Families of 5 or 6...question!

[autismgoesdisney]

Ok I have two questions...my husband and I currently have 3 kids. We are going to Disney in 12/2010`but my youngest daughter will be under 3 so we can stay in the All Stars room. However, I'm curious about our future. What is the cheapest option for a family of 5?

second question, we are contemplating a fourth child. One of our favorite things to do is vacation and we currently go to Disney every other year. We are wondering what options parents with four kids have. What is the cheapest resort we can stay at?

Pricewise does it really make a huge difference in resorts if you have 3 or 4 kids?

Thanks!

 

[bxtx]

we camp at Fort Wilderness... with 3 boys (and another on the way) and 2 dogs, it has been the best money we've ever spent on a Travel Trailer... kids settle quickly and easily in their familar bed, and the view out the window changes And its not really "Camping" with a/c, microwave, fridge, own bed, tv and dvd player!! I don't do tents! Just a thought!

 

[luvmy3]

We are a family of 5 and stayed at POR, otherwise it would have had to be a deluxe and I didn't feel the price difference was worth it. It was a tight fit with the 5 of us, I don't think I could have done it with 4 kids.

 

[3BoysRDisneyFreaks]

The problem is, you are limited. There are the cabins, camping, family suite, DVC. All get rather expensive. Especially since they consider a kid aged 10+ and adult for ticket prices and dining plan.

It seems for us, off site is the answer.

 

[Pixieflip]

We ended up buying into DVC when expecting #4 because of this exact situation. Best purchase of our lives. Seriously, ever.

 

[autismgoesdisney]

We ended up buying into DVC when expecting #4 because of this exact situation. Best purchase of our lives. Seriously, ever.

I don't understand DVC -- how can you fit a family of 5 into a DVC room? Or family of 6?

 

[Deb & Bill]

I don't understand DVC -- how can you fit a family of 5 into a DVC room? Or family of 6?

You get a two bedroom villa.

 

[autismgoesdisney]

You get a two bedroom villa.

But how does the $$ work?

 

[Deb & Bill]

But how does the $$ work?

Getting a DVC villa on points tends to be a little cheaper over time than paying Disney cash outright.

 

[patchchild]

How about the family suites at All Stars?

 

[pacrosby]

Sadly Disney doesn't have any "affordable" on-property options for families with more than 3 children (unless they are infants). You either have to get two rooms at a value (twice the price) and HOPE they end up being connecting (if they aren't you and hubby could be kissing each other good night at the stairway and playing single parent every night), paying for a family suite at a value (MORE than double the money but not double the room) or moving up to the big buck properties (not an option for many bigger families). These families are already paying almost an extra thousand dollars or more for a weeks vacation for these two extra little buggers when you figure in park tickets and food and incidentals (we won't even talk about those who have to fly). It really leaves me scratching my head.

So the solution? If you're working with a budget it's off-property (but don't forget the increased expense of that rental car). Of course I'm sure you know what many people do who are in this exact situation. They just would never be fool enough to admit it here on the Dis

 

[natashag76]

We're a family of 5 and we rent DVC points for a one bedroom. DH and I get the bed, DD6 and DS4 get the pullout and DS1 gets the pack n play and sleeps in the laundry room. Sounds weird, but then we can move around w/o disturbing him. We have a full kitchen and a beautiful room. If you can negotiate a good point price sometimes it comes out less than the 1 bedroom suite at ASMu. Admittedly, DH and I are not interested in the value resorts, it's too crowded for us. However, the advantage of the suite at ASMu is when they're offering free dining. Good luck!

 

[brewcrew]

We also have 4 children and belong to DVC. Two bedroom villas with a full kitchen are the way to go for us. If you wanted to do All Stars still, you could get two rooms. Mom in one room, Dad in the other. We do this now when we travel outside of Disney. Good luck!

 

[new2disx3]

When researching I came across this problem. We have 3 kids... And almost everywhere ( not just Disney) seems to cater to 2 adults, 2 kids. I priced out 2 value rooms, the suite at the value resort and POR, which is a moderate resort. Guess what was cheaper?.... POR!! The alligator bayou area has rooms with 2 queens and a trundle.

