Upgrading a park hopper to an AP?

[goofy4tink]

I've already bought a 4 day hopper...cost was $289. I'm going again in May, for 4 days. Does it make sense to try to upgrade my existing pass to an AP when I get there in Nov? And is that even doable?

 

[Aladora]

I've already bought a 4 day hopper...cost was $289. I'm going again in May, for 4 days. Does it make sense to try to upgrade my existing pass to an AP when I get there in Nov? And is that even doable?

You can upgrade when you are there in November. As for whether or not it makes sense, it all comes down to math.

What is the total cost of the AP?
What is the total cost of the park hoppers you would buy if you did not have the AP?

After you figure that out, if the AP is still more, figure out how much you would have to spend on food and merchandise to make it worthwhile.

For example:

Deluxe AP: $549
4 day PH X 2: $578

In this case, the AP would save you money even before the discounts.

Premium AP: $779
4 day PH X 2: $578

AP would cost you $201 more so you would have to spend approximately $1350 in food to break even. (15% discount on $1350 is $202.50)

 

[maltdizzy]

Yes...doable. Check the blackout calender for both months and make sure you aren't going to be shutout for a day you were expecting to be in the park.

You can upgrade to the AP anytime before your hopper expires. You can upgrade on a blackout date but don't don't upgrade before a blackout date on that first trip.

 

[goofy4tink]

Thanks! I did check....no black-out dates during my stays. Looks like it will save me a little bit.

 

[maltdizzy]

How long are you going to be at WDW over the same year?...there is always the Premiere ($1099) AP that works at both resorts.

 

[SplashMountainRules]

IF you buy your hopper passes at a discount do they count as the full cost towards the AP or only what you paid for them? i.e. I'm thinking of getting 5 day hoppers passes through LMT for $279. So if I wanted to upgrade to an AP will I get the gate price of $315 applied towards an AP or will Disney know what I paid for them with LMT?

 

[maltdizzy]

IF you buy your hopper passes at a discount do they count as the full cost towards the AP or only what you paid for them? i.e. I'm thinking of getting 5 day hoppers passes through LMT for $279. So if I wanted to upgrade to an AP will I get the gate price of $315 applied towards an AP or will Disney know what I paid for them with LMT?

Only what you paid for them...you have to pay the difference toward the AP.

Disney sells those ticket sin bulk to be res-old as student tickets, corporate tickets, group tickets, etc. They know what they are selling for.

 

[SplashMountainRules]

Thank you. So there is really no advantage to get park hoppers from anyone else but Disney if you are planning on upgrading them to AP's correct?

 

[goofy4tink]

I bought my passes directly from Disney Did they raise prices since early spring? I paid $289.
I'll be in WDW in Dec and Feb....already have a WDW AP. That expires in May.

 

[agamble]

Since you have no blockout dates, make sure you upgrade on your first day. Just go to the ticket booths in the middle of the day after you've beaten the crowds. You get a discount of 10% with a Deluxe AP on most food and merchandise. It adds up with the food as 10% pays for your taxes plus a little more.

 

[goofy4tink]

Thanks!

 

[maltdizzy]

I bought my passes directly from Disney Did they raise prices since early spring? I paid $289.
I'll be in WDW in Dec and Feb....already have a WDW AP. That expires in May.

So Cal Select (lowest price, most blackout dates, only available to So Cal zipcodes) is $299.

 

[keltiesmom]

Can you upgrade your wdw anual pass to the premier AP? would that be the most cost effective? You wouldnt get a longer expiry date but it might be worth looking into. If you have already purchased the park hopper, you could save it for next year after your AP expires and just apply the value to a new ticket or AP. I seem to think you can trade your DL tickets for WDW tickets but you might want to look into that before you try it.

 

[wdwfan22]

Not sure what day you get there, but when I do that, I try and use the Magic Morning before I upgrade to an AP. Not everyone likes the MM, but I love them. I can get a ton done in that first hour. The earlier the park open and MM, the less crowded it is.

 

[goofy4tink]

Can you upgrade your wdw anual pass to the premier AP? would that be the most cost effective? You wouldnt get a longer expiry date but it might be worth looking into. If you have already purchased the park hopper, you could save it for next year after your AP expires and just apply the value to a new ticket or AP. I seem to think you can trade your DL tickets for WDW tickets but you might want to look into that before you try it.

That might work....I wonder how I would do that. Would they (DL) subtract my DVC AP cost ($564) and then I pay the balance? Then....can I give the PH pass I already bought, to my dh so he can use it in DL, in May?? I bought it in Feb, to use on my late Nov trip.

Not sure what day you get there, but when I do that, I try and use the Magic Morning before I upgrade to an AP. Not everyone likes the MM, but I love them. I can get a ton done in that first hour. The earlier the park open and MM, the less crowded it is.

I get there on a Sat afternoon......weekend after Thanksgiving. So, that would work.

 

[starry_solo]

Depending on parking (are you planning to park on property or take a shuttle from the hotel), it might be worth it to get the premium AP as that is the only AP that you can buy NEW and get parking (which is $17/day). I believe a premium AP is $799. But 8 days of parking at $17/day is $136 already. It's a $200-ish difference between deluxe and premium and you can't buy the parking add-on anymore to new APs.

BTW, I believe a premier AP is $1200+ now, so you might want to see if it is worth it to upgrade the WDW AP to a premier, or just get a new Premium DL AP (isn't there a discount with DVC?)

 

[maltdizzy]

That might work....I wonder how I would do that. Would they (DL) subtract my DVC AP cost ($564) and then I pay the balance? Then....can I give the PH pass I already bought, to my dh so he can use it in DL, in May?? I bought it in Feb, to use on my late Nov trip.
.

Not sure, but they would probably pro-rate you leftover WDW AP time toward a full year on the Premiere.

I would call and ask...plus, if your home state has a sales tax less than 8%, you might save some $$$ over getting it before you arrive in California.

 

[figment_jii]

Not sure, but they would probably pro-rate you leftover WDW AP time toward a full year on the Premiere..

No, DLR does not pro-rate the prices of any of the APs. If the OP opts to upgrade their current AP to the Premier AP, it would keep the same expiration date and they would have to pay the difference between their current AP and the price of the Premier.

I would call and ask...plus, if your home state has a sales tax less than 8%, you might save some $$$ over getting it before you arrive in California.

DLR does not charge sales tax on tickets. That's why only half the price of the Premier AP is taxed; the WDW portion is charged 6.5% sales tax, while the DLR portion does not have sales tax. The Premier AP is about $1,135 ($1,099 plus tax).

 

[Ariel484]

Okay, here's question - if I have 2 sets of tickets, and they are both due to expire on 12/31/2015, can I put BOTH sets of tickets toward an AP (looking at the Premier AP)? Anyone ever done something like this?

 

[figment_jii]

Okay, here's question - if I have 2 sets of tickets, and they are both due to expire on 12/31/2015, can I put BOTH sets of tickets toward an AP (looking at the Premier AP)? Anyone ever done something like this?

As far as I know, no, you cannot combine ticket values to upgrade to an AP. I've only ever been able to upgrade one ticket to an AP (i.e., take an existing, valid ticket and apply the value of that ticket to the AP).