As a new member of the "I live in state" club, I am trying to figure out what is the most economical thing to do regarding annual passes. I am a DVC Member as well, so I am wondering if it is better to buy using the DVC discount, or if it is better to go with the in-state pass. My understanding is that the in-state has some black out periods and other restrictions. Ideally, we don't want to have restrictions because friends who come in from out of town will likely come during the holidays when the black outs are imposed.

What are your experiences and recommendations? Also, is the Disney / Universal dual pass a good deal? Thanks in advance for your help.

Jim, welcome to the "I live in the State" club

I used to get the best deals with the Florida discounts. DVC or AAA deals may be decent on certain things, but I believe that the Florida discount is the best from my experience.

I don't know anything about the 'dual-pass'. Where did you see that option?

Arny,

I have not found a dual pass yet online. I was told by someone that there was, but I don't know with certainty that there is. They may have been referring to a park pass that also included the water parks and just confused it. I don't know for certain. This is all new to me at this point, so I am just searching out information. I haven't even found out what each pass is in terms of cost. Is there a site that lists that besides going onto go.disney.com? I don't know that it was very good at explaining the different pass options, you just had to trial and error punch different choices in there and see what number it spit out.

My husband and I started off with a annual seasonal pass, but found it was better to purchase the premium annual. The premium annual includes the water parks and we definitely have been going more than 6 times a year which end up making the pass worth it. I wish it included the special events as well though.

also for those asking about the passes that include both WDW and DL, they are available through guest services. They are a little under $800 for the year but you get all of the perks we get here at both places, free parking, hotels/restaurant discounts...etc. I just so happened to find out about that one last week.

Hope this helps

Alright, as I have been here a little over a year and have renewed, here are my thoughts. The Premium annual pass is worth the extra money for 4 reasons. The 2 water parks, Disney Quest (I have a 7 1/2 y/o son) and you get a 20% discount on any merchandise you purchase in the parks or downtown.

As far as a Universal / Disney pass, there is none. I think what you are hearing about is the Orlando Fun pass or something like that. It covers Sea World, Universal and Busch Gardens. I have not been to Universal yet since we moved here. We are going at the end of the school year for my son's end of year reward. Busch Gardens is better in Williamsburg. Sea World is fun, but I can't do it more than once in a year.

There are many different Disney Passes, we aren't DVC, but figured out that if you go once a week for a year, it costs a little over $9 a day, which isn't that bad. There is a pass that is a lot cheaper but as you stated does have black out days. The regular annual pass doesn't get you into the water parks ($45 per adult I think) or Quest which is about the same, and you only get a 10% discount.

I hope this all helps. Let us know what you decide.