Is a AAA membership worth it?

[bigmike7801]

My wife and I are headed to Disney World and Universal Studios from September 11 - 19.

The only thing I have purchased so far is our plane tickets.

I have read several articles suggesting that AAA members get discounts on anything from hotel rooms, theme park tickets, car rental etc... however nobody really tells you how much you're going to save with a AAA membership. So I can't tell if it's $5 or $50 savings.

There are a couple of different AAA plans that range from $56/year to $89 per year.

We plan on staying at the Disney's All Star Music Resort for a majority of the time as well as Disney's Port Orleans Riverside for a couple days.

Does it sound like it would be worth my while to get a AAA membership to try and save money durring our stay?

What other perks do AAA members get while vacationing at Disney World?

Thanks!

 

[Princess Disney Mom]

I have aaa and like having it for car breakdowns. Sometimes I can use it for tickets and entertainment.

 

[usnuzuloose]

I have used it so many times, I am so greatful to have it.

 

[Fire14]

disney hotel discounts range from 10-20 % I believe sept is 10 % on value and 15 on mod. resorts for disney. there is discount on park tickets but for disney I find better deals elsewhere. universal it's debateable.

 

[cjnix29]

I think the discount at Universal stores is 10%. You can also get a 10% discount at the Hard Rock Cafe there, or any of them,actually. I use it also when I lock my keys in my car, which happens fairly regularly! You can get discounts for retail shopping too, you will have to go on the website and it will show you the "show your card and save" places. I would never be without it.

 

[Sunstar]

We used it to get a sizable discount on hotel at Universal. I think we paid $170/night at Royal Pacific when the rack rate for the same time was $250. We also got a discount on our souvenirs and meals.

 

[Lucille1963]

I don't own a car and we pay for AAA every year. The peace of mind is worth it.

Recently I got a flat on a rental car and they fixed it. In the past, I was with a friend and they broke down on the side of the road and we had AAA come get us.

I don't think I've ever even used it for a hotel discount, but it is just an added perk.

 

[rentayenta]

For me AAA is totally worth it! I lock my keys in my car no less than quarterly and kill my battery twice a year. That's not including the hotel discounts we take advantage of. Best money I spend all year.

 

[tripletots]

Also, Wolfgang Puck Express offers 10% discount when you show your card.

Margarittaville does too (at Citywalk).

 

[Fire14]

Also, Wolfgang Puck Express offers 10% discount when you show your card.

Margarittaville does too (at Citywalk).

My own dang fault for not looking but why didn't i know Margarittaville was on list!! I coulda used it

 

[Fire14]

per my 2012 aaa travel book:sept discounts are:
value resorts: 10%, moderate resorts are 20%

Tickets for disney: 4 day basic adult ticket 264.50 with hopper 318.00
universal ticket adult 2 day park to park 144.90

Prices vary some based on AAA office location

You can also show card and save at:
Hard Rock cafe 10%, landy's rest: ( rainforest, trex, ), and I believe other rest at universal that I'm not finding right now but looks like most are 10%

 

[Jenny3]

I love the peace of mind with AAA. A few days after I first signed up, I got stuck in a snowy ditch - that tow was worth it!

Last Friday I ran out of gas (yes, I'm dumb) right at an intersection and they came out to fill me up.

The discounts are a perk; I plan on using it at Margaritaville and Mythos in Universal, as well as some shopping

 

[taymorel]

I used my AAA discount at Universal restaurants last year. But I mostly use for flat tires and they have awesome service when I am stuck with a flat tire. The peace of mind is worth the membership fee.

 

[SC Minnie]

We have AAA and use it for discounts but it has more than paid for itself on towing and tire changing for DD. When she has called them someone has been there within an hour. She will be traveling 3+ hours away for college in a couple of weeks and the peace of mind with well worth it.

 

[usd2bmd]

It is totally worth it for my family. I have used it when I locked my keys in the car 4 hours from home. Above and beyond the auto service there are all fo the discounts that we get.

As far as Disney discounts, we have not used them for Disney trips since one of our first trips when we paid rack for everything and bought the dining plan. If there are no other promotions running you may be able to get a deal with AAA, but if Disney is running a promotion there will be no other discounts through AAA.

 

[Dopey420]

Don't get AAA for the discounts, get it if your car is 5+ years old and you may need to get towed. Towing is very expensive and the cost of the membership is repaid after one tow.

 

[CleoPahd]

You'll realize how worth it AAA is if you ever have to have your car towed and get the huge bill. I personally think it's worth it just for the peace of mind aside for the variety of discounts...hotels, discount movie tickets, etc. I need to check their website more often because there are so many merchants offering AAA discounts...CVS, Lenscrafters and of course big places like Disney and 6 flags.

 

[SimiA22]

We have booked our last two vacations through AAA Texas and were very happy. We received the AAA discount which I think was about 15% plus we got entrance to a special firework viewing area at the Magic Kingdom. It was great...there were only about 20 of us on an elevated platform next to the train station...we looked right down main street and it was amazing. we also got a story telling experience....they said this was an exclusive that could not be bought and it was at Epcot near Norway and there were again about 20 people. Belle came out and told a short version of beauty and the best and then Beast came out and they both did a meet and greet. since there were not very many people we spent about 5-6 minutes with the both, the kids loved it!! I think in our package we also got discounts for the spa, water sport rentals, kids activities and a Diamond Card which was to be used at other locations....we used it to get a discount at the Disney Store at downtown Disney...we also used it to get a discount at the Ghirardelli Ice Cream place. We did not drive but I know there was a special parking pass too that gave entrances into a special parking lot at the parks. Overall I was happy with my package and the extra perks, which our friends did not get seemed neat too.

 

[Praying Colonel]

We get it for the towing and auto service. We drive our cars until they die and we consider AAA just the cost of doing that. The travel planning and other savings we consider just a side benefit.

 

[manning]

Just about all hotel chains give aaa discount