"Upgrading" to Annual Pass?

[kboo]

We are heading to the world next week! And realized that we most likely will be going back by the same time in 2016. Is there any way to get the cost of the park tickets now applied to the cost of an annual pass?

 

[MichelleB]

Yes, enter the park the first day and then sometime later, go to Guest Services and tell them you'd like to upgrade your ticket to an AP. You'll pay the difference between the current gate price of the pass you hold and the AP price. Use the ticket first so that it will then hold gate value if you bought it at any kind of a reduced price.

 

[kboo]

Great! Thanks! And with the AP we get a 10% discount at many dining locations, right?

 

[MichelleB]

At some locations…..alllears.net has a list of all the benefits. http://allears.net/pl/apass.htm#bene2015

 

[smiths02]

Great! Thanks! And with the AP we get a 10% discount at many dining locations, right?

With an AP, you can buy a Tables in Wonderland card for $100 and get discounts at dining that way (tablesinwonderland.com)

 

[smiths02]

Yes, enter the park the first day and then sometime later, go to Guest Services and tell them you'd like to upgrade your ticket to an AP. You'll pay the difference between the current gate price of the pass you hold and the AP price. Use the ticket first so that it will then hold gate value if you bought it at any kind of a reduced price.

To piggyback off of this....we have a package, so if I enter Epcot on our first day, then go to Guest Services and upgrade to AP and buy TiW, it should all be ready to go right away, correct? (theoretically, I understand computer errors may occur)

 

[Becky925]

Yes. When we upgraded we bought the TiW card at the same time. Upgraded our tickets around 10am and used the card at our 1pm lunch for the discount.

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

To piggyback off of this....we have a package, so if I enter Epcot on our first day, then go to Guest Services and upgrade to AP and buy TiW, it should all be ready to go right away, correct? (theoretically, I understand computer errors may occur)

yes, been there done that! When they do it - everything is ready to go from that point onward.

OP remember it is advantageous to upgrade to AP as early as possible in a trip in order to get the discounts.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

To piggyback off of this....we have a package, so if I enter Epcot on our first day, then go to Guest Services and upgrade to AP and buy TiW, it should all be ready to go right away, correct? (theoretically, I understand computer errors may occur)

In theory.

When upgrading a ticket, read the rules posted in the thread at the top of the DIS Theme Parks Touring section. I think it was not updated all that recently, but still has good info.

Sometimes what should be easy takes a good deal of time. the last time I converted tickets, it took me over an hour!

You don't want to do it first thing in the morning when lines are don't, you MUST do it BEFORE your ticket is used up, and within 14days of first using it. you must do it at a park- I strongly suggest the Guest Services INSIDE MK. (I've had horrible experiences at Epcot and AK) generally you want to use your ticket at least once to enter a park- but it probably doesn't meter much since you bought your ticket via WDW.

You DO want to make sure you know EXACTLY what it should cost - INCLUDING TAX - before you do this.

another good idea is to take a picture of any receipts you have - and have that image with you in the park. (or any papers, but a phone image works). Again, what I am saying is more true if you bought your tickets from an outside vendor.Within Disney, CM's should be able to simply look you up. BUT...staff did make a mistake with my last AP- MDE had it expiring a month after I bought it!

Sometimes on the DIS dining meal credits can be messed up after ticket transactions. Sometimes magicbands can get messed up as well. (to open you hotel room)

If you have the Dining plan, then you don't need TiW. (You said package). TiW does apply to alcohol. TiW and AP discounts only work if you remember to ASK for them each time. (I don't.)

AP meal discounts are rather limited. You can find a list. TiW also has some significant limits/black out dates that are NEW this year.

You don't have to buy TiW now. You can buy it any time- as long as you have a valid AP. If you buy it later, it may well be valid after your AP has expired.

Last, if you are getting WDW AP's and/or visiting US, you might want to look into US AP's as well. With a hopper US ticket- converting to a US lower-end AP is onlya few $ (unlike WDw AP's)

A WDW AP does = WDW room discounts, but they are often the same as general public discounts. (except they come out very late) Still, they are often available AFTER the GP discount deal has expired.

 

[disneydreamer23]

We are heading to the world next week! And realized that we most likely will be going back by the same time in 2016. Is there any way to get the cost of the park tickets now applied to the cost of an annual pass?

Yes! Wait until you enter the park for the first time and then head to guest relations (City Hall if in Magic Kingdom.) Once there ask how much it would cost to upgrade to AP. If the price sounds right go for it. If it's higher than you calculated, wait until later in the day and you might get another price from another cast member. We're heading down in 11 days! I hope you have a great trip!

 

[mickeyluv'r]

yes, been there done that! When they do it - everything is ready to go from that point onward.

OP remember it is advantageous to upgrade to AP as early as possible in a trip in order to get the discounts.

Yes and no. If they have a package that includes dining, they might be better off buying it later, as the expiration will also be further out.

If this visit is short, or they'd be getting 10% with just the AP, or they don't plan to eat any TS, or they have a small group, they are going during blackout dates- all of those are just a few reasons why it may be better to wait to buy TiW.

It REALLY pays to run the math, to see if TiW is a good value. TiW is not free; the savings has to offset the cost to make it worthwhile.

