big family group

[ibelieveinmagic]

Hi everyone, we are planning a huge family Trip for next Christmas 16 people that consist of (6kids] ranging from infant, (1 year old) ,to 17,plus 10 adults!! we are thinking of 3 rooms at Shades of green, quick breakfasts in room ,everyone on their own for lunch and having 1 sit down dinner. Any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[HopperFan]

Hi everyone, we are planning a huge family Trip for next Christmas 16 people that consist of (6kids] ranging from infant, (1 year old) ,to 17,plus 10 adults!! we are thinking of 3 rooms at Shades of green, quick breakfasts in room ,everyone on their own for lunch and having 1 sit down dinner. Any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated!!

So far I love your plan ...
- Breakfast, we always eat ours in the room, and I always suggest groups never try to do breakfast together. Too much pressure.
- Lunch, on your own means no glitches with FP+, longer lines, maybe too far to get there. And all can choose their budget and type of meal.
- Dinner, do you mean each day or just one sit down the whole trip? Either work but if you do each day, I wouldn't make them too late that way if some want to get to bed, or stay for fireworks or head to DS there is time for that after.

 

[ibelieveinmagic]

Hi, thanks so much! I do mean a sit down meal each day ,that is good advice to schedule for a earlier time! Thanks ! Some of my dinner ideas are BOG,in MK, Biertgarten in Epcot, Rain Forest Café at Animal Kingdom, Sci Fi at Hollywood Studios

 

[VAfamily1998]

Will 3 rooms at Shades of Green be enough for that many people? The standard rooms only sleep 5, and I'm not sure if SOG counts the 1 year old or not?

 

[mousehouse23]

'Ohana at the Poly and Boma at AKL are good options for large groups. Maybe Crystal Palace at MK, too?

I'd keep most of your touring within smaller groups, or you'll just end up driving each other crazy! Think of the bathroom breaks alone with that many people.

Remember that only one of you needs an AP with Memory Maker included for all of your "Friends and Family" to view and download every photo and video of each person in your party taken during your vacation.

Have fun!!

 

[ibelieveinmagic]

not sure about the 3 rooms yet, if a 1 year old counts toward how many are allowed in a room,then possible 1 of the rooms being a family suite that sleeps 6! mousehouse23, I thought about bathroom breaks too!! crazy!!Boma and crystal palace are some good options!

 

[ibelieveinmagic]

I read somewhere about making a daily schedule, maybe 1 for the smaller kids and morning people, and 1 for the group that wants to ride the coasters etc.or trying to make fast passes for rides close to each other like space mountain or buzz for the smaller guys, any advice?

 

[mousehouse23]

I've always liked Josh's touring plans at easywdw.com. Here's the Epcot one: https://www.easywdw.com/easy/epcot/epcot-touring-plans-rope-drop-wait-times-and-fastpass-priority-2/

 

[heidijanesmith]

It was hard for us to plan a sit down dinner every day with our group. Not all of us are planners, my sister and her family are a fly by the seat of their pants type. I am a total type A planner, the exact opposite.

A dinner to meet every night sounds great, if every one is on board with it. My sister would plan a dinner with us and then decide last minute that they wanted to do something else (before there was a cancellation fee). It was frustrating for the rest of us.

 

[GotLabradors]

I did this type of trip 2 years ago. Four families with kids ranging from 3-16. Essentially, we tried to have one meal together every day. We all went to the same park each day. We did some rides all together, but with the wide age range, we had to split up during the day so that all the kids got to do the things that interested them.

 

[Best Aunt]

Booking Be Our Guest takes a lot of time and effort for a small group. I had to check numerous times every day for weeks just to get a table for two of us. I would think it would be pretty difficult to book for a big group.

Rain Forest Cafe was a disaster for my family because one of the kids was afraid of thunder and lightning, and there are (fake) storms in there.

Sci Fi has small tables and is dark. It's supposed to be like you are sitting in a car at a drive in movie. I don't think they could push the tables together. I'm not sure it's the ambience you want for a family dinner. I would think 50s Prime Time Cafe would be better. Or maybe Mama Melrose.

