How can I stay onsite under 14K?!

[IWRBIE]

You should definitely look at renting DVC points and getting a two bedroom villa. We've had great experiences with both DVC Rental Store and David's.

 

[Denise W]

Keep in mind if you rent DVC points you cannot get "free dining", which you appear to want.
Denise

 

[Disneylovingmomof2]

Well if the nanny cannot go then you could look into the suites at All Star Music or Art Of Animation as they hold 6 people. (All Star Music will be the more cot effective of those two)

I think AOA would be the best bet too. Suite for the immediate fam and then you can get nanny a mermaid room (if she ends up going).

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

I think AOA would be the best bet too. Suite for the immediate fam and then you can get nanny a mermaid room (if she ends up going).

Very true!

 

[bumbershoot]

AS Music suite is barely adequate for the family and impossible with the nanny.

https://www.mousesavers.com/family-suites-at-disneys-all-star-music-resort/

Queen bed in the bedroom.

Pullout sofa bed that can sleep two, pullout chair for one, pullout ottoman for one.

No room for nanny.

Though if the little one sleeps in parent’s room, there’s room (not sure of actual room capacity), but...nanny in shared sleeping quarters with a teen?

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

AS Music suite is barely adequate for the family and impossible with the nanny.

https://www.mousesavers.com/family-suites-at-disneys-all-star-music-resort/

Queen bed in the bedroom.

Pullout sofa bed that can sleep two, pullout chair for one, pullout ottoman for one.

No room for nanny.

Though if the little one sleeps in parent’s room, there’s room (not sure of actual room capacity), but...nanny in shared sleeping quarters with a teen?

It's possible just like an AOA suite is possible. OP says Nanny may not go. And as another poster mentioned it could be nice for them to have a suite and Nanny to have a standard room so she has her own space and is not on call 24/7.

 

[KenInDenver]

I would say your best bet is to get a Treehouse Villa at Saratoga Springs from a DVC owner. They are not a bad deal on points and they are 3 bedrooms. They are not that old so they are pretty nice. It is not camping by any means. We have a family of 5 and normally bring a mother in law or someone too.
We have never made the math work on the dining plan. The last time we had groceries delivered from a local service, not Disney, right when we got there (you order ahead of time and schedule it). We always eat breakfast in the room. Then we pack lunch a couple of the days. We are DVC members (Resale) and get great value out of it so we can buy lunch and dinner at the park most days.
Good Luck!

 

[RangerPooh]

My suggestion if you do not want two rooms of the higher cost of a suite are to rent DVC points from an owner, look at the AoA- Little Mermaid family suites, or FW Cabins. Personally we enjoyed the cabins, but it's also our personality. There's also off site options. Though off-site options do not include free dining. Our favorite off-site option is Wyndham Bonnet Creek as the rooms are spacious and the proximity is extremely close to WDW parks.

Rarely does free dining promotions work in our favor as we don't eat enough. Instead we split meals as there are plenty of counter service options that have huge portions. Plus we do the refillable popcorn bucket as our low cost snack.

 

[nkereina]

Sorry if this has been mentioned, but if you are going to go with renting DVC points, you'll want to get the ball rolling soon. Once you hit the 7 month mark, all DVC owners can book at any resort so availability gets eaten up at that point. You'll want to jump at the 7 month mark to ensure you have the best shot at the resort and room type you want. I'll also caution that Beach Club and Boardwalk may be tough to get in September due to Food & Wine. AKV, OKW, and SSR will have the most options more than likely.

 

[PDXmouse]

I think the OP knows her relationship with the nanny better than we do. I can absolutely see some nannies should be offered there own room, but others wouldn’t.

We have a nanny who works for us every summer (she works for the school district during the year.). She is unmarried, younger(ish) and would *absolutely* share a room with my kids if we took her to Disney. I know this for a fact because we’ve talked about it before.

So as long as the OP and nanny are on the same page, I don’t think the room setup is as important as the cost.

