GAD - Help me decide what to do!!!

[TMLynn]

We will be at WDW for the three days leading up to Thanksgiving, November 22,23,24, and the 2 days after, Nov. 26 and 27 (will be at my Dad's nearby for Thanksgiving day). We have 5 GAD vouchers (Me, DH, DS10, DS8, DS6). The credit value of these vouchers is $373, which is pretty substantial. If I buy 5 day hopper passes from Disney and use the vouchers the cost will be $1127. However, Maple Leaf has a 5th day free promotion, so if I buy the tickets through them the cost will be $1442, so the savings diminishes to $315 (still good) and I'll have a voucher for each day for us to use for Fastpass Exchange. My question really is about crowds this week. I was thinking we should save 2 vouchers for FastPass exchange for Friday and Saturday after, because I assume the crowds are big those days. But what about Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday before? How are the crowds? Will the FPs be worth it? We are very seasoned Disney travelers who know the FP system well and always manage to avoid terrible lines. Will this be a big benefit to us? Worth giving up the money savings? Other negatives of using them for tickets, we can't buy the tickets ahead of time, and I hate the thought of having to wait in line for tickets when we arrive. Any thoughts would really be appreciated!

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

I think you can expect large crowds all week. Friday and Saturday will certainly be crowded, but many people take the whole week off, so crowds will probably be high Mon-Wed as well.

We are also seasoned Disney travelers and can work the FP system, always arrive at rope drop, use EMHs and hop if necessary, etc. We used our GAD vouchers for FPs this summer, and it was a trip unlike any other, past and probably future. No more criss-crossing the parks to get FPs, and no Toy Story Mania rope drop stampede. We rode TSM three times and used our park tickets to get RnR and ToT FPs - that is not going to happen Thanksgiving week no matter how early you get up!

If it doesn't cause a financial hardship, the GAD FPs are amazing and will take so much stress out of your trip. We would pay for that privilege if Disney offered it - it was so worth it!

We usually buy hoppers from Undercover Tourist using the link in the Mousesavers.com newsletter. I'm not sure how they compare to Maple Leaf, but it is another alternative. UCT's prices include tax and shipping.

Also, you need to redeem your vouchers at Will Call at the parks, so you can buy tickets at the Will Call window when you redeem the vouchers - no need to stand in line twice. But my vote is for the fastpass cards!

 

[TMLynn]

Thank you so much for the insight! I think we are definitely going to go with the Fastpass.