News Annual Passholder dining discount drops to 10% for 2018

[AshaNeOmah]

They only have AP room promotions when they have unreserved capacity they want to fill. It's a strategy to fill empty rooms, at low times of the year, not a benefit guaranteed to passholders.

But that's a relatively new thing. 5 to 10 years ago I could get a AP discount almost any time of the year. Now, it's nearly impossible.

 

[21stamps]

Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t it always announced as a “limited time special”?

I received my renewal info in the mail earlier this month, it didn’t list the same perks as last year, but I didn’t expect it to.
Either way, I didn’t renew.. but the discounts didn’t play a factor in that decision.

 

[RustySpork]

But that's a relatively new thing. 5 to 10 years ago I could get a AP discount almost any time of the year. Now, it's nearly impossible.

It's pretty easy to paint the picture that Disney only cares enough about locals when they need to add a little extra padding to their bottom line. They're really after the one and done guest, locals and other annual passholders are of no use to them unless you're also paying annual DVC maintenance. That's probably a topic for a different thread though.

 

[21stamps]

But that's a relatively new thing. 5 to 10 years ago I could get a AP discount almost any time of the year. Now, it's nearly impossible.

I keep saying this in different threads, but I have to say it one more time here- 5-10 years ago we were in a very different economy.
Crowds/lack of availability may be frustrating in that moment, but it’s better than the alternative of high unemployment rates, Americans upside down in their homes, and stagnant construction everywhere.
People must realize the difference between then and now. Let’s hope that those days don’t come back any time soon.

 

[donsullivan]

But that's a relatively new thing. 5 to 10 years ago I could get a AP discount almost any time of the year. Now, it's nearly impossible.

Availability of room discounts for Passholders has ALWAYS been based on open room availability at the resorts. 5-10 years ago the US economy was in a slump and tourism was down, so Disney had empty rooms they wanted to fill and used various promotions including AP discounts to fill those rooms. I've been a Passholder since the mid 80's and the availability of room discounts has always fluctuated from year to year. This is not a new thing at all.

 

[AshaNeOmah]

Availability of room discounts has ALWAYS been based on open room availability at the resorts.

Apologies, you are 100% correct. The difference is definitely the amount of rooms available. The rooms just aren't offered.

In the past, I've called multiple times and had the discount applied to an existing reservation even if the discount wasn't actually appearing on the reservation site. After MyDisneyExperience was implemented, you're lucky to get an AP room if you call the day they become available. They just don't apply that rate to many (if any) rooms anymore.

 

[Master Yoda]

Good point. I haven't had an AP in a few years, but other members of my family have and do. When I think back, it's never really felt like an AP has had any great value beyond admission to the parks, much like what @donsullivan said. IIRC, we would get the same, if not better, discounts via DVC. It would be nice if TDO treated the Annual Passholder like a valued guest, but at the end of the day, they treat you like a rube who just visits the parks more often than others.

I think the inconvenient truth is most AP holders don't act, or more importantly, spend like valued guests.

We drank the kool-aid by the gallon. We would do a 3-4 day weekend there almost monthly while staying at a Disney resort, eating in their restaurants and spending more than we needed to on merch. We seemed to be the exception rather than the rule

All but the out of state AP holders I knew and a few fellow kool-aid drinkers would show up to the parks all the time, eat next to nothing, buy even less and would complain endlessly. If Disney's numbers support my observations, I am honestly surprised they still sell APs.

 

[AshaNeOmah]

People who started going to Disney during the years of recession or housing crash or stock market lows, they’re “spoiled” by what that did to the travel industry.. but it was never supposed to be that way, and hopefully never will be again.

I don't think you're wrong, some people do qualify for that description.

Look, you'll see me complain very little about Disney (what little I post). They've got a product people want and will spend money to get it.

I do think there is a ceiling, though, and we're getting closer to it now than we ever have. I'm not sure what the magic number is, but I could convince people who have never been to plan a trip when prices were lower compared to the average income. Now, it seems more difficult to help people understand why I try to go 2-3 times per calendar year, even living 600 miles away.

