In DL now.... questions

[mommato4]

Hello, we got here on the 22nd, first day the 23rd. We checked into the HOJO for the first time and LOVE it. We have a 2 Q room in Building 2, but it's on te inside corner and so large! We are VERY happy. If it had wireless internet and a free breakfast it would be PERFECT!
Parks have been busy but not as bad as some other christmas times we've been. Weather is beautiful.
Questions, we went to watch the Aladdin show, fantastic, but how do you get the vip seating?
Also is it worth it to upgrade to annual passes? We are planning a trip at christmas again next year. What are the perks?

 

[sonnyjane]

If next Christmas is the only time you'll be returning, you'll have to weigh the cost benefits of getting an AP, because the lesser AP's will be blocked out, and the only one that will not be blocked out during the busy Christmas week will be the Premium AP if you're literally coming the week of Christmas.

The benefits include food discounts (10% for the lower level AP's, 15% for Premiums) and a merchandise discount of 10% if you have a Premium as well (although this year, during the holidays, anyone with any type of AP received a 10% discount). You also qualify for discounted room rates at the Disney hotels. You might want to consider just getting one AP, to get the discounts, and then buying park hoppers for everyone else. You can check the prices and block-out dates online to see what would suit your needs. Depending on what type of tickets you currently have, upgrading might make a lot of sense.

I'm not sure of other ways to get Aladdin VIP seating, but I know it was available if you booked a Disney vacation package at a Disney hotel.

 

[Eeee-va]

I thought VIP seatings MIGHT come through booking through AAA? Not sure.

Depending on your length of stay and when you're going to return, upgrading to a Deluxe AP may pay for itself with two trips. We bought APs in June (before the prices went up, but that was also before 3-day/etc. passes went up). It cost something under $150 to upgrade our 5-for-the-price-of-3 day pass to a Deluxe Annual Pass. So we saved money making just one trip back. Making two or more and admission is free (if you do the math). There are some blockout dates but only a very few periods where more than a Saturday is blocked. If you go on a day your pass is blocked, you can pay I believe $40 to get a pass to go in that day.

Upgrading to Premium is a lot trickier proposition for a tourist, provided you are not driving to the park from the hotel. Premium passes include parking, of course, so if you're not driving to the park they may not be as good of a value. Technically, you'd pretty much pay for your trip if you made 3 trips in a year period, though.

I don't think you'll regret upgrading though. Good luck deciding!

 

[mommato4]

If next Christmas is the only time you'll be returning, you'll have to weigh the cost benefits of getting an AP, because the lesser AP's will be blocked out, and the only one that will not be blocked out during the busy Christmas week will be the Premium AP if you're literally coming the week of Christmas.

The benefits include food discounts (10% for the lower level AP's, 15% for Premiums) and a merchandise discount of 10% if you have a Premium as well (although this year, during the holidays, anyone with any type of AP received a 10% discount). You also qualify for discounted room rates at the Disney hotels. You might want to consider just getting one AP, to get the discounts, and then buying park hoppers for everyone else. You can check the prices and block-out dates online to see what would suit your needs. Depending on what type of tickets you currently have, upgrading might make a lot of sense.

I'm not sure of other ways to get Aladdin VIP seating, but I know it was available if you booked a Disney vacation package at a Disney hotel.

We would be going right over christmas which I looked and is blocked out
you know LOL, I never thought of just getting one. We drove this time and may again, then we'd have free parking and also discount at the hotels and stores.
Does anyone know what kind of discounts at the hotels you get? We're at the HOJO for $101 a night and I couldn't imagine paying $200-300 a night.

 

[mommato4]

I thought VIP seatings MIGHT come through booking through AAA? Not sure.

Depending on your length of stay and when you're going to return, upgrading to a Deluxe AP may pay for itself with two trips. We bought APs in June (before the prices went up, but that was also before 3-day/etc. passes went up). It cost something under $150 to upgrade our 5-for-the-price-of-3 day pass to a Deluxe Annual Pass. So we saved money making just one trip back. Making two or more and admission is free (if you do the math). There are some blockout dates but only a very few periods where more than a Saturday is blocked. If you go on a day your pass is blocked, you can pay I believe $40 to get a pass to go in that day.

