Hi Richard!
Welcome to planDisney! May I be one of the first to say
Welcome Home!
Let me start by saying that you did not make a terrible mistake. My husband and I just became part of the Disney Vacation Club (DVC) family in 2019 and we had a similar momentary regret. We did not purchase our Annual Passes right away and there was a price increase. That regret faded, however, when we realized that even with the price increase, we were still saving money with the
Benefits of Being Annual Passholders.
The good news is this is a new year and hope is on the horizon. Keep an eye on the
Annual Pass Options, be sure that your DVC membership is attached to your
My Disney Experience profile, and check to make sure you are officially logged in when reviewing Annual Pass options. Your DVC membership has to be linked for you to see any applicable discounts. When we first became members, I had to log in repeatedly to make sure our DVC membership was actually appearing in my profile in My Disney Experience.
If new Annual Passes are not on sale prior to your trip, you may need to purchase theme park tickets, especially since you will need to make
Disney Park Pass system reservations prior. In the past guests have been able to upgrade theme park tickets to an Annual Pass if there was value remaining on those tickets. The Cast Member I spoke with today was not sure if they will still be allowed to make those upgrades in the future, so I cannot guarantee that it will be possible. Having said that, Cast Members do their best to work some magic! If you do have to purchase those tickets before the sale of new Annual Passes resumes, I recommend contacting the Walt Disney World Resort at 407-566-4985 or stopping by
Guest Relations when you arrive.
Richard, with that said, hang on to the fact that you are now part of the DVC family for many years and the benefits are priceless! For now, also keep an eye on the
Disney Parks Blog for additional updates. Sending some New Year's pixie dust hoping that you will be able to purchase those Annual Passes in time!
Magic and memories,
Donyell