But crowds are heavier now than I ever remember them in the mid-to-late 90's. I remember long waits for a rides before FastPass but, save the opening few months of a new ride, I don't remember the 2-4 hour waits that FoP currently has daily. And it's 9 months old.

Maybe my glasses are a little rose colored. Doesn't matter, I'll be there early Feb regardless.

 

[RustySpork]

I think the inconvenient truth is most AP holders don't act, or more importantly, spend like valued guests.

We drank the kool-aid by the gallon. We would do a 3-4 day weekend there almost monthly while staying at a Disney resort, eating in their restaurants and spending more than we needed to on merch. We seemed to be the exception rather than the rule

All but the out of state AP holders I knew and a few fellow kool-aid drinkers would show up to the parks all the time, eat next to nothing, buy even less and would complain endlessly. If Disney's numbers support my observations, I am honestly surprised they still sell APs.

They've priced a lot of people out. Not a lot of annual pass holders can afford rooms or table service at WDW every other weekend anymore. I know we still stay onsite quite often, but I know several people personally who can no longer afford to spend money at WDW all the time who also now only take sandwiches and stay offsite when they visit and only do a table service dinner once or twice a year at most.

 

[donsullivan]

They've priced a lot of people out. Not a lot of annual pass holders can afford rooms or table service at WDW every other weekend anymore. I know we still stay onsite quite often, but I know several people personally who can no longer afford to spend money at WDW all the time who also now only take sandwiches and stay offsite when they visit and only do a table service dinner once or twice a year at most.

I’ve been a regular WDW visitor since the mid 80’s and I have to be honest, I’ve been hearing Variations of this story/complaint since then. A visit to WDW has always been expensive and there have always been people who got priced out of a WDW vacation; this is not a new phenomenon and folks really need to keep a longer term view of theses things.

 

[RustySpork]

I’ve been a regular WDW visitor since the mid 80’s and I have to be honest, I’ve been hearing this exact same story/complaint since then. A visit to WDW has always been expensive and there have always been people who got priced out of a WDW vacation; this is not a new phenomenon and folks really need to keep a longer term view of theses things.

I don't disagree with you, mostly. Except that there was a pretty significant pricing jump in the curve across the parks and resorts over the last 10 years.

 

[21stamps]

I don't think you're wrong, some people do qualify for that description.

Look, you'll see me complain very little about Disney (what little I post). They've got a product people want and will spend money to get it.

I do think there is a ceiling, though, and we're getting closer to it now than we ever have. I'm not sure what the magic number is, but I could convince people who have never been to plan a trip when prices were lower compared to the average income. Now, it seems more difficult to help people understand why I try to go 2-3 times per calendar year, even living 600 miles away.

But crowds are heavier now than I ever remember them in the mid-to-late 90's. I remember long waits for a rides before FastPass but, save the opening few months of a new ride, I don't remember the 2-4 hour waits that FoP currently has daily. And it's 9 months old.

Maybe my glasses are a little rose colored. Doesn't matter, I'll be there early Feb regardless.

I agree, Disney World is busier now than it ever has been.. it’s become more popular over the years, and they’ve made it more convenient over the years as well- ME, moderate resorts, value resorts, all inclusive packages.. this has made it more of a vacation destination, especially a weeklong one, than it ever was during the 80s and 90s.

Btw, have an amazing time on your trip!

 

[Tony the Tigger]

I appreciated that 20% while it lasted and made good use of it! Never expected it to last forever as it was specifically an anniversary special.

And now back to Tables In Wonderland!

I think the inconvenient truth is most AP holders don't act, or more importantly, spend like valued guests.

We drank the kool-aid by the gallon. We would do a 3-4 day weekend there almost monthly while staying at a Disney resort, eating in their restaurants and spending more than we needed to on merch. We seemed to be the exception rather than the rule

All but the out of state AP holders I knew and a few fellow kool-aid drinkers would show up to the parks all the time, eat next to nothing, buy even less and would complain endlessly. If Disney's numbers support my observations, I am honestly surprised they still sell APs.

In our experience, our participation level has fluctuated, often having little to do with the day to day at WDW and more to do with our finances in a given month/year.

