How bad is it with 5 in a room?

[triplefigs]

Currently have 2 rooms booked at WL, but are debating whether to get a larger (ONE) room at the Poly or GF. That would mean all 5 of us in one room. We've never travelled like that before. Worried about the kids sleeping well, us disturbing them, and one bathroom. But being on the monorail would be a big advantage!

Advice please!

 

[Kimberle]

*I* would stick with the 2 rooms at WL. With small children, they will guarentee you connecting rooms. You can tuck the kiddo's in and leave the door adjar so you & hubby can relax. Plus, you'll have 2 TV's.

What's really nice abt WL is that it is the smallest of the deluxes. Nothing is more than 5 minutes away. If you need to pop down to the store or food court, it won't take you but a few minutes. And if it is raining, you can stay inside. (There are lots of doors, so you can cut accross the pool area when the weather is nice.)

Brittany was 4.5 during our WL stay. She really enjoyed the resort. She especially loved the kiddie pool. It was never crowed. In fact, she was almost always the only kid there. It would be a easy place for you to keep track of your three.

 

[vettechick99]

Hello fellow Georgian!

I think it really depends on your comfort and the ages in your family. If you have two younger kids and a toddler, you should be ok if you don't mind the close quarters. 3 older kids (middle school or more), that's a different ball game. Then again, my sister has a toddler, 5 & 9 yo and she refuses to cram into one room...just for sanity's sake.

You may want to do a search on square footage of both rooms. Try www.wdwig.com (AllEars).

Also, if you like the WL, you might consider renting points from a DVC member for the WLV and get a 2 bedroom. Its likely to be less expensive than two regular rooms.

 

[3for Me]

I think it depends on the ages (and sizes) of your children. We just stayed 5 in a room at the GF and it was fine. But my children are younger, and we really did not want them in another room.

 

[arazamataz]

We stay 5 in a room. Our DS's are teen's and are never in the room. They meet other kid's and go to the parks and pool in the day. At night they meet and go "downtown". We always have breakfast and dinner together. So for use 5 is no problem.

 

[lmhall2000]

Not bad at all...it was a little tight at AKL with 5 when our youngest was in a crib...but we stayed at the Poly and the GF rooms are bigger by a little bit I think...so it should be plenty of space....my rule is...if my kids are all over age 8...then we get two rooms...if they're all under age 10 then we stay in one. The monorail is GREAT!

Tara

 

[4greatboys]

We are a family of 6 (youngest is not 3 yet) and we have all stayed in the same room several times at Poly, CR, YC. It is doable but I would rather have the 2 rooms---we have been spoiled by DVC. Im now so used to having a couple of bedrooms, more than 1 tv and bathroom. It really is a tad more pleasant when you have more room to stretch out. We are park people and dont hang out in our room lots but its still nice. My teens like to stay up and watch tv while we head to bed sooner with the little ones.
But like I said we have all stayed in the same room before and it wasnt all that bad. We will probably do that again the first 2 nights of our next trip since we are arriving on a Fri night and we dont use our DVC points on Fri or Sat night because the point value is just to high.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

GF and Poly are good sized rooms (much bigger than AKL or WL). We always stay with the three kids in the rooms and it's fine. Being on the monorail is the best. We like the GF because on the monorail we're the first stop at MK and on the ferry on the way back GF is the first stop. But both Poly and GF are wonderful, and believe it or not, very kid friendly.

 

[BCV23]

What's really nice abt WL is that it is the smallest of the deluxes. /QUOTE]

Actually, BWI is the smallest of the deluxes with 378 rooms. BC is next with 583 rooms followed by YC at 630. WL has 728 but if you add VWL it's at 864. The Polynesian has 847. Of course BCV adds on to the resort population at BC too. VWL IS the smallest DVC property however.

We are a family of 5 and the rooms at the Polynesian are plenty of room for us...we've been staying there since 1983. And the transportation options are the best of any WDW resort in our opinion. Besides the monorail, you can take the little launches to the MK and it is the first stop. You can walk to the TTC for the Epcot monorail or to take the ferry (or return on it which is what we sometimes do).

But two bathrooms is nice. Our family would always pick one room at the Polynesian or GF over two at WL but everyone has different needs. Now if we had 3 teenage girls, the extra bathroom would seal the deal for two rooms at WL!

