Annual Pass dates?

DiSnEyF@n

DiSnEyF@n

Well-Known Member
Hello all!

I was wondering if anyone knows:
If I were to buy an annual pass today (for instance), would my "annual" year begin today or would it start the day that I first used the pass at a park?

Thanks for all of your help...

Any advise on annual passes are also greatly appreciated. Thanks :D
 
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brifraz

brifraz

Marching along...
Premium Member
The above statement is not our experience (we have ordered annual passes three times in the past). If you order them online or by phone, they will not start until the first time we used them - which is when you get the ticket from the window at the parks. If you order them in advance you get a voucher that you need to turn in to get the actual tickets - the voucher gives you access to MDE and booking FP+, but won't get you in the parks. This article on Mousesavers very clearly describes the annual pass ordering process: http://www.mousesavers.com/walt-disney-world-annual-pass-info/

Right around 10 days of park visits is the break even point in cost - depending on how much you use the discounts, that could be earlier.

Renewals are discounted.
 
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P

Pax

Member
When we purchased our passes last year (prior to going to WDW) they did not start the use year until we used them the first time to enter a park. Actually, we ended up with a three week add on somehow-- we purchased the annual passes in November and the use year did not end until early December.

Once your renewal date approaches Disney will contact you about renewing and there is a special price offered if you pay to renew a certain number of days before (30 or 60, can't remember) or within 30 days after the annual pass expires. You would keep your same anniversary date if you renew within the time frame for the better deal.
 
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sxeensweet

sxeensweet

Love a little Disney every day!! ;)
Arty Cordova said:
It is the day of purchase
Click to expand...
No it does not start until the day of first use. We always buy ours ahead of time and activate when we go and it starts the day we go into the first park/activation day. The only way they start the day you buy them is of you are buying them at the parks and activating that same day. You can have a voucher/pass purchased years ahead of time and it will not start until you actually use it. :)
 
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C

Capt Hook

Member
the start date all depends on how/where you buy your AP. if, for example you buy it at a park and they give you your pass right away then it's that date. if you buy it for example online and get a voucher for your AP, then you turn it in at the parks for a pass and it starts from that date, not the original purchase date. I hope that helps. Typically renewal has a discount.
 
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DiSnEyF@n

DiSnEyF@n

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
brifraz said:
The above statement is not our experience (we have ordered annual passes three times in the past). If you order them online or by phone, they will not start until the first time we used them - which is when you get the ticket from the window at the parks. If you order them in advance you get a voucher that you need to turn in to get the actual tickets - the voucher gives you access to MDE and booking FP+, but won't get you in the parks. This article on Mousesavers very clearly describes the annual pass ordering process: http://www.mousesavers.com/walt-disney-world-annual-pass-info/

Right around 10 days of park visits is the break even point in cost - depending on how much you use the discounts, that could be earlier.

Renewals are discounted.
Click to expand...

Thanks for attaching the article. I appreciate it. :D
 
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D

DisneyMom51

Member
I'd never though of this before. How long after purchasing a pass could one still active it? For instance, for the birth of a child, could a relative/friend purchase a child's annual pass for use after the child reached 3 years of age? I would think that would be a neat gift. It's a win-win for Disney. A new guest and it would increase the immediate cash flow, although they would lose the difference between the original cost and the actual cost for the same pass at time of first use.
 
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dreamfinder

dreamfinder

Well-Known Member
DisneyMom51 said:
I'd never though of this before. How long after purchasing a pass could one still active it? For instance, for the birth of a child, could a relative/friend purchase a child's annual pass for use after the child reached 3 years of age? I would think that would be a neat gift. It's a win-win for Disney. A new guest and it would increase the immediate cash flow, although they would lose the difference between the original cost and the actual cost for the same pass at time of first use.
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There is no longer a price difference between a child and an adult AP.

In theory, you can purchase the AP voucher now and redeem it at any point in the future. You may be subject to limitations (IE if they change the ticketing structure to allow a 5th park) based on the voucher details. There are people that have done this for regular tickets, it's fairly common when a price increase is anticipated/announced.
 
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disneygirl1

disneygirl1

Well-Known Member
Annual passes expire 365 days from first use, not the date purchased. We bought a 8 day water park and more ticket last march for our May 14 trip. We did not use those tickets until May 9th. At the end of out stay, we upgraded those tickets to annual passes so therefore they expire May 9th of 2015.

If you plan of spending at least 10 days in the parks, the AP seriously pays for its self. Plus you get discounts galore which is an added bonus.
 
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JasonDeyoung

JasonDeyoung

Well-Known Member
As said above many times, it doesn't start until the first use. I tech bought mine online about a month or so prior to actually using and my first use was my start/expiration date. Now my renewal date will stay the same though obviously
 
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General Zondag

General Zondag

Member
It starts on the first day you use it, and is valid for 365 days, meaning that if it was first used on feb 1st, 2015, you can use it up to and including feb 1st 2016. If you renew (yes at a discount) the next AP starts and expires on feb 2nd. You "get an extra day" of sorts, each time you renew the end date moves forward 1 day.

We usually consider that if you can visit twice during the AP life, then it's worth it.

There are also seasonal passes, but they have some limitations.
 
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General Zondag

General Zondag

Member
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Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Premium Member
General Zondag said:
That's very odd. They should last a total of 366 days.

http://www.mousesavers.com/walt-disney-world-annual-pass-info/

Edit: Full disclosure, we did not renew last time, since we decided to wait and buy a new one as the time between visits made this a better choice.
Click to expand...

Here is the official policy from Disney's passholder site:

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/faq/passholders/renewal-time-period/

Renewals are good one year (365 days) from the anniversary date ~ the anniversary date being the day the original AP was first used for admission.
 
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