Trying to convince DH to get APs

[smercerdiemont]

After this last trip, I am really pushing DH for annual passes, since we live in CA. Our trip was absolutely magical this past January even with being rained out one of the days. Anyone have any advice on how to convince him? Are the hotels on Harbor worth the money saved even without the MM hour and longer security lines? Has anyone recently stayed in one that they love? For reference, we stayed in the Disney Hotel which felt pretty far away walking distance in the mornings after being in the parks from open to close the day before, but felt worth it when we were able to ride so many rides before the park even opened. I am trying to tell him we could do two trips with how much we spent staying at the Disney Hotel and if we purchased APs.
Also I haven't posted a trip report because it is so late after the fact. Would anyone still be interested?

 

[Steve Dixon]

Is it just you and DH? Kids?

 

[agamble]

I used to feel the Deluxe APs were a great value for families who visit annually. I feel the value has decreased as the cost is no longer in line with buying two sets of 3 day hoppers. And the block out calendar for this summer is atrocious.

The Harbor Hotels are nice and close. They vary in quality and quantity, but are all serviceable. Many of them are closer than the Disney hotels, and certainly cheaper. If your husband is like my father and picky about hotels he may not be a fan of some of the less expensive Harbor hotels. If he's less picky, as my husband is, the hotels are worth the money saved.

You will forfeit your EMH if you go with an AP and Harbor hotel. This is not the end of the world though. You just have to change your touring style. It could also mean an extra hour of sleep.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

For APs, it really is important to do the math. How many trips (minimum) would you make in one year? For how many days (minimum)? How many trips would you need to take to make your pass pay off? When would you visit? Would you be able to plan your trips around the blockout dates or need passes without any blackout dates? What about parking? Need or not? When factoring in discounts on food and merchandise, remember that passholders often say that we spend more in the parks with the discount than we would without it -- which isn't exactly saving money! It sounds like a lot of work, but when you see the cash numbers in black & white in front of you, it can be much easier to make the decision whether an AP is a better deal than tickets. There is no absolutely right or wrong answer -- only what's right for you and your DH at this time.

 

[smercerdiemont]

Is it just you and DH? Kids?

It would be my DH and I, two kids that are considered adult pricing, and one kid that will be child pricing for another 5 years.

I was hoping to go in September, November, and December for this year. I am totally fine not visiting this coming summer, but do want to go again in February and possibly in March or April and maybe depending on how annual passes work, going again the following fall for the same months as before. I plan on being in the parks for at least 3-5 days for each visit.
Do annual passes start the day you purchase them and then are good for a full year from the purchase date?
Yes, my DH is somewhat a picky hotel person, lol. We have only stayed in Disney hotels.
As for parking, we paid only for the hotel parking and never used the actual park parking lots.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

It would be my DH and I, two kids that are considered adult pricing, and one kid that will be child pricing for another 5 years.

I was hoping to go in September, November, and December for this year. I am totally fine not visiting this coming summer, but do want to go again in February and possibly in March or April and maybe depending on how annual passes work, going again the following fall for the same months as before. I plan on being in the parks for at least 3-5 days for each visit.
Do annual passes start the day you purchase them and then are good for a full year from the purchase date?
Yes, my DH is somewhat a picky hotel person, lol. We have only stayed in Disney hotels.
As for parking, we paid only for the hotel parking and never used the actual park parking lots.

- APs are one price for adults and children, so each member of your family would pay the same price vs. tickets which have adult and child prices. That's a price difference to consider.
- Count up the dates you think you would most likely be at DLR and leave out the maybes. Check to make sure that your dates are not blocked out by the pass level you want. Then divide the price of the AP you want by the number of days you would visit. Is the resulting price per day lower than you can get with tickets? (Keep promotional tickets in mind, too -- e.g. Dapper Day.)
- APs start the day you activate them and are good for one year from that date.
- This could be a deal breaker if your husband won't want to stay in any of the hotels off site. Staying on site only, even with the AP rates when offered, could negate any other savings you could get with a pass.
- If you won't need the parking, then that makes your decision easier and more flexible.

You might want to plan a trip for just your husband and yourself, choosing a hotel on Harbor. If you could get away soon, you could use the current promotional tickets that expire on May 23rd (have to be purchased by 5/20). See how you both like staying on Harbor and walking to the parks. Would you enjoy staying off site most visits? Half the time? None of the time? Can't know until you try! If you decide on that visit that APs are the way to go, then you could upgrade your tickets before the end of your last day. (So have the math done before that trip to make your decision easier.)

And go ahead and post your trip report in the DLR Trip Report forum -- it can help a lot of people planning their trips!

