Sorcerer's Pass questions

[ClaraOswald]

We are debating if we should alter our future plans and get a Sorcerer's pass.

We plan to go to WDW for 7 nights in January 2027 and January 2028. We like to go after MLK day. Arrive on a Saturday and leave on a Saturday. (Or Sunday to Sunday, if flights are better.) The plan is to buy 6-day hoppers for both trips.

I did the math and I think we'd save a few hundred dollars if we try to plan the two trips within the same 12 month period. So maybe do January 30th - February 6th, 2027 (would need to double check our points since Feb is more.) And then January 22nd - January 29th, 2028.

So here are my questions about the pass. I read about it but I'm still a bit unclear on a few things.

Would we have to wait and purchase it the day we arrive (theoretically, January 30th)?
Is it hard to get reservations the morning of or night before? We often don't know which park we want to go to until the night before.)

 

[ClaraOswald]

Also....is this too risky? Because if we would need to cancel our 2028 trip due to illness or anything else...then we would have wasted roughly $1400 or so by only taking 1 trip with those annual passes.

 

[CarolynFH]

We are debating if we should alter our future plans and get a Sorcerer's pass.

We plan to go to WDW for 7 nights in January 2027 and January 2028. We like to go after MLK day. Arrive on a Saturday and leave on a Saturday. (Or Sunday to Sunday, if flights are better.) The plan is to buy 6-day hoppers for both trips.

I did the math and I think we'd save a few hundred dollars if we try to plan the two trips within the same 12 month period. So maybe do January 30th - February 6th, 2027 (would need to double check our points since Feb is more.) And then January 22nd - January 29th, 2028.

So here are my questions about the pass. I read about it but I'm still a bit unclear on a few things.

Would we have to wait and purchase it the day we arrive (theoretically, January 30th)?

No, you could buy them anytime within a year of the first day you plan to use them. They don’t become active and start their year ticking until the first time you use them to enter a park.

Is it hard to get reservations the morning of or night before? We often don't know which park we want to go to until the night before.)

Well, we’re here now, and this morning I canceled the reservation for DHS I had made weeks ago because we decided to do something else. Later this afternoon we decided to visit MK, so I made a reservation then.

It’s rare for reservations to sell out, usually only at the most crowded times e.g. Christmas to New Year’s week.

 

[CarolynFH]

Also....is this too risky? Because if we would need to cancel our 2028 trip due to illness or anything else...then we would have wasted roughly $1400 or so by only taking 1 trip with those annual passes.

Unfortunately only you can say how much risk you’re willing to take on. If you never activate them, the amount you paid for each ticket turns into a credit that can be applied to the purchase of another ticket of equal or greater value. But if you use them for one trip and not the second, then yes, you’ve lost some value.

 

[Genie+]

Also....is this too risky? Because if we would need to cancel our 2028 trip due to illness or anything else...then we would have wasted roughly $1400 or so by only taking 1 trip with those annual passes.

I think it comes down to how high that risk is for you.

From my own perspective, if we had the same dates planned as you, it would be a slim chance of maybe 5 or 10% that something would stop us from taking the second trip. I’d likely make our back up plan for that: renew the AP and reschedule trip #2, then also plan to late Jan again before 24 months runs out. Taking 3 trips would likely come near breaking even on an AP plus one renewal.

But if our risks of cancelling were much higher, then doubling down could end up making things worse. I’m pretty confident we’d at least manage 3 trips over 24 months if that was what it took to salvage only getting one trip done on the first AP.

Consider your risks, then think of some feasible back-up plans and how likely you are to pull them off.

 

[muppets3d]

There are sometimes random days where a particular park's reservations are sold out. It is rare these days but it does happen. For example the website shows that EPCOT's reservations were sold out today.

 

[ClaraOswald]

I think it comes down to how high that risk is for you.

From my own perspective, if we had the same dates planned as you, it would be a slim chance of maybe 5 or 10% that something would stop us from taking the second trip. I’d likely make our back up plan for that: renew the AP and reschedule trip #2, then also plan to late Jan again before 24 months runs out. Taking 3 trips would likely come near breaking even on an AP plus one renewal.

