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DNS
06-11-2011, 07:41 PM
This is the first year we have ever bought tickets without getting the no expire option. We are tighter on money this year, so we decided to just buy the number of days we need and not get the 10 day with no expire. Since ticket prices are going up tomorrow, I hope to get quick responses to this question. We are not going until November. If I buy our 8 day tickets now, they will still be good in November, right? We will not use them at all until then. My understanding has been that there is no expire until you use them for the first time, then they expire 14 days later. Is that correct?
Thanks!!

merlinmagic4
06-11-2011, 08:24 PM
I believe that is correct. You can buy the tickets anytime and they are "activated" with the first use (whenever that is). Good luck!!

PAYROLL PRINCESS
06-11-2011, 09:23 PM
That's correct. And if you weren't going to use all 8 days, you could always add on the non-expiration option at that point if your finances allowed. Or even update to the 10 day and the non-expiration option to get the most bang for your buck. I think it's only $65 for non-expiration. So if you upgraded to 10 days it would probably only cost you about $70 total per tix.

CleveRocks
06-11-2011, 09:46 PM
That's correct. And if you weren't going to use all 8 days, you could always add on the non-expiration option at that point if your finances allowed. Or even update to the 10 day and the non-expiration option to get the most bang for your buck. I think it's only $65 for non-expiration. So if you upgraded to 10 days it would probably only cost you about $70 total per tix.

I strongly disagree with the above, and I'll explain why in detail.

Number one, adding the No Expiration option to a 10-day ticket costs $213. [When you buy the No Expiration option, it is priced based on the total size of the ticket, it is NOT priced based on how many days are leftover ... in other words, if you use up 8 days of a 10-day No Expiration ticket, you pay the No Expiration fee for a 10-day ticket, not for a 2-day ticket.]

There are only a few circumstances in which buying the No Expiration option gives you ANY bang for your buck. The most common of these circumstances is when your leftover tickets will provide 100% of your ticket needs for one or more future trips. If you have to buy any additional tickets as supplement for a future trip, then you literally wasted HUNDREDS of dollars. I'll give an example ...

Let's say you typically use 8 days of park tickets during each trip. So let's say you buy a 10-day No Expiration ticket, so you can save 2 days towards the next trip. If you need 8 park days for the next trip, and you already have 2 leftover, that means you need to buy a 6-day ticket, right? So let's look at the cost of that. At today's prices, a 10-day NE base ticket costs $475. And then the cost of a 6-day base ticket (what you'll need to buy for the next trip) costs $242. So $475 + $242 = $717. It will cost you $717 for those 16 park days if you buy the 10-day NE plus the 6-day base.

Now, let's look at buying what you need for each trip separately, WITHOUT buying the No Expiration option. An 8--day base ticket for this trip costs $252. And an 8-day base ticket for the next trip costs $252. So $252 + $252 = $504. It will cost you $504 for those same 16 park days if you DON'T buy the No Expiration option.

So I hope you can see what I mean. In the above scenario, buying the No Expiration option would cost you almost $200 MORE per adult, versus buying the ticket you need for this trip and then buying the ticket you need for the next trip.

It is wrong to think that No Expiration is always a good idea, as illustrated above. To blindly say it's always a good bang for your buck is to ignore the math, to ignore the reality of the situation.

The ONLY time No Expiration gives anyone a serious bang for their buck is in the case of someone who uses tickets 1 or 2 or 3 days at a time over the course of more than one year ... someone like THAT makes out like a bandit with No Expiration. But it has to be that type of situation, otherwise it can be a HUGE waste of money, such as in the scenario I wrote out above.

spoiledraf
06-12-2011, 08:42 AM
Excellent post! My daughter almost made that mistake.

DNS
06-12-2011, 12:07 PM
Thanks everyone! I got our tickets as well as our Christmas Party tickets! I feel so ready now! I didn't know you could upgrade after starting to use your tickets. Very nice to know. I'm a numbers cruncher, so I would definitely figure out every detail before going that route.
Thanks again!:mickey:

PAYROLL PRINCESS
06-12-2011, 05:32 PM
My apologies on my misinformation. I was quoting the park hopping option, not the non-expiration amount. thanks for catching my mistake CleveRocks and saving someone from making a big mistake! Shame on me!