Deluxe vs Socal

[James G]

I'm buying AP for my family of 4 tomorrow. Not sure what's the better deal the Deluxe with the extra days (get Saturdays, yay) or sticking with the SoCal and saving $11.67 a month per a pass. We doing payments.

Which would you get?

I'm in Carlsbad next to Legoland. So It's a 60 minute drive to DL.

Thoughts?

 

[ArchOwl]

I'm buying AP for my family of 4 tomorrow. Not sure what's the better deal the Deluxe with the extra days (get Saturdays, yay) or sticking with the SoCal and saving $11.67 a month per a pass. We doing payments.

Which would you get?

I'm in Carlsbad next to Legoland. So It's a 60 minute drive to DL.

Thoughts?

Depends on how you will use it. If you will get more use out of them by being able to go on some weekends (not all, if you look at the blockout calendar), then get the Deluxe. If you will be going during the week anyway, then no point to spending more money. But if you end up not going a lot because you are blocked, you really haven't saved much, kwim?

 

[James G]

Depends on how you will use it. If you will get more use out of them by being able to go on some weekends (not all, if you look at the blockout calendar), then get the Deluxe. If you will be going during the week anyway, then no point to spending more money. But if you end up not going a lot because you are blocked, you really haven't saved much, kwim?

Going during the week doesn't work for us because our kids are in school 4 & 8. And I don't really want to go on super busy days. But I do know the wife thought it would be nice to have the summer to visit with the kids out of school, so having the summer would be nice. But I hear the crowds are crazy and grandnite makes the park close early. Just not sure if it's worth the extra money to get the deluxe or if it is? I do like the idea of having more days to choose from. I just don't really want to pay for more days and then not be able to do anything because of the crowds.

 

[Girimama33]

If you see yourself getting the most use in the summer or holidays, you will need a premier or deluxe.

 

[ArchOwl]

Going during the week doesn't work for us because our kids are in school 4 & 8. And I don't really want to go on super busy days. But I do know the wife thought it would be nice to have the summer to visit with the kids out of school, so having the summer would be nice. But I hear the crowds are crazy and grandnite makes the park close early. Just not sure if it's worth the extra money to get the deluxe or if it is? I do like the idea of having more days to choose from. I just don't really want to pay for more days and then not be able to do anything because of the crowds.

Summer isn't that bad if you plan well and are there early. I have a Premium AP and was there in July/August and again in September. I actually preferred my July/August visit because the parks were open later and the parks didn't feel that crowded to me. Of course, everyone has their own experiences and what they like.

The great thing about having an AP is that you don't feel the pressure to do everything in a short amount of time. If you arrive and the line for RSR is too crazy, just skip it and find something that has a short line. You can always come back and ride that ride. You don't even have to ride anything. I have had days were I barely rode a thing, but took in the shows, had a nice lunch, etc.

I would pick the Deluxe if it were me, just because the blockout days of the SoCal just seem so restrictive, especially if you want the weekends.

 

[goodeats]

I've decided that I would rather take a year off then downgrade to the SoCal. The weekend days when all the passes are open are fairly miserable. During the week it's ok, but I do like to go on the weekends occasionally also.

 

[elaw]

If you see yourself getting the most use in the summer or holidays, you will need a premier or deluxe.

I think you mean Premium ... the Premier annual pass is for both DLR and WDW and runs about $850 a year

http://disneyland.disney.go.com/passes/

Premier Annual Passport

 

[James G]

If you see yourself getting the most use in the summer or holidays, you will need a premier or deluxe.

I'm thinking of just getting the deluxe pass and adding parking to my pass. This way we can go almost whenever we want and be able to spend the weekend Fri-Sun every now and then. That's a nice treat.

Thanks for the help guys!

 

[ArchOwl]

I'm thinking of just getting the deluxe pass and adding parking to my pass. This way we can go almost whenever we want and be able to spend the weekend Fri-Sun every now and then. That's a nice treat.

Thanks for the help guys!

If you are adding parking to a Deluxe, isn't around $600 total? If you purchase or eat frequently at the parks, you may consider a Premium. The Premium AP has 15% savings on meals and 20% on merchandise. It is $649 for the Premium with free parking. If you think you will spend more than a couple hundred during the year on food and other stuff, the Premium is the way to go.

 

[James G]

I think I would have to spend like $1000 to break even on food with a 15% discount over 10%.

 

[ArchOwl]

I think I would have to spend like $1000 to break even on food with a 15% discount over 10%.

Haha, is is that much? There is a reason I didn't go to accounting school!

 

[James G]

Haha, is is that much? There is a reason I didn't go to accounting school!

No worries! I would get the pass but for some reason I just cant see forking out the extra cash. Plus I wouldnt go inside the park without my family on days they had blocked out...

But thanks for the idea!

 

[llump41]

For 10+ years we did 1 premium and 1 deluxe. Just made sense to us. With the increase this year we downgraded to a socal. Couple of reasons besides the cost, We rarely if ever go on a Saturday. Also my DW hates the heat so summers are off limits now. I still think that if the price increase was reasonable, we would have stayed with our regular passes though.