I’m not as knowledgable about DVC, but based on what I’ve read I’d consider 2 rooms at POFQ or POR. Try to get a room discount, then add the DxDP to a room with the parents and two younger kids. Share the dining credits at TS locations amongst the “Disney adults” and pay OOP for the kids and QS meals/snacks. I think you’d still come out ahead.

 

[PDXmouse]

ETA, I think the thing I’m seeing is you want to have your cake (deluxe, on site, full housekeeping, meal plan) but not pay for what Disney is charging. Without another recession to make Disney rethink their pricing, it may not be reasonable with a group your size.

(Maybe with DVC, I don’t know a lot about that.)

You need to decide your absolute priorities and figure out where to cut, which is why offsite at a nice hotel OR a moderate with DxDC dining credits on part of the group (shared by all) might be worthwhile compromises.

 

[scrapquitler]

We are a family of 6- 2 adults 4 children ages 15-9-7-3. The only options that Disney is giving me is the suites at Poly or AK and it's over 14k for an 8 day trip..

My ideal trip would be AK during free dining in September but there is no way I am willing to pay $16k for lodging and park hoppers.

We would also like to travel with our nanny to help out with the kids which doesn't seem to affect the room capacity as we are already over the limit for a smaller suite/room.

Does anyone have any tips on a way to stay onsite with this large of a group for a more reasonable amount? Do any of the resorts offer connecting rooms?

With this large of a party does the FDP pencil? I also like the fact that my husband won't be complaining over every meal and snack price.

I used this forum to plan my WDW trip in 2014 and I greatly appreciate everyone who takes the time to comment and give their insight.

Thanks!!

Two (or even three, if the nanny was coming) value or moderate rooms would be a lot less than $14K for 7 days. A LOT less. All resorts have connecting rooms, even the values.

 

[bumbershoot]

It's possible just like an AOA suite is possible. OP says Nanny may not go. And as another poster mentioned it could be nice for them to have a suite and Nanny to have a standard room so she has her own space and is not on call 24/7.

I am solely talking about the suite. Not the suite and another room. That’s why I only mentioned the suite.

And when I read what I linked to (CS just looking at the picture to remind myself of our experience there. Which was weird enough with just 4), it states 6 and one UNDER 3. They are 6 without the nanny.

So that suite with the nanny is not possible.


People talk about the suite like it’s the be all end all. And it’s just not. The kitchette is awful (such a big mini fridge when you can’t really make food...if it had a big freezer at least you could microwave some frozen meals like Amy’s Mac and cheese...) and the sleeping arrangements are bizarre.

Since I’ve been there I wanted to mention the specifics.

 

[APiratesLifeForMe2]

We are a family of 6- 2 adults 4 children ages 15-9-7-3. The only options that Disney is giving me is the suites at Poly or AK and it's over 14k for an 8 day trip..

My ideal trip would be AK during free dining in September but there is no way I am willing to pay $16k for lodging and park hoppers.

We would also like to travel with our nanny to help out with the kids which doesn't seem to affect the room capacity as we are already over the limit for a smaller suite/room.

The limitations with Disney's online reservation system is it will not offer multiple rooms as an option. As such, it is trying to fit your entire party in one accommodation and the only ones are super pricy. Try splitting your party into two groups and price it that way and you will get much less expensive results. (one search for group one and second search for group 2) Keep in mind though that doing this will give you two rooms and connecting is not a guarantee; although you can request and they will try to meet your request as best they can.

Others have mentioned renting DVC points but a 2 bedroom at Animal kingdom in September will be 200-250 points just depending on your check-in/out days and view type. (pricing is per point and should be listed on their sites) 200-250 is a large allotment of points so it does make it a bit harder to find an owner with that many points and before the 7 month mark, they have to be an owner of that resort. I would recommend contacting a DVC point rental agency soon if this is the route you want to go. Keep in mind these are almost always non-refundable and as another poster previously mentioned, you cannot get free dining with this route. You can add dining on but it has to be done through the member, not Disney.

