Does anyone else think that Disney Annual Passes are really overpriced?

[LoveBWVVBR]

We're FL residents and DVC members, so we get about the best discounts on AP's that you can get. I still can't believe how expensive they are, though. We're due to renew them on our upcoming Sept. trip, and honestly I'd just skip them this year if DH weren't so into going to the parks. I would be perfectly happy pool hopping to the other DVC pools and maybe getting waterpark AP's.

Our child is still under 3, so she's free right now. I'm cringing at the thought of having to buy a 3rd AP when she turns 3, though. Why is it that Universal and Sea World offer such good AP deals and Disney doesn't? Is it because Disney can charge those prices and get most people to pay them

We have Universal and Sea World AP's now, and more than once we've decided to take a weekend trip to Universal over a weekend trip to Disney just based on cost alone (food, hotel, etc.). With the cost of the Disney AP's, I honestly think that we would have been better off going to Universal for a week. Am I alone in feeling this way? How do middle-class families of 4 or 5 or more afford Disney AP's

 

[car_doctor]

well i don't know what your discount is but to be honest i really don't think that walt would approve of what they are charging

yes i know insurance to operate the ride's have skyrocketed sence 9/11
cost of living is very high
gas prices are high
taxes are high
pretty soon we will all have to pay for the air we breath

but they can charge what ever they want and get away with it just like cable tv

 

[Handbag Lady]

I think the WDW APs are overpriced.

I think that Disneyland's APs are just right.

 

[Muushka]

I agree that the price for the APs is ridiculous, and we also get the DVC discount.

We still have a couple of vouchers for APs that we bought before the previous increase. And we have 4 USF/IOA AP vouchers. My husband has an Achilles tendon injury, so this year we will not renew any of them.

We bought the 10 day non-exp with the plusses that we will stretch out for a long time. We enjoy the resorts so much and are not interested in funding WDW any more than we have to.

 

[jodifla]

We're FL residents and DVC members, so we get about the best discounts on AP's that you can get. I still can't believe how expensive they are, though. We're due to renew them on our upcoming Sept. trip, and honestly I'd just skip them this year if DH weren't so into going to the parks. I would be perfectly happy pool hopping to the other DVC pools and maybe getting waterpark AP's.

Our child is still under 3, so she's free right now. I'm cringing at the thought of having to buy a 3rd AP when she turns 3, though. Why is it that Universal and Sea World offer such good AP deals and Disney doesn't? Is it because Disney can charge those prices and get most people to pay them

We have Universal and Sea World AP's now, and more than once we've decided to take a weekend trip to Universal over a weekend trip to Disney just based on cost alone (food, hotel, etc.). With the cost of the Disney AP's, I honestly think that we would have been better off going to Universal for a week. Am I alone in feeling this way? How do middle-class families of 4 or 5 or more afford Disney AP's

I think the Florida Seasonal Pass is a much better deal at $230. But I agree, tickets are getting really up there! I remember when they were $20

 

[cheerforchelsea]

I have been an AP for several years and I have to agree that they are orver-priced. We try to plan ahead so we can get as many trips out of an AP as possible - but still too expensive.

 

[kato0627]

While I certainly agree with the OP that it is very expensive to get AP's, just have to share 2 thoughts. Our school carnival is this coming week. For 15 tickets, it is 15.00. Each ride cost approx 5 tickets. That is 5.OO per ride x my 3 kids. At $15.00 per rusty ride run by carnival workers which last 2 minutes, I kid school friends when I say it is Cheaper for me to go to Disney. Second thing, the Jersey Shore Boardwalk is just as bad. So for us, we got our AP's this year, sneaking in 4 trips, average cost of the park per day, was 10.00. Money well spent in comparison. JMHO

 

[Mean Queen]

That's why we try to go once a month, to justify the high cost. Even with the FL. resident renewal rate (same as the DVC member rate), it's pretty costly. I fear the day my baby turns 3, because my older DD will turn 10 soon after. And by that time, I can't imagine how high the ticket prices will be. We'll probably have to give them up then and just enjoy the DVC resorts.

