Paying for extended family on a WDW trip

[elaine amj]

My plan now is to shut up for a while. Maybe about 1x a week, I'll post a pic and a tidbit about something at WDW. I won't ask questions - keep it as a fun thing to share so they start learning more about what's available. And force myself to stick to JUST ONE TIDBIT.

 

[kollerbear]

I did that with my sisters too! Hahaha! One e-mail a week with a photo hyperlinked in of something we could/would do and included a 1-2 line caption and countdown. They seemed to enjoy it! But keeping it brief is key--pictures speak louder than words!

 

[bbak30]

A trip for 11 is a LOT of pressure!! This past year I have planned trips for 3 rounds of newbies. The first 2 went off super smoothly and they LOVED everything I planned for them and their trips went incredibly well. Then last month, I went on a short weekend trip with a childhood girlfriend. We hadn't traveled together since we were kids and I felt SO much pressure to make the trip perfect. She's a wing-it person and I am not. It took me about a day and a half to let it go and not to stress when things didn't go perfectly. Finally, I was able to say - do u want to sleep in? I am going to do Frozen RD because I wasn't able to get FPs. If u want to join me, u are welcome. If not, enjoy your morning. Later, after I rave about it, she asks to do it. Instead of spending an hour hitting refresh (which I did the day before), I shrug and say sure - its a 90 min line now. She then asks to go and see and again I shrug and say sure. We amble over and get in line. She looks at the people, thinks about it for a couple of mins, takes a picture, and asks to leave the line (which I knew was going to happen). It was SUCH a relief for me (and for her) once I let it all go.

Anyway, any tips or lessons learned from managing your group of 11? I am rather nervous.

How did u find out their likes and dislikes? How did u figure out your plans together? How did u manage ADRs etc?

My SIL says she is a planner. I don't think she likes having plans changed on her though (from what I recall during the wackiness and drama of wedding planning). Whereas I have about 50 different options for everything all researched to death and swirling in my head. Ack - I am enough to drive anyone crazy.

I have already told them to go ahead and tune me out when I get hyper and go into overplanning mode. My own family have no interest and just like me to tell them where to go next. As long as they enjoy their meals and do all the rides they like, they are happy (and we all know how much planning that takes!!).

I think I am going to have to be super careful not to be an annoying Disney know-it-all.

But seriously, I am DYING to discuss dining (I know - it is TEN months out!!). How do I bring this up? What would be the best way to discuss this (Especially with only text/phone)? Like everyone recommended, I want us to make the plans together.

Do I say - we have 14 credits each. Lets look over the options and agree on which ones to go to - a few credits can be set aside to do separately if we want to go to different restaurant. And each couple will have a date night at a signature (LC is a must for my DH).

I was very upfront about our touring style and we were all in agreement that we would do what we wanted to and meet up
For meals. When it came time to book dining, I asked a few times if they wanted anything specific. The only one what responded was my SIL who said Via Napoli sounded good, so I booked that one. When I wanted a certain place, I just sent a link to the menu on All Ears and asked if that looked good and they all said yes. So they made it pretty easy.
We split up often and met back up. Everyone felt like it was their vacation and it was amazing. We had a great time. No arguing or going until we were exhausted.
We are all going back in February, and even adding more people. But I'm not planning for everyone this time.
Have a great trip!!!

 

[elaine amj]

I was very upfront about our touring style and we were all in agreement that we would do what we wanted to and meet up
For meals. When it came time to book dining, I asked a few times if they wanted anything specific. The only one what responded was my SIL who said Via Napoli sounded good, so I booked that one. When I wanted a certain place, I just sent a link to the menu on All Ears and asked if that looked good and they all said yes. So they made it pretty easy.
We split up often and met back up. Everyone felt like it was their vacation and it was amazing. We had a great time. No arguing or going until we were exhausted.
We are all going back in February, and even adding more people. But I'm not planning for everyone this time.
Have a great trip!!!

Thanks - the specifics on how you handled it is very helpful for me.

How did you manage FPs?

