I joined years ago, mostly seeking lower insurance deals. Found out there weren't any "deals" and stopped paying. I don't see any benefit.

Maybe go to their website and look around. They do offer a lot of discounts at different

activities, restaurants, etc, etc., to see if it would be worthwhile to you. I belong, and

not sure I have ever used anything..other than sometimes read their Magazines that

come every month. My neighbor uses the discount at several restaurants quite a bit.

I should study their complete lists myself.

There are 200 AARP discussions on the kitchen table alone, just do a search

All I do is read the magazines, and I think they are worth the price. I have not looked for any discounts yet, but I might start. I certainly was not interested in their insurance. I like the crossword puzzles in their magazines - they are about the right difficulty for me.

I had joined years ago for a trial then dropped it. I had to join it just recently because I was going with united health care Medicare plan f and it's required to be a AARP member. But I only have to keep it one year and I don't plan on keeping it. I have used it in the past for discounts on a few things like hotels and car rentals. Before someone says that you don't need AARP for united health care, you do if you are going with a Medicare medigap plan. You don't need it for the advantage plans. As it states on their website.

There was a pretty good magazine that came with the AARP membership but I don't know if they still have it. I have not received any yet. I will tell you that when you sign up go immediately to your profile page and select what you want them to send you by email. It's set by default to send you a lot of emails. I selected no emails. My husband did not do that and he was getting them daily.

My wife has a membership, I'm not sure why. There is a monthly magazine she looks at, I don't.

"Daily" emails from businesses (and AARP is a business) or other unwanted traffic from legit sources can be stopped immediately by unsubscribing, as of course I hope everyone knows.

Is there any way to stop them from sending mail to you? Yes, I know I can throw the letters away. AARP is unrelenting in its mail solicitations.

The Canadian countrrpart, "CARP" (also the name of a fish ... or a grouchy, crabby comment about an issue, comment, etc.) has a magazine, offers discounts, etc.

There is a (mainly monthly?) meeting of members in our city, that I think includes folks from neighbouring towns, with counterparts across Canada, I think.

I visited the local meeting a few months ago, spoke of my interest in singles sharing housing, a few spoke to me after and one told me to whom it might be helpful to talk at city hall.

CARP carries on quite a lot of advocacy regarding seniors' issues in various areas, including various levels of government.

ole joyful

I've joined now and again, for one year, in order to get discount rates for hotels and car rentals -- but lately have done just as well using Priceline and Hotwire. always check to see which is the better value when planning a trip.

I've not looked into any other discounts that they offer, if they do.

They started out as an advocacy group for older citizens' issues, but if they ever have accomplished anything, or still claim to do so, is something that I do not know.

I join off and on. They used to offer the highest med pay on auto insurance in the industry! Unless your grandfathered in you can't get it now. The magazine & crossword puzzle is nice! They won't insure my primary home because of "fire danger". I'm in a "fire mitigated" area with an HOA that inspects properties annually. Doesn't matter. I haven't renewed my membership.

If you go online and book a "discounted" room or airfare, the discount is greater than AARP's discount anyway, then you can't use a 2nd discount. So the AARP discount isn't useful to me.

Nicole, that's what happened to me. I switched to the auto insurance they promote and when I tried to add my homeowners to that company, they refused because I am too close to the saltwater and they won't insure because of hurricanes. We don't have hurricanes here and the saltwater I am close to is only about a mile wide (the southernmost tip of Puget Sound. 50+ miles from the Pacific Ocean. I couldn't find one person with enough sense there to figure that out, so I canceled it all.

I find for any discount I would use, mostly hotels, almost all give an identical "senior" discount. I get a better deal on car rentals through Costco. I wouldn't be eating at any restaurant (chain) that they offered discounts for anyway.

DH didnt want AARP until auto/house insurer told him about discount! We use it at restuarants and hotels. I do know that AAA discount is same as AARP. We do not have AAA. Enjoy the magazine And have learned a lot from it.

If you have a membership to your local AAA autoclub you can receive most of the same discounts as with AARP.

At one time they did seem to try to lobby for programs for the elderly but they only seem to be presenting the same program focus and lack the ability to realize what was needed 30 years ago is no longer important as various things have changed in retirement programs. They do not seem to be addressing the cutting of many of the so called safety nets that many older people rely on as they age.

Edited to add that some chains provide a senior discount that is the same or more than any of the program discounts.

I joined a few months back because I could the activation fees waived when I switched cell phone carriers. That saved me about $90.++ My sister has said some AARP discounts are better than their military discounts.

I checked with my wife, she let it lapse. Said she's found that asking for a "senior" discount for travel bookings is usually the same. We book much of our travel with credit card "points" and that translates into a hefty discount, 25% or more.

There are discounts that are available when you mention AARP.

Through United Health I now have Silver Sneakers, which means I am now a member of two local gyms at no cost to me.

A gym buddy was upset that her insurance didn't cover a gym membership. We asked the gym manager if there were any other discounts. He told us that AARP will cover half of the monthly dues.

We are all savvy to our points systems/discounts etc. Often when all is exhausted the AARP will kick in. So, for me, not a waste at all.

They were great when they first started, but now pretty much worthless, in my opinion.

For those old enough for Silver Sneakers but are not on an advantage plan check to see if where you live can provide part of the fee. I do not know where the counties in this area receive the money from but if you are over 65 the county will pay $35 toward your Y membership. They also will assist in paying for various adult community education classes as long as they have the funds. I know it probably comes from property taxes but last time I looked there were 14 different rate lines on my bill and none mention senior health.

Silver Sneakers is available through many insurance carriers,not just Advantage plans.

I'm not aware of any tax-supported programs in my area as mailfleur describes.