 

[ticktock]

Just buy the seasonal passes. $220 is a bargain IMHO. It still adds up but I can't think of anywhere else that you get as much for the money.

Even Clark Howard says being a Fl. resident is the only way to do Disney cheaply (according to my dad, he used to question me when I claimed I couldn't go anywhere else as cheaply as I go to Disney, then he heard Clark say it, so it must be true!)

 

[Muushka]

Just buy the seasonal passes. $220 is a bargain IMHO. It still adds up but I can't think of anywhere else that you get as much for the money.

Even Clark Howard says being a Fl. resident is the only way to do Disney cheaply (according to my dad, he used to question me when I claimed I couldn't go anywhere else as cheaply as I go to Disney, then he heard Clark say it, so it must be true!)

Sadly, everyone does not live in FL . But when I lived there, I took advantage of the seasonal passes.

PS We love Clark Howard. He's our hero.

 

[crisi]

We have Universal and Sea World AP's now, and more than once we've decided to take a weekend trip to Universal over a weekend trip to Disney just based on cost alone (food, hotel, etc.). With the cost of the Disney AP's, I honestly think that we would have been better off going to Universal for a week. Am I alone in feeling this way? How do middle-class families of 4 or 5 or more afford Disney AP's

Its because SeaWorld is a one day park and Universal is an easy two. Disney is four parks - most of which takes longer than a day to see (I like AK and can spend two there). Disney is the premium attraction - do you WANT a SeaWorld AP? If you are content with the SeaWorld or Universal AP, do that and skip going to the Disney parks for a year. But I'm guessing you want Disney - SeaWorld gets guests by undercutting Disney - because they need to.

I think the Disney AP is a bargain when I look at partial season tickets to a sports team, a membership to a club so the kids can swim, or the APs for the local Amusement Park. We don't get one though since we don't do Disney often enough.

 

[Kathi OD]

Overpriced can be a relative term. How many days a year do you manage to get to the World? After 10 days the daily admission is less than $58. There are very few theme parks where you can spend a day for less than $60.

Of course, Universal and Sea World have APs much less than Disney's. But IMHO neither of those parks are anywhere close to a Disney Park. As far as I am concerned they are "been there, done that, ain't goin' back" places, whereas every time I visit Disney there is something new to discover. Even when our now grown kids go, they are amazed at all the "new" things they never managed to notice on their previous trips to the World.

I only wish I lived close enough and/or got enough time off from work to make an AP work for us. I'd be buying without a second thought and going often.

 

[daisyduck123]

Is it because Disney can charge those prices and get most people to pay them

Of course.

If people weren't purchasing tickets at those prices, then Disney would lower the prices. But as it is, they don't need to.

 

[reginaastralis]

I really wish that Disney would offer the payment plans like Universal and Bush Gardens/Sea World do. Maybe I wouldn't gasp so much if I was spending say $16/month, rather than giving the $200 out at once. My friend and her boyfriend got two years at Universal and pay $16/month, I could really handle that.

We're taking this year off from our AP, and I know I am going to miss them. We tend to go once a month, sometimes more, and none at all during June-August usually, when the black out happens. I was considering getting the regular AP and not the seasonal, since free parking is such a good deal. But, then I decided to take a year off ... so who knows what I'll do next year. I know as Julie gets older, we'll have to take time off for her to go to Universal. This next year is going to be spent checking out some awesome state parks and the zoo ... and saving a lot of money by not going to Disney.

 

[aubriee]

I really wish that Disney would offer the payment plans like Universal and Bush Gardens/Sea World do. Maybe I wouldn't gasp so much if I was spending say $16/month, rather than giving the $200 out at once.

This next year is going to be spent checking out some awesome state parks and the zoo ... and saving a lot of money by not going to Disney.

