Our pofq 10 night stay myw package with
free dining was less than room only and two Ap's by quite a bit.
I agree that there have been times when a package (including a mandatory ticket purchase) came in at less than a RO reservation at the time. When that happened during my travel dates, I booked the package. I figured the tickets were "free" since the overall cost of my trip was less than booking a RO deal, and I saved those for the invevitable times that someone without an AP wants to tag along with me on a trip.
To me, it's less about who gets the offer first, and more about keeping my vacation within my budget by booking whatever deal I can. I've seen so many posts this week complaining that the GP came out first and they were waiting for the AP rates . . . why were they waiting? If anyone sees a deal, they should pounce on it as soon as possible, especially if there are no cancellation or change penalties involved. There's nothing to stop an AP holder from booking any GP offer that's out there. When the GP rates for fall came out, I booked my trip. Then when the AP rates came out the next day, I rebooked and saved another $200. It took very little time to book or to switch. The packages I've booked were GP offers as well. There have been some years where I've had an AP for park admission, but none of my stays were booked with an AP discount because a bounceback, or resident, or GP deal was better - so I booked those instead. I never felt like my AP was a waste of money because I didn't get a room discount with it.
There's also been a lot of posts regarding how large the discounts are. Some have said that 5% is a slap in the face. Well, I remember back prior to 2008 when there were AP offers that were only for specific resort categories, or sometimes specific resorts (one summer, they had one for Epcot resorts ONLY). It's not something new. Granted, many of us have been spoiled by the large discounts over the past two or three years when the economy tanked and Disney was hurting. But they aren't hurting and they are just going back to what was more or less the norm. I can remember when 25% was pretty standard as far as resorts go and if I got anything better than that, I was thrilled. Do I wish I was getting 40% off my next stay? Sure. Am I glad I was able to get a discount at all? Yes - I wouldn't be going otherwise. I'll just have to stay flexible in regards to resort choice and room type when it comes to getting the best deals.
Everyone needs to remember that an AP is for discounted park admission - nothing more. If we do get anything more (room discounts, dining discounts, merchandise discounts) those are perks - and perks can be added or taken away at any time. Perks are not something you can count on as guaranteed, and should be enjoyed for what they are while you have them. The only thing that is guaranteed is your park admission (so long as the parks aren't at capacity).
Lately it seems the General Public Room-Only discounts are almost equal to the annual passholder room-only discounts. In years past the annual passholder room-only discounts were at least 10% higher than the general public discounts. I know the annual pass has other benefits, but the one that meant the most to me (room-only discount), and my wallet, seems to be gradually reducing each year. Any theories on why this passholder benefit is not so beneficial anymore?
