Any suggestions for planning a family reunion?

[Karenj2]

It's not really a reunion, per se, because we keep in touch with our family, but DH and I have been toying with the idea of celebrating our 10th anniversary in 2007 with both sides of the family. (Both sets of parents, our siblings, and any nieces & nephews that exist at that point - plus any kids of our own that exist, too.)

I know our respective families, though, and there will be people who want to stay in the Deluxe Resorts, and people that want to stay offsite and cook their own food for each meal.

Is there any middle ground? Are there any villas that could sleep a large number of people, but still have enough privacy so we don't drive each other batty???

Or should I just say "forget it" and go with DH? (or just MY side? )

Forgot to add the current family dynamics:
(2) My mom & dad
(2) DH's mom & dad
(2?) DH and I - hopefully we'll have a kiddo in 2 years
(4) My older sis, DH, and 2 kids (5 & <1)
(3) DH's older sis, DH, and kid (5)
(4?) My younger sis, her (hopefully by then) DH, and possibly his 2 kids from prev. marriage
(4) DH's older bro, DW and 2 kids (9 & 5)

 

[TMJJS]

I would look into the Disney Vacation Club villas. We are members and have used them for a smaller family gathering. They have 3 bedroom villas which let 12 people stay in them officially and give plenty of extra room.
If you don't join the DVC, you can either pay cash for them or better, rent the points needed to book the rooms. There's even a section in this forum for doing that, points go for about $10/point. It's actually a good deal when you split the cost.

The other idea is to do what we are doing this year for my mom's side of the family and take a Disney Cruise. Cruising is great since you can be together for the shows, dinner, etc, but still have plenty of time to do the things you like. We have 23 of us going on the Magic on October 22 - can't wait.

Looke for my cruise report afterwards. At least right now I plan on writing one.

Good luck!

 

[twojo21]

my family did a group trip back in 2000 with a group of 22, it was tons of fun. try planning a few group activities like dinner or an event, we did a big golf outing one day, ladies at the spa, dinner at the biergarten & ohanas which were great for big groups, etc. make sure to also allow for some alone time to relax & enjoy wdw at your own pace.

old key west has big villas with up to 3 bedrooms sleeping 12 with sleeper sofas too & kitchenettes. although its not really necessary for you all to stay together, we were at the boardwalk, shades of green, allstars & old key west & still managed to get together & have fun.

you could also look into a grand gathering with disney for some special events like a vip dinner & dessert at epcots illuminations, etc. theres a section on disneys site about this, theres also a special travel planning section where you can create polls for your family take on what you want to do together too. another fun thing to consider is custom tshirts for the trip, that you can make at home with iron ons or buy online.

best of luck with your plans, have fun at wdw! group trips are work, im planning my disney wedding for 64 right now so i know but the memories & fun are worth it in the end.

 

[Karenj2]

TMJJS - DH and I have been on a cruise (non-disney) with his 'rents and BIL and (now) wife. It was fun, however his side of the family isn't into the whole idea of dressing up for dinner, so I'm sure that could cause some problems as well...

How does one go about getting/renting DVC?

Thanks for the input so far! Twojo - I might end up borrowing your research! (Oh, and have a great wedding!)

 

[Deb & Bill]

If you are interested in renting DVC points, go to the Rent/Trade board and read the FAQs. This would be a private arrangement between you and a member. Cancellation is not as easy as going directly through Disney. Make sure you have firm commitments from your family members to do this. And lots of cash, because the member may want to be paid in cash up front, to even make the reservation. You may need to get more than one member to assist you since you need more than one villa.

3 bedroom villas are called Grand Villas and are limited in number. They are only located at BWV (only 5 or 6, I think), OKW (maybe about 20)and SSR (not sure how many are available there). Depending on what time of the year you want to go, you need to be talking to a member and getting your Grand Villa reserved 11 months ahead of time. A GV will hold 12. You may also need a 2 bedroom that holds 8. These may or may not be close to each other. One child under the age of 3 does not count towards the room accomodations. So if you have seven kids under the age of 3, six will still count toward occupancy of the room. Only one will not.

