Ways to purchase an annual pass?

[budley2000]

I'm considering buying annual passes for myself, husband and son, but I have some questions. I have booked a week at the All Star Music for December using one of Mary's codes for a rate of $59.00. If I buy an annual pass, I can reduce that rate to $49.00/night (I have checked availability and they currently have this rate for our stay). I would buy 3 annual passes because we would like to book at least one more trip within 1 year (not just buying AP for the hotel rate reduction which isn't that much). I don't want to buy it until right before we go (Dec. 8th) because of the effective date, but if I commit to the AP hotel rate, I must have it before I check in or my rate will revert back to the $99.00 regular rate.

Can anyone tell me what's the best way to purchase APs in this case. TIA

Kathy

 

[BethR]

Hi Kathy!

Are you going to be flying into the Orlando Airport? If so, then you can purchase your AP at the Disney store there. If you have the DC card you can get the discount there too!

Hope that this helps!

 

[GoldenOldie]

Originally posted by budley2000
I don't want to buy it until right before we go (Dec. 8th) because of the effective date, but if I commit to the AP hotel rate, I must have it before I check in or my rate will revert back to the $99.00 regular rate.

If you purchase your AP's at TDS in Pennsylvania (or anywhere else in US except for Orlando Airport) you will get a voucher for each pass that you turn in for the activated AP when you get to WDW. The one year expiration of the passes do not start until you exchange that voucher.

Now for part two: If you book an AP rate, the official line is you must show an active AP when you checkin. In reality, the policy is quite uneven. Some people are asked to show an AP, some are not. Some are allowed to checkin using the voucher, some are not. The worst case scenario you will face if you check in with the voucher and they want to see an active pass is they will ask you to come back to the resort front desk at a later date (tomorrow, the next day, etc) to show them the activated pass.

You will not lose the AP room rate if you don't have an activated pass by checkin but you will lose it if you don't return to show it to them before checkout if that's what they asked you do.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

You can also call Disney and order an AP and receive a voucher.

 

[Lyon_King]

Hi... two things, a comment and a question for all:

One, I too am looking at getting an AP and I spoke with a CM at what I think was the CRO. I asked them if I only had a voucher would I have to drop my luggage with them and ride over to a resort to get the actual pass before I could check in and they told me that if I had the voucher when I checked in, that should be find. We'll see how that goes.....

Two, If I have a voucher that I purchased at a Disney Store in at home, can the Disney store at the Orlando Airport convert it to the actual pass, or must I convert the voucher at the park gates? Also, when do you actually pay for the pass, when you get the voucher or when you get the pass?

 

[budley2000]

Thanks everyone for your help with this. After reading all of the posts and checking around, I've decided to buy the actual AP at the Disney Store (Disney Magic) at the Orlando airport. I'd prefer to have them in-hand before I leave but when I called my hotel (All Star Music), they told me I would absolutely have to have my actual AP for check-in - not the voucher. I checked twice with them and was told the same thing both times. I really don't understand this as I would think you would have to pay for the AP when you order or receive the voucher so if it's already paid for, why won't they accept it?


So, although they may or may not accept my voucher at check-in, I think I'll just wait and get the AP at the airport. I did call Disney Magic at the airport and they told me they always have them in stock and that they are the actual APs and not the vouchers.

Again, thanks so much for your help.

 

[BethR]

Hi Lyon King - And WELCOME to the DIS to a Fellow Pennsylvanian!

If you purchase your AP at the Disney Store at the Orlando Airport, it will be the actual pass, activated and ready to go!

Good Luck!

 

[kimbergirl]

I am in same situation. What are the hours of the Disney Store at the Orlando airport? We won't land until nearly 11:00 p.m.?

 

[budley2000]

Kimbergirl: I don't know how late they are open but I can give you their number so you can find out: 407-825-2370. They told me they are located on the departing side near Northwest. Several people have told me they passed the Disney Store on the way to Baggage.

 

[Carl]

I had purchased the voucher before going in May 1999. When I got to Orlando airport I went to the Disney Store. It is located to your right as you come in on the monorail from the terminal. You pass the store heading for baggage claim. Went I went into the store I asked about converting the voucher to a pass. EVERYONE in the store said, "We can't do that here!" I keep reading on this board that it CAN be done there and that you can purchase the actual pass there. Unless they changed it from 1999, that is NOT true. Now, I was told on this board, even in 1999 that it was possible. I'd call the store and find out for sure, before I believed anything you read here. Now, they DO sell the vouchers there, but DON'T exchange them for the pass - UNLESS, like I said, it has changed from 1999.
Now, since I also have the voucher for my trip in 2002, I would also like to know if they will accept the voucher at check-in. It would seem to me that they most certainly would - after all you HAVE already paid for the pass. The ONLY reason I can see that they wouldn't would be that there is the remote possibility that someone would keep a voucher for several years just to use for the AP discount on the resorts. That doesn't seem very likely, since that is a lot of money to have invested just for the discount - and then to lose the use of the pass for entering the parks. Would take a lot of will power.

 

[LindaBabe]

AT Guest Relations or a ticket booth at TTC or a park, NOT at a Disney Store, and not at a resort. It's fairly simple, though, so don't stress over it.

 

[Peter Pan Fan]

I checked in at the WL just fine with a VOUCHER only. Went the next day to change my voucher into an actual AP at the Epcot ticket counter. I did this this past January. Interesting thing is they never asked to see my AP at check-in and the CM even asked if we wanted passes for the parks !

Of course this is only my opinion but I would really NOT stress about this! I believe the easiest thing to do is to buy your voucher from TDS before you leave (and before the yearly price increase) and just change it to an actual AP your first day at a park.

I would be really doubt that the front desk CM would turn you away or raise your room rate, etc. if you only had the voucher in hand. The voucher IS essentially an AP that hasn't yet been activated, you have paid fully for it, etc. I believe the absolute worst that would happen is, as one previous poster said, that they would ask you to come back the next day and show that you now have an "official" AP.

Don't worry!!

 

[BuffyFan]

When I called to get an AP rate for AKL later this year, the CM told me that not only would the voucher alone be okay at check in, but that the AKL Guest Services desk would convert it to an actual pass. I told the CM I thought I had to do it at a park or TTC etc., and his comment was that I could absolutely do this at AKL itself, and that "we try to make it easy for our guests".

I guess I won't really know until I get there, but I am not going to stress about it, either. I may call the AKL Guest Services desk a few days before departure to see what they say.

Different experiences at different resorts is the common thread I see here...