Budget: Rack vs A/P vs AAA vs codes!

[AngieInOH]

I posted this on the Resort board but thought I could get some validation on my budget numbers here.

Hope the details can help some others out. Sorry if it gets too long!

Numbers based on 2 adults 1 child (5yr), 7 nights, 7 day park hopper. Any discount rates were taken off mousesavers. Includes tax. The TOTAL line is always $30 more than what I get quoted from Disney site, I can't figure out why? A/P rate is buying annual pass for my 5 yr old. Did I leave out anything? Oh yea, standard rooms (the cheapest I could get-I'll hope for a bump!)

Here's the numbers: (sorry it looks so weird, had to try several things to make it look OK)(Val = value season, Reg = regular season)


************Val POR*******Reg POR***Val WL/AKL****Reg WL/AKL
Room ________1,045.87_______1,162.98_____1,553.23_______1,865.43
Tickets ________706.12_________706.12______706.12_________706.12
Dining Plan______560.00_________560.00______560.00_________560.00

TOTAL________2,311.99_______2,429.10_____2,819.35_______3,131.55

AAA (10-20%)__2,102.83______2,254.62______2,586.34______2,944. 98

A/P (Rm & Tick)_1,628.00______1,706.19______1,823.26______1,940. 34

Free Dining Cd__1,751.99______1,869.10______2,259.35_______2,571.55

Anyone care to check these numbers?

So what does this all mean for my planning?

Right now this is my plan: I want to be able to stick to 150/night or less on my room. So that means staying at POR in Value or maybe Regular if I don't get any special codes. I'm wanting to stay either in Nov (regular season) or Jan, early Feb (value season). Is it worth the extra $150 to stay in Nov rather than Jan?

I thought I would wait to see if any codes come out for Nov. If not, I will decide on POR for Nov or wait and see if any codes come out for Jan. If no codes for Jan I will book POR for Jan, early Feb.

If nothing else I will buy AAA and get a discount there. Or maybe I should buy the A/P for son to get A/P rates (which aren't guaranteed). Also, A/P means no dining plan. We love to eat, and DH isn't budget conscious when ordering food. I'm thinking maybe we should go for the dining plan. Any thoughts?

For moderate resort I'm set on POR AB. As far as deluxe (if I get a code) I'm not sure which I'd choose WL or AKL. Any suggestions w/ 5 yr old? Also, consider transportation as we will not have a rental (at least I don't think so). Are you able to get from place to place fairly easily? We'll be doing character dinners and would like to eat at a variety of places. We won't just be eating at our resort.

Right now I'm trying to work on an excel spreadsheet that anyone could use to do this kind of $$$ comparison. It's still in its early stages, and I don't get much time to work on it. I assume many of you have already done this kind of number crunching anyway!

Thanks to everyone for this fantastic board! I've learned so much!

 

[disneyeveryyear]

I don't believe you can use a child's AP for a hotel rate.

I believe that is what I saw here previously.

That may impact your prices for APs.

 

[EthansMom]

Right now this is my plan: I want to be able to stick to 150/night or less on my room. So that means staying at POR in Value or maybe Regular if I don't get any special codes. I'm wanting to stay either in Nov (regular season) or Jan, early Feb (value season). Is it worth the extra $150 to stay in Nov rather than Jan?

I thought I would wait to see if any codes come out for Nov. If not, I will decide on POR for Nov or wait and see if any codes come out for Jan. If no codes for Jan I will book POR for Jan, early Feb.

If nothing else I will buy AAA and get a discount there. Or maybe I should buy the A/P for son to get A/P rates (which aren't guaranteed). Also, A/P means no dining plan. We love to eat, and DH isn't budget conscious when ordering food. I'm thinking maybe we should go for the dining plan. Any thoughts?

My thoughts...Personally, I prefer going in Value season over regular season due to the difference in crowds and waits for attractions. The downside is that weather in Jan. and Feb. might be warm or might be cold -- might be really cold. If you keep an eye on weather forecasts before your trip, though, you should be able to pack appropriately.

My advice would be to go in Value season and stay in a Moderate. POR is beautiful. We also love POFQ next door. The Deluxes are gorgeous, but DH and I don't really think you get much more for the extra money. Instead of staying at a Deluxe, we usually make a PS for dinner at a Deluxe, like Artist Pointe. Your analysis shows that you save over $800 staying at a Moderate in Value season over staying at a Deluxe in Regular season -- that decision seems pretty easy to me, but I have loads of things I would like to spend $800 on.

I believe I've heard here about people having problems using a child's AP to get the room discount. The adult AP isn't that much more expensive. What I would do is call now (or as soon as you firm up your plans) and make my reservations using the AAA rate. Then keep an eye out for the release of the AP rates. If you can get an AP rate, you will generally save enough money over 7 nights at a Moderate to make it worthwhile to buy one adult AP. Adult AP price is ~$420 minus AP room discount of ~$200 equals ~$220 total ticket price.

If you are really concerned about DH busting the budget with eating, then the dining plan is probably your best option. If you book directly through AAA, you can get the AAA discount on your vacation package with the dining plan. You should know ahead of time how much the plan should cost because some AAA TAs have had problems booking and getting the correct discount applied.

But if you get the AP, you could pay $50 for a Disney Dining Experience (DDE) card that saves you 20% at most sit-down restaurants, the hotel food courts, and a few counter service restaurants. On our recent weeklong trip, DDE saved us an additional $25 beyond the cost of the card.

It really sounds like the AAA discount on a dining plan package may be best for you. But you'll save hundreds of dollars going with a Moderate in Value season.

I hope this helps!

 

[kandeebunny]

Personally I would go in November during regular season. My reason for this is it is already decorated for the Holidays and I cannot find anything better or more Magical than Disney during the winter holidays. To me it is worth the extra money. I'd see if you can combine AAA and the free dining code...it may not be possible, but it is worth a shot. If it's not I would take the free dining code...who can beat free meals especially if you are eaters!

 

[AngieInOH]

Thanks for the responses. Just wanted to clarify that I do not currently have a dining code. I was just hoping I'd get one. If I do I think there would be no doubt that I would use it instead of AAA or I'd find out if I can use it with AAA.

The numbers game continues!!

 

[jenndisney]

I don't believe you can use a child's AP for a hotel rate.

This was discussed at great length on the resort board. You can use a child's AP for a discount, but you can not use it to buy the DDE card. Someone had an official email from Disney that said it is okay, as long as the child is in the room.