Favorite Senior Discounts?

[Senator]

I realize not many here are seniors (in your own mind), but there might be some establishments that think so. As I am nearing 55 (November 2014), I always look for ways to save money, especially ones over and above any sales and rebates.

Some places openly advertise senior rebates. Some start at 55, some at 60. I know there are a lot of unadvertised senior discounts out there.

All these discounts add up and make life easier. Here are a few of my favorite ones, just for being me. They are not all senior discounts, but I am looking to add more to my list.

I am a disabled veteran, so I get 10% off at Home Depot and Lowes.

Free dinner at Applebee’s on Veteran’s Day.

Lots of AARP discounts, especially on travel related items. I just booked a hotel on Marco Island and saved a bunch with that discount.

I even get a 15% discount off the total bill at Outback Steak House for AARP, no matter what day it is.

What are some of your most used senior discounts (or other discounts) when going about your day to day routine?

 

[REWahoo]

The USAA Subscriber Savings Account "Senior Bonus." I've averaged $850/yr for the past three years.

 

[Meadbh]

Shopper's Drug Mart (up here in the frozen North where it is currently plus 36 degrees Centigrade, or 97 degrees Fahrenheit) has a Seniors Day' once a month, when everything (except prescription drugs) is 20% off. You only have to be 55 to qualify. I usually shop that day to stock up on household items, e.g. toilet paper.

 

[M Paquette]

Half off on the ferry to and from the ballpark on game days.

 

[Amethyst]

Ours is not an old-friendly area. Most of the senior discounts round here are for chain restaurant food we don't eat, or services which send out mailers offering the exact same "discount" to everybody (usually 10%).

The best one is the public library - half the fine for people over 62. We've been using Mr. A.'s library card for everything, since I don't yet qualify. With the regular fine for late DVDs at $1.00 a day, the "discount" can really add up.

Amethyst

 

[ERhoosier]

The USAA Subscriber Savings Account "Senior Bonus." I've averaged $850/yr for the past three years.

Ain't that for many years of USAA membership rather than "senior" age level?

Back on OT-
I've discovered some sweet senior rates at certain local golf courses.

 

[jkern]

Weekday golf!

 

[REWahoo]

Ain't that for many years of USAA membership rather than "senior" age level?

Yep. But good luck in making the numbers work to get it before you hit 60. You have to be a USAA member for 40 years to be eligible for it beginning the end of the following year.

 

[rodi]

My favorite is national park entry. We're planning a trip to Sequoia/Kings canyon next month and DH's "maturity" will get our entire care in for less $. Woo hoo.

 

[athena53]

I'm only 61, so don't qualify for a lot of them, and have found that AAA membership gets you the same discounts at most hotels. I still have a hangup with senior discounts- partly because I hate acknowledging that I'm that old and partly because I don't feel that I should be rewarded just for longevity.

I do, however, plan to make full use of the significant discount on credit courses at the local community college. Too bad the discount doesn't apply to books!

 

[gerntz]

I fail to understand why wealthy 60+ folks should get a discount on anything that a 30-35 yrs old headed family of 4 scraping by doesn't. Wrong to me.

 

[Walt34]

... and partly because I don't feel that I should be rewarded just for longevity.

I don't either, but that doesn't stop me from taking it.

I do, however, plan to make full use of the significant discount on credit courses at the local community college. Too bad the discount doesn't apply to books!

Amazon.com got their start selling books. What got me started buying from Amazon was college textbooks. At the time about 1/2 the price of the college bookstore.

I fail to understand why wealthy 60+ folks should get a discount on anything that a 30-35 yrs old headed family of 4 scraping by doesn't. Wrong to me.

Illogical to me too. But not so much that it stops me from accepting the discount that the seller decides to offer.

 

[razztazz]

I fail to understand why wealthy 60+ folks should get a discount on anything that a 30-35 yrs old headed family of 4 scraping by doesn't. Wrong to me.

Thanks for saying that. I've been holding my tongue. I am only 57 so I am eligible for some senior discounts but probably not for most. I never look for them or ask about them. And it never occurs to me. Also, I am retired from 20 yrs in the Air Force and have never taken advantage of a veteran's or military related discount and it never occurs to me. I do however, lose respect for those geezers I see wearing their USS Chugalugg or similar baseball caps crowding into a restaurant or other establishment for free or cheap chow or whatever it is.

I think it's disgraceful behavior. That mentality and self aggrandizing identity has kept me out of NCO clubs and away from base establishments for 18 yrs. (Actually it kept me away from NCO clubs for 20 yrs before that except when it was mandatory.)

 

[kypix]

Early 50's here so not qualified for too many.

But - I am prematurely distinguished. Hair turned white when I was in my 40's. First time a cashier gave me a senior discount at a restaurant I didn't whether to be happy or ticked off. The very next day I went to an RV show. Attendant gave me 2 tickets and told me seniors get in both days for price of one. That was a rough week.