 

[bettybooplove]

I absolutely understand wanting a nice vacation and feeling as if you’re having a true resort stay. But with a large party that will come at a large price.

Maybe not $14K, but it won’t be cheap.

Since values seem to be out, two rooms at a moderate would be pretty nice. Coronado Springs has upgraded their rooms recently and they’re very nice. Nicer than, dare I say, the current rooms at Polynesian (minus the room size of course).

There’s always the chance you may not have adjoining rooms but September is still a relatively quiet time of year so I personally don’t think you should be worried.

Free dining would be a value if you paid moderate pricing. I think the rooms are priced decently for the location.

I even think free dining would work for the 2 bedroom villas through Disney. Most room discounts will give you $100-$200 off per night. $100 isn’t going to go very far for a large number of people but the dining plan would. It will also give you peace of mind because you wouldn’t have to worry about any other expenses except tips and souvenirs.

Renting points can be cheaper but you are locked in with the dates you choose. There isn’t a lot of flexibility and free dining isn’t an option.

 

[DLgal]

Book the "deluxe room club level" at either Boardwalk Inn or Wilderness Lodge. Both sleep 6, and include club level service which will save you some money on food with that many people. If the nanny comes, book her a standard room at the same resort.

 

[deide71]

I would just wait for April and book a 2 br at Saratoga Springs or Old Key West with free dining . Should run you around $9000 for the week with park hopper tickets and dining.

Copper Creek or Bay Lake would run you about $4k more for the week and are probably less likely to be available for free dining

 

[Kaytie]

look at the AoA- Little Mermaid family suites,

Two different things. Little Mermaid is all individual rooms, no suites. Now, they could book a Lion King Suite and a Little Mermaid room, and request they be close. Then if the nanny doesn't go, they're not paying for more space than they need.

and the sleeping arrangements are bizarre.

Bizarre is in the eye of the beholder

 

[JerseyJanice]

Ether call the Swan and Dolphin directly or go through Costco travel to price out a 2 bedroom executive suite for your dates.

You can’t get the Magical Express or buy the Disney Dining Plan at S&D, but you’ll be on-site in walking distance of Epcot and the Studios. Plus the resort itself is quite deluxe both in looks and amenities.

 

[Oshay1]

We are a party of 6 also I have never liked the idea of have 2 separate room since it is not guaranteed they will be connecting. We just recently stayed at AoA in a Cars suite (August 2016) for 8 days and it was great for our family of 6. The whole package was $4500, so absolutely you can do it for MUCH less.

The next trip we have planned is for November of 2018 at the AKV, and we rented DVC points because we have more people coming this trip, 12 total so we are getting a 2 bedroom villa and studio. We have rented from Dave (https://www.dvcrequest.com/) several times in the past, then we bought a DVC and subsequently sold it, so now we had to rent points again and it was still a great experience dealing with Dave and his team. The best part of the 2 bedroom vills is they will sleep 8 or 9 so you would have room for the nanny if she was to come. The downside is you can not get free dining, but you can pay extra to add it on if you want.

You really do have many options, but it totally depends on what you are looking for:

Option 1 - 2 Standard Rooms - You are not guaranteed that you will get connecting rooms but you should be able to get the free dining, and you will technically have room for the nanny. (Ball Park Price - I have no idea as this is not an option for our family)

Option 2 - Family Suite at Art of Animation - Can sleep up to 6 and your family will all be in one room and again you should be able to get the free dining but NO room for the nanny unless you want to get her a single/standard room. (Ball Park Price - $5500-$6000)

Option 3 - Rent DVC Points and stay in a 2 Bedroom Villa - Can sleep 8 or 9 so you will have room for the nanny but you can NOT get the free dining. (Ball Park Price - $6500-$7500)

Option 4 - Pay Full Rack Rates for a Suite / Villa from Disney - (Pall Bark Price - $14,000, I would never do this option)