Interesting ticket strategy question...how much would you pay for extra FP+ days?

[Klayfish]

We're heading down at the end of June. We're very fortunate that we're going to have a very long trip...17 park days. DW works for a school district, so she and the kids have 8 weeks off. My job is very kind and is letting me work 3 days remote from the condo (we'll hit the parks at night), then there's 4th of July holiday and I'll take a week of vacation time. Our plan is to buy tickets from UT or PS and convert them to AP on our first day down there. Here's the interesting dilemma. From what I see on the sites, right now the biggest savings over gate price I would get is to buy a 7 day parkhopper ticket from UT. Including taxes, it will save me about $50/ticket over gate price, and we're a family of 5. That's $250, pretty good. However, if I buy a 7 day ticket, it will only allow me to book 7 days of FP+ when I hit the 30 day window (we stay off site). If I buy a 10 day ticket from UT I will only save about $20/ticket...PS would save me even less. However, it would allow me the extra 3 days of booking FP+ 30 days out. So my net savings is only $100 instead of $250, but in return I get 3 more days of advance FP+ booking.

We're WDW vets, so we're quite familiar with FP+. It's not at all uncommon for us to change our FP+ plans one day ahead, because the kids will decide they'd rather go to Epcot than AK as we had initially scheduled. We're usually quite successful at changing our plans because we can get a good FP+ selection, even less than 24 hours in advance. However, we certainly can't get things like 7DMT or FEA, unless by blind luck when someone else dropped theirs.

So, ultimately, I think I've answered my own question. Given that we can still get a decent selection of FP+ just 7 days out, I'm more likely to save the money and go with the 7 day ticket from UT. But there is that temptation to pay the extra money and get the extra 3 days of FP+. Just curious to see what would you do?

 

[Kerriowl]

I think I would go with the 7 day tickets. You can get the hard to get fastpasses for those days and then save the not so hard ones for the days at the end of the trip. You would still be a week out.

 

[DekrRini]

Unless 7DMT or FEA are important attractions for your family, I'd save the money.

 

[kmb584]

I would purchase the 7-day ticket and pocket the $250 savings. I'd schedule all of our "must-do" FP+ reservations for the first 7 days.

 

[Miss Frankie J]

I would purchase the 7 day park hopper. I also stay offsite and last year I waited till going to WDW to upgrade to an AP. For me if there was a FP+ I really wanted or needed to get I would stay onsite one day in order to get 60 days VS 30 days.

Just schedule your must do's in the first 7 days. Also AP holders can only have 7 days of FP+ at a time no matter how many times they plan on visiting.

 

[Klayfish]

Also AP holders can only have 7 days of FP+ at a time no matter how many times they plan on visiting.

Yes, you're right. We had that last year. However, the only difference this time is that if I bought the 10 day ticket and booked 10 days of FP+, when I convert to AP on day one, they wouldn't take away the 10 days I had already booked. I'd just be held to the rule going forward. But overall, I agree, I'm likely going to buy just the 7 days. Like others said, I'll book FEA and 7DMT early and often (as much as I can) and after that, we'll hit them standby at the right times if we want to do them again.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

I would pay that for extra FP+, but not for extra days to book the same # of FP+.

 

[lchuck]

I think I would buy the 7 day ticket and use some of the saved $$$ to book a 1 day throwaway campsite and get the extra 30 days on the FP+ booking window. I feel like since you are veterans, you're going to benefit more from the extra 30 days the window would give you as opposed to the extra 3 days of FP+. Also, I'm not positive on how it works when you already have more than 7 days worth of FP+ booked and then convert the tickets to AP, since APs are only allowed 7 days worth of FP+ at a time. If you decide to go the 10 day route, make sure you're clear on when you should do the upgrade, so you don't lose those extra 3 days after all.

 

[Mom2Stitch]

Save the money, you guys are vets and know what you're doing.