 

[kboo]

deleted due to double posting

 

[kboo]

Hey! First, I wanted to say you are a wonderful sister for doing this for your niece and her parents! And HUGE CONGRATULATIONS for your DH's news. I planned a similar trip back in Feb-March with my family of 4, my parents (mom has dementia) and my sister's family of 3. So, not as long a trip and a similar sized group, but with 2xbabies. We did not do Free dining since our family tends to like TS and we usually only do 2 larger meals plus a snack for the kids. For us, TS is a way to get DD1 (then 4yo) to stop and rest and take a break.

Here's what we did - rented points for a 2BR at BLT. My sister was on the fence about coming for the longest time - we said we would pay for lodging and some meals; I ended up giving them 3-day tickets (and my parents 5-day tickets) for Xmas later that year so they wouldn't feel financial pressure about whether to go to the parks. If they wanted to go extra days, the cost of additional days was much lower. My sister was VERY much a "we don't wanna make plans" person and I was like, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN! YOU HAVE TO PLAN AHEAD FOR DISNEY!" They hadn't even decided whether to come when 180+10 booking opened up. I tried sending emails like the ones you suggested up above, pointing to links about restaurants and attractions, and my sister did the email equivalent of an eyeroll and said, "It's vacation! I don't want to have to plan anything!" Eventually I let it go, too. I knew that with all of them coming from the West Coast, they would not be doing rope drop with anyone. We had been to WDW a few years previously when DD1 was a toddler and they had no kids (and my mom's dementia wasn't so bad). So here's what I did for dining and FP:

at 180+10 - I booked several TS places that I knew our DD would enjoy. If it was lunch or dinner, about half the time I made a big enough reservation that they could join if they wanted to, but included my parents for sure. I booked a couple of breakfasts just my DH and kids because I knew we would be up way early. I also booked more TS meals at GF or the Poly rather than in the parks since my sister only had 3-day tix. I just made sure that before the 24 hour window was up, I'd adjust or cancel the rez if it looked like it wasn't going to work. Since we weren't on the DP, my sister ended up covering a dinner at the Wave on the their last night, and we covered maybe 1-2 dinners that included them. (We paid our parents' way)

For FPs, since we had babies, it was pretty easy - I booked AM FPs for me and DH and DD1, and then linked all our tickets and booked afternoon placeholder FPs for my sister, her partner and my parents, based on what I remember them liking in the past. If they made it, great, if not, no biggie.

How it worked in reality:

My parents came along to whatever meals etc we booked for them, and slept in and spent time with my niece at the condo in the mornings when we were already out at the parks. By around 11am would begin the multitudes of group texts, where are you/we are getting up now/probably leaving the condo in an hour, etc etc. We would usually meet around lunchtime or after, hang out at the park for a while and do some rides together. Then we'd take our kids home for an afternoon break while my parents and my sister hung out at the park. We'd usually regroup in the evening or late afternoon, sometimes going to dinner together, sometimes not. Sometimes they used the FPs I booked for them, sometimes not. We spent a bit if time every day texting to figure out where/when we were going to meet, but it didn't really affect our touring so much since we were already in the parks, and my parents were either with us or with them. My parents got to enjoy dinner at CRT and BOG and Boma and Mickey's Backyard BBQ, and brunch at Tusker House and CP. We did an early breakfast at CRT with just DH and our kids on our first morning - my parents' flight was late the night before, so they slept in, and we got empty Main St pictures. As a big group we had dinner at The Wave and Kona Cafe, can't remember if we did others. DH and I also went out for an adult dinner at California Grill with some friends who happened to be there at the same time.

All in all, I saw a lot of inefficiency with how my sister "toured" but they were fine with it. I do wish we could have spent more time together doing stuff in the parks, but they were sleeping until 11-12 every day, so that wasn't really going to happen, since our kids needed to be back and in bed by 7/7:30.

As with your brother, my sister and her partner have limited means, so I was fine with booking the villa and covering their tickets. What would I have done differently? Maybe planned a few rides or meals around midday or in the afternoon so we could have spent more time together - though that was hard with 2 babies having to nap too. We did spend a bit of time at AK together; since we were so close to MK, we spent most of our time there.

