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Annual Pass or 7 Day Pass
- Thread starter BonzoAPD
- Start date
Benefits include WDW resort discounts, 10% discount at World of Disney, discounted tickets for DQ, La Nuba, PI and the water parks, you will also qualify for the DDE if you live outside of FL and depending on level of pass free parking.
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awallaceunc
New Member
If you are staying at one of Disney's Moderate or Deluxe hotels, chances are that the Annual Pass is going to save you money vs. a 7 day pass because of the resort discounts that come with it. If you're going this summer and you get an Annual Pass, you can actually stay at the Moderate resorts for the same price (or cheaper) than you would stay in a Value hotel for. Plus you get discounts on food and entertainment (though to be honest, these aren't the best).
Go to www.mousesavers.com and look at her Annual Pass calculator. She shows you how to plug in the details of your trip and determine which one is going to be the most affordable for you. I will say that if you are going back later this year, it's definitely worth it to go ahead and get an AP.
Remember to keep these things in mind when you do your calculations:
*Moderate resorts have free fridges... they are $10/night at all the other hotels
*An Annual Pass comes with park-hopping priviledges, whereas you'll need to add $35 onto the cost of your 7-Day Pass to get park-hopping with it.
*You can get a 10-Day Pass for only a few dollars more than the 7 day pass. However, to make it not expire, you'll have to pay an extra $100 (at which point you're close to the cost of an AP anyways).
*All-Star Resorts charge 13% resort tax, while all others charge 11.5% resort tax
*An Annual Pass comes with free parking on Disney Property for the whole year... but you'll get that for the length of your stay if you're at a Disney hotel even without the AP
Hope this helps.
-Aaron
Go to www.mousesavers.com and look at her Annual Pass calculator. She shows you how to plug in the details of your trip and determine which one is going to be the most affordable for you. I will say that if you are going back later this year, it's definitely worth it to go ahead and get an AP.
Remember to keep these things in mind when you do your calculations:
*Moderate resorts have free fridges... they are $10/night at all the other hotels
*An Annual Pass comes with park-hopping priviledges, whereas you'll need to add $35 onto the cost of your 7-Day Pass to get park-hopping with it.
*You can get a 10-Day Pass for only a few dollars more than the 7 day pass. However, to make it not expire, you'll have to pay an extra $100 (at which point you're close to the cost of an AP anyways).
*All-Star Resorts charge 13% resort tax, while all others charge 11.5% resort tax
*An Annual Pass comes with free parking on Disney Property for the whole year... but you'll get that for the length of your stay if you're at a Disney hotel even without the AP
Hope this helps.
-Aaron
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awallaceunc said:
Thanks Aaron, that was a lot of help. I do have another question though. On Mousavers it says one person can buy the AP and the rest of the people can have the regular passes. I was wondering how that would work with the way magic your way deals are put out. Would the other people need to buy their tickets separately and not in a package?
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The 1 AP would get you the room discounts for the entire party up to 3 or 4 rooms. All the rooms will need to be under the AP holders name if I am not mistaken. In order to get the dinning plan you would need to get MYW tickets so another words the AP holder would need to pay for their meals or possibly work something out with the people in you party because if you maximize the use of the dinning plan you can get a ton of food.BonzoAPD said:
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Disneydreaming
New Member
I went through the same decision thinking last year when my daughters and I were going for Thanksgiving. I decided to go the extra on the annual passes. I am so glad I did!!! We are going back in July, and hope for one more trip in October or November before our passes expire. If I hadn't bought the AP's, we wouldn't be able to afford two more trips. I say go for the AP's.!!
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Master Yoda said:
so the dining plan is a good deal? When I planned my trip I wasn't sure if it would work out better with or without the plan. Have you or anyone on here used it? If so can someone explain exactly what you get per day? I have read all the info Disney gives but it still is vague on what exactly you can get.