Good luck. You might also want to check out some of the horror stories about inviting family members to join you on your trip to WDW. There are dozens of them on the board.

 

[Princess Mommy]

We stayed in the Grand Villa's in OKW which was incredible spacious- sleeps 12... we rented points as well from the boards here

 

[KIRSTIN'S MOMMY]

We just did this in August of 2004. We had a group of 16, including my parents, my 3 sisters, one of them brought her husband and his 2 kids from a previous marriage, his cousin and cousin's girlfriend, my brother in law and nephew (12), me, dh and my dd who was 5 at the time.

What worked out best for us was just planning 1 thing per day and letting everyone split up. With such differences in ages and interests, it's just too hard to keep everyone together. We booked 1 sit down meal per day, and it allowed everyone to visit and tell each other what we had done/seen so far that day. We did have an itenerary of which park on which days, so we'd all be in the same park for the meals, but other than that, they were on their own. I helped them out a little by printing touring plans for everyone, some followed, some didn't.
We also did the Magical Gatherings Fireworks Voyage on the first night of our trip to kind of "kick off" our vacation. It was wonderful! We didn't have to use a day's park pass, we had dinner at Chef Mickey's, then just walked over to the dessert reception at the other end of the councourse at the Contemporary. This was everyone's favorite thing we did all week!

We all stayed at the same resort (Pop). Some of us would have preferred to stay elsewhere, but it was budget friendly to everyone and made things much easier as far as planning for the next day, etc. We were originally booked for WL, but switched over to Pop and were glad we did. Trying to keep everyone together in the same parks and such would have been a nightmare had I not been at the same resort.

Sorry to ramble, if there's anything I can do to help, let me know! I had a lot of fun planning this (although it's not all fun, they can drive you crazy sometimes too. Planning for a large group can be nerve racking, especially when they don't all agree on things.)

Have fun planning!

 

[Karenj2]

Thanks, all! I just put an email out to our extended family, and we'll see what the response is...

 

[ainmama2001]

The Grand Villas at OKW are really big and beautiful. It seems that they will fit everyone's needs. We rented our points from the DVC trade board here also. We had a wonderful experience.

 

[Ziva]

You're very brave.

My best advice would be to let everyone stay where they want to, that way you'll have some space from eachother. Also if they don't care for their resort for some reason it was their choice not yours.

Honestly though I'd go just with your hubby for your anniversary and then maybe go again with your family sometime, but that's just me. The idea of vacationing with both sides of my family makes my head feel like it's going to explode.

 

[ainmama2001]

I just did it with my parents and in laws. Truth be told, I was SCARED POOPLESS! If my parents are London, my inlaws are Tokyo! With a two bedroom villa, we did well. They had a tv, their own bathroom...we only shared the common area of the living room and kitchen. It can be stressful, but it's a memory that is priceless.

 

[disnut8]

Oh man - I did this a few years ago for our 20th wedding anniversary. Had the in-laws, my dad and stepmother, my sister and her entire family (not the ex-husband, though, thank goodness). Did another reunion thing two years ago when my son proposed to his now wife and her daughter was introduced to the entire family. Just came off a smaller Christmas one too.

For the first one, we had an offsite rental house. Worked fine but it wasn't Disney. I'd consider it again but only if the circumstances were exactly right. Otherwise, it's Disney all the way.

Second one was Fort Wilderness Cabins and one campground site nearby. Absolutely, positively perfect.

Third one was two rooms at All Star Music (it was a bit cramped but we managed - anything for our granddaughter). Well worth it.

When I was planning everything (no one else would), I asked very, and I mean very, specific questions about what people wanted. For example, the last trip, my in-laws really wanted the cabins again but there was no way we could afford them over Christmas. So I was looking offsite. Then my mother-in-law said they didn't care, they just wanted Disney (gotta love them). The two rooms at All Star was the perfect compromise.