 

[smiths02]

1. Yes and no. If they have a package that includes dining, they might be better off buying it later, as the expiration will also be further out.
   
   If this visit is short, or they'd be getting 10% with just the AP, or they don't plan to eat any TS, or they have a small group, they are going during blackout dates- all of those are just a few reasons why it may be better to wait to buy TiW.
   
   It REALLY pays to run the math, to see if TiW is a good value. TiW is not free; the savings has to offset the cost to make it worthwhile.

For our family, I think I will upgrade my ticket to an AP and purchase TiW on the first day so we can start using all the discounts immediately. For us, the TiW will definitely pay for itself ($100) over this trip, no DDP and 10 TS meals planned. Having one AP gets our family access to all the discounts, free parking, TiW, etc. So, to OP, consider if you only want to upgrade one person to AP right away for discounts, then upgrade the rest before your last day if you think that is a good idea.

For us, in terms of just ticket costs, buying 9 day base tickets for this trip and 8 day base tickets for next trip is not all that much more than an AP...and with an AP my money is gone whether or not we go in 2016. So to the OP, I would strongly consider whether or not it is worth it to upgrade to APs for just two trips. A few things can happen: 1) You can go on both trips as planned, in which case you don't really save a HUGE amount; 2) You can get APs and decide you need more trips, in which case, you spend too much money LOL; 3) You can upgrade the APs and then not take the next trip for some reason, it which case you are out several hundred dollars per AP you upgraded.

 

[kboo]

Thanks for all your tips! This trip is a 6-day trip with our 3.5 yo daughter. We are meeting another family down there. We already have multiple character meals booked (Akershus, CP, Tusker House, BOG 2x) and no dining plan. Next year's trip is about 100% for sure - DH has a conference in Orlando, I'll be on maternity leave (FX) and will likely get my parents down there too (my mom has dementia and it may be her last "family" vacation), and due to DH's conference, we'll likely have other friends there too. I have a feeling TiW would pay for itself with just this upcoming trip's meals (Akershus, Tusker House and CP will be 5 adults and 1 kid (other 2kids are under 3)) alone.

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

Yes and no. If they have a package that includes dining, they might be better off buying it later, as the expiration will also be further out.

If this visit is short, or they'd be getting 10% with just the AP, or they don't plan to eat any TS, or they have a small group, they are going during blackout dates- all of those are just a few reasons why it may be better to wait to buy TiW.

It REALLY pays to run the math, to see if TiW is a good value. TiW is not free; the savings has to offset the cost to make it worthwhile.

the AP will expire 1 year from the first use of the ticket used to upgrade to it. So you arrive at WDW and first use your ticket on (for example) 4/24 - your AP will expire on 4/24 the following year whether you upgrade to an AP the first day or the last. TiW would expire later if you buy it later but if you don't have an AP to use with it that might not be helpful...

 

[Grumpy4196]

the AP will expire 1 year from the first use of the ticket used to upgrade to it. So you arrive at WDW and first use your ticket on (for example) 4/24 - your AP will expire on 4/24 the following year whether you upgrade to an AP the first day or the last. TiW would expire later if you buy it later but if you don't have an AP to use with it that might not be helpful...

Maybe this has changed? On our trip last November 20-29 we upgraded on our last day in the park(28th) My AP shows it has an expiration date of Nov. 28 2015.

 

[MrKnight]

Technically yes you can request this at Guest Relations inside the park, however, I honestly do not believe this is worth it in your case unless you live close enough to actually get use from your pass (such as FL residents).. A basic AP is currently running at $654 per person and unless you are a FL resident you will not be eligible for payment plans or FL resident discounts.

 

[MichelleB]

kboo….let's do the math. You said this trip is a 6 day trip. What tickets do you have already? How many days will your next trip be? We'll figure up the cost or savings for you on this.

 

[POOHsie]

Maybe this has changed? On our trip last November 20-29 we upgraded on our last day in the park(28th) My AP shows it has an expiration date of Nov. 28 2015.

You got pixie dusted by an inadvertent CM error. The correct accounting is: you get full credit for your original ticket towards your AP purchase, but the start date of the new AP is also the first date you used your original tickets. If your AP was dated later than the start date of your original tickets, then those days you used your original tickets were actually "free of charge." That's an error on Disney's part but lucky for the AP-holder.

OP -- note the above paragraph. Your new AP will expire one year from the start date of using your original tickets this trip. No matter which day you actually do your AP upgrade. If your trip next year is on the approx. same dates, your AP will be expired at the start of your visit. That may mean upgrading to AP won't cover your next trip, and won't be worth doing.

 

[Grumpy4196]

You got pixie dusted by an inadvertent CM error.

Not trying to be argumentative just stating what happened to us. I upgraded at Guest Services just outside MK and my DW and DK's upgraded hours later at City Hall inside the park. They have the same expiration as I do. 11/28/2015

Not sure if it matters but our tickets were part of a package.

 

[POOHsie]

Not trying to be argumentative just stating what happened to us. I upgraded at Guest Services just outside MK and my DW and DK's upgraded hours later at City Hall inside the park. They have the same expiration as I do. 11/28/2015

Oh, no, not trying to argue, either. But you can see, by giving you full credit for your old tickets, but starting your AP on the last day of your tickets, you actually got an AP that was 7-8 days longer than the expected 365 days.