Non-Expiry Ticket Question

[elaine amj]

I hear ya. But still, they really are best for short visits. I ran the math and I can still buy other tickets at various discounts for less (when I'm doing long trips).

In 2013, I bought 10 day hoppers with WPF&M non expiring tickets for about $700 each. Based on what I paid, I valued the park admission at $45 per day and waterpark admission at $25 per day.

This year, I bought 10 day base tickets at a Canadian discount which was a screaming deal at $320 each - so the park admission can be valued at $32 per day. I'm going to miss the hoppers in the future, but I've survived with base tickets before and will be fine again. It was too good to pass up since 10 day base tix are now US$470. Even better because these tickets don't "expire" like the new tickets do so I can use it as price-hedging (plan to use them for a long trip 3-5 years or more from now).

Comparing the 2 tickets above, I wouldn't use my previous NE tickets for a longer trip as I can still get those types of tickets for a good price. In the case above, my 2017 ticket is still cheaper than my 2013 ticket. I know I'm comparing a base ticket to a hopper, but for my own purposes, I will use it if it is free/included but won't pay much extra for it so I am valuing it as $0. And thinking about it, even at full price ($47/day), it would still be best to buy new tickets for a long trip vs using my precious NE tickets.

For short trips, they are a huge no-brainer though.

2 day hopper = $137.50/day
3 day hopper = $123.90/day
4 day hopper = $113.16/day
5 day hopper = $94.79/day
6 day hopper = $82.54/day
7 day hopper = $73.79/day
8 day hopper = $65.90/day
9 day hopper = $59.76/day
10 day hopper =$54.85/day
(of course, these are non-discounted tickets direct from Disney)

 

[parkbr]

Its hard to predict so many years in advance what you want - especially when you are already faced with the crazy costs of buying a NE ticket. I had the waterparks in mind when I bought the tickets so that was a big deal to me.

Yeah. It was quite pricey and I am not a big fan of waterparks, so I decided not to get it.
But given CAD was so strong, I should have bought more... Ahhhhh!!!

 

[parkbr]

I think NE tickets are really worth the money when taking short trips.
I believe I paid something like $56 / person / day when I got those tickets. (and back then it was 1:1 USD:CAD!)
But this time, when we did 7day park-pass, it was significantly cheaper to get 7 day AND got free-dining.
I was going to get like four 10-NE passes next time we visit and activate them all and keep them somewhere for short trips. But when I found out that it's no longer available, I am aiming for FD offers.

 

[brownhaired_girl]

Not really shocking now that you see the crazy price increases they've had since they stopped them. Someone probably has the math, but ticket prices have probably gone up 20% or more since they stopped these in 2015.

When they were for sale when I bought them it was really only worth paying the "premium" cost of NE tickets if you went on several short trips of 3 days or less (which I have done).
But now, prices have gone up so much since 2014 that my 10-day Hopper NE tickets (that cost me $75/day/person) that it is cheaper to use those tickets instead of buying a regular 6-day (or less) Park Hopper. I am saving probably $50/person simply by using these tickets rather than buying a normal 2-day park hopper now.

I am sure (thanks to sites like this) a ton of people were catching on and just pre-buying many vacations in advance and protected themselves from the yearly price increases like I did. That probably encouraged them to get rid of it.

Imagine if I save my days until 2020 or beyond.

Next week will be my third trip using those tickets. It has made these frequent, short trips affordable. I expect I will be going on 4-5 vacations with the money I spent back in 2014. It really is a shame there isn't still an option for people who are willing to "pre-buy" a bunch of their tickets (similar to DVC, but for tickets, not just a resort).

Preventing people from "sheltering" themselves from price increases and the fact they have to keep the tickets "on the books" probably encouraged them to get rid of them.

I am still shocked MDE can't simply tell me how many days I have left on them though.

I think you can tell how many days are left by making fastpass choices. If you have 4 days left MDE won't let you make 5 days worth of fastpass.