I'm not sure you want to make the effort of going to a restaurant in a hotel. Your group would have to go from park to hotel where restaurant is. Then back to park to hang out there. Or back to park to pick up bus back to Shades of Green (assuming you are relying on Disney transportation). I would think it would be easier to book a restaurant in a park.

 

[DisneyFive]

I've thought about taking a large group to Disney before but every time I've thrown out the idea.

I think the less structure you have, the better. Let each family unit plan their own schedule and rides, but plan a few get togethers. There is no way you will be able to tour together as a group and keep everyone happy (IMO). Just too many options, favorite rides, must do's, etc...

I think the biggest thing that you can do to help is provide all the important planning strategy information and let them schedule what sounds good to them. However, that kind of defeats the purpose of a big group. Hence, why I've never tried it. Hope you can make it work out fantastically though!!

Dan

 

[AncientSoul]

We plan Disney trips with extended family every so often, where we invite the cousins, grandparents, in-laws, etc. When that happens, we rent a 7 or 8 bedroom home, 2 kids per bedroom. It's so much easier for us to catch up with our relatives and have big family meals together in one big house, instead of dining out with such a large group.

But when eating at the theme parks for such a large group, eating buffet is the way to go. Buffet dining will always have someone for everyone.

 

[nighttowll]

Keep in mind if you plan any meals in the parks, whether lunch or dinner, everyone either needs Park Hopper Tickets or has to agree to go to the same park. Otherwise, you won't be able to meet up.

Also, dinners can interfere with watching nighttime shows, parades, and fireworks, and younger children may be done by the end of the day, tired, cranky, and ready for bed. Disney meals are not quick. A 7 pm ADR could have you getting back to anywhere SOG betwen 9:30 to 11:00 pm. Then you still have to get the kids to bed.

It might end up working out better to meet up for late brunch or early lunch. This way people could still sleep in if they wanted, and everyone gets a break during the busiest, crowded part of the day. Then after the meal you could all go your separate ways or divide up into smaller groups depending on who wants to do what. No worries about nighttime entertainment or kids needing to be put down to go to bed.

As far as booking reservations, you'll most likely need to break up the reservations into smaller groups, 8 and 8, or 6,6,4, for instance.

Also, check into the military discounts Disney is offering for their hotels. We were able to get a really amazing deal on a 2 bedroom villa at AKL. We had 9 people. It ended up costing about the same as 2 value rooms would have cost, but we had the added benefit of a full kitchen and living room in a deluxe hotel. The money we saved by cooking a few meals in the room, more than covered the small price difference. I'm not sure what other types of villa options there are that might sleep 16, but it could be worth looking into.

 

[ibelieveinmagic]

thank you all so much!! I knew I would get some great advice here!!I like the late lunch idea a lot, also touring plans will definetly be a help, and checking into military discounts for the Disney hotels, I think AKL would be awesome! Any other table service ideas for a late lunch?

 

[nighttowll]

Tusker House at AK is a good buffet and a fun meal. Enough there to satisfy picky eaters, but some fun ethnic options as well for adults who would like to try something a little different. Also, since there is a Rainforest Cafe in DS, you could still do that as well a different day.

At HS, 50s Prime Time might be a better option for a large group than Sci Fi because of the awkward table configuration at Sci Fi. We actually did sit all 9 together at 50s, so they do have some bigger tables. At Sci Fi, you may end up sitting with your back to your group, unless you sit at the picnic tables, and if you can't sit in the cars, what's the point. There is also a buffet place at HS, not sure it's anything special, but buffets are safe options with so many.

Crystal Palace in MK is a fun buffet with WTP characters, but the food is nothing special.

We also really enjoy the Thanksgiving meal at Liberty Tree Tavern. I believe dinner is still family style all you can eat. Might be another good option for a big group. We find when we are all together, buffets and family style meals work best for us.

