New AP ordered online - no voucher?

[GXIncognto]

It's not activated upon the first entry into a park. it can only be activated at Guest Services or a ticket window. You get the physical AP card at that time.

Steve

I got an email with a barcode that I printed.

The first trip after you purchase the AP, before you go to the park the first time, you go to a ticket counter or guest services and pick up your AP card. You'll need your ID, just tell them you are there to get your AP that you've already purchased online. I may have needed my credit card I used, I can't remember now for certain if I did or not. Since it's possible to purchase with gift cards, probably not required.
It's just like a ticket, but it says AP on it instead. This is used instead of a MB, for those that don't have a MB yet. Think locals who aren't staying on site. If you have a MB, you don't have to use the AP. You can, you just don't have to. You do need to show the AP to get discounts for purchasing or dining, just not to get in to the park.

Thanks everybody for your responses, I had thought that's how it worked but got confused about how it would happen without the physical voucher. That clears it up.

 

[iluveeyore]

Just looking for clarity - so if we are residents and ordered an AP, can we take any active MB to Guest Services, and the AP will be on that MB? Or if we plan a trip before we activate the AP and order MB for that reservation, can the AP be added to that MB once activated at Guest Services? Would just like to not have multiple MB on one trip (like if one is an AP band and one is a resort band). Is that clear as mud??

 

[AngiTN]

Just looking for clarity - so if we are residents and ordered an AP, can we take any active MB to Guest Services, and the AP will be on that MB? Or if we plan a trip before we activate the AP and order MB for that reservation, can the AP be added to that MB once activated at Guest Services? Would just like to not have multiple MB on one trip (like if one is an AP band and one is a resort band). Is that clear as mud??

MB have no memory of any sort. They HOLD nothing
They are nothing more than a key for the Mickey readers to access the data held in your MDE account
Think of a debit card and how they read your bank account.
Debit cards don't hold any your bank info, only the key for the machine to read what is in your bank.
MB is a debit card, MDE is your bank account.
So, if you have an AP on your MDE account, any MB you have will access the AP

 

[iluveeyore]

Okay, thanks - knew I wasn't being clear lol - yes I have an MDE account and am aware that's where everything is 'held' - I just didn't know if we activate our AP at Guest Services if they had to physically do something with our existing MB or if I had to get a new MB, but I understand how that works now, that the AP will just be on our MDE once we physically activate the AP in person. Good to know we can mix and match all our different colors we already have in the MB whenever we use our AP for the year.

 

[doggydoc]

First time AP purchaser here as well. We have a trip planned in Sept, staying offsite. Since we won't be able to get to guest services until the first day of our trip does that mean we will not have magic bands for that trip?

 

[Fangorn]

First time AP purchaser here as well. We have a trip planned in Sept, staying offsite. Since we won't be able to get to guest services until the first day of our trip does that mean we will not have magic bands for that trip?

You won't have magic bands for that trip regardless, if you're expecting to use the ones that you get with the AP. You don't get them at WDW. The ability to customize them and have them shipped to your house only appears in your MDE after the APs have been activated. If you did that immediately, you'll have them at your house in a couple of weeks.

Of you want one for that first AP trip, you'll have to buy one there. Or use a band from a previous trip if you have one.

Steve

 

[doggydoc]

You won't have magic bands for that trip regardless, if you're expecting to use the ones that you get with the AP. You don't get them at WDW. The ability to customize them and have them shipped to your house only appears in your MDE after the APs have been activated. If you did that immediately, you'll have them at your house in a couple of weeks.

Of you want one for that first AP trip, you'll have to buy one there. Or use a band from a previous trip if you have one.

Steve

Well that is a drag! I was hoping to get ride photos on 7DMT of DW and I. We have bands however mine is about 4 yo now so I doubt it will work. DW has one that is only 2 yo old so maybe it will work.

Is there absolutely no way to get ride photos on 7DMT without a band?

 

[AngiTN]

Well that is a drag! I was hoping to get ride photos on 7DMT of DW and I. We have bands however mine is about 4 yo now so I doubt it will work. DW has one that is only 2 yo old so maybe it will work.

Is there absolutely no way to get ride photos on 7DMT without a band?

Correct. There is no touchpoint at the end of the ride. It can only be added via a MB. a 2 yo MB will work.

 

[ucfknight]

Correct. There is no touchpoint at the end of the ride. It can only be added via a MB. a 2 yo MB will work.

A 2 year old MB is very likely to work, but it isn't guaranteed. It all depends on if the battery in the long range radio is drained or not. And there is no way to test it beforehand. Especially if the band was stored in hot conditions the battery might be kaput.

 

[AngiTN]

I'll rephrase. All of my 2+ yo MB work for ride photos. I store them inside.

 

[doggydoc]

I'll rephrase. All of my 2+ yo MB work for ride photos. I store them inside.

It has been stored inside, hopefully it will still work. I am having difficulty in understanding the logic behind requiring the magic bands to be ordered after activation of the AP. Obviously many AP's are sold to non residents, the policy basically guarantees you must take at least one trip without bands. I wonder if it is related to the crackdown on fastpasses using extra media.

 

[Robo]

I wonder if it is related to the crackdown on fastpasses using extra media.

Nope.

 

[doggydoc]

Nope.

The epitome of laconic posting as always Robo.

 

[AngiTN]

It has been stored inside, hopefully it will still work. I am having difficulty in understanding the logic behind requiring the magic bands to be ordered after activation of the AP. Obviously many AP's are sold to non residents, the policy basically guarantees you must take at least one trip without bands. I wonder if it is related to the crackdown on fastpasses using extra media.

No, they have always issued the AP MB after the AP is activated. No idea why, just the way the system works.
The AP itself does everything a MB does except get ride photos
Until this past year you didn't get ride photos with an AP, you had to purchase them so I suspect it hasn't been much of an issue

 

[Suz333]

My recent experience differs from what is being reported in this thread.

Our previous AP's expired in early May. We bought vouchers for new ones over the phone about two weeks ago. 7 days ago we added the confirmation number to MDE, and customized magic bands for our new AP's and for a trip in November, and said "yes" to having the AP ones ship out.

We received the magic bands in today's mail and the AP sliders were in the box.

It might be possible that we didn't order the magic bands that we were eligible to get with our last AP's but it seems unlikely that we would still be eligible to get magic bands for THAT purchase over 2 months after those AP's expired.

So, I'm thinking that we got our magic bands for our un-activated passes.

 

[Robo]

My recent experience differs from what is being reported in this thread.

Our previous AP's expired in early May. We bought vouchers for new ones over the phone about two weeks ago. 7 days ago we added the confirmation number to MDE, and customized magic bands for our new AP's and for a trip in November, and said "yes" to having the AP ones ship out.

We received the magic bands in today's mail and the AP sliders were in the box.

It might be possible that we didn't order the magic bands that we were eligible to get with our last AP's but it seems unlikely that we would still be eligible to get magic bands for THAT purchase over 2 months after those AP's expired.

So, I'm thinking that we got our magic bands for our un-activated passes.

Yup.
There have been a few posts from DISers who had this happen, but others have had the "normal" expected AP MB timing.
Doesn't seem to be a new pattern.

 

[ucfknight]

I am having difficulty in understanding the logic behind requiring the magic bands to be ordered after activation of the AP. Obviously many AP's are sold to non residents, the policy basically guarantees you must take at least one trip without bands.

The vast majority of APs are sold to locals. And if you aren't local and are getting an AP, I guess Disney wants you to stay at one of their resorts so you'd get a new Magic Band before your trip that way.