AAA membership for Travel
 

I looked up some rates to Universal in Florida on the AAA website. Do you have to belong to AAA to book a package with them. Do you know how much a membership is?

On their website (a good place for you to check) it says:

"Primary membership costs $58, but that includes a $10 enrollment fee. Annual renewal is then only $48. You can add Associate members for an annual membership rate of $25."

Do you own a car? Do you have road side assistance for the car? If not, this is a good option.

From (unfortunate) personal experience, I can attest to the value of AAA membership when it comes to roadside service!

Howard, please tell us more!

There is no way I could ever physically change a tire by myself so that is the primary reason I started AAA. Was the service good?

I have AAA and although I haven't (luckily) needed the roadside assistance, I do use it for other discounts. A girlfriend of mine did use it for her Disney trip and she was very satisfied.

I had a car for only one year, and managed to blow a tire. They came, switched to a temp, and hauled me to the nearest place to get a perm tire.

Their Maps, Tour Books, Camp Books and the "Show Your Card and Save" program is worth the price alone. In all the years I have been a member I have only used their road service two or three times.

That's comforting to know, Faina. I'd forgotten about the Triptiks and maps! Yes, definitely worth the money.

I've used them for roadside and never had a problem. The one thing to remember though, in case of towing, that they will only tow so many miles under the "free service" and it's expensive if you go past that mile - the best bet is to tow to the closest service station and then have your usual garage arrange to get the car to their station.

I have ordered TONS of guidebooks and maps, etc. Definitely worth the cost of the membership just for that.

I've also used their discounts, but have found them to be hit or miss. I do believe they are making an effort to improve that as they have done several online surveys asking about their services and benefits.

Since I drive as part of my job, I have used AAA many times for lock-outs, flat tires and towing. Check and see but with a regular membership, I think the free towing is only 7 miles. I pay to have up to 100 miles because I am usually far from home.

Many hotels have good AAA discounts and of course you can get maps, tour books, etc for free. I also use them to do DMV work. When I need the tags for my car or when I have a transaction such as buying a used car, it is quick and easy and certainly a whole lot better going to the DMV.

It's been well worth the membership fees for me.

Even if I only use it for occasional hotel discounts.

I just got a $40 per night discount at the OTA hotel in New York City two weeks ago. three nights saved me $120. It was the first time ever that I actually had to show the AAA card, and since I din't have it (who drives in NYC?) I had to have AAA fax copy to the hotel!

Also had them gome and jump start my car in Honolulu twice so far this year.

Excellent value for my money. I've never booked a vacation with them though...usually can save more doing it direct with the hotels/car rentals, etc and using either AAA or Costco discounts.

AAA membership is the best spent money you'll ever do. And if you have kids, get a family membership for not much/child (if they have cars--and who doesn't these days).

Having lived in Houston TX, where there are laws about breaking down on the road - should make one hesitate about NOT having towing insurance such as AAA.

One tow can cost you about $85 or more depending on where you have to go. For a family, that amount of money you would pay for membership.

If you travel alot by car, consider it an added ASSURANCE to have a AAA membership that would help you should you get stuck on the road.

I personally have the Elite membership (unlimited towing miles). One LONG tow would have paid for your membership. My husband travels alot, and could get stuck in Nowhere Land - its worth it to be safe than sorry. Good thing to is you can use your membership in any vehicle your drive.

Nothing worse than having to sit on the side of the road waiting for help - and then paying outta the nose for a tow, and about getting a tire changed (what person would drive without a spare???)

Thanks!

I always ask for AAA rates at hotels and when offered they are almost always the best available rates to be had.

I believe you do need a card number to purchase discount tickets through their website.

I have also used their roadside assistance. It's a great things to have.

If you drive a late model car, emergency roadside assistance is include in the waranty. If you (or your spouse) are 49.5 or older, AARP has similar discounts at a much lower annual fee.

Keith

I find the travel books to be very valuable and on my last trip, I used AAA to have a tire changed. Since I had AAA, i declined the roadside assistance from the rental company. The service was promt and professional.

I do find, however, that internet rates for rooms are ususally as good or better than the AAA rate

Another valuable attribute of a AAA membership is that you don't have to be in your own car to make use of the roadside assistance. I've used it twice now as a passenger in a car that broke down.

The maps and travel guides are great as are the discounts.

Faux - To answer your question - one of our vehicles doesn't have a spare. The vehicle was stolen a few years back and although we got it back, the spare was one of the things that was missing. We've never replaced it - just one of those things that probably should be done, but never does. We blew a tire one day - called AAA and got towed to the nearest tire place, got a new tire and were on our way. No fuss, no muss.

