating what I have read previously on various sites.

It is cost effective to get an AP if you hit Day 11 in one year. (Please don't jump on me. As stated above - I did not do the math.).

APs are very addictive. You make more & more trips each year!!! This is from my own experience. We're up to 3 trips a year from PA!

 

[jco_direwolf]

I did not do the math - I am only repeating what I have read previously on various sites. It is cost effective to get an AP if you hit Day 11 in one year. (Please don't jump on me. As stated above - I did not do the math.). APs are very addictive. You make more & more trips each year!!! This is from my own experience. We're up to 3 trips a year from PA!

There is no hard and fast day 11 @ 2:38p you break even. You have to do math, and know something about the trips.

Iin general some where between day 12 and 15. It depends on the split of the days (10 + 3 and 7+6 are different costs).

 

[MrsDuck]

We are FL residents so our AP price is different but we've calculated that 6 park days is a break even point.

 

[jco_direwolf]

We are FL residents so our AP price is different but we've calculated that 6 park days is a break even point.

Yea DVC rates are good too (PAP $400.). Next year I might be getting a passport (WDW and DLR). Going for the rebel challenge have to figure out the up charge to up grade vs a 3-4 day pass

 

[aribelle]

APs are very addictive. You make more & more trips each year!!! This is from my own experience. We're up to 3 trips a year from PA!

Yes, this could be an argument AGAINST getting an AP.....if you weren't already planning on going a second time in a year, having an AP can be a motivator....and then of course you have airfare (or gas for the drive); hotel, food, parties, souvenirs, and all the extras involved in a trip to WDW....but hey you have "free" admission, right?

So, to some an AP can actually be incredibly more expensive than any of the MYW tickets, lol.

 

[katt789]

A standard AP is $675
2 trips of 5 days with park hoppers is $774

If you'll be going more than once in a year long period, the AP is the way to go! Plus you save on merch, parking, room discounts, party tickets, etc.
We got Ap's last Dec and if we'd paid for park tickets per trip would've spent $1320 on tickets alone.... so we've saved more than enough to make the ap's worthwhile!

That being said of course, I don't think we would've spent that many days in the parks if we hadn't gotten the AP's! Sure, two or three of the trips would've still been the same, but for all the other quick trips, or the super spontaneous "less than 24 hrs til we leave" trip would've have been made if it wasn't for the AP. We travel down for auditions or to see friends a lot, but without the aps we would've spent a lot less times in the parks, and thus, the audition trips would only be one full day, not 3 full days kinda thing.

Having an AP can go both ways because you think "i only have to pay airfare & hotel, that's not that bad" and you'll go down way more often

 

[alc571]

I had a PH ticket and upgraded it to an AP When I got to MK on my first day at City Hall, it was last November before You could get them on MB. However, when I returned in May, I got my AP on a MB, you get a separate card you need to show with ID when you want to get your 10%off, you don't need it to get into the parks, you also get a slider to put on your MB to show you are a AP holder. Coming from the UK and a regular visitor it has made great sense, I paid approximately £380 for the AP, considering it's around £270 for a 14 day PH and I'm doing three trips within the 12 months(only possible with an AP) plus all the money off merchandise especially the high end D&B and VeraBradley bags I love, so saved shedloads. Also you get a saving on renewal, it'll be on current exchange rates around £330 and a PH is £280 for next year I'll make savings on one trip, so the second trip PH will be paid for before I go. You also get discounts on MVMCP and MNSSHP (there are blackout dates) so I'm very happy with my decision and wish I'd done it sooner.

Did you customize your MB before you went, or did you simply add your APs to your room MB? I'm wondering because we are going in November, and I plan on buying our AP vouchers before we go but they won't ship them to Canada. If I customize our MBs for the room, and add the APs, will I still get the sliders?

 

[I Love Pluto]

There is no hard and fast day 11 @ 2:38p you break even. You have to do math, and know something about the trips.

Iin general some where between day 12 and 15. It depends on the split of the days (10 + 3 and 7+6 are different costs).

Thank you for pointing out MY INCREDIBLE STUPIDITY!!!!!

 

[MommaBerd]

So, I'll throw this out as another option: if it is just you and your DW (no kids), buy only one AP - especially if you are not sure if you will have a second long trip. Just buying one AP will get you all the discounts, free parking, opportunity to buy TIW, etc. If you decide during your trip you want to get another AP, just upgrade it at the park. Also, check out the ticketing sticky at the top to see how you can purchase a discounted UT ticket and bridge it to an AP AFTER you have used it the first day.

Just something else to consider...you don't necessarily have to do "all or nothing" and again you'll have to do the math to make sure it makes sense for you.

 

[lovesdumbo]

We do 2 short trips per year- usually 5 nights and we only go to Disney for 3 days. So for a 6 day non-expiring ticket we are at $585. coming close to an AP.

this has me thinking- with a renewal being only 575ish? we'd save 10 bucks on that- but have to front 634 for an AP now. Wondering if we'd save 50 bucks over the long term on other things like parking.

Where can I find info on discounts offered to AP people?

Be careful about renewals. If you only go twice a year it might be a better deal to let your AP expire and get a new one on your next trip. I've had an AP for all my trips since 2005 but I rarely renew my AP. When you renew your AP continues to expire on that same day one year later but I find I do better waiting until my next trip which is usually several months away so that the new expire date is several months later. You really do have to work out when you think you might go to see what would work best for you.

Instead of getting 2 trips per AP if you renew you might get 3 trips off every AP if you buy new each time. Say you go to WDW every March & September. If you buy first AP to go say 2nd week in March, then go in Sept, then go 1st week in March next year before AP expires. Then wait to buy new AP in Sept and get 3 trips out of that one if you have to flexibility to tweak dates a bit to squeeze them in.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Didn't read the whole thread, but some points of consideration if not yet mentioned....

While AP room discount are often offered, they are often only offered at the last minute. So if you wait until they are offered to book - your airfare costs will have doubled, plus rental car rates fluctuate.

AP discounts are also often no better than the general public room discounts...and if they are better, they are only about 5% better.

Third important point, is that you don't need to buy AP's for everyone. All you need in ONE AP to get TiW, and the room discount. The person with the AP has to be the lead name on the room booking.

Another time it might make sense to buy just ONE AP is if you (or your spouse) need to attend any work conferences. Sometimes it is possible to add a day to a business trip, or be the spouse that tags along and has a few solo days.

Still one more advantage of having an AP is ability to book FP+. You still have limits on when you can book your FP+, but it may be nice to know your AP is already in MDE.