[nancyk]

When we looked at the cost of our December trip & broke it down, we noticed that it would be cheaper for us to buy an AP than get MYW tickets. We need 14 days of park tickets which would be a 10-day pass plus a 4 day pass. This totals 579.00 ; An AP is only 559.00 ... So it's actually cheaper for us to buy a pass for the WHOLE year!

Can anyone tell me if we can still book a room & dining plan together?
If this is allowed, & a better room rate becomes available for AP holders, will we be allowed to use them for the room discount?

Can my travel agent buy the AP's for us when he books the room & dining plan?

[LAURENGOLD]

Trust me, it won't be cheaper in the long run......they just burn a hole in your pocket....that itch to go back gets stronger and stronger by knowing you already have the passes!!! LOL, I'm totally kidding, we've had them for a few years now.

Anyways- With a room only reservation (or with an AP discount) you won't be able to book a dining plan. The dining plan is only for MYW packages or DVC members (or renters) staying on DVC points.


You could book the MYW with dining plan and buy the 1 day park pass. When you get to WDW you can then upgrade your tickets (they'll credit you the 1 day cost) to the AP.

[leslieh]

Last Christmas week, we checked in on December 22nd and got an AP rate of $53 per night for the length of our stay at Pop! AP rates don't come out this early for December, though. The AP rate prevents you from buying the DP- you have to pay "rack rate" to buy the DP. You need to run the numbers when the AP rates come out. For some people, the DP isn't a good deal if their room discount is good.

[Dana]

You can get the dining and all that, but you have to book a package and a MYW ticket for everyone in your party. that MYW ticket can be used to go toward your AP's or next year's AP's. You must book a package unless you are renting points and staying at a DVC place...you can buy the dining that way.

[nancyk]

OK, so just making sure I've got it correct.
I book the whole stay.. (maximum number of nights they will allow is for 14 nights) with the dining plan and also book a one day MYW ticket so the package is complete.
Then when I get there, I can upgrade to an AP. Can I do this at check-in?
If this is so easy, why aren't more people who go for longer stays doing this??(like those coming from England who may do 2-3 weeks at a time)

[tinkerbelle24]

For the AP"s when do you find out what kind of discount you can have for a room? Im interested in the AP's aas well but never really understood what you rec when you buy one.

[nancyk]

I think you just need to wait & see if a "room discount" comes out. It seems there are only certain times when there are room discounts. We only are going the AP route because it it cheaper for this one trip. Now we have been talikng about taking my DBF's mom at some point as well, so maybe this year we'll go twice!

[missy H]

Originally Posted by nancyk

OK, so just making sure I've got it correct.
I book the whole stay.. (maximum number of nights they will allow is for 14 nights) with the dining plan and also book a one day MYW ticket so the package is complete.
Then when I get there, I can upgrade to an AP. Can I do this at check-in?
If this is so easy, why aren't more people who go for longer stays doing this??(like those coming from England who may do 2-3 weeks at a time)

Coming from the UK we can get a 21 day ticket (park hopper and more) for about £200 ($400) As most of us don't come more than once a year the AP isn't worth it! We can get the Dining plan by getting the tickets and room package much the same as in the us but we have 5, 7, 14 or 21 day tickets.

[cinderbella]

Buying the AP was a money saver and a money burner all in one!
We bought it for a 10 day trip and got a room discount..I think it was POP for about $400 for 9 nights...in June! It was SUCH a money saver...we also bought the Disney Dining Experience Card (this was pre-dining plan days) and saved bundles on food too..It was great--that trip!
but then..we kept getting these e-mails..$79 at POR, $53 a POP....and we kept going back..therefore spending all the money we saved in the first place....but hey....we were at Disney!
We elected NOT to renew or passes the next year for fear of bankruptcy.

[nancyk]

Originally Posted by LAURENGOLD

You could book the MYW with dining plan and buy the 1 day park pass. When you get to WDW you can then upgrade your tickets (they'll credit you the 1 day cost) to the AP.

OK, Sorry for putting out all of these senarios, but I really want to maker sure I've got all of my options straight.
What if I book, (through my travel agent), the 14 nights, with a 10-day MYW pass, with the dining plan.... then when I get there, I ask to upgrade to an AP upon check-in?
#1 Will they credit me the cost of my 3 MYW tickets towards the 3 AP's?
#2 Will they tell me that I can no longer have the dining plan?
#3 Will I be able to get a discount applied to the room (if one comes up) even though I don't yet have an AP in my hands?

Thanks in advance guys!!

Just a note: The reason that I was thinking about booking a 10 day pass from home is so that my travel agent can get at least some the commission. He's a really nice guy, & I feel like I'm taking away some of his income if I start doing too much loop-holing.

[dixie]

I agree with you Cinderbella the room discounts alone more than pay for the AP we wouldnt be without ours- but then as most of you know we always do a 21 to 28 days stay so the discount is massive. Plus we like all the shopping and dining discounts that are bundled into it. We also work our yearly holiday out so that each annual pass does two vacations before it needs renewing so a park hopper ticket just wouldnt work out for us at all.

[dixie]

Another thing Mousektrips books our vacation as per normal Disney room price then when they release the AP discounts he just gets Disney to apply the new discounted rate to our reservation- the discounts usually get released a month or two months before-and for us they have always been substantial reductions on the room which in itself pays for the AP's.

[LAURENGOLD]

Originally Posted by nancyk

OK, Sorry for putting out all of these senarios, but I really want to maker sure I've got all of my options straight.
What if I book, (through my travel agent), the 14 nights, with a 10-day MYW pass, with the dining plan.... then when I get there, I ask to upgrade to an AP upon check-in?
#1 Will they credit me the cost of my 3 MYW tickets towards the 3 AP's?
#2 Will they tell me that I can no longer have the dining plan?
#3 Will I be able to get a discount applied to the room (if one comes up) even though I don't yet have an AP in my hands?

Thanks in advance guys!!

Just a note: The reason that I was thinking about booking a 10 day pass from home is so that my travel agent can get at least some the commission. He's a really nice guy, & I feel like I'm taking away some of his income if I start doing too much loop-holing.

Question #1-Yes. We did this last year.
Question #2-No.
Question #3-You cannot use an AP discount and free dining. WDW will only let you use 1 discount at a time. If you are looking at booking future stays with the AP, they will let you book without it in hand. If you have a code, just apply it. If they ask (they most likely won't) tell them you are purchasing when you arrive. They may ask for it at check in. When you check in for free dining, they will give you your 1 day. You'll need to upgrade at guest services, at any of the theme parks, or DTD. As of August, you weren't able to do this at the resorts.

Hope this helps!

[lhraz]

You can add dining plan with room only reservations. Just tell them when you call. I stayed at Contemporary with AP discount last April, and asked about dining. They charge 35.99/adult and 11.99/child per day. AP break even point is more than 9 days so we usually go August one year and then July next, plus one in Spring if possible!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[lhraz]

You can add dining plan with room only reservations. Just tell them when you call. I stayed at Contemporary with AP discount last April, and asked about dining. They charge 35.99/adult and 11.99/child per day. AP break even point is more than 9 days so we usually go August one year and then July next, plus one in Spring if possible!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!