11 guests in VIP viewing area on a single tour

[howie4life]

Me and my party of 8 plan to do out first ever tour the Tuesday or wed after labor day. We plan to start at Epcot, hit HS, then MK to end in the VIP section for fireworks. We have a couple that wants to join us but they have a one year old, and that brings the number of people in our party to 11. We plan to add the couple to our part and have them join us at the first park. They will alternate riding with the party of 8 while the other watches the infant. When we leave the first park they will leave and rest and meet us at MK to later in the evening and do the same thing. Talking to the reps at Disney, the infant won't be allowed into the fireworks viewing area. Any advice or suggestions. Are the tour guides flexible? Can the couple and baby secure viewing close to us?

 

[gregskellington]

Honestly, if Disney told you no, I wouldn't feel good about putting a guide in that position.

 

[howie4life]

Honestly, if Disney told you no, I wouldn't feel good about putting a guide in that position.

It's a question, so if there is nothing the guide can do then that's absolutely fine. It would be a very sucky policy, but I wouldn't hold it against the guide. I'm also seeking out suggestions for keeping our entire part as close together as possible if the guide ends up repeating what the reps told me. Are there any good areas close by that the couple could get without camping for an hour?

 

[holden]

I'm pretty sure the max in a tour is 10. More than 10 requires a second guide. I don't know how babies factor into that.

 

[redboat45]

Typically while babies don't need park tickets they still count as a person for everything else. I'd be surprised if they allowed 11 in the group at all.

 

[john7994]

Me and my party of 8 plan to do out first ever tour the Tuesday or wed after labor day. We plan to start at Epcot, hit HS, then MK to end in the VIP section for fireworks. We have a couple that wants to join us but they have a one year old, and that brings the number of people in our party to 11. We plan to add the couple to our part and have them join us at the first park. They will alternate riding with the party of 8 while the other watches the infant. When we leave the first park they will leave and rest and meet us at MK to later in the evening and do the same thing. Talking to the reps at Disney, the infant won't be allowed into the fireworks viewing area. Any advice or suggestions. Are the tour guides flexible? Can the couple and baby secure viewing close to us?

I am not sure of the "why" for the restriction on the one-year old in that area, but I think being transparent with your guide upfront demonstrating that you are willing to abide by the rules (never hurts to get some magic thrown your way). To be honest, the grass hub area that is cordoned off VIP for fireworks is surrounded by General Admission guests outside of the fence that surrounds it, so I don't think the remainder of your party would be separated by too much if coordinated in advance. Some of those areas are held for people with mobility issues as well, so feeling it out as you arrive might be a good thing to work with the guide on.

 

[howie4life]

I am not sure of the "why" for the restriction on the one-year old in that area, but I think being transparent with your guide upfront demonstrating that you are willing to abide by the rules (never hurts to get some magic thrown your way). To be honest, the grass hub area that is cordoned off VIP for fireworks is surrounded by General Admission guests outside of the fence that surrounds it, so I don't think the remainder of your party would be separated by too much if coordinated in advance. Some of those areas are held for people with mobility issues as well, so feeling it out as you arrive might be a good thing to work with the guide on.

Thanks for that information John. I definitely plan on being upfront and honest with our tour guide. An area for the general public just outside of the VIP area where our other party members could enjoy the show relatively close to us is the alternative we were hoping for should there not be any wiggle room for entry into to fireworks viewing area.

 

[SkyGuy]

I'm pretty sure the max in a tour is 10. More than 10 requires a second guide. I don't know how babies factor into that.

All guests for a VIP tour count, no matter the age, so you are correct that if their number increased to 11, they would require 2 tour guides. We had to do this with a 10 month old as our 11th member.

 

[holden]

All guests for a VIP tour count, no matter the age, so you are correct that if their number increased to 11, they would require 2 tour guides. We had to do this with a 10 month old as our 11th member.

That's what I thought but wasn't 100% sure.

