cruising with a large group

[LAWalz23]

Hi we are planning to give my parents a trip for their 50th anniversary and us kids and some other relatives want to tag along. It will probably be about 30 people and we were thinking the Disney cruise since we will have people between 2 and 72. Besides no casinos what are the pros cons of the Disney cruise? Has anyone had experience cruising with such a large group? How is dining, ect. done? Thanks for any info?

 

[slindamood]

We cruised last CHristmas on the Magic with a family group of 19 for my mother's 80th birthday. Age ranged from 10 to 80. Disney cruise was perfect, because there was something for every age, plus plenty to do together.
For dining, we linked our reservations and had 3 tables and the 2 servers just for our group. You would probably have two different serving stations with 30 people. Disney would probably put you next to each other. Each night we sat in different places so we got to talk with different people. No formal rotation, just did it.
For the beach days, we decided ahead which beach we would go to - no organized tours - and each family group headed out by cab when they were ready. The first ones to the beach rented enough chairs and umbre llas for everyone, a few took coolers with drinks, some took those fantastic chocolate chip cookies from room service, etc. the food was not planned - just happened.
Be sure to gather together before boarding, and they will take a photo with all of you. Also on foraml night you can get a nice group photo.
We had matching t-shirts that one brother and his wife made for us with embroidered logos - even had a hidden mickey. It was fun on the first day because we could find each other easily for the sail away, etc.
We generally went to the shows together and many of us would head to the clubs afterwards. A few times we all met on deck 10 before or after dinner just to sit and look at the sunset or stars. Those were the best times.
ou will have a great time - Disney is a great family line with a focus on fun activities.
Here we are boarding the boat:
http://home.columbus.rr.com/parents/fam/teeshirts.jpg

There have been a few other threads in the past month about large groups. There is more information in them from people who have traveled in groups larger than our 19.

 

[LAWalz23]

Thanks for the info! We want to get everyone matching t-shirts, too!

 

[pbans]

We cruised in November of 2001 with a group of about 40! It was a mixture of family and friends! We had an absolute BALL! We did link our dinner reservations and basically took over one side of the restaurants! It was a great way to keep in touch, we knew we'd all be together at dinner and share events from the day and make plans for the evening!
The good thing was the kids ALWAYS had someone to hang out with....some wanted to go to the lab, some to a movie, some swim, some just hang out with the old folks!
We all booked Cat 11 cabins and were all fairly close together. We did make a list of all the cabin numbers to print out for each family, that way we could always call and leave a message, if necessary~!!

 

[howardk613]

On our last cruise, our group consisted of about 85 people (our Disney club members, family and friends). Our immediate family had ages ranging from 8 months to 85 years. We all had a ball and everyone (including my 80 year old mother and her sister, my 85 year old aunt) said that it was the best vacation ever. By the way , I believe that if your group consists of over 8 cabins you can book through DCL group sales and get a really great deal (including reduced rates, group activities and some free cruises). A family group trip is amazing and you should definately give it a try. By the way, our next Disney club cruise is in just 55 days (11/2/2002) and we are over 120 people this time.