Either way, you are going to have a great time, as long as you channel Elsa and let it go!

Oh, and when you're at WDW with a 3.5 yo - you WILL ride Pooh, Small World and the carousel a bajillion times. Also the parades and characters are a lot of fun. I would suggest getting ear/hearing protection for your niece and also making sure they rent or bring a stroller. MK is LOUD, and you will need them for fireworks and parades and some of the shows.

 

[Nancyg56]

Hey! First, I wanted to say you are a wonderful sister for doing this for your niece and her parents! And HUGE CONGRATULATIONS for your DH's news. I planned a similar trip back in Feb-March with my family of 4, my parents (mom has dementia) and my sister's family of 3. So, not as long a trip and a similar sized group, but with 2xbabies. We did not do Free dining since our family tends to like TS and we usually only do 2 larger meals plus a snack for the kids. For us, TS is a way to get DD1 (then 4yo) to stop and rest and take a break.

Here's what we did - rented points for a 2BR at BLT. My sister was on the fence about coming for the longest time - we said we would pay for lodging and some meals; I ended up giving them 3-day tickets (and my parents 5-day tickets) for Xmas later that year so they wouldn't feel financial pressure about whether to go to the parks. If they wanted to go extra days, the cost of additional days was much lower. My sister was VERY much a "we don't wanna make plans" person and I was like, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN! YOU HAVE TO PLAN AHEAD FOR DISNEY!" They hadn't even decided whether to come when 180+10 booking opened up. I tried sending emails like the ones you suggested up above, pointing to links about restaurants and attractions, and my sister did the email equivalent of an eyeroll and said, "It's vacation! I don't want to have to plan anything!" Eventually I let it go, too. I knew that with all of them coming from the West Coast, they would not be doing rope drop with anyone. We had been to WDW a few years previously when DD1 was a toddler and they had no kids (and my mom's dementia wasn't so bad). So here's what I did for dining and FP:

at 180+10 - I booked several TS places that I knew our DD would enjoy. If it was lunch or dinner, about half the time I made a big enough reservation that they could join if they wanted to, but included my parents for sure. I booked a couple of breakfasts just my DH and kids because I knew we would be up way early. I also booked more TS meals at GF or the Poly rather than in the parks since my sister only had 3-day tix. I just made sure that before the 24 hour window was up, I'd adjust or cancel the rez if it looked like it wasn't going to work. Since we weren't on the DP, my sister ended up covering a dinner at the Wave on the their last night, and we covered maybe 1-2 dinners that included them. (We paid our parents' way)

For FPs, since we had babies, it was pretty easy - I booked AM FPs for me and DH and DD1, and then linked all our tickets and booked afternoon placeholder FPs for my sister, her partner and my parents, based on what I remember them liking in the past. If they made it, great, if not, no biggie.

How it worked in reality:

My parents came along to whatever meals etc we booked for them, and slept in and spent time with my niece at the condo in the mornings when we were already out at the parks. By around 11am would begin the multitudes of group texts, where are you/we are getting up now/probably leaving the condo in an hour, etc etc. We would usually meet around lunchtime or after, hang out at the park for a while and do some rides together. Then we'd take our kids home for an afternoon break while my parents and my sister hung out at the park. We'd usually regroup in the evening or late afternoon, sometimes going to dinner together, sometimes not. Sometimes they used the FPs I booked for them, sometimes not. We spent a bit if time every day texting to figure out where/when we were going to meet, but it didn't really affect our touring so much since we were already in the parks, and my parents were either with us or with them. My parents got to enjoy dinner at CRT and BOG and Boma and Mickey's Backyard BBQ, and brunch at Tusker House and CP. We did an early breakfast at CRT with just DH and our kids on our first morning - my parents' flight was late the night before, so they slept in, and we got empty Main St pictures. As a big group we had dinner at The Wave and Kona Cafe, can't remember if we did others. DH and I also went out for an adult dinner at California Grill with some friends who happened to be there at the same time.