 

[howie4life]

All guests for a VIP tour count, no matter the age, so you are correct that if their number increased to 11, they would require 2 tour guides. We had to do this with a 10 month old as our 11th member.

All guests for a VIP tour count, no matter the age, so you are correct that if their number increased to 11, they would require 2 tour guides. We had to do this with a 10 month old as our 11th member.

It sucks that you had to get a whole other guide for the 10 month old. Unfortunately that's not an option for us. We understand that the infant adds to the count of the party size. We don't plan on having the infant get on rides and we don't plan on the infant riding in the inter park transport/van. I think I may not have articulated that properly. The sole goal is to figure out what our options are for the VIP viewing.

 

[WaitingForMyPrince]

It sucks that you had to get a whole other guide for the 10 month old. Unfortunately that's not an option for us. We understand that the infant adds to the count of the party size. We don't plan on having the infant get on rides and we don't plan on the infant riding in the inter park transport/van. I think I may not have articulated that properly. The sole goal is to figure out what our options are for the VIP viewing.

Honestly, I would be surprised if they let you do what you are planning at all. I agree that it sucks that a 10 month old counts towards the limit of 10, but unfortunately they are very clear in their wording on that. You may have a guide that bends the rules, but you need to be prepared for the reality that they may not. If a group of 12 adults showed up and said that they were just going to rotate the rides, I think we would all agree that would not be allowed. The number of people going on the rides is not what matters, it is the number of people taking part in the tour. You fill in waivers at the start of the tour and they will only have waivers for 10 guests total.

 

[larsonb74]

Party of 8 gets VIP, other 3 get non VIP views.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Me and my party of 8 plan to do out first ever tour the Tuesday or wed after labor day. We plan to start at Epcot, hit HS, then MK to end in the VIP section for fireworks. We have a couple that wants to join us but they have a one year old, and that brings the number of people in our party to 11. We plan to add the couple to our part and have them join us at the first park. They will alternate riding with the party of 8 while the other watches the infant. When we leave the first park they will leave and rest and meet us at MK to later in the evening and do the same thing. Talking to the reps at Disney, the infant won't be allowed into the fireworks viewing area. Any advice or suggestions. Are the tour guides flexible? Can the couple and baby secure viewing close to us?

Please forgive me if I’m misunderstanding but it sounds like the family with the 1yo will be with you both in Epcot and MK if I’m reading your post correctly. Does this not create a group of 11 then also?
I’m not familiar with VIP tours but based on what I’m reading above, is having the 1yo with the group only become a challenge at the fireworks or also for other times the group is together even though the baby is not riding attractions nor in the VIP vehicle?

To me (if I understand correctly) the baby makes a group of 11 and therefore a second guide would be required.

Just learning so that I can better help with these questions in the future.

 

[reck]

My assumptions are that if your tour is booked with Disney for "8", that is it as far as your guide is concerned. Those that join you will most likely not be accomodated by the guide: meaning no special access to rides or shows.

 

[Kingoglow]

Your first posts states that Disney told you that this wouldn't be allowed. Other posters stated that you will need a second tour guide to accommodate your larger party. I am not sure how you want us to help you.
We are not allowed to explore how to break Disney's rules. I guess my advice would be to split your party so some of them are in the VIP area and everyone else stands in the crowd.

 

[glocon]

Your other option to watch fireworks together is to skip the vip section. I guess it’s just a matter of if being in the vip section is more important or being together is more important. We haven’t been in a few years, but it used to be that it gets so crowded in front of the castle for fireworks- I wouldn’t count on being able to be near each other if some are in the vip section and some are not.

 

[howie4life]

Thanks to everyone for taking the time to read and offer suggestions. We'll plan to just split up into two groups unless the tour guide offers an alternative suggestion. Thanks again.

 

[lovethattink]

1 guide for 10 people no matter the age.
11 people means 2 tour guides.

They don't allow people trading in and out of the tour. It has to be the same 10 people the entire tour.

If it was only fireworks that would be 11 people the guide can ask permission to add the 11th person for fireworks viewing.