Hey, those of us that don't live in Florida are paying over $400.00 and don't get to go near as often. I try to get four trips a year out of mine and think that's a pretty good deal.

 

[reginaastralis]

I never said I wasn't spoiled. I know I'm spoiled living so close to the mouse. I've looked at job offers in other states, and one of the things keeping me here is my Florida resident discount.

Heck, if I moved, I'd keep my tag and license here for as long as possible to enjoy the discount. I don't mind putting up with crazy snowbirds, hurricanes and insanely hot temps to be able to live less than an hour away from the mouse. I can still want to save money, or at least me able to budget my ap better if they let me pay in increments like all the other theme parks around here do. Consider it a "perk" of being a Florida resident, the theme parks roll out the red carpet for us, and we brag about it. We're lucky.

 

[DOOM1001]

They are expensive!!!I have the Fl. resident seasonals and I think about it like this,since I also have the Universal AP which I renew for $99,well that's for 2 parks and Disney has 4 and the Disney Seasonal renewal rate is just over $200,so that's like double Universal,but also double the parks.So if I think of it like this it's fine,but I also have to ignore that the seasonals don't include parking and have blackout dates.but at least I just think of the summertime as my Disney off time with the crowds,heat,humidity and rain.

In my opinion the best deal is my Busch Platinum pass which I pay $12/month for Busch Gardens Tampa and Virginia,Sea World Orlando,San Antonio and San Diego, the waterparks in Tampa and Virginia and from what I hear the new waterpark next to Sea World in Orlando,Aquatica will be included as well.Parking,great discounts and even the first 2 nights of their Halloween event are also included.They've even sent free passes on your birthday to the Luau at Sea World,not like every year or anything but that's still like a $50 ticket!!

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Just for information purposes, a 10 day Hopper with No Expiration actually costs more than an Annual Pass. This is for non-Florida resident and does not take into consideration either DVC Member or AP renewal discounts.

 

[MEM]

Its because SeaWorld is a one day park and Universal is an easy two. Disney is four parks - most of which takes longer than a day to see (I like AK and can spend two there). Disney is the premium attraction - do you WANT a SeaWorld AP? If you are content with the SeaWorld or Universal AP, do that and skip going to the Disney parks for a year. But I'm guessing you want Disney - SeaWorld gets guests by undercutting Disney - because they need to.

I think the Disney AP is a bargain when I look at partial season tickets to a sports team, a membership to a club so the kids can swim, or the APs for the local Amusement Park. We don't get one though since we don't do Disney often enough.

I agree with Crisi. In our case we take two to three trips on the same AP so it IS a bargain. Never having to fret about how many days we have left on a park hopper, just free to come and go as we please. That to me is worth the money. Here in Boston, taking my family of four to a Red Sox game would cost over $400 - that's one AP right there and unlike a trip to a Disney park, I'm not guaranteed a great time at a Red Sox game.

The only thing I don't like about the AP is that I feel like I have paid twice for events like the P&PP, MNSSHP and MVMCP. But, no way around that.

 

[MiniGirl]

Just for information purposes, a 10 day Hopper with No Expiration actually costs more than an Annual Pass. This is for non-Florida resident and does not take into consideration either DVC Member or AP renewal discounts.

Yes, but in the long run it can be less expensive than the AP. A 10 day ticket can last more than 1 year. If you are going for the MVMCP or the MNSSHP or any other special event, you can take the mornings off and just use that ticket to get into the park thus saving 1 day's admission and making that ticket last longer. Also, if you enjoy hanging out at the resorts and don't go to the parks everyday of your trip, this could be a better option. It really just depends on your touring style.

Now, we are FL residents and have seasonal passes. I think those are a great deal. I go with my girls quite often. My dh, however, doesn't care for Disney though, so he often stays home. We have considered getting the largest non-expiring ticket we can for him since he just doesn't use his pass as much. In fact, we will probably do that next year.

I'm a fairly new CM though (seasonal), so I need to figure out what will work best.