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Myself along with my wife and kids are AP holders so we have never had the opportunity to use it personally but I have heard it go both ways. From my understanding the plan costs $35 per day per adult and it is not hard for 1 adult to spend that amount on 1 table service meal depending on the restaurant. I think what it really boils down too if you have already planned to do at least 1 table service meal and 1 counter service meal the plan will save you money. If you are not interested in table service meals every day or are the type that just snacks throughout the day and never really sits down to a meal the plan wont save you much if any. The one nice thing about it is it takes what can be a very volatile expense and turns it into a fixed expense. Another option you have if you get an AP is the Disney Dinning Experience which is a dining discount card. With this you get a 20% discount (including alcohol) on nearly every table service restaurant at WDW(including the resorts). It will also get you at 20% discount at the food courts at the value resorts, Tusker House, Flame tree at AK and at PH at DTD. You will also get free valet parking at the resorts when you dine there and last but not least 1/2 price admission to PI for the card holder and 1 guest. The card covers you and up to 9 guests. The normal price on the DDE card is $75 there was a promotion earlier this year which discounted the price to $50 but I am not sure if that has passed already. There are a lot more experienced members here with the dinning plan. A quick search will give you more educated opinions than mine.BonzoAPD said:
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soccer9miahamm
New Member
If you are even considering another trip within a year's time, get an annual pass. Our family is going for a week in July, and we bought an annual pass for one person to get the benefits. You get big breaks on hotel prices, as well as merchandise, food and different rec. activities. It's worth it for me.
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slappy magoo
Well-Known Member
Bonzo,
if you buy an AP, for $50 more you can get a Disney Dining Experience membership, It gets you 20% THE ENTIRE bill, including alchohol, at most of the table-service restaurants in WDW. Plus, it's good for (I think) up to 7 guests who eat with you. And I think it's good at any hotel lounge, provided the lounge also offers food (I think the lounge at AKL is exempt for this reason)/
Depending on how many people are going with you (and if you all eat at the same time), you might find buying into that is a better bargain than the Dining Plan offered with the Magic Your Way tickets. At least, the savings will be comparable, especially if you or any members of your party like to have a few drinks with a meal (Lord knows, booze ain't cheap in the World).
The main con to this is that there are few counter-service restaurants that accept the Disney Dining Experience-mainly there's a few hotels that don't have full-service restaurants, and at some of the counter-service joints in the Animal Kingdom park. THEY accept the DDE card. Anywhere else, chances are the fast-food-style joints won't accept it. BUT, if you decide you'd like to enjoy more table-service dining that counter service fast food, you'll get more discounts. For some people/families, getting together for nice meals is a big deal, and I'd bet you'd save more money using the DDE card.
allearsnet.com has plenty of info about it, and it's worth checking out.
if you buy an AP, for $50 more you can get a Disney Dining Experience membership, It gets you 20% THE ENTIRE bill, including alchohol, at most of the table-service restaurants in WDW. Plus, it's good for (I think) up to 7 guests who eat with you. And I think it's good at any hotel lounge, provided the lounge also offers food (I think the lounge at AKL is exempt for this reason)/
Depending on how many people are going with you (and if you all eat at the same time), you might find buying into that is a better bargain than the Dining Plan offered with the Magic Your Way tickets. At least, the savings will be comparable, especially if you or any members of your party like to have a few drinks with a meal (Lord knows, booze ain't cheap in the World).
The main con to this is that there are few counter-service restaurants that accept the Disney Dining Experience-mainly there's a few hotels that don't have full-service restaurants, and at some of the counter-service joints in the Animal Kingdom park. THEY accept the DDE card. Anywhere else, chances are the fast-food-style joints won't accept it. BUT, if you decide you'd like to enjoy more table-service dining that counter service fast food, you'll get more discounts. For some people/families, getting together for nice meals is a big deal, and I'd bet you'd save more money using the DDE card.
allearsnet.com has plenty of info about it, and it's worth checking out.
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slappy magoo
Well-Known Member
Nemo14 said:
Not necessarily. Not every single room in every single resort is eligible for the annual pass discount, and it would stink if you got the annual pass and then was told your room was ineligible. An AP holder not getting an AP rate for a room isn't too common but it could happen.
What you SHOULD do is let them know, ASAP, you intend to get an annual pass when you arrive and would like to know what the AP discount is. They'll mark that on your reservation info, and make sure you're in a room eligible for the AP discount. They'll still charge you the full rack rate (ie, the regular full price of the room) for one night as a deposit, but you probably already paid that price anyway when you left a depsoit, correct?
When you arrive at WDW, get your pass activated first, before going to your hotel. You can do this at Guest Services at any of the four parks or at Downtown Disney. THEN go to your hotel, show them your AP and they'll pro-rate your room for the AP rate. Since you paid the full rack rate for one night, they'll apply the difference between the two prices to the rest of your stay, and then you'll just pay the balance. And if, for some reason, you wind up not getting the annual pass, then they'll just charge you the price of what the room is supposed to be.
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