I agree that the towing is well worth the price. I was added to my parents' membership while I was in college.

On the way home from a weekend in Toronto, my car died near London, Ontario. With the 100-mile towing allowance, I was able to get my car to a garage in the US with 4 miles to spare. The only cost for me was dinner for the friend who came to pick me up (and his date who was none too happy about having dinner interrupted for a two-hour car ride).

I also understand that if your problem is a dead battery, they'll have a new one on the truck and install it if needed.

To elaborate:
AAA's roadside assistance program is great. On several car-trouble occasions--everything from a dead battery to a dead car--the service stations on its list have been wonderful...., responsive, friendly, efficient and knowledgeable. And, once the service is complete, they call to make sure you were satisfied with the service.
I believe they tow for up to five miles for free.

I guess I'll be the lone, dissenting vote.

The only time I called AAA for service was a number of years ago when my wife got stuck in the snow.

Naturally, there were lots of other calls that day because of the weather. When you are AAA, that's like saying HMO. The business (in this case, garage or towing co.) has reluctantly signed up because too many people in their market have AAA to not sign up. However, if it's a busy day, they will provide service to all their full-paying customers first, and the poor AAA member, for which they get paid some lowball negotiated amount, gets serviced last.

In my wife's case, it was several hours.

I've had nothing but good experience with tow truck drivers called through AAA - even during storms when the drivers are very busy. Hopfully Barry's wife's experience was a fluke.

I met someone who had a bad experience with AAA in the snow.

We made it through a bitter storm night at Donner Pass on the way to Tahoe. I went to have the car washed next morning and saw a new Mercedes thoroughly wrecked on one side.

Turned out it belonged to the car-wash owner. He called AAA that night when he got stuck. The truck wasn’t able to stop and plowed into the side of his car. The Mercedes owner was outside of the car and watched with horror.

The rescue driver panicked and put the truck in reverse then backed into the driver sending him off a cliff.

There was a very important looking man there with him that morning. Not sure if it was his doctor or his attorney.

Ps - I have AAA and love it.

I think AAA is worth it. I purchase the PLUS version for myself, the wife & kids, 1 who is away at college, & I will be purchasing a membership for my 16 yr old who will have his license within 6 mnts. Having used it many times, it gives us parents some peace of mind when the kids are driving. I have used the towing service a number of times. Being in the Chicago area, having the 100 mile radius tow has been well worth it, to get the car to the garage that is convenient for me & at a garage I trust. Another use, especially in Illinois, if you get stopped & ticketed for a traffic violation, you must hand over your drivers license as a bond. But if you have your AAA card, you can use that for a bond card & keep your license in your possesion.

The tow truck story has nothing to do with AAA. It has to do with the tow truck company.

And yes, I have had to wait on busy days. Let's see, who you gonna call that will come sooner? Have at it.
The plus membership gets you 125 miles of towing. We've used it!!

>>I met someone who had a bad experience with AAA in the snow.<<

At one or another everyone has, even tow truck drivers.

Barry - why do you think service station/tow company gets less for AAA customers - I do not think that is the case. And it is also a way for the service facility to gain new customers. Your car is broken, towed to their place - where are you likely to get it fixed?

A little known fact is that if you call a AAA facility directly (not via the AAA 800 number) they will often come, still under the AAA membership. This is useful info to know in your home area - like when you are trying to get to work and have a flat in your driveway.

Gail - Two reasons:
1. That's how businesses work - negotiated volume discounts.

2. A service station owner acquaintance told me so. They look at it as a loss leader for any repair work gotten, but during a busy time (usually weather related) priority goes to full-paying customers.

What Barry said. They are hired on a contract basis, not per call.

Ok, my 2 cents worth.

Today, I drove into Durango [50 miles away] to do some errands.

Got in the car and tried to start it - absolute silence! Not even a click when I turned the key.

Oh, did I mention my AAA expired on 10/31??

I called my DH who was at home - he went online and renewed the membership. I then called AAA and in less than an hour the AAA truck was there and was ready to tow my car to a mechanic. The young man said that maybe it needed a jump. He said sometimes some newer high end cars won't even try to turn over if the battery is dead - some sort of safety thing.

So before he hauled it up on the flatbed, he jumped the car and sure enough it started right up!

That nice young man saved my a lot of $$ that I would have had to pay the mechanic to look and see what was wrong.

Money well spent.

Debi