Is Aaa Worth The Membership?

[IMALOVNDISNEY]

My husband and I have been pondering the idea of getting a AAA membership . But, is it worth it? I have always booked our trips myself. As for Disney, I book the flights through the Airlines and my room and tickets w/Disney. I always thought it was cheaper to do it this way. Now we're rethinking that . Thinking that not only can we apply the AAA to Disney, but, other vendors as well.

Can anyone that has this membership give some insite on the savings. Is it worth it or not.

Thanks for any help.

Liz

 

[aka-mad4themouse]

These are some of the benefits that I've taken advantage of this year:

Target.com - 10% savings when shopping thru their portal

Payless Shoes - show your card and save 10%

AMC movie tickets - pack of 10 for $60 (Loew's and Regal 10 for $65)

AMTRAK - 10% off lowest booking rate

giftcards - 5% off the face value (includes Hard Rock, Olive Garden, Sears, Linens 'n Things, KB Toys, and more)

Cingular Wireless - 5% off your monthly plan

Theme Parks - discount tickets to various theme parks (Universal, Disney, Six Flags, Busch Gardens, Sesame Place, etc.)

Specially-negotiated room rates at all major hotel chains and many individually-owned hotels.

Safe Driver's Education course for new drivers.

Roadside Assistance.

Trip Tiks with current construction and detours included (something Mapquest is extremely poor at doing).

For me, this year's big savings is our upcoming DLR visit. I was able to book two rooms at the Anaheim Marriott for 6 nights. Each room includes breakfast for 2, free parking and 2 adult 3-day DL hopper passes. Total cost was under $1K. The tickets are valued at almost $600 alone. The rooms normally book for $200/night. My savings for this trip alone would be in the range of $2000.

 

[taekwondo mom]

I really like AAA not only Disney .. by the way saving around $400 on our trip in Dec.. also other discount tickets , room discounts.. and roadside service..

So I say Yes ..worth it

 

[3PRINCESSMOM]

AAA is such a great membership.

First of all, the roadside assistance can not be beat. It is not just towing, but tire change and battery jump, too. It is one of those things, you hope to never have to use it, but you feel safe knowing you have it.

Hotel discounts are usually pretty good. However, you can get discounts on SO much more. I just used mine last week at D'Angelo's for my sandwich order. My dad gets a better discount on his eyeglasses with AAA than his insurance plan. Lots and lots of retailers offer AAA discounts! Also, discounted tickets to area attractions like, for us, 6 Flags and Water Country are sold at AAA offices or online; special events at local arena's (circus, concerts) and movie passes.

As you can see, I could go on and on. Check out their website.

AAA is definitely worth it, and not just for travel. Membership certificates make great gifts, too.

 

[disneysteve]

I would never be without AAA. I've had it since I got my license 25 years ago. They've changed many a flat tire for me and DW, jump started us a few times, towed us on several occasions.

Of course, there are also lots of discounts. Whenever I book a hotel room anywhere, I always check for an AAA discount and there almost always is one. I just booked a weekend trip to Lancaster, PA a few days ago and saved about $10/nite on the room with AAA.

I always get maps, tour books and trip tiks from them when we are traveling. Those alone are worth the annual fee.

They also offer discounts on museums, zoos, theaters, and more.

Honestly, I'm not sure why anyone wouldn't want an AAA membership .

 

[DisneyGirl4188]

I bought AAA for the Disney discounts (plus, they do have other discounts elsewhere).

If you want the dining package, the only way to get a discount of the room portion is to go through AAA.

We drive down, so having AAA is nice in case something happens. Plus, you get a preferred parking card and a discount at store(s) in DTD. I don't know the specifics, as I haven't used it yet.

Some AAA offices charge a fee to book packages, but I did mine online and wasn't charged a fee.

 

[Claroquesi]

I leave my lights on at least twice a year, have had flat tires, locked my keys in the car. AAA pays for itself.

The only thing I love more than car assistance is teh 10% off at Payless, I love me some cheap shoes!

 

[reeeoga]

Poorly writen examples for me to follow:

I purchased car insurance through AAA. Savings from the next lowest price: $423. I have to have a very high insurance coverage for work .

Cost of upcoming trip to Disney through disney would be $65 more than AAA. Cost of AAA membership: $60.

Hotel cost to and from Disney: Rack rate: $110, AAA rate: $85. Total savings: $75 for 3 nights.

June 16,2006 (about 9:45 AM). A person decided they wanted to meet me. They pulled their truck out in front of me and I could not stop. Nobody hurt. AAA paid for tow truck. Totaled my car, and are paying all but $220 of the cost of my former car.

