Are annual Disney World passes worth the money?

Question

We live in Mississippi and at any given time of the year we take a trip to the wonderful World of Disney. We love it there. I suppose the most we have gone in a year is three times. Does anyone out there live out of the state of Florida and have an annual pass? Would you recommend one? Thanks

Answer 1

No but check out the Orlando Universal Studios site, they have much better prices for the family........... but one get one free plus two extra days for $50 the last time I looked.......... And I'm sure the family would appreciate the change of scenery........ it's waaaaaaaay updated as far as the characters............

Answer 2

I live in Utah but travel to Florida 2-3 time a year. I've been doing the same research. A daily park pass (not a park hopper) is $60. A 1 day park hopper pass is $109 with tax. Now, the annual pass also works as a park hopper. So let's just assume that you have a family of 4 and each of you were to buy park hoppers for a few days on one vacation. Your ticket cost alone would come to about $400 a person for about 4 days at Disney.
So my advice is that if you plan on going to Disney World and visiting the parks for more than 4 days, it would be worth it.
Otherwise, I would recommend getting discounted tickets through AAA or your local Disney Store.

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Answer 3

Annual Passes used to be a bargain. We lived in the UK and would go 4 or 5 times a year.

The new ticketing system encourages you to spend your entire vacation at Disney, which isn't a bad thing if you make multiple visits.

Best bet: spend an entire vacation taking in everything Disney has to offer (10 day pass with water parks and Disney quest - forget the park-hopping and save your money). Next vacation buy an annual pass to Universal and one for Sea World if it takes your fancy.

Universal Tip: even if you will never go during peak season and want to buy the cheaper annual passes, have the driver buy the full annual pass as you get free parking and 20% merchandise.

Sea World Tip: Free beer in the tasting hall !!!!!

Finally, find someone with a Florida address and apply for a Florida Driving Licence. You can then get a Florida Residents Annual Pass saving loads.

Answer 4

APs used to be a good value if you made quite a few trips to Disney, but since they lowered the prices so much on regular tickets, I don't think they have the same value. But, it really depends on your situation. You also have the benefit of getting an AP discount, but, you aren't guarenteed they will have one and you usually have a limited amount of options and time to decide. Plus, Disney has been giving such good promotions lately, that the AP discount isn't always better.

I go to Disney quite often. Sometimes once a month, sometimes more often, and sometimes a little less and I've never purchased an AP. I prefer going with the package from Disney with my tickets and either the standard, premium or platinum plan added on. But again, it really depends on you and your personal needs. It used to be if you visit more than a few times it is worth it, but I think it is around 12 days or something now before you come out ahead. In my opinion, there are other things to consider though to see if it is worth the cost to you.

Answer 5

Most of these answers refer to how many times you go to Disney - you really need to consider how many DAYS you will spend in the PARKS in a year. If you go 3 times a year and spend a day or two in the parks - not worth it. But if you go 3 times a year and spend 3/4 days IN THE PARKS each time-it is worth it. TIcket prices just went up too. Oh, I believe with the annual pass you are eligible to buy a meal discount voucher that gets you like 20% off all restaurant purchases - including alchohol (This is NOT the new "meal plan" it is something for AP holders only). If it is still available, it is a huge savings to factor in.

Answer 6

If you truly go there three times a year, then go for it. Any less than that and you probably just barely break even. You do also get perks like 10% off dining. If I moved back to Orlando, and I wasn't working for Disney, I would absolutely have an annual pass. However, I make it there only about once a year now.

Answer 7

I think if you're going to spend more than 10 days in the parks during the course of 1 year, then it's cost effective to go ahead and get the annual pass. Check out http://www.mousesavers.com/ for ways to save money at Disney World.

Answer 8

I don't know about Orlando but in California, the passes are 500.00 per year (this is with the free parking), with the current price of daily admission @ above 50.00, you would have to go 10 times a year to make it worth while, we lived 10 minutes away so literally took the kids there every Friday for dinner and ride a few rides. This worked out to us going @ least 75 times last year and was well worth the money. Just do the calculations as for the average that you go for the last 4 years and see if it is going to be worth it

Answer 9

I live in Central Florida and the annual pass isn't even worth it unless you visit at least 6 times a year; now a seasonal could be worth it if you come down for like a vacation or two.

Answer 10

Like the other answers, it clearly depends on how frequently you go, and how many days you spend at the parks. The other option is purchasing a no expiration 10 day ticket -- which would be good for multiple years.

Answer 11

annual passes are more for orlando/tampa area locals who can go on a wim, the point of them is to be able to go to disney for a few hours if you please one afternoon without having to pay full days admission, if you're only going to use it 2-3 times a year, definately not worth the price.