All in all, I saw a lot of inefficiency with how my sister "toured" but they were fine with it. I do wish we could have spent more time together doing stuff in the parks, but they were sleeping until 11-12 every day, so that wasn't really going to happen, since our kids needed to be back and in bed by 7/7:30.

As with your brother, my sister and her partner have limited means, so I was fine with booking the villa and covering their tickets. What would I have done differently? Maybe planned a few rides or meals around midday or in the afternoon so we could have spent more time together - though that was hard with 2 babies having to nap too. We did spend a bit of time at AK together; since we were so close to MK, we spent most of our time there.

Either way, you are going to have a great time, as long as you channel Elsa and let it go!

Oh, and when you're at WDW with a 3.5 yo - you WILL ride Pooh, Small World and the carousel a bajillion times. Also the parades and characters are a lot of fun. I would suggest getting ear/hearing protection for your niece and also making sure they rent or bring a stroller. MK is LOUD, and you will need them for fireworks and parades and some of the shows.

We did much the same. We generally gad breakfast and dinner together and once in a while lunch. I booked character breakfast because we had little ones with us.

We split off as the day went on. A few fingers as well. I took the girls to finger and sent the adults off gifts Neal together.

We find that it's easier to split up during the day than it is to plan to meet, so we start the day together and then meet up again at dinner.

 

[kboo]

Thanks - the specifics on how you handled it is very helpful for me.

How did you manage FPs?

For my sister and my parents, I booked FPs for midday and afternoon. Didn't do any Epcot because I didn't think they were going to end up there, and Soarin was closed anyway. We didn't go to HS at all either. So I booked some of the usual suspects for the AK day and the rest were at MK - the roller coasters, Haunted Mansion, PotC, etc.

When the time actually came, different people wanted to ride different things, so we actually ended up switching MBs for a couple rides here and there.

Oh - and to address my planning tendencies, I created an Excel spreadsheet that had each day on a different chart, and it listed a schedule of each person's plans (FP, meals, etc). I made multiple paper copies and left them in the condo for them so they could always see where we were, and what had been penciled in for them.

 

[elaine amj]

Ooo..I still get to make my pretty color-coded spreadsheets? I'm in!!

@kboo I love the sound of your spreadsheets. Is there any chance you could share them or describe them in more detail?

Also, thank you so much for going into so much detail about your trip. Its really helping me gain a better picture of possible scenarios and how to manage them best.

 

[Nancyg56]

Ooo..I still get to make my pretty color-coded spreadsheets? I'm in!!

@kboo I love the sound of your spreadsheets. Is there any chance you could share them or describe them in more detail?

Also, thank you so much for going into so much detail about your trip. Its really helping me gain a better picture of possible scenarios and how to manage them best.

I believe spreadsheets are a valuable tool when you plan for a group. YOu have the ability to add what everyone would like to do and still keep some of the individual plans in place.

I always ask my family to share their top restaurant choices, any special event they want to include, favorite attractions and anything they want to avoid. You would be surprised who wants to steer clear of the Frozen Sing-a-long! LOL!!! AS well as those who you thought would skip Akershus Princess Breakfast but are all in!

Its been over a year since our last extended family trip but I woudl say that while there is a lot more work in the planning stages, the end result is priceless. I look forward to the next opportunity to plan a family trip, and hope that our next stay will be in a Poly Bungalow. Wish me luck!!!! My DH wants to purchase a vacation home in FL, and the rest of us want DVC instead. In my family, the "no" has it, so thankfully we are not in possession of a year round home that I need to manage but also am not invested in my own personal Disney "home" either. Oh well, I will live through your vacation planning!!

 

[elaine amj]

I believe spreadsheets are a valuable tool when you plan for a group. YOu have the ability to add what everyone would like to do and still keep some of the individual plans in place.

I always ask my family to share their top restaurant choices, any special event they want to include, favorite attractions and anything they want to avoid. You would be surprised who wants to steer clear of the Frozen Sing-a-long! LOL!!! AS well as those who you thought would skip Akershus Princess Breakfast but are all in!