I don't ask, but I don't refuse the discount either.

kypix

 

[Derslickmeister]

I fail to understand why wealthy 60+ folks should get a discount on anything that a 30-35 yrs old headed family of 4 scraping by doesn't. Wrong to me.

+1 used to wonder that myself when I was 30-35. Also used to say SS could keep every penny I paid in if they would just let me keep my money from that point on. Amazing how your outlook changes when you start getting "up there" though.

 

[Chuckanut]

I fail to understand why wealthy 60+ folks should get a discount on anything that a 30-35 yrs old headed family of 4 scraping by doesn't. Wrong to me.

+1

I have to agree. Why should a 67 year old couple that owns a 26 foot motor home pay cheaper national park fees than a 40 year old couple tent camping with kids?

Of course, having watched others get these discounts for nearly 40 years makes me think that giving them up immediately would be poor timing on my part.

Back to the topic, I have enjoyed getting senior discounts at theater, museums and some restaurants. I have even been discounted when traveling abroad.

 

[Meadbh]

In Ireland, permanent residents 66 and older have free travel.

Free Travel in Ireland

 

[REWahoo]

I do however, lose respect for those geezers I see wearing their USS Chugalugg or similar baseball caps crowding into a restaurant or other establishment for free or cheap chow or whatever it is.

I think it's disgraceful behavior.

You're blaming the victim here.

Instead of looking down on the unsuspecting vets who are duped into taking advantage of these offers, direct your ire towards the establishments that lure our nation's veterans into behaving so disgracefully. I'm sure you'd get a great deal of public support if you started a "Save Our Veterans from Behaving Badly" campaign. Direct attention to what these restaurants and other businesses are doing to the dignity of our veterans by offering these shameful discounts and insist they stop immediately!

 

[razztazz]

You're blaming the victim here.

Actually, I'm not

Instead of looking down on the unsuspecting vets who are duped into taking advantage of these offers, direct your ire towards the establishments that lure our nation's veterans into behaving so disgracefully.

I don't think they're being "lured" into behaving disgracefully. I mean I'm not doing it. I feel no allure. Maybe I'm stretching things when I say these people aren't stupid...?

As far as the "Selling" of veterans and the whole "HEE-roh" thing that started shortly after Sept 11, that's a whole 'nother rant that I have done before in other places and will not glom ( 1 or 2 "m's" in glom?) up this thread with. My observation of that is the purveyor's of that stuff generally don't give a fiddler's f' and are just engaged in PR for the bizz. Yeah, they already have my ire

 

[Greg V]

Not a senior discount, but the 10% military discount (Currently serving and veterans) at Lowe's and Home Depot is probably the one I use most.

The most common senior discount that comes my way is 5% off on Wed at a couple of local supermarkets.

Neither is huge bucks, but every little bit helps.

As far as whether we "deserve" discounts? It isn't about deserving them. Merchants offer them for their own business reasons, whether you're a Veteran, Senior, Credit Union member, AAA Member, have some sort of Corporate Group code, etc. Why would the consumer be wrong in accepting a deal on a good or service openly offered by a business, whether or not it comes through a better retail price, a sale, or a discount?

Just another view to add to the mix...

 

[aja8888]

AARP gets 15% off the check at Denney's. It's a good deal (the discount, not AARP).

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Not a senior discount but I like Entertainment book coupons. They have many buy one lunch or dinner get one free coupons. We go out 2 - 3 times a week to all sorts of nice ethnic restaurants, usually at lunch, and it doesn't cost too much more than eating at home, even with tax and tip on the pre-discount amount.

 

[target2019]

When you get a discount, it can be given back as a better tip. If you camp at a reduced rate, find a worthy family and share your best treats.

 

[NW-Bound]

Why should a 67 year old couple that owns a 26 foot motor home pay cheaper national park fees than a 40 year old couple tent camping with kids?

Why should a 67 year old couple that owns a 26 foot motor home pay cheaper national park fees than a [-]40[/-] 58 year old couple [-]tent camping with kids[/-] with exactly the same motor home?

 

[jollystomper]

I fail to understand why wealthy 60+ folks should get a discount on anything that a 30-35 yrs old headed family of 4 scraping by doesn't. Wrong to me.

Merchants rarely do this for altruistic reasons. They do it to attract business. 60+ folks are a large and growing market, and typically have more disposable income that 30-35 year olds.

Here is a contrasting discount - the restaurants and hotels that offer kids eat/stay free discounts. They obviously do this to attract younger families with kids. This is not a discount most over 60 would qualify for.

I don't seek these discounts but I don't refuse them if offered. If one feels guilty about it, just pay it forward. For example, anonymous pay a family's dining bill at a restaurant you received a discount for, Or anonymously drop a gift card for a store in a family's mailbox.