I find that as we moved to things like AP’s and other discounts, we still spent the same or more because if we didn’t have to buy tickets for a particular visit, we’d spend that on a room or a nice dinner or tour.

As we moved from park commandos to only doing “important stuff” or attractions with short lines, we increased our resort time (and quality) and our planning around meal-events, etc.

We live in South Florida. I’m sure if we lived in Kissimmee and went as often as we go to Publix, we’d spend differently - primarily out of necessity.

The other thing that’s helped tremendously has been the Chase Visa. No way we would have spent what we did in the last few years without that.

 

[NearTheEars]

I think the inconvenient truth is most AP holders don't act, or more importantly, spend like valued guests.

We drank the kool-aid by the gallon. We would do a 3-4 day weekend there almost monthly while staying at a Disney resort, eating in their restaurants and spending more than we needed to on merch. We seemed to be the exception rather than the rule

All but the out of state AP holders I knew and a few fellow kool-aid drinkers would show up to the parks all the time, eat next to nothing, buy even less and would complain endlessly. If Disney's numbers support my observations, I am honestly surprised they still sell APs.

Up until the discount, we barely ever ate inside the parks, and that was back when you could still get a no blackout AP in the $350-$400 range. Now we pay WAY more for less, so the motivation to spend more money on property won’t be there anymore.

We still only did a few table service meals during the discount period, but we took full advantage of the quick service locations that were 20% off. We essentially became regulars at Pecos Bills, Backlot and Electric Umbrella.

Don’t read this as a complaint, though, that it’s going away. They made it pretty clear that it was temporary. I’m just admittedly cheap. So my money will return to restaurants on our drive to and from the parks.

I had been hopeful that if they saw an uptick in sales during the discount period and they’d decide to make it permanent. But obviously it didn’t have that big of an impact.

 

[Casper Gutman]

I’ve been a regular WDW visitor since the mid 80’s and I have to be honest, I’ve been hearing Variations of this story/complaint since then. A visit to WDW has always been expensive and there have always been people who got priced out of a WDW vacation; this is not a new phenomenon and folks really need to keep a longer term view of theses things.

A long term view actually shows that room rates, ticket prices, food prices, etc. have all increased exponentially in the past decade or so, growing at a far greater rate then in previous decades. There are a bunch of charts floating around these boards that prove this.

WDW has always been pricey. It has always attempted to attract certain groups of guests. Over the last decade, these trends have become much, much more pronounced, to the degree where WDW seems not merely to be targeting some demographics but actively discouraging others. And as part of this, prices have exploded. Even accounting for inflation and the addition of new attractions, today's WDW guests are charged a staggering amount more than they used to be. This isn't really debatable - you can track the prices. In 1998, the year AK opened and WDW first had 4 parks, a high end AP cost $399 - accounting for inflation, that would be equivalent to about $609 today. In 2017, the high end AP costs $869.

 

[Tony the Tigger]

I had been hopeful that if they saw an uptick in sales during the discount period and they’d decide to make it permanent. But obviously it didn’t have that big of an impact.

I wondered about that because I got a survey asking if we used it and how much it factored into our dining choices.

Maybe it will be a returning special here and there.

 

[beertiki]

The loss of the 20% will make it a little easier to get an ADR at some of the busiest places and buffets, but it will hurt table service at the resorts. We would have never tried Jiko if it were not for the discount. 10% is nice, it's not going to factor into any decisions, but 20% on a group of 4 can really add up and it is an incentive to try new and more expensive places. I think Disney will see enough of a drop in business at several sit downs, that the 20% will return for those places only. 20% off at Ohana was nuts, why give a discount when you turn away resort guests everyday?

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

Does anyone know if they are also removing the 20% merchandise discount?

 

[RustySpork]

Does anyone know if they are also removing the 20% merchandise discount?

Some of the merchandise discounts are 10-15%, but the majority are still showing 20% according to the discount website.

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/p...benefits-and-discounts/merchandise-discounts/

 

[disneygeek90]

I had been thinking about getting the TiW card in the past, but with the 20% for AP's I didn't see the value. I think I may have to toy the idea again.