Upgrading to Premium is a lot trickier proposition for a tourist, provided you are not driving to the park from the hotel. Premium passes include parking, of course, so if you're not driving to the park they may not be as good of a value. Technically, you'd pretty much pay for your trip if you made 3 trips in a year period, though.

I don't think you'll regret upgrading though. Good luck deciding!

I just worry about upgrading since we've already spent so much, spending more money right now isn't what I want haha. This time we did drive, we're staying at the HOJO but it would be nice to have free parking.

 

[sonnyjane]

We would be going right over christmas which I looked and is blocked out
you know LOL, I never thought of just getting one. We drove this time and may again, then we'd have free parking and also discount at the hotels and stores.
Does anyone know what kind of discounts at the hotels you get? We're at the HOJO for $101 a night and I couldn't imagine paying $200-300 a night.

While you get a fairly strong discount at the DL properties, you can still always find cheaper rates off-site. I have a Premium AP, and this year, for Christmas, the Paradise Pier had a great sale on rooms for less than $200 a night, which is "a bargain". I am going in March over my little sister's spring break, and their "discount" rate is $220 a night. Now, compared to $300 a night, those are great discounts! However, I booked two nights at Camelot for $220, the price of one night at PPH during the dates of my stay, so the hotel discount might not be worth it for your specific needs. Unfortunately they only post a few month's worth of rates at a time, so I couldn't check for you to let you know what they would be next Christmas until closer to your trip.

 

[mommato4]

While you get a fairly strong discount at the DL properties, you can still always find cheaper rates off-site. I have a Premium AP, and this year, for Christmas, the Paradise Pier had a great sale on rooms for less than $200 a night, which is "a bargain". I am going in March over my little sister's spring break, and their "discount" rate is $220 a night. Now, compared to $300 a night, those are great discounts! However, I booked two nights at Camelot for $220, the price of one night at PPH during the dates of my stay, so the hotel discount might not be worth it for your specific needs. Unfortunately they only post a few month's worth of rates at a time, so I couldn't check for you to let you know what they would be next Christmas until closer to your strip.

Thank you. I was thinking it would probably still be pricey. I would love to stay at the GC hotel but wow I just couldn't pay $500 a night for a hotel.

 

[1disneynutt]

You get the VIP seating with a package. You do not have to stay at one of the Disney hotels. I bought a package and I believe stayed at Hojos or Candy Cane Inn. The VIP seating is nice but we have also seen Aladdin without the VIP seating and it was also awesome.

 

[bumbershoot]

Does anyone know what kind of discounts at the hotels you get? We're at the HOJO for $101 a night and I couldn't imagine paying $200-300 a night.

FWIW, there's also a lovely AP discount at hojo's.....

With a Deluxe AP you get 10% off food, and at some DTD places you get that same discount.

With the highest level of AP you get 15% off food, 10% off most merchandise at Disney stores including World of Disney.

The AP, if you upgraded, would be good for 366 days from the first day of the ticket you upgrade from (366 b/c, for example, it would go from 12/20/09 to 12/20/10...it's actually 367 if you go through a Leap Day). So you'd need to have next year's trip tucked inside that 366 days...you can't have your trip end after the 366 days, if that makes sense. If the trip is the exact same week, it's not going to work.



VIP seating is given with packages. However, there were *some* people saying that you could buy the stuff that comes with the package, a la carte, at the WDTC office at the very end of DownTown Disney near Alamo. Something like $15?

I know it's busier for you than it was when we used that seating (early Dec two years ago), but for us it just meant we had to check in and stand in the VIP line WELL before others were lining up, then we got in AFTER all the regular people were let in. And the seats were in the "orchestra" section, so we missed some of the great effects of the show, or were too close or too "underneath it" to really appreciate those effects. Just my opinion...not totally worth it.

 

[jennilouwho]

Hojo's does have wireless. It's either under hojoanaheim or hojo anaheim with a space. Some other place kept coming up first when we stayed there that you had to pay for, but eventually the hojoanaheim network would come up and it's free....