DVC AP's ouch

[NandP]

I just ordered our 3 AP with teh DVC Discount.. yippie.,. I think... $896.00 OUCH!

When our little one turns 3 it will be higher, so I should be happy for the break this year.

 

[disgirl]

I know what you mean. It sure does add up. I'll be ordering ours in the near future and I need 3 adult ones. DS is 12. Hopefully, you'll get a couple of fun trips in there to make it worth the money. Enjoy!!

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

As a father of four, I feel your pain and happiness. This year our youngest became a Disney adult at 10 yers old.

HBC

 

[disgirl]

HBC As I was typing I was just thinking of all of the families like yours with a few children and saying I guess I should not complain. However, just think of all the joy your children get from those AP's.

 

[newholidayx2]

I just bought DS & myself APs last wk for our summer mother/son vacation.
We have hoppers left w/days on them that I'll keep for DH.

 

[loribell]

I won't be saying OUCH! We usually buy AP's and last summer it was $1424 for 3A, 1C through Shades. The next ones will seem cheap compared to that!

Lori

 

[Laurajean1014]

How long will you all be vacationing this year to account for buying your AP's?

We're going in April for 10 days and then maybe in December (when our mortgage is satisfied). Normally, we would buy AP's but we will be in WDW with 4 other families and they want to go to Sea World/UA ~

What do you think? Should I buy?

 

[Cruelladeville]

If you are taking two vacations, it definitely pays to buy AP's. Use them not only for admissions, but also for the discounts on rooms and food. Of course, if you are not planning to visit any more than 6 or 7 days all year at the parks, then it doesn't turn out to be the cheapest value.

With DVC our AP's run about $315 each, which is a bargain compared to last year when they were $430 each! Now, I think I am getting a bargain in comparison to that! I have to buy 4 adults, so it's a chunk. My youngest DD said she wouldn't go into the parks much, so we tried one year without an AP for her. It seemed like I was always buying tickets! On our Christmas trip, we tried to stay away from the parks because she was out of tickets, and we couldn't afford to buy more. This year she is getting an AP for her birthday!

 

[CapeCodFam]

We bought 4 in Dec before the discount became effective.... At least we'll get a break when we buy one for our 3 yo in July.

 

[NandP]

How long will you all be vacationing this year to account for buying your AP's?

We have 9 days planned for this August, but my wife and I hope to sneak back for a long weekend later within the year. ( I really want to do the Segway tour )

 

[LeftCoaster]

How long will you all be vacationing this year to account for buying your AP's?

We're going in April for 10 days and then maybe in December (when our mortgage is satisfied). Normally, we would buy AP's but we will be in WDW with 4 other families and they want to go to Sea World/UA ~

What do you think? Should I buy?

If you plan on going in December too, I'd go ahead and get the AP's. Also, don't forget to buy a DDE card. The savings would probably work out great for you.

 

[carol1231]

What type of discounts do you receive with the AP's? I know about the DDE card, but wasn't aware of others. Is there a list?

 

[Al D]

Are the APs calender year or 1 year from the time you buy them?

 

[athenna]

Are the APs calender year or 1 year from the time you buy them?[/QU
They are good 1 year from when you physically get there to activate them.

 

[NandP]

If you plan on going in December too, I'd go ahead and get the AP's. Also, don't forget to buy a DDE card. The savings would probably work out great for you.

What's a DDE card??

 

[LeftCoaster]

What's a DDE card??

DDE is the Disney Dining Experience which used to be available ONLY to Florida resident's. AP's can now buy the card for $50 and it gives you 20% off (INCLUDING alcohol) at pretty much all the sitdown restaurants in the parks and resorts. That's the Reader's Digest version of the card. There are a couple of threads around here that discuss it in detail.

 

[Cobra B.]

I'd like to make a suggestion to anyone out there this may apply to...
Our DD is now three years old and looks every bit of three to us. We bit the bullet at three years and four months to get her an AP. We wish we hadn't. Although we know we will have her back soon (May), we were there in November and again in January and both times we practically had to beg the turnstille worker to make her use her pass. They were just ready to assume she was under three. Again, she looks every bit of three. The reason we were so upset is that we paid for something that we thought would be scrutinized more closely. If we had her in her stroller we could have gone in and out over and over and never questioned. Then we could have waited until this coming May to finally get hers. Even if we stopped a couple of times we could have bought a door admission.
Moral of the story, don't rush out to but an AP as their third birthday gift. Especially if you are visiting around that date. This is merely my opinion.

 

[Plus4206]

The sudden impact of the purchase price is somewhat hard to swallow.

We'll use our new AP's the last week in May. I'm going to try something a little different this year. When we go back in Oct I'm going to set aside in an ING account $225.00. When we go back in Dec, set another $225.00. When we go the middle of May in '06 set another $225.00 away. When Oct rolls around, I'll pull the ING cash and add the last payment & purchase my next round of AP's. It just seems like it will make it a little less painfull.

Now if I can just discipline myself to do it.

 

[lllovell]

Good idea about setting money aside. I bit the bullet for our trip a couple of weeks ago (purchased back in Jan though) so my only concern is waiting long enough to buy Universal passes so that they are not all up for renewal at the same time.

I am lucky enough to have a sister living in Orlando, so we get to make multiple trips a year.

 

[buzz5985]

If you plan it right an AP can be a really great bargain. We purchased 2 adult and 1 child in 2003 right before our cruise. We spent 4 days in DW, but in August of 2004, we spent 17 days. I think it averaged out to $19/day for the parks. Great bargain.