Personal Reasons to get Annual Passes

[DisneyonaDime]

What is your reason for getting an Annual Pass? What are the benefits that you have personally experienced?

To start off this thread, I have a couple:

1-Last year my family went to Disney World for 39 days!! We milked those passes for all that they were worth. It's hard to calculate exactly how much that saved us in tickets but it is roughly over $6,000 for our family.

2-One of the biggest benefits to us is that you do not have to count days. If we arrive to Orlando in the afternoon, we can pop into Magic Kingdom and see the fireworks without having to "spend" a day from our days allotted on a regular pass. This also helps us to slow down and enjoy the parks. We know we will get our money's worth over the course of the year, so we don't need to count the minutes and seconds that we are in the parks. When we bought regular passes, we were there when it opened and we were one of the last cars out of the parking lot at night. It was great, but exhausting.

Anyway, share your personal examples of why an Annual Pass works for you. It could be a money-saving angle, a time-saving issue, or whatever you want to share.

[Lou Mongello]

Here's a couple more for me:

I know I will be there more than 7 days in a year, so they AP saves over buying park-hopping tickets for those days right off the bat.

Also, the savings I get on resort accomodations and in some DTD locations make it clearly worthwhile

[Jiminy Cricket]

If you are a pin collector there are "AP only" issues which are collectable in their own right. There are also special clothing items available to APs to express their uniqueness so to speak.

We have decided to buy APs because of all the reasons previously stated, especially the one where we can come and go to any park at anytime.

[MommytoMJM]

We go every weekend.....

We were planning seasonal passes, but figured that after 37 trips the parking would have been more than if we just bought the regular AP's

It is one place where my disabled daughter and I (also disabled) can feel almost 'normal' (they really go out of their way to treat us special and help us to be able to do almost everything)

Since we take food and have parking, gas is our only expense

[disneydreamer98]

Now that they offer the Disney Dining Experience card to AP holders you get 20% off of most sit down meals (including character meals which we usually do one a day!) so it will give us a huge savings! Not to mention the money we will save buying most of our souveniers at World of Disney with our AP discount! We also booked the Family Magic Tour and received a discount because of our AP! Gotta love the extra benefits!

[mickaholic4077]

I have the AP for all the above reasons. I love taking my time at Disney,because I know I can go back next week and see something that I didn't see this week.

[shadesofgreen]

We go to WDW almost every week! I work concierge/guest services and the AP is essential to my job since I don't work for Disney anymore and don't have my maingate pass (BEST benefit ever!). I have personally kid and adult tested and approved every single ride, parade, show, and display at all 4 parks, the waterparks, and Disneyquest multiple times over 12 years. I can tell my guests anything they need to know down to the details. My kids have been to Disney so much that you would think their last name is Disney because it is written on almost all of their clothes. That kind of fun would be impossible without our APs and if everyone didn't get one for Christmas, my family would probably think I came out of a pod, tie me up and start searching for their real dad.

[MandaBella]

DVC made us an offer that was hard to refuse...

[shadesofgreen]

DVC made us an offer that was hard to refuse...

I have to keep my wife far away from all DVC sales locations!

[DissyLove]

My reason....

An excuse to visit WDW more often!

And I love the disney resorts, so when I can get a bit off the rates, awesome!

[flutter]

My reason....

An excuse to visit WDW more often!

And I love the disney resorts, so when I can get a bit off the rates, awesome!

Amen!!

[MandaBella]

I have to keep my wife far away from all DVC sales locations!

You know you want to. You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile.

one of us one of us one of us one of us one of us

[MickeyBabe]

You know you want to. You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile.

one of us one of us one of us one of us one of us

Must buy more points... more points... more points....

[MainStreet, USA]

I have a season pass right now... won it from my mom in a bet. got that one because it was only a smidgen over $200 for FL residents, and a good $120 or so cheaper than an AP. But now that I see how much I go (approximately once every 2 weeks is the average... I've already been four times since the end of August), paying $8 to park each time, I'm pretty certain I'm going AP come January and this thing tries to expire on me. Even though I'll be paying for the next one on my own.


Another reason to be a passholder... pleasant suprises! I went to EPCOT last spring hearing about a Soarin' preview weekend, and was disappointed to see them turning people away at the entrance to the Land. I went up to ask questions, and the CMs there told me they were only allowing AP, SP, and DVC folks preview. Well lucky for me, I was a SP holder, and they let me and the rest of my party walk right on. I love suprises!

[Hagar55]

We are going in December, I bought one AP so far to get the discount on the the hotel, staying at the Poly and booked 2 rooms on it so it saved me lost of $$$. My question is, should I buy AP's for my wife, 4 year old son, and the grandparents, or should I buy 8 day park hopper passes? We are planning on going back next year before the one pass I did buy expires. I have been going back and fourth on buying the AP or just park hopper passes. The way I see it, the few dollars we'll save from buying AP's for everyone only pays off if we deffinately go back within the year. We most likely will since we went last November and are planning on going again. What do you think?