Upgrading to Annual Pass???

[luvdisney73]

My daughter and I are participating in the bounce back program in October with free dining. Our package includes 6 days and 7 nights park hopper at POR. We are considering an annual pass and wondering how we go about doing this with our existing package. Any ideas or thoughts? Has anyone ever done this before and roughly how much more did you have to spend?

 

[mapleleaf4ever]

If you think you will be going back within a year it could work well. It would cost about $350 more for each of you (not sure of exact current prices). You can go to any guest services to do this. It makes no difference in price if you do it on your first day or last, but many people suggest you should use at least one day before upgrading, (I think it has to do with making sure it doesn't effect your dining). One of the benefits of doing earlier in your stay is to take advantage of some of the annual pass discounts. When I upgraded mine, I did it in downtown Disney, my wife did hers at animal kingdom. Animal kingdom was marginally quicker.

 

[Robo]

My daughter and I are participating in the bounce back program in October with free dining. Our package includes 6 days and 7 nights park hopper at POR. We are considering an annual pass and wondering how we go about doing this with our existing package. Any ideas or thoughts? Has anyone ever done this before and roughly how much more did you have to spend?

Just go to any ticket booth or Guest Relations.
Since these are resort package tickets, be sure to USE them to enter a theme park at least one
time BEFORE upgrading. After you do that, the price to upgrade will be the current full gate price of an AP,
MINUS the current full gate price of the original ticket that you started with (6-day Park Hopper,) plus tax.

 

[jprieur]

Just a word of advice, as we did this once. Make sure you go to Guest Relations at the theme parks or Downtown Disney, do not go to the ticket desk at the resort or anywhere else. The resort ticket desk just isn't good at doing this upgrade and have trouble calculating the cost difference (Our resort was 120 higher for each annual pass upgrade)! Also, make sure you get your temporary annual pass (it will look like a normal card ticket but will have 'pass holder' on the bottom banner on the front of the card. This will be your discount card until you get your actual discount card in the mail later down the line.

Its already been stated but MAKE SURE that you have at least 1 day remaining on your tickets before you upgrade or you will loose the credit of what you paid for your current park tickets. Once you use your last day your ticket package is considered closed to disney and adding ANYTHING will be at full ticket price. I have seen people do this so many times where they try to add another single day after using their last day ticket and they are shocked to learn they have to pay full price since they used their last day and no longer have an 'active' multi day package to add to.

 

[Robo]

Just a word of advice, as we did this once. Make sure you go to Guest Relations at the theme parks or Downtown Disney, do not go to the ticket desk at the resort or anywhere else.

1. The resort ticket desk just isn't good at doing this upgrade and have trouble calculating the cost difference (Our resort was 120 higher for each annual pass upgrade)! Also, make sure you get your temporary annual pass (it will look like a normal card ticket but will have 'pass holder' on the bottom banner on the front of the card. This will be your discount card until you get your actual discount card in the mail later down the line.

2. Its already been stated but MAKE SURE that you have at least 1 day remaining on your tickets before you upgrade or you will loose the credit of what you paid for your current park tickets.

3. Once you use your last day your ticket package is considered closed to disney and adding ANYTHING will be at full ticket price.

4. I have seen people do this so many times where they try to add another single day after using their last day ticket and they are shocked to learn they have to pay full price since they used their last day and no longer have an 'active' multi day package to add to.

1. The resorts cannot do upgrades to Annual Passes.
Resort computers don't have the same access to certain files that park and DTD ticket booths and Guest Relations do.
APs must be handled by the ticket booths and Guest Relations at the parks, TTC, or DTD.

2. That's not quite true.
3. Sorry, that's not true.
4. I'm not sure what you might have seen, but guests CAN, for sure, upgrade "all used up" tickets. (Otherwise, guests who just bought a one-day ticket, went to a park that day and decided that they wanted to extend their WDW trip could not upgrade their tickets.)

Here's the scoop.
If you ARE a WDW Resort guest, you CAN upgrade a ticket that has been fully used up, as long as you are still at WDW (have not gone home) and as long as it is within 14 days of that tickets' first use.

If you are NOT a WDW Resort guest, you CAN upgrade a ticket that has been fully used up, as long as it is no later than ON the SAME DAY that you used that ticket's last asset.
(And, even the off-site rule above MIGHT now be relaxed if you have a MyDisneyExperience account with your name and address associated with your ticket.)

The rules about upgrading (or not) used-up tickets were enacted not to stop guests from
extending their WDW tickets after they used the last day, but to curtail unscrupulous and unlawful "ticket resellers" from buying expired tickets from guests as the guests left WDW for home.
Then, the "ticket resellers" would add days to the tickets and sell them to other guests at a profit.

 

[goodgodmrsmolly]

My daughter and I are participating in the bounce back program in October with free dining. Our package includes 6 days and 7 nights park hopper at POR. We are considering an annual pass and wondering how we go about doing this with our existing package. Any ideas or thoughts? Has anyone ever done this before and roughly how much more did you have to spend?

The cost could potentially skyrocket, depending on how many "extra" trips you decide to take once you have an AP... you know, because it is already paid for. I ended up going 4 times in one AP even though we only planned 2 trips. It can happen!

 

[tulipgrl7]

My only word of caution is that Disney calculates the first day of your annual pass that first day that you purchased your regular ticket not the upgraded ticket or even the first day of use. We purchased tickets last January to take advantage of the 60 fast pass window for an April trip then upgraded to annual passes in April. The end date of our annual passes was January the date of purchase and when we called they wouldn't adjust it. Obviously that is their policy, but it stinks to miss out on months of tickets because of having to select fast passes so far in advance.

 

[Robo]

My only word of caution is that Disney calculates the first day of your annual pass

1. that first day that you purchased your regular ticket

2. not the upgraded ticket

3. or even the first day of use.

We purchased tickets last January to take advantage of the 60 fast pass window for an April trip then upgraded to annual passes in April.

4. The end date of our annual passes was January the date of purchase and

5. when we called they wouldn't adjust it.

6. Obviously that is their policy, but it stinks to miss out on months of tickets because of having to select fast passes so far in advance.

1. Sorry, but that is NOT correct.
2. Correct.
3. Nope. Not so.
4. The CM who upgraded to AP MADE AN ERROR. (It happens all the time.)
5. You talked to the wrong CM on the phone. (Also happens all the time.)
6. No, it is NOT their policy. They made an error.

AND... it can be fixed the next time you are at WDW.
Just go to any Guest Relations. All of your info will be in your computer file,
and the CM can adjust your APs to the correct date. (This also happens all the time.)

Your AP Anniversary date should be the date that you first USED your original tickets
to enter a park.

 

[luvdisney73]

Thank you everyone for your comments! Hopefully we will be able to upgrade our tickets to an annual pass without any issues!