 

[epcotfan]

I would stick with two rooms. Two bathrooms, extra beds, two tvs, two fridges. Need I say more?

 

[Deb & Bill]

On our first trip to WDW, we stayed in the Polynesian (Moorea Bldg, now Tahiti) with five. Me, husband, 4 yr old son, 9 yr old niece and 11 yr old niece. We had plenty of room. 'Course, we hadn't stayed in a one bedroom villa at OKW yet at that time which is way bigger, but only sleeps four. The day bed at the Polynesian was a twin sized bed. My son slept with my husband and the two girls slept together in the other queen sized bed. I got the twin and it was comfortable.

 

[beastlyprince]

Two words of advice about having a full resort room:

1) If anyone in your family snores, the others may have terrible dispositions after the first day or two (from lack of sleep). (Speaking from personal experience.)

2) If possible, have shower shifts (some take a shower the night before, some take a shower in the morning). This will save time in the morning.

 

[4greatboys]

two fridges

Ohhh I forgot about the fridges. That would be great having 2 to store away a few groceries.

 

[cbsunfish]

My dad's favorite resort is the Grand Floridian, and we always stay with our entire family of 5 in one room. We've also done the same at the Polynesian. Youngest sister is 10, so she fits nicely on the daybed. I've never felt like we were overcrowded there. And trust me, we are not small people. Everyone except the 10 year old is near or over 6 feet tall. And even with four girls, we have never had a problem with the bathroom (some people shower at night, some in the morning). The sinks/dressing area at both helps alleviate bathroom crowding, as you really only need it for shower/toilet.

And you just can't beat the monorail. Even if I do hear that it smells funny these days....

 

[epcotfan]

Two words of advice about having a full resort room:

1) If anyone in your family snores, the others may have terrible dispositions after the first day or two (from lack of sleep). (Speaking from personal experience.)

I agree with you. Some people stay up later than others. Hard to do when there are children. We got two rooms at CSR last August. I was travelling with pre-teen male cousins and I knew they would want their privacy, as would I. Oftentime they would come back to the room and fall asleep immediately. If we had been sharing the same room it would have been a disaster. Also the extra bathroom came in handy when their toilet backed up and we had to get maintenance.

 

[mfoz1]

Have done it a number of times with 3 children at moderate resorts over the years but must admit that 2 rooms is so much better now that we have 4 children and we have to!!!!! 2 bathrooms is a must especially with 2 teenage daughters in tow.

 

[shirleyb]

We are a family of 5 and have always stayed in one room. I can't deny that two would be nice, but frankly, I am too cheap!

 

[triplefigs]

up doing 2 rooms at the CR Wing Room. It was only $200 more for the 7 days (total) and now we're on the Monorail and can walk to MK. I'm hoping maybe for an upgrade at check-in. If not, we're still happy!

DH said to keep 2 rooms for the extra fridge and bathroom. I have triplets (they'll be 5 when we go), and the space will be nice. I would have loved to done the Poly again or tried GF, but DH said 2 rooms. So CR here we come!

Thanks again!

 

[DisneyDW]

I think it is a personal decision. Having the extra space, bathrooms, fridges and everything is very nice but it is my sanity that I keep when we have 2 rooms. It is not vacation to me when we have to stay in one room. Someone needs to go to sleep who can't because everyone else is up. Someone needs to sleep a little late but can't because everyone else is up. I just can't sleep period because everyone else snores! If everyone is very flexible and you don't have to worry about anyone being cranky without enough sleep, it is doable - heck, people do it all the time. Just not me!

 

[Ellester]

up doing 2 rooms at the CR Wing Room. It was only $200 more for the 7 days (total) and now we're on the Monorail and can walk to MK. I'm hoping maybe for an upgrade at check-in. If not, we're still happy!

DH said to keep 2 rooms for the extra fridge and bathroom. I have triplets (they'll be 5 when we go), and the space will be nice. I would have loved to done the Poly again or tried GF, but DH said 2 rooms. So CR here we come!

Thanks again!

I think you'll be very happy at CR. We thought the wing rooms were huge and very convenient to MK. It was so nice walking back instead of waiting like lemmings for the monorail after Wishes.