Need advice re Huge Gold Annual Pass mistake

vwlfan

DIS Veteran
Joined
Aug 22, 2004
I got the Gold pass for my wife and me last year with our DVC discount and have already used it in two spurts last summer and this December. Then My number three daughter and family wanted to go this coming April and invited us. Who would say no? And besides I thought, we have Annual Passes.

Ah but I didn’t I realize until re two weeks ago that our chosen dates, chiseled in stone, are caught in the blackout dates. My bad, my foolishness. Sooooo we had to shell out an additional 1400 bucks for Park Hoppers.

now I am wondering if I should have upgraded the present Gold Passes to the next level???

And now This morning I began to wonder whether the blackout dates also negate our ability to use Memory Maker Without paying additional money. My guess is that we are ineligible for that too? I really like to use MM with the AP, especially when I am with two of our granddaughters.

i fear I am right re this.

any opinions are welcome please except offering assessments re my lack of attention to detail. I’m already beating myself up for that. Thanks.
 
now I am wondering if I should have upgraded the present Gold Passes to the next level???
I would say yes. If you paid $1,400 for two park hoppers (you and your wife) you could have upgraded each of your APs for nearly $200-250 a piece. The only issue is upgrades have to be done in person.

Since the tickets seem bought not sure what your options are.
My guess is that we are ineligible for that too?
Memory maker never blocks out. So it will work every day of the year no matter what AP level you have. They don’t get that technical with that aspect.
 


I would say yes. If you paid $1,400 for two park hoppers (you and your wife) you could have upgraded each of your APs for nearly $200-250 a piece. The only issue is upgrades have to be done in person.

Since the tickets seem bought not sure what your options are.

Memory maker never blocks out. So it will work every day of the year no matter what AP level you have. They don’t get that technical with that aspect.

huge help. Thanks.
 


Another note, if you upgrade your AP and still have your park hopper tickets attached to your account, make sure when you are there and scan into the park that it uses your AP and not the tickets. Guest services should be able to fix it if that does happen.

I had that happen once, and I had to call (after my trip when I noticed) to get it straightened out. It was a ticket without an expiration date, and I was waiting to use it for the next AP. I think the next trip I went, I assigned that ticket to my sister to make sure it wouldn’t use it instead of my AP. I then had issues re-assigning it to me when I wanted to use it, so I had to call and get that straightened out also...
 
Having those park hoppers in your account may work in your favor. You can only upgrade your AP in person, but those park hoppers in your account will allow you to make fastpasses. You cannot make fastpasses for blackout dates with the Gold. As others said, when you upgrade, make sure they prioritize the AP.
 
Upgrade!!!
@DebbieB nailed it.

Use those new tickets for fast passes. Then on Day 1 before doing anything, upgrade your APs.
I myself would then go into MDE and assign new park hoppers to "Person A", "Person B", "Person C" etc. that way there is no mistake as @MissLiss279 suggested.

Then, when the time comes, upgrade those park hoppers to your new APs (something they say can only be done in person, but it can be done over the phone - just might be a headache)

see a post of mine here regarding this
https://www.disboards.com/threads/g...ssie-or-just-dvc.3584578/page-2#post-57242651
Not a huge mistake, just a little boo boo :)
 
I had the same issue and they let me upgrade my passes to Platinum over the phone so that I could book Fast Passes.
 
Also, you do not need to change your PHs to other names - just stop by any ticket window or Guest Services before you first enter the park (on your first day) and make sure the AP is prioritized first before the other tickets. It'll be taken care of for the rest of your stay. That way you can make and keep your FP+.
 
Agreed on making sure you prioritize the tickets. We have had many issues with this, always keep notes now on when we go in and out. Disney will correct the mistakes but it is a huge hassle.
 
Agreed on making sure you prioritize the tickets. We have had many issues with this, always keep notes now on when we go in and out. Disney will correct the mistakes but it is a huge hassle.

it was that for sure but cannot complain re their professionalism and intent. How we came to that point is another story!

appreciate your interest.
 
Agreed on making sure you prioritize the tickets. We have had many issues with this, always keep notes now on when we go in and out. Disney will correct the mistakes but it is a huge hassle.
Even if they say they have prioritized, still keep an eye on your MDE account. They messed mine up, luckily I caught it before we left, so I could get it fixed in person.
 
Even if they say they have prioritized, still keep an eye on your MDE account. They messed mine up, luckily I caught it before we left, so I could get it fixed in person.

so far so good but I certainly will!
 
The easiest way to avoid any confusion is to set up a "phantom person" in your MDE account and assign all unused tickets/AP vouchers to that name. We used the names of my daughters' favorite toys when we stocked up on 10 AP vouchers (each name can only hold 5 vouchers).

When you are ready to use those tickets, reassign the tickets to you and your wife.
 
so far so good but I certainly will!

I'm not sure about the ticket window (maybe) but a guest services window can do a "test" entry on your admission media to verify which ticket is being used. Speaking from multiple experiences with this - and with several "complimentary" 1 day park hoppers to prove it - I strongly suggest taking the time to do that vs. the time consuming hassle and mess to do it later. They will set it right, but it's a huge pain. I wish they'd just add the logic to the system that redeems APs before most other tickets (there are some exceptions to this), but I bet they get rid of a lot of old non expiring Park Hoppers this way and thus are inclined to leave it as-is.
 

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