 

[new2disx3]

When researching I came across this problem. We have 3 kids... And almost everywhere ( not just Disney) seems to cater to 2 adults, 2 kids. I priced out 2 value rooms, the suite at the value resort and POR, which is a moderate resort. Guess what was cheaper?.... POR!! The alligator bayou area has rooms with 2 queens and a trundle.

 

[kpgriswold]

As mentioned, the Alligator Bayou section of POR works for a family of 5 because they have the pull out trundle under one of the beds.

For a family of 6, you can do:

1. 2 rooms at one of the values. This is our usual choice, as we LIKE the over-the-top outdoor decor. Oh, and we're cheap.

2. A family suite at ASMusic: 2 baths plus a kitchenette, but fewer real beds. Out big kids say the pull outs are uncomfortable, but the little ones were fine. This is about $20 more per night than 2 regular rooms.

3. A cabin at Fort Wilderness. The cabin has the added benefit of not having noisy neighbors on the other side of the wall, and having a full kitchen. This can help save $$ on food. It is pricier than the prior two options, though.

4. 2 bedroom DVC accomodations. WAY out of our price range, so I can't speak to these.

 

[sixAMmom]

I would have to agree with OP "camping" is the way to go. We are a family of 6 and when we discovered camping at the Fort it was the best. The people are friendly and there is LOTS of space. We 1st camped in a tent and decided if we were going to do Disney often( which of course we were) we should get a POPUP. It has A/C and a stove so we save on cooking. Look into it, I think you will be surprised at how affordable it can be.

 

[Pixieflip]

Okay, I had this nice long post and then I got shut out from the website for over an hour.

There are options for families of 6, but they are few and far between. DVC might not be for everyone, but I will tell you that we financed it and have worked very, very hard to finish paying it off - we are not super wealthy. But last payment, next month! Some families eat out, some shop a lot, we do none of it. DVC has been such a blessing to our family that we pretty much will do anything to be able to afford it. We just came home from a dream trip in a two bedroom savanna view villa at Kidani Village. It was amazing. On the morning of checkout, my husband walked around with his hand on his heart, wishing it wasn't over. Yeah, it was that amazing. Plus we have stayed at 4 other DVC resorts and gone on a Disney Cruise...we have MORE than payed for our initial investment and we still have 32 years of vacations left. If you want more info on how DVC works you can PM me or visit the nice people over on the DVC boards. Our only regret is not joining sooner.

Good luck to all the larger families trying to find a great place to stay!

 

[PrincessTiffany]

Okay, we are a family of six and the CHEAPEST way to stay on-site is to get two connecting rooms at a value resort. The CHEAPEST way for a family of five to stay on-site is at POR. You can rent the villas or the cabins or the suites, but they are all a fortune and a waste of money in my opinion. The only economical suites are the ones at All-Star Music, but two connecting rooms is still cheaper. We have ALWAYS gotten our request for connecting rooms - always. If you go at a super busy crowd time, then there is a miniscule chance that you may not get a room request, but it's not enough to worry about in my opinion. And as for the WDWcamping suggestion, I'm sure it's great for some of ya'll, but it's just not my idea of a vacation. Also, we love, love, love the Disney Dining Plan and you can't get that at the campsites.

 

[BuzznBelle'smom]

We're a family of six, and the hotel rooms DO get crowded when we squeeze into them.

We own DVC. If that's not in your budget, you could look into renting points. There are whole DVC sections to this board if you're curious.

Last summer, we stayed offsite in a 4BR home. I couldn't believe how nice it was, and how much we fell in love with it! It made for a very relaxing vacation. We had 4 bathrooms, a private pool and jacuzzi--the only "complaint" was, the kids wished they could spend more time in the house rather than out at parks. Our experience is making us reconsider our DVC purchase, believe it or not.

We did rent cars (2 compacts, cheaper than one minivan), and there are cheaper offsite options. We would have all fit in a 2BR townhouse or condo, and we could have gone further away from WDW than Windsor Hills. Those options would have significantly lowered our price. However, we didn't want to scrimp and feel like we were on top of each other, plus our kids span 11 years, so we were mindful of different needs and space requests.

I recommend checking out the "Oralndo area" boards also--people are very friendly and can point you to some good deals.