New car coverage is $60 less than old car coverage per year (anti-lock breaks on new car).

Total saving for this year with these examples: $623. This assumes $60 for a tow truck, and includes price of membership.

 

[mommyrom]

We feel our membership is worth it to us, as we save more than the annual fee in savings between hotel stays and eyeglasses at LensCrafters!

 

[My2Cinderellas]

I too have AAA and have had it for years. Some years I get my $$ back, some years I don't, but the peace of mind of having the roadside assistance is worth it to me.

This year:

1. booked MYW with dining through AAA, saved $140 over booking through Disney

2. booked Amtrak tickets to Chicago, saved 10% or $22

3. booked hotel in Chicago through AAA website, got the Palmer House for $125 plus tax. best rate through Hilton's website for this was around $170.

4. ordered tour books and maps for Chicago.

5. have booked rooms with AAA discount a couple other times - you can often match the rate on the hotel's website, but they want it prepaid. Same rate with AAA has a 4pm same day or 24 hr cancellation.

 

[Luv'sTink]

It is only not worth it if you don't use it to its full potential. However, when you need assistance it is worth more than you will ever know.

 

[Mad4Dizne]

I don't think I've ever used AAA discounts for Disney trips; but we have used card for 10% off at Universal eateries; many, many trip-ticks/tour books, other trip hotel discounts; no fee travelers checks!!! and of course the road service--never would be without it!!!

 

[dkostel]

I just went over to aaa.com to check on some of the discounts that I was unaware of. I started playing with the online triptik & it is awesome!! It blows mapquest out of the water. In less than 5 minutes I was able to map my entire Disney trip (MCO to OKW, OKW to DIscovery cove, stops at grocery store, etc..) and the only address I had to enter manually was Publix. They had all the Disney hotels in a dropdown box. Fantastic, this alone will prompt me to renew.

 

[msmayor]

Our AAA membership was priceless on our trip last August.

Driving home to NJ, we blew a tire on I-95 in SC at 7:30 on the Saturday of Labor Day Weekend. The SC Police Officer who stopped within 5 minutes of us pulling over offered to place the call for us, and 10 minutes later a truck showed up with 2 mechanics to change our tire. It was a difficult change for the average driver to do, as the flat was on the passenger side and the grass was very high. If my husband had to try and change it, the car would have to be fully on the shoulder, dangerously close to the active driving lane, in order to use the jack.

This guy had a power jack he could use even with the car on an angle in the grass; the kids didn't even have to get out of the car. Within 15 minutes, we were safely on our way without even so much as a signature on a piece of paper. (We did, however, tip the mechanic a $20 for being SO fast and it being the middle of a holiday).

That service call would have easily been $150+ out of pocket.

 

[4greatboys]

I think its worth it! I finally got AAA for the first time in May. One month later my car stopped in the middle of the road (my fuel pump had broke). I was so glad I had it. It would have been quite a bit to pay for the towing ourselves. I have also used the to to get a discount on some rooms at disney.
Im really glad I got it and I plan on keeping it.

 

[juligrl]

For me it was worth it when I was driving a 13 year old Dodge Omni with 250,000 miles on it! Actually, the discounts on travel are okay too. We booked our January Disney trip through AAA and were pleased with the cost. I do understand your hesitance though. It's something we re-evaluate every year. We'll likely renew again next year since my Plymouth Neon is now 7 and over 100,000 miles!

 

[nbodyhome]

For me, it is worth it just for the roadside assistance. For that, it's cheap insurance. We used it twice last year - one to get pulled from the median in a freak NC snowstorm (there were a lot of people who skidded off) and the other to change a flat tire near midnight. I feel much more protected having it.

If you can use it for other discounts - which I sometimes do, then that is just the icing on the cake.

 

[Skatermom23]

I guess I will be the first to post that I am not sure if it is worth it or not??? The only reason I keep it is because DH travels a lot and I worry about getting a flat tire. I figure if I have it, then they can change it for me. So far, I have been able to beat every available discount AAA offers through some other venue. This includes, Theme parks, hotels, car rentals, etc.

 

[sm4987]

I think that it is worth it. I did it because they had a fab. deal for Disneyland's 50th, and I went ahead and renewed our membership. I like it and I can use it for so much more than just Disney

 

[My2Cinderellas]

forgot to add to my list - used the 10% off card (that came with our MYW package since we booked through AAA) at World of Disney at Downtown Disney. We looked at merchandise in the parks and made a list of what we wanted. A few things they didn't have or were out of the size we needed, so bought those the next time we saw them. But the 10% saved us $20 or so.

I forget to use it at places locally but am really good about using it when we travel.