How does ABD work for larger families???

[wallawallakids]

Hello,
My husband and I have been looking at the ABD trips for a while now and finally feel like our children are getting old enough to get something out of the trips and are almost ready to book in 2014. I say almost because I have no idea how it would work with our size of a family. Do connecting rooms even exist outside of the US? (Sorry if that is a dumb question. I have only ever been to Ireland and Canada and that was before children). We have 4 kids and I wouldn't want us all to be separated for the entire vacation. Are there rooms that sleep at least 3 or would we need 3 hotel rooms on the vacations? Also, for those that have taken their children, Disney is very good with engaging the young ones, correct? I know whatever trip we take my oldest two will love it. I am a little worried about my twins, who would be 6 by the time we go, getting anything out of it. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[sayhello]

The room situation really depends on where you go. I think Italy has a legal limit to how many can be in a room, etc. If the configuration you want exists, they'll let you book it, but there are no guarantees. It really depends on the availability for the week you travel. ABD will do their best to get you the configuration that works best for your family. But yes, there's a possibility that for some trips, you might need 3 rooms. But my *guess* would be that in most places, it would be 2 rooms. I would call ABD and discuss the specific trip(s) you are looking at with them.

And the ABD Adventure Guides are *EXPERTS* at engaging children of any age! On the Med criuse add-on I did in 2010, we had a 4 year old, and by the middle of the trip, she was totally and completely in love with Robyn, one of our Guides. I never, ever heard her complain, except when she realized the trip was nearly over, and she wouldn't be seeing Robyn any more! I think this is one of the things that ABD really excels at!

Sayhello

 

[wallawallakids]

The room situation really depends on where you go. I think Italy has a legal limit to how many can be in a room, etc. If the configuration you want exists, they'll let you book it, but there are no guarantees. It really depends on the availability for the week you travel. ABD will do their best to get you the configuration that works best for your family. But yes, there's a possibility that for some trips, you might need 3 rooms. But my *guess* would be that in most places, it would be 2 rooms. I would call ABD and discuss the specific trip(s) you are looking at with them.

And the ABD Adventure Guides are *EXPERTS* at engaging children of any age! On the Med criuse add-on I did in 2010, we had a 4 year old, and by the middle of the trip, she was totally and completely in love with Robyn, one of our Guides. I never, ever heard her complain, except when she realized the trip was nearly over, and she wouldn't be seeing Robyn any more! I think this is one of the things that ABD really excels at!

Sayhello

Thank you. I am wondering if we should try the Med Cruise first then and add a few ABD days on. I would really love to take them on the ABD Greece in 2014. But maybe if we do the cruise in 2014, we could try for Greece in 2015. Then they kids will be that much older the room configuration might matter less. Thanks for your help. I have a call into my TA to ask some more specifics. It's just that much more confusing to think about logistics with 4 kids!

 

[familygoboston]

We had a wonderful family with 4 kids on our last ABD, including 8 yr old twins! They were accommodated in two triples all week, and that worked fine for them. Dad was with the teen boys and mom was with the twin girls, their rooms were always adjacent, even if they couldn't connect ( such as on the ship- our trip was Andes and Galapagos)
Europe has a reputation for having tiny rooms, but one thing ABD looks for in its properties it chooses is the ability to accommodate families. So most will accommodate at least a triple.
The vacation Planning Guides at ABD and even the website will note if triples or quads cannot be accommodated on a particular trip.

I have to agree with Say Hello- the AG are truly gifted when it comes to working with people of all ages! They were as attentive to my 70 + parents needs as to the 8 yo twins- at one point one of the twins said the one thing she wanted to see in the Galapagos was a sea turtle. Luckily, one was popping up in the little holes in the lava, but it was hard for a small child to follow where it might pop up next. Our group didn't leave till our AG Laura and Robbie made sure she got to see that turtle pop up! They were holding her hand and literally running from hole to hole till she saw it! The joy on her little face was fun for us all to see!

 

[wallawallakids]

We had a wonderful family with 4 kids on our last ABD, including 8 yr old twins! They were accommodated in two triples all week, and that worked fine for them. Dad was with the teen boys and mom was with the twin girls, their rooms were always adjacent, even if they couldn't connect ( such as on the ship- our trip was Andes and Galapagos)
Europe has a reputation for having tiny rooms, but one thing ABD looks for in its properties it chooses is the ability to accommodate families. So most will accommodate at least a triple.
The vacation Planning Guides at ABD and even the website will note if triples or quads cannot be accommodated on a particular trip.

I have to agree with Say Hello- the AG are truly gifted when it comes to working with people of all ages! They were as attentive to my 70 + parents needs as to the 8 yo twins- at one point one of the twins said the one thing she wanted to see in the Galapagos was a sea turtle. Luckily, one was popping up in the little holes in the lava, but it was hard for a small child to follow where it might pop up next. Our group didn't leave till our AG Laura and Robbie made sure she got to see that turtle pop up! They were holding her hand and literally running from hole to hole till she saw it! The joy on her little face was fun for us all to see!

Thank you! That helps so much to hear. Sounds like that little girl got a trip of a lifetime!!

 

[sayhello]

I have to agree with Say Hello- the AG are truly gifted when it comes to working with people of all ages! They were as attentive to my 70 + parents needs as to the 8 yo twins- at one point one of the twins said the one thing she wanted to see in the Galapagos was a sea turtle. Luckily, one was popping up in the little holes in the lava, but it was hard for a small child to follow where it might pop up next. Our group didn't leave till our AG Laura and Robbie made sure she got to see that turtle pop up! They were holding her hand and literally running from hole to hole till she saw it! The joy on her little face was fun for us all to see!

Once again, a fabulous example of why it's the Adventure Guides that really, really make ABD worth it!

Sayhello

 

[familygoboston]

Thank you! That helps so much to hear. Sounds like that little girl got a trip of a lifetime!!

Yes, the twins were the youngest on our trip and they did great! I think because they got so much attention from the other older kids on our trip, the teens just wanted to eat them up Yours will probably find the same thing! On every ABD we've done the youngest is always the "rock star"