Its been over a year since our last extended family trip but I woudl say that while there is a lot more work in the planning stages, the end result is priceless. I look forward to the next opportunity to plan a family trip, and hope that our next stay will be in a Poly Bungalow. Wish me luck!!!! My DH wants to purchase a vacation home in FL, and the rest of us want DVC instead. In my family, the "no" has it, so thankfully we are not in possession of a year round home that I need to manage but also am not invested in my own personal Disney "home" either. Oh well, I will live through your vacation planning!!

That's a great point. One thing I will push for is that at some point, they sit down and at least take a quick look over the options and tell me what is a definite no and what are the must-dos. When I planned for some close friends, I invited them over to watch the Disney planning video. Watching their reactions carefully REALLY helped me see what they liked/disliked. And we added back in some stuff that the dad (who was supplying me the info) originally wanted to remove.

On an exciting note, my SIL has asked me to help her plan a surprise 10th anniversary celebration for them while we are there! I am such a planning geek that I am so thrilled lol. Her preliminary ideas are to wear a pretty white dress and get my brother into a dress shirt. Photos are a must and also she wants an informal vow renewal with all of us (particularly cute since my kids were her flower girl/ring bearer). Then a nice dinner or something - she did say that they will have so many new experiences that she doesn't want to spend much above our current plans. So I am thinking a signature dinner with the TS credits we have. And of course, we'll take care of my DN that night.

 

[Nancyg56]

That's a great point. One thing I will push for is that at some point, they sit down and at least take a quick look over the options and tell me what is a definite no and what are the must-dos. When I planned for some close friends, I invited them over to watch the Disney planning video. Watching their reactions carefully REALLY helped me see what they liked/disliked. And we added back in some stuff that the dad (who was supplying me the info) originally wanted to remove.

On an exciting note, my SIL has asked me to help her plan a surprise 10th anniversary celebration for them while we are there! I am such a planning geek that I am so thrilled lol. Her preliminary ideas are to wear a pretty white dress and get my brother into a dress shirt. Photos are a must and also she wants an informal vow renewal with all of us (particularly cute since my kids were her flower girl/ring bearer). Then a nice dinner or something - she did say that they will have so many new experiences that she doesn't want to spend much above our current plans. So I am thinking a signature dinner with the TS credits we have. And of course, we'll take care of my DN that night.

May I suggest that they consider Narcoossees? It is a bit pricy, but all signature dining options are, IMO. It is comfortable, is on the water in front of the Grand Floridian, the food is really good, and if timed properly, offers a lovely view of Wishes from the veranda. How romantic is that?????

Now, I am always happy to spend someone elses money, so I would suggest the couple check out the menu, order an appetizer or two OOP, split one meal, using only two of the credits, and share the dessert. Coffee after dinner is a pressed pot and is included on the DDP as the beverage.

The Grand Pianist has been in the lobby evenings, so they can stop in and enjoy a little bit listening, maybe stop in the lunge for a predinner cocktail, and then stroll those gorgeous grounds til dinner time.

Another option is on the Boardwalk. I like the Yachtsman Steak House in Yacht Club. Again, I would suggest sharing the main meal, and ordering an app OOP to share. The food and the service is excellent, the atmosphere comfortable but supports a little dress up, and after dinner they can enjoy the Boardwalk, it is lovely at night.

My daughter and her family had dinner at Tratorria Al Forno this July. It is 1 TS and outside of Narcoossees was their favorite meal in terms of food and service. It is my opinion that any meal in the evening can stand a dress shirt and pretty dress so it does not need to be a signature. My DD said that the portions were generous for her and my DGD, but that the server was concerned that the risotto my DSIL was ordering woudl nto be substancial enough as a main for him, so DSIL ordered a side of scallops to boost it, and it was perfect.

If they want to dine in a park, I woudl suggest San Angel Inn if they like Mexican. I like the food there, for atmosphere, Holy Disney Romantic!!! It is dark, candle lit with the night "sky" overhead, the volcano erupting in the distance, and boats floating by as you dine. It is close though, they have stiffed a lot of tables into a limited space, but it was a favorite of mine.

 

[bbak30]

Thanks - the specifics on how you handled it is very helpful for me.

