Help Me Understand Annual passes

[Rjsoto24601]

Myself, DH and our almost 3 year old son will be heading down to the world for our first DVC vacation along with my mom and dad. We will be there from Feb 13th- Feb21st and are looking at purchasing tickets for 6/7 day tickets with park hopper option. I was recently looking up annual passes and was a bit confused. Can someone please explain the benefit of AP besides being renewable? Does everyone in our party have to buy one,and would our 2 yr old need one? Thank you!

 

[BCV23]

First the simple answer....your two year old would not need one this trip as long as the trip begins before his birthday.

Annual passes are just another type of ticket so everyone 3 and over needs their own.

The best benefit of an annual pass is entry into the parks for a year plus a day. You can park hop to your heart's content.

There are also various discounts associated with an AP but those are secondary in my opinion.

 

[Sandisw]

We will be getting AP's every other year so that we can get at least 2 DVC trips from one pass.

We go in August every year. Last year, we went August 5th through the 12th and this year are going July 30th - August 5th on the same AP.

I won't renew and then buy new ones in 2011 to cover both 2011 and 2012 trips.

With the AP, you are also eligible for a $100 DVC discount for you and your wife. You can also buy a Tables in Wonderland (TIW) card for $75.00 that will give you 20% off your bill at most TS restaurants for up to 10 in your party. If you do a lot of those, including adult beverages, it can save you a bit of money.

So, depending on who you see your trips working out, the AP can give you a better deal than just getting a 6/7 day park hopper pass. Of course, if you are not going back to WDW within a year, then the savings doesn't work out so well.

Good luck!

 

[Rjsoto24601]

Thank you so much for all of the info. So basically, my husband and I would need one and my parents are free to get regular park hopper tickets right? If we got the TIW card would it only be one card for all of us?

 

[RabbitFood]

One TIW card would cover your entire party. (I believe there are limits--but we've had parties as large as 14 receive the discount.) It is issued to one person who must be present at the meal (and show the card, obviously) for the discount.

Last time we were there (a few weeks ago), CMs were more careful about checking ID with the card. One CM told me there have been problems with people stealing the cards and trying to use them. Seems like a very odd thing to steal!

 

[dianeschlicht]

Thank you so much for all of the info. So basically, my husband and I would need one and my parents are free to get regular park hopper tickets right? If we got the TIW card would it only be one card for all of us?

Yes, you would all get the discount on meals as long as you pay with only one bill and the person who's name is on the card must be the one to pay.

 

[dmoore22]

Ditto to what has been posted previously. As Sandisw posted earlier there is a DVC discount for the purchase of an annual pass. We use to get a new pass every other year so that we could get at least two trips of 12 nights each out of our APs. Now that we have been visiting DVC more often it seems that the renewals, with the DVC discount, have been the more efficient way for us. There is a DVC discount for AP renewals and, at least for the time being, the renewals are good for 15 months. During Xmas some of the merchandise locations were providing generous AP discounts for merchandise along with Disney Visa discounts at the same time which blew us away. Depending on your vacation habits the AP can be a much better option than the MYPs.

 

[Hollymom1229]

Yes, you would all get the discount on meals as long as you pay with only one bill and the person who's name is on the card must be the one to pay.

Actually on our last trip, my mom and sister both paid for meals, and I presented my TIW card and we got the discount. The AP can be a great option for DVC owners who can do two trips over the course of a single year. The initial investment is a little steep, but I'll probably get 3 trips on mine this year and DH will get at least two on his.

 

[ILuvMulan]

WARNING!!!!!!! Having annual passes will most likely cause you to try to squeeze in an extra trip to get more bang for your buck. We are going twice on ours and I am really trying to figure out a way to get in one more

 

[dmoore22]

WARNING!!!!!!! Having an annual passes will most likely cause you to try to squeeze in an extra trip to get more bang for your buck. We are going twice on ours and I am really trying to figure out a way to get in one more

There is no cure for this condition! Tis a heavy load to bear.

 

[Vickis3js]

Hope you don't mind me sneaking in a question. If I order over the phone from Member services do I get the actual AP that I then go to the park and activate? Also how long do they take to ship? We are leaving March 10th and want to order them before we go so its one less thing to buy when we are there.

Thanks

 

[erionm]

Hope you don't mind me sneaking in a question. If I order over the phone from Member services do I get the actual AP that I then go to the park and activate? Also how long do they take to ship? We are leaving March 10th and want to order them before we go so its one less thing to buy when we are there.

Thanks

They don't mail out actual APs. You would either get a confirmation number or pay shipping to get an exchange voucher. You would need to take that confirmation number or exchange voucher to a guest services location to get your actual AP.

 

[goofy4tink]

Hope you don't mind me sneaking in a question. If I order over the phone from Member services do I get the actual AP that I then go to the park and activate? Also how long do they take to ship? We are leaving March 10th and want to order them before we go so its one less thing to buy when we are there.

Thanks

My dh is at WDW now. He needed an AP, so I bought him one, online, through the DVC site...$414 if I remember correctly. Anyway....I printed out a 'will call' sheet, with all the info on it. Did that last week. He got to WDW on Sunday, at YC. He walked over to Guest Services, with his DVC card and his drivers license, and that sheet I printed out. Turned them in at GS, and about 5 mins later, he had his AP in hand.