But if our risks of cancelling were much higher, then doubling down could end up making things worse. I’m pretty confident we’d at least manage 3 trips over 24 months if that was what it took to salvage only getting one trip done on the first AP.

Consider your risks, then think of some feasible back-up plans and how likely you are to pull them off.

How do you figure that 3 trips would break even on buying an AP and renewing it once? I figured one would need at least 2 trips per year for it to make sense.

The main reason we would ever really need to cancel would be if any of us are too sick to travel. Or if a family member dies or is super sick/near death. As my parents age, that second one gets scarier for me.

 

[ClaraOswald]

I should add we're really only willing to go to WDW in January/February. December...maybe. But not as likely.

 

[Genie+]

How do you figure that 3 trips would break even on buying an AP and renewing it once?

We always buy hoppers and cover every possible day of our trip with multiday tickets. For example, 5 nights we always get 6 day hopper. Most trips we’re buying somewhere between a 6-8 day hopper. For our April trip Sat-Sat, the 8 day hopper is $900 thru the cheapest 3rd party option, and $1,000 thru WDW site. 6 days isn’t much better - it would be $870 at cheapest and $950 thru WDW.

(All ticket prices include tax)

Sorcerer is $1,170 after tax, and the renewal $990. The combined cost is expensive - $2,160. But for 3 trips we’re definitely spending more than that on tickets. Even 5 day hoppers are $800+, which would cost $2,400 vs $2,160 for two APs.

5 days non-hoppper for our next trip = $745. 4 day non-hopper would be $670. And those are the best discounted prices currently. Multiplied by 3, $2,235 and $2,010 respectively. Extremely unlikely all 3 of our trips would only be 3 nights each.

No matter how we slice it or dice it here’s pretty much no way we could do 3 trips finding cheaper ticket prices than Sorcerer, buying one full price then renewing with discount (I believe that’s 15% off). The APs would likely save a few hundred dollars for each of us as long as we did 3 trips over 24 months.

 

[CarolynFH]

The APs would likely save a few hundred dollars for each of us as long as we did 3 trips over 24 month

I like the concept of comparing the cost of tickets for 3 trips in 24 months to the cost of new AP + renewal. Another way to look at it!

 

[ClaraOswald]

If we had to cancel one of the trips, I'm not sure we'd be able to fit 3 in. So I guess I'll have to decide if it's worth the risk or not.

I also need to see what the Disneyland AP situation is like. Having to reschedule for illness or something there would be easier in the sense that we don't mind traveling to CA pretty much any month. BUT...getting a room within 7 months is too hard.

 

[ClaraOswald]

We would likely do a 6-day hopper for each WDW trip.
After tax for 3 people (just searched February to get prices) = $2772
$2772 x 2 trips = $5544

Sorcerer Pass = $1170 x three = $3510

So I was totally wrong about my "savings" from the first post (I think I was looking at their 2-days free promotion for this summer.)

We would actually save $2034?! Is that correct?

And if we had to cancel and only used the pass for 1 trip, we would have wasted $738.
Hmm....so maybe that IS worth the risk.

 

[Add-On-Itis]

7 day hopper for my next trip is Subtotal$978.51USD

Sorcerer pass is $1170


$192 for any additional trip for the rest of the year.

 

[ClaraOswald]

I assume when you renew, it picks up right away and you can't push it a week before activating the renewal? So each trip would have to be at least a week earlier each year, essentially. We have such a tiny window of time we like to travel so that's what makes me question it.

 

[Add-On-Itis]

I assume when you renew, it picks up right away and you can't push it a week before activating the renewal? So each trip would have to be at least a week earlier each year, essentially. We have such a tiny window of time we like to travel so that's what makes me question it.

renewal. yes. continue where you left off. i believe if it’s 2 months between trip then just buy a new pass

 

[airjay75]

Will also just note on the theme park reservations - other than MK on weekends, you can enter any park after 2 pm without a park reservation.

If I were in your shoes, @ClaraOswald, with 2 1-week trips planned within one 365 day period, one at the beginning of that period and one at the end, and I was certain I wasn't going to schedule another trip, I'd probably skip the Sorcerer's Pass. Sure, if both of those trips end up happening, you will save some money, but they are far enough away from each other with so many things that might make that second trip not happen (or be delayed), that I don't personally think it would be worth the gamble.