How did you manage FPs?

We all sat down and went over what we all wanted to do. My inlaws didn't want to do coasters. Then I just put something else in place for them. It worked out fine. My father in law ended up deciding at the time that he did want to ride BTMRR and I was happy to give him my magic band so he could experience it with his grand daughters. So I hung out with my MIL. I was more than happy to do it.
I was with a group of pretty chill people. We did end up moving stuff around as well. But for the most part I planned and they followed.

 

[kboo]

Ooo..I still get to make my pretty color-coded spreadsheets? I'm in!!

@kboo I love the sound of your spreadsheets. Is there any chance you could share them or describe them in more detail?

Also, thank you so much for going into so much detail about your trip. Its really helping me gain a better picture of possible scenarios and how to manage them best.

I am hopeless at inserting images into posts, etc. but I'll PM you.

 

[kboo]

That's a great point. One thing I will push for is that at some point, they sit down and at least take a quick look over the options and tell me what is a definite no and what are the must-dos. When I planned for some close friends, I invited them over to watch the Disney planning video. Watching their reactions carefully REALLY helped me see what they liked/disliked. And we added back in some stuff that the dad (who was supplying me the info) originally wanted to remove.

On an exciting note, my SIL has asked me to help her plan a surprise 10th anniversary celebration for them while we are there! I am such a planning geek that I am so thrilled lol. Her preliminary ideas are to wear a pretty white dress and get my brother into a dress shirt. Photos are a must and also she wants an informal vow renewal with all of us (particularly cute since my kids were her flower girl/ring bearer). Then a nice dinner or something - she did say that they will have so many new experiences that she doesn't want to spend much above our current plans. So I am thinking a signature dinner with the TS credits we have. And of course, we'll take care of my DN that night.

OOOH!!! Sounds so special!! This reminds me - Memory maker is SO worth it with a family trip like this - because once your MBs are linked, you'll be able to see everyone's pictures, even the group shots when you weren't there.

 

[kboo]

oh! I second Narcoosee's! Also California Grill! It looks like all the Signature Dining is 2 credits (I am not a DDP person), but BOG dinner is only 1 credit. I know it's "character dining" and reservations are hard to come by, but the food is very good, even if it doesn't feel as adult and fancy as the signature dining.

 

[elaine amj]

Just saw a review about The new Cali Grill brunch - sounds AMAZING! Lots of options for my SIL to choose from! I like the idea of BOG too - like u said, its a 1 credit place - but the extra theming makes it special.

Memory Maker is a definite must. Even better - I won't have to mess around with a share next year as ALL 7 of our tickets will include MM for free (man, the UK gets some neat offers!). A bit overkill since 1 MM is all we need.

I think the one thing I am still concerned about is how to juggle (and keep track of!!) 14 nights of credits for 7 people! I think a Google Sheet that we all access and update as we go will be the only way. Especially since my family likes to share and stretch our credits. On top of that, I get anxious not tracking since I like to KNOW we have enough credits to feed us until the end.

My big worry is that the only way we will have enough credits for all 3 meals (and a couple of 2 TS places!) is to share some meals where practical. My family is used to sharing 2-3 QS meals for all 4 of us. If we all want something different, we get it. No biggie. But if there are dishes that are practical to share, we'll do it. E.g. 2 rib platters at Flame Tree BBQ + subbing 2 drinks for 1 onion rings and 1 pulled pork fries would be enough for us 4, maybe supplemented by 1-2 more snacks.

My brother and SIL have not been too enthusiastic when I mentioned sharing in passing. And have said they feel my DN3 can finish a whole meal (2-3 meals a day? For 14 days?).

Hmmm...now I am re-thinking the best strategy. At first, I planned to tell my brother to track "their" half of the QS credits and snacks and for us to do the same (this is all more complicated since we are in the same room!) Now I am wondering if that will just be more hassle than it is worth. Maybe we should just all eat whatever and I'll just use a spreadsheet to keep a running tally of what we have left and whether it will last us until the end of the trip. My SIL hates the number crunching and I worry constant tracking will drive her nuts.