Maybe try a fireworks dessert party as a meet up one night instead of dinner. That could be a good option that wouldn't interfere with nighttime entertainment, as it would be the entertainment.

Whispering Canyon at WL is supposed to be a fun meal, lots of craziness going on during dinner. Plus you could use the time to explore the hotel and nearby FW together. Maybe all watch the Water Parade together, see the gyser, go to one of the campfire s'more sing alongs, or take a carriage or horse ride. Those would all be good multi age large groups activities. If you all wanted to commit to spending one evening together. Maybe late lunch, early dinner there, than head over to the fort. You wouldn't need any park tickets for any of that, so everyone could do their own thing during the day.

Maybe do the Luau or Hoedown altogether as a group or Ohana.

Sorry, I'm drawing a blank at Epcot. I just realized, we never really do sit down meals here. The Aquarium restaurant could be fun for all ages, not sure how large group friendly it is though. We have a local one, so I've never been inside the one at Epcot. We try not to do things we can do at home on vacation.

Two other things I just thought of

1. Prepare to wait longer than usual to be seated and for meals where you order to take longer than usual. 50s Prime Time ended up being a 4 hr meal for us. I had an ADR for 12 something, and we didn't get finished until after 4:00. 2 hour wait to be seated because of our our party size. Then, it took an hour to get our food. Then, an additional wait for dessert. I can't imagine how long it would have taken if we had of been slow eaters. This wasn't the norm, but it can happen. Most of our meals we waited 15 to 30 minutes to be seated, maybe a few times 45 minutes, and most of our meals took around 2 to 2.5 hours total, waiting plus eating included. The point is don't think you'll be done in an hour or less, even at a buffet.

2. Meeting up in DS to go bowling one night might be a good family activity, or going to the dine in movie theater. Both would be large group friendly.

 

[AncientSoul]

Sorry, I'm drawing a blank at Epcot. I just realized, we never really do sit down meals here. The Aquarium restaurant could be fun for all ages, not sure how large group friendly it is though. We have a local one, so I've never been inside the one at Epcot. We try not to do things we can do at home on vacation.

Once we were able to do a walk-in party of 10 at the Biergarten in Epcot, which is buffet. It's always a good option for larger groups, if no one is too particularly picky about the food.

 

[KenHutch]

WOW 16 people? I am impressed. To do a group of 8 I have had to adopt some really harsh rules. I schedule meals and if you want me to pay be there or your own your own and fastpasses I have scheduled them its on you to be there. You have my respect for even trying to schedule 16 people.

 

[cruising spud]

Our family did a Disney, big group get together, about ten years ago. We ended up having a fantastic time. Now, we did things a bit different from you. First, we all made our own Disney hotel reservations, and none of us stayed at the same hotels. We also always took an afternoon break, with each family heading back to their respective hotel for some lunch, rest, and relaxation. We then met again in the late afternoon for a family dinner and more park time.

Since I am the Type A planner (and the one with the most Disney knowledge) in our family, I did the daily planning. My touring plan included: #1 be there 15 minutes before the park opened #2 in the morning-which attractions we were going on and it what order #3 late afternoon/night park time was more for shopping, splitting up in small groups, etc

Simple. If you and your family didn't want to get to the parks early, fine. Call us when you arrived, and we would tell you where we were. Didn't want to head back to the parks in the afternoon, again, just let us know. Wanted to deviate from the plan and go on your on? Go for it.

A side note-our family members have some pretty big personalities and opinions, so I wasn't sure how the trip would go. It ended up that we all stayed together, ate our dinners together, and had a fun time, without one, single bit of family friction.

Hope this helps.

 

[ibelieveinmagic]

Thank you so much cruising spud, you sound just like me, type A planner, and the one with the Disney knowledge, I was beginning to have serious doubts, we were going to take 2 separate trips, but this is how its working out! We also have some strong personalities, that everyone got along in your group was an encouragement to hear!I like your approach, and I think I will do the same! My children and grandchildren are spread all over and it has been many years since we all of been together in one place! At least I have a year to save and plan! Thanks again!