You have every right to go insane.
In terms of pure least dollars out of your pocket in December, trading the old passes in does it, if you want park hopping and also the options (plus pack). If you are not interested in the options, trading up the old passes versus using as-is is a close call and a miniscule dollar savings compared with not possessing old passes. I guess your old passes have $125. of trade up value, or 3/7'th of $296. gate price at time of purchase.
<small>
All of the best deals involve future vacations as well as this one. It's the same theme, "the more you play the less you pay".
If you trade the tickets up to MYW, you lose their plusses (options) and in addition you must purchase non-expiration at $59. for 7 day pass (and hopping at $37 and new plusses at $48) on the new MYW passes. Total price $356. less $125. trade value equals $231 out of pocket per person.
If you use the tickets as-is you do get three whole park days from each of them. But you save only fifteen dollars by buying the 4 day MYW for the rest of your vacation compared with a 7 day expiring MYW for all cash for the whole vacation. Four/Seven day pass all cash at $197./212. with hopping for $37./37. equals $234./249. out of pocket. Add $48./48. for options.
(You would save $48. per person if the old passes made it possible to not buy the plus pack that you want for your MYW's, except that the old passes do not admit you to Disney Quest. You would save yet another $37. per person if you want hopping but could get by without it on four days, using the old pass for the other three.)
Another non-Disney Quest budget saving plan for water park lovers: Spend one day only at water parks and/or Pleasure Island. One person uses the two old passes. Everyone else gets six day MYW passes. If just one option such as Typhoon Lagoon altogether, buy separate admissions instead of the Plus Pack.
Best use, save the passes for a three day vacation in the future and avoid buying a 3 day pass for $182. and hopping for $37. more. But you can use the plusses now. Want to buy ten day non-expiring passes for this vacation and the next? This way it does not make any difference when you use the old passes and also you get more options for the same $48. plus pack (if desired) compared with the 4 day pass.
</small>
Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/dispass.htm
<small>"I've got every reason on earth to be mad. 'Cause I just lost the only girl I had" sung by The Beatles</small>