When I became "of age" for Silver Sneakers, I checked with the my gym. It has a SS program but it was very time limited, access only at inconvenient off-peak times. But, it also has another approach where SS participants can continue with a full club membership and use SS for a small discount off the monthly dues. I took that, nothing to lose. I mention it only to suggest there may be several different ways a SS program can work and may vary from gym to gym. Check into it if it interests you.

C marlin that is one of those individual area things as none of the supplements offered in this area cover Silver Sneakers. Not all Advantage plans cover it but most do. Not all gyms accept the Silver Sneakers program.

Years ago we looked at both AARP and AAA when they began inundating us with mail. DH, who is in charge of our insurance needs, liked AAA's auto and travel orientation (and so did I), so that's what we chose. I also sensed a slight political slant with AARP that I was happy to do without.

AAA has been great for us with its discounts, restaurant recs, and articles about scenic drives and places up and down the West Coast. I assume that it is specialized for each part of the country.

Parts of AAA like the insurance is specialized simply because each state has their own insurance commission but most of the rest including tour books are general. At one time the AAA was localized but currently it is managed by AAA of California. Not certain if all areas of the country are now under them.

One of the things I did find out when I was in Hawaii is that they now own Pleasant Holidays.

not worth it for me.

My experience has been that hotels, etc. will give you a small discount for ONE of a membership (AAA, AARP, Costco, etc.) -- or just because you're over 65. I view this as a small marketing cost to help seal the deal.

I always seem to get a better deal when contacting the front desk. And I never pay extra for a cancellation policy, which is about $10 a night in Canada. I negotiate the lowest rate and then hand them a USD credit card. :)

" then hand them a USD credit card. :) "

And that accomplishes what?

Do you think Americans visiting Canada (a high percentage of foreign tourism there, no doubt) have a different way to pay?

Elmer, why do you always have a contrary remark?

It accomplishes very little if you're willing to pay the posted rate. After negotiating the lower rate, the exchange rate saves me more. So negotiating $185 to $155 CD is $116 USD for me, $139 USD for the one too lazy to negotiate.

Your comment didn't make sense to me. Maybe it did to others and I'm dense. So I asked, what did you accomplish with the means of payment?

Everyone asks for a lower rate at hotels, knowing rates are flexible/variable. It was you who indirectly suggested that there was something clever or significant about paying with a US credit card. What if you had a Canadian bank credit card and you paid with that. Is that any different, is there something else to know?

What difference does it make whether you pay $155 CAD or $116 USD?

Perhaps it is just me but I try to look on line before calling because I have several times been told a much higher rate than the one posted. I look first to see what type of rooms are available rather than the prices.

I've been thinking about Michael's comment and I think I have it figured out. I think he doesn't understand how currency exchange works. The key was his sentence "After negotiating the lower rate, the exchange rate saves me more. "

The exchange rate doesn't save you anything at all, an exchange rate is the amount of relative value when converting money from one currency to another. I think what has you confused is that both currencies are called "dollars", which really has no consequence.

Lets call Canadian currency "pencils" instead. The exchange rate is such that US$ 1= 1.33 pencils. Or, 1 pencil = 75 US cents. Both numbers slightly rounded. One is the reciprocal of the other.

If you're in Canada and want to pay cash for your 155 pencils hotel room, withdraw 155 pencils at an ATM and your US bank account will be reduced by US$116. If you present a credit card that bills you in US dollars, the hotel will put in a charge of 155 Canadian pencils through VISA and your bill due VISA will increase by US$116.

Have a Canadian credit card in pencils? No problem. Pay the 155 pencils bill with your Canadian Visa card and at the end of the month, send the Canadian bank a check for US $116 (assuming no change in the rate) to pay the balance you owe them of 155 Canadian pencils. All examples also ignore a percent or two for transaction charges which are minor anyway and usually can't be avoided.

for me it was worth it. I saved about $600.00 on my car and renters insurance( and I have no marks on my driving record). That makes spending $12.00 ok with me.

There is another option to research, AMAC may be a better option for you.

https://amac.us/

Never experienced any potential for savings from that schlock outfit and frankly don't know anyone who ever has. I do know they send way too much junk mail which tells me about their spending habits. They brag about the "great deal" on prepaid cellular and I get it far cheaper without going through them. They have some people brainwashed into thinking they're such great advocates for seniors, but they're not. They're not much better than the "Nigerian General" in my opinion. They won't get a penny from me.

I have wondered at the people who say they have saved a lot and what did they have before that they do not have after changing policies. Only changes that I can think of are reducing the coverages, changing from Comprehensive to Liability only, removing children who turned a certain age or who married and moved out of the home. There may be other things that someone on here can think of.

Changing coverage isn't the only factor that can reduce premium costs. In my experience, comparable insurance coverage isn't necessarily priced similarly from one company to another. If it were like that, why would anyone bother to get competitive quotes from several insurance companies?

In my area, AAA and Allstate tend to be on the high end of expensive for car insurance but that can vary by location and the profile of who's being insured. I've often heard of situations when someone changed from AAA to a more reasonably priced carrier and had a cost savings of 25% or more for identical coverage.

Depending on your credit card company, you may pay no fee for Canadian transactions. Call them and ask.

To mailfeur( and others) I had farmers for years, and then went to Allstate. I checked other companies also. I didn’t lower my coverage in fact I went back to full. I have no marks on my records. My rates from farmers went way up when my agent ( of 15 years) retired. Tried Allstate And was ok for a year, but they raised my rates and lowered coverage when I moved back to town. I then checked aarp( Hartford) and saved a lot as I said in other post. I guess it boils down to where you live and the agents, plus how they decide to figure your rates.