And I know what you mean about keeping in touch. My entire family - both sides - have a great relationship. But planning these trips just about pushed me over the edge. But once you have the resort figured out, everything else is gravy. I found that once I established myself as General Disney, it was easy.

 

[Karenj2]

You're very brave.

Heh - I'm not THAT brave, I actually like my in-laws, for the most part. We've done a cruise w/ MIL, FIL, BIL and his wife before, and have even stayed in one house at the Jersey Shore for a week (w/ all of the above plus SIL and her husband and their child). We've also all stayed at BIL's house (before he got married) between Christmas and New Year's, 'cause he's the only one that lives on the West Coast, so MIL & FIL travel out there to see him. By the end of the week I usually want to smack someone, but isn't that normal?

Edited to add that we travel more with DH's side of the family than we do with MINE!

What I'm more concerned with is trying to please everyone, and ending up not pleasing anyone (especially myself & DH). I think I might take a poster's suggestion and let people decide on their own lodging (although I might try to coordinate, if most people want similar lodging, if they're willing). And, I'm also planning on maybe hiring a next door neighbor and a friend to come and be a "nanny" for the week as well, to let the adults get some "alone time" too.

 

[twojo21]

if you want an adults only night you can send the kids to one of the wdw deluxe resort kids clubs ie neverland club at the polynesian children. ages 4-12, at a cost of course.

you could also arrange for a sitter in your resort room with kids nite out 407-828-0920. my family has used them many times including our trip in 2000. we all wanted an adults night at dtd & pleasure island late. the sitter was great played games with the kids which she brought with, fed the snacks, brushed their teeth, put them to bed, etc.

i plan on having a kids nite out sitter on hand during my wedding too, for unruly kids & those needing a nap, etc.

 

[dianeschlicht]

My suggestion would be to rent two OKW Grand Villas. That way you will have accommodations for up to 24 people, and if a couple cancel, you wont be out the extra money for individual rooms. The GVs have 3 bedrooms...the master with a king bed, one upstairs bedroom with two queen beds, one upstairs bedroom with two double beds, and a queen sleep sofa in the living room. There is also a love seat in the living room that sleeps a youngster just fine. The full size kitchen, dining room and laundry room as well as 4 full baths make this an excellent place for a large group. If you did two GVs, you would all be together in two seperate units, and you might be able to put each side of the family in one unit. Of course, I would make sure one master bedroom suite was for you guys as the anniversary couple! That jacuzzi and huge room will make it very private even though you will be sharing the rest of the villa with a large group. We have stayed with 12 in a GV a couple of times and it was great fun! To do this, you will want to start contacting a DVC member to rent points about 13 months out. You will probably need to rent from more than one owner, and you will need to reserve day by day at the 11 month booking window. GVs can be difficult to get unless you do day by day reserving. This will be a bit of a hassle for the person renting points, and you must be aware that you wont want to cancel, as that could put points in distress. You will also need to rent points from an OKW owner, as they are the only ones who can reserve OKW at the 11 month booking window.

 

[Karenj2]

Thanks for the advice, Diane!

I've gotten two responses so far - MIL & FIL and BIL and his wife & her 2 kids are all interested...

DH *REALLY* wants to stay at the Wilderness Lodge; we both really enjoyed it when we went once (before we were married). If we get enough responses, I'll see who's willing to sleep w/ who family-wise.

I'm beginning to think that we could probably get away with one 1 or 2 bedroom villa that has a kitchen, then everyone else has a regular room... After all, the only meal that would need an actual kitchen would be dinner, and if we're all getting together for that, we don't ALL need a villa. (If MIL & FIL were to rent that, that would also fit with their desire to save $$).

It looks like I'm going to have to wait 'til a little over a year out anyway (initial thought is to go during the summer, so kids don't have to take off school), so I just need to stop being so excited about this! (Breathe, Karen, breathe!) There'll be plenty of time to figure out the logistics....

Anyway, thanks for all of the thoughts/tips/advice!