And really, I am pretty sure we will have some left over. Especially with TWO snacks a day. And the fact that u can trade a beverage for a snack (we primarily drink water). We did a 12 night trip with DDP a few years back and even after careful planning and eating proper bfasts almost daily (really, we ate like kings!), ended with about a dozen extra snack credits and 3-4 extra QS credits.

All that said, I confess the food thing still leaves me feeling a little stressed.

Realistically, without sharing, our credits only cover 2 meals a day. The 2 snacks do help with covering the 3rd meal thankfully. I honestly don't know if I can handle it gracefully if we have to spend extra OOP. I think it is a very unlikely possibility - but I have now started worrying. You guys all helped me so much with my first round of tangled thoughts - I need help again!!!

Thoughts? Should we track all QS and Snack credits by family? Or should it be just one (chaotic) muddle with my tracking overall use to make sure we have enough to last the whole trip? What's the best way for me to discuss this with my brother?

 

[elaine amj]

Ugh - just re-read my post above and I really do drive myself crazy about the most ridiculous things. With 14 nights of credits, we are very unlikely to run out.

I will let DB and SIL know about their entitlements each day. We will do us, they will do them and I WILL NOT STRESS ABOUT POSSIBLE OOP!!! Besides, even if they eat 3 credits at every QS meal, the sharing my own family will do (we won't be able to help it lol) will cover most of that. And in the grand scheme of things, after spending a breathtaking $8k, what's an extra $100 or so?

Gotta tell that pennypinching part of me to BE QUIET and focus on having a magical time

 

[TwoMisfits]

Rather than mentioning sharing, I'd just explain the plan as it is. It covers 3 meals a day as follows...
Breakfast = 2 snacks (this is your coffee and danish breakfast, your milk and cereal breakfast, your juice and oatmeal breakfast) - if you aren't hungry, you can save a snack or two for later Dole Whips...or that can be breakfast
Lunch = 1 CS meal with drink or snack - this is your sandwich, side, and drink
Dinner = 1 TS meal with which is an entree, dessert and drink

You can make adjustments to the plan to save meals for signatures, or snacks as additional meals, but that will require a little more massaging of the plan. If they don't want to do so, no worries - there are plenty of 1 TS's that are awesome (and would work for the proposed date night for them)...you may massage it for you b/c you want date night at that sig, but they don't need to worry about it...

 

[elaine amj]

Rather than mentioning sharing, I'd just explain the plan as it is. It covers 3 meals a day as follows...
Breakfast = 2 snacks (this is your coffee and danish breakfast, your milk and cereal breakfast, your juice and oatmeal breakfast) - if you aren't hungry, you can save a snack or two for later Dole Whips...or that can be breakfast
Lunch = 1 CS meal with drink or snack - this is your sandwich, side, and drink
Dinner = 1 TS meal with which is an entree, dessert and drink

You can make adjustments to the plan to save meals for signatures, or snacks as additional meals, but that will require a little more massaging of the plan. If they don't want to do so, no worries - there are plenty of 1 TS's that are awesome (and would work for the proposed date night for them)...you may massage it for you b/c you want date night at that sig, but they don't need to worry about it...

That was what I originally thought. However, I started worrying how to keep track of the credits. With 7 people and 14 nights, we start talking about 196 snack credits - very hard to track who has used what; ie who has massaged the plan and who hasn't. So now I figure I will tell them what the plan covers (what u said above) and then mentally prepare myself that they will not save/share and that I might have to pay some OOP. If I am mentally prepped for that, I won't be upset.

I think part of it all comes the glee my family takes in juggling credits and maximizing the DDP (and yes, its fun for us!). I do recognize that others may not feel the same way. I know my brother does love hunting for deals, etc - but my SIL's head starts spinning when I start number crunching. I know myself though - I cannot completely wing it (it will leave me endlessly stressed). So whatever tracking system we use, I must have a way to keep track of how many we have remaining and whether we are under-using or over-using.

My main issue now is how to talk about DDP with them - before AND during the trip. Mostly worried about 98 QS and 196 snack credits.