 

[VandVsmama]

It definitely won't be cheaper to get AP if you still stay at on site hotels. So on the one hand, it depends on how picky your DH is about hotels. There are pros and cons about on site vs off site at DL...

• except for the new Marriott on Harbor Blvd (which costs almost the same as Paradise Pier Hotel), off site hotels are definitely less expensive
• if you stay at a hotel along Harbor Blvd, it's a shorter walk than from the DLH. Hojo's takes us about 8 min. From the DLH, it usually takes 10-15 min. But Hojo's (at least 2 summers ago) has free parking until 3 pm on check out day, whereas at DLH you have to pay daily to park. I think it's $25/day now?
• When SWGE opens, staying on site will definitely have an advantage because you'll be able to get EMH every morning into a park. But if you're usually not rope droppers, then this wouldn't be a factor.
• You can still enjoy all of the restaurants at the on site hotels and not stay there. You just won't be able to charge the bill for those meals to your room.
• There's a couple of hotels on Harbor Blvd right next the crosswalk that end up being closer to the DL main entrance than the GCH (DL, that is, not DCA).
• spending less on hotel means you have more $$ in your trip budget for other add-ons. Like a dining package, or the WOC dessert party, or a fancy meal at Napa Rose. Or character meals.
• Most of the hotels on Harbor Blvd have both microwave & fridge in the room. Exception to this is the cheapest rooms at Hojo, which only have a fridge. The other rooms at Hojo do have a microwave.
• Some of the hotels on Harbor Blvd include free breakfast as well. So that can save you $$ every morning. For a family of 5, that adds up.

You should do the math on a couple of different combinations of possible options in order to compare whether or not getting APs would be less expensive for you. For example, do the math on:

1. no APs & stay on site every trip
2. APs for all 5 of you & stay on site every trip
3. APs for all 5 of you & stay off site every trip
4. APs for 4 of you, purchase reg ticket each time for your kiddo who qualifies still as a child ticket, & stay on site
5. APs for 4 of you, purchase reg ticket each time for kiddo who qualifies still as a child ticket, & stay off site

You know your DH much better than we do of course! So the 2 of you would also need to figure out what is a "must have" and what is a "nice to have." Don't stay at an off site hotel & expect it to be like an on site hotel experience. So, for example, most of the Harbor Blvd hotels don't have room service as an option. The pools won't be as nice (although Hojo's are pretty nice) & you won't be able to rent a cabana or have drinks served to you pool side.

 

[dcraythorn]

I would look at the AP's. We were not going to do them this year, but decided we just had to. We bought the Signature plus since there are no black out dates and MaxPass was included. I don't want to do the parks if we don't have it and then pay for it extra everyday. Lines are going to be long this year (my opinion). Plus some of the hotels give an AP discount also. So check that also.

 

[smercerdiemont]

Thank you all so much for the replies!! At first I started to plan those three visits for this year and just started kicking myself for not turning our tickets into APs when we were just there in Jan.. SO bummed, especially since we paid $375 for Maxpass for all 5 days we were in the park, and could have paid $500 total for a year for everyone. Hindsight darn it.

 

[ddwlms]

You also get 10% off most food and store purchases with the deluxe pass

 

[gottalovepluto]

TBH if he’s not too keen on it might better to nudge him into it next year when the OMG SWL!!!!!!!! crowds have slowed.

 

[l4dyj8]

Always factor how many visits. It’s been worth it to us because we know exactly when we visit and how many weekend stays we will do.

Hotel discounts aren’t really as great as they used to be. And it’s really the same as the regular seasonal discounts. But the AP perk they throw in is a $20 dining voucher and fast passes. But that’s it.

They haven’t done any AP sneak peek events recently. And when they did, it was a weekday.

 

[emmybee]

I live in the SF Bay area, and this is the first, and likely only year we have the APs. No blackouts, free parking, MP included. In many ways, I know it will turn out to be way more expensive than the usual non-AP year because I now have a cheap excuse to go just about every month! Hotels aren't cheap, and my family Refuses to stay anywhere off-brand. We still eat our meals at the parks, and buy the souvies we like when we see them. Why not? There's a discount! If you have discipline, perhaps you'll come out ahead. But if you justify your spending by thinking it'll pump up your kid's Disney stock like I do, then you are doomed.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Always factor how many visits. It’s been worth it to us because we know exactly when we visit and how many weekend stays we will do...

And be as realistic as you can about this when doing the math. Remember that Disney does not prorate or refund with APs, so if life happens, as it so often does, you will have APs that will sit unused. Right now, we have friends who bought passes, planned to use them numerous times, and have yet to use them once (!) -- kids got sick, jobs got busy, car break down used up the trip budget, etc. -- and their year will be up in a few months.