People with APs

[KDM31091]

I've read a thread about going to WDW too much. Well, it seems like people who have APs go much less than I thought they did!

For some reason, I pictured Florida Residents with APs living within an hour of the park or so would be going 2 times a month or something, but they only seem to go a few more times a year than someone from say New Jersey would go.

So how often DO people with APs usually go? This is very interesting...

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

I had an AP for several years and only went once a year from the UK, if your going for more than 14 days sometimes it can work out better value, especially when room discounts are involved

 

[wdwever1]

my Family Buys Ap's And We Get 2 Trips A Year Out Of Them. We Stay 10 Days And The Ticket Totals Would Be Twice The Amount Of An Ap..plus You Get The Discounts That Go Along With The Ap.
even If We Do One Trip A Year Its Cheaper.

 

[Master Yoda]

We are Florida residents and AP holders who live about 2.5 hours away from WDW and we go around 10 to 12 times per year.

There are many reasons to have an AP besides park admission. We also get room discounts, previews of new attractions, special merchandise, store discounts etc. The room discount alone can sometimes pay for your AP on a single trip.

 

[mgraef]

I think a lot of AP users use them twice in a year - the first trip, then another about 11 months later so they only need to buy every third year.

That is the take I get from a long ways away.

mg

 

[KDM31091]

For some reason I pictured Florida residents with APs as going to the parks every Saturday or something.

 

[mousermerf]

I'm one of the few people who goes very frequently, and I'm paid to do so to gather research information for guidebooks.

 

[slappy magoo]

When my wife and I were still dating in 2004, we bought APs, and managed to get 3 trips in within the year, of 10 nights (August), 7 nights (Spring Break 05), and 10 nights in August of 05, followed by 3 nights in the Hilton Head SC resort (by the end of that trip we were not only DVC members, we were engaged). Our annual passes actually expired a few days before we left Orlando that last trip, but resort room prices are based on the day you check-in, so we had our room at the AP price, and then spent one day resting and one day at Uni before packing up to go to Hilton Head. Granted, we would've gone more had out schedules & budgets permitted it. But since my wife is a teacher (who also teaches summer school throughout July), we're limited as to when we can go. Also, even though we wouldn't have had to pay for entry into the parks, we just couldn't afford to pay for the airfare or gas to keep going, not to mention the cose of the rooms, even if we got an AP rate, even if we stayed offsite (!) We just opted to make the most of the trips we had.

 

[KDM31091]

I'm not talking about going as "vacation", but more like going for "day trips" -- I figured people with APs do it a lot.

 

[hokielutz]

I'm coming up to the end of my first year with an AP.

All total I will have taken 4 separate trips to Disney with this AP. May-06 for 4 days at parks, June-06 family trip for 7 days in the parks, Dec-06 for 5 days at parks, and finally one upcoming trip in May-07 for 8 days within the parks.

All total, that's 24 days of parkhopping & fun paradise. Plus throw in the fact that we saved over $500 from a 5 night discount at the AKL, $180 of free parking from offsite stays, at least $400 savings from the DDE card (which you cannot get unless you are an AP holder), and other shopping discounts.... you might say that the AP's paid for themselves over the year even if you exclude ever going to the parks. Pretty wild.

 

[hokielutz]

I'm coming up to the end of my first year with an AP.

All total I will have taken 4 separate trips to Disney with this AP. May-06 for 4 days at parks, June-06 family trip for 7 days in the parks, Dec-06 for 5 days at parks, and finally one upcoming trip in May-07 for 8 days within the parks.

All total, that's 24 days of parkhopping & fun paradise. Plus throw in the fact that we saved over $500 from a 5 night discount at the AKL, $180 of free parking from offsite stays, at least $400 savings from the DDE card (which you cannot get unless you are an AP holder), and other shopping discounts.... you might say that the AP's paid for themselves over the year even if you exclude ever going to the parks. Pretty wild.

Also, back on subject... this was only possible when we decided early last year that this would be the year to really go all out at Disney. So we planned a year's worth of trips that were based on work travel, family vacations, and intimate vacation time. Figured we would go and do enough to warrant an AP, so that's what we got. But I will say that we won't be getting a renewal. We just aren't at the point that we can do these trips every year all the time.
If only we lived closer...

 

[Master Yoda]

I'm not talking about going as "vacation", but more like going for "day trips" -- I figured people with APs do it a lot.

Even being a 2.5 hour 1 way drive we still manage to fit in a few day trips during the year. We did one just a couple of weeks ago for the AP preview of MILF and we will be doing one again in a few weeks so my wife and I can take our mothers to the F&G festival at Epcot.

At the distance we have to drive day trips can be a little taxing. We try to leave the house by 5:00 AM and are usually home around midnight to 1:00 AM.

 

[bladerunner]

We are in Miami, FL and have had PAP's for 4 years. We go about once every 6 weeks for a day or two and also spend about 1 week at the start of summer when we go to TL and BB and then half a week again at the water parks towards end of summer before school starts. Most of time we park hop and on the drive up decide what we all want to do. Many times we do a day trip leaving home early and getting back late at night.

 

[KnK]

We live in KY and have an AP pass, mind you only one. We only go once a year for 10 days. The discounts make it worth it!

 

[hrcollectibles]

If I purchase my annual pass (online) prior to booking can I get the annaual pass holder rate or do I have to activate the pass before doing so

 

[robhedin]

The wife and I live in Tampa, and generally go the parks about twice a month for the day; (just renewed our passes Saturday!)

We also average spending 3 weekends (friday - sunday) about once every 3 months (so far this year we've done this once in early March, once the week before last, and we check into OKW on the 27th).

We've generally alternated spending Independence Day at the parks with someplace else (like Washington DC), but if we do go, we're usually there for both July 3rd and 4th on property.

Since 1999, we always spend New Years Eve on property (this year from Dec 28th through Jan 1st)

We've stayed at most of the resorts (except the GF-- for some reason neither of us has any desire to stay there), and try to do the resort crawl during Christmas.

We have been known to leave work at 4pm and just head over for Dinner and Fireworks, although we tend to think the quality of the food has gone down and so don't do this as frequently.

Last year we took our first Disney cruise, and are contemplating doing another this year.

hmmmm.... haven't really *looked* at just how much time we spend at this pasttime.... wonder if there's a 12 step program or something....

rob.

 

[mkt]

There have been times that I've gone every day for a month, and times when I don't go for 2 months at a time.. sigh

 

[mousermerf]

KDM, you'll discover that most WDW AP-holders aren't really "locals" to WDW. Disneyland on the other hand has tons within a small radius and thus they commonly have daytrippers. Even with AP's, people commonly visit for a "vacation" style trip with an overnight stay.

The Orlando market isn't really chock full of APs. Typically, if you wanted to goto Disney and lived around there, you can find someone you know who can get you in for free. The market that is really find WDW's "locals" tends to be Tampa/St. Petersburg, because they're about an hour away.

 

[fillerup]

Very very local here, and probably the exception.

During F&W, F&G, Christmas, and summer concert series - we average 3 to 4 times per week.

The rest of the year, with the exception of late summer, we'll average once every 7 to 10 days.

So I'd estimate somewhere just shy of 100 times per year.

And no, it doesn't lose its magic for us, or become mundane.

 

[MattBoom]

I live just down the street from Downtown Disney and I go to the parks about twice a month with my annual pass, sometimes more, sometimes less.