Resort Recommendations for Large Family

[WishUponAStarryNight]

Hi all! We're in the early stages of planning for an early 2018 trip to WDW. As the family vacation planner, I'm trying to pin down some options for the group for an onsite resort stay. We will have up to 9 in our group (my parents (70ish), my sister (an adult), my other sister, her husband and two kids (ages 4 and 2), my son (age 7) and me). We don't need to be in the same room (and would rather not be unless we could get comfortable with sleeping and bathroom arrangements), but I'd like to keep the cost reasonably in check. When I was last in WDW in 2014, we stayed in an AoA family suite (there were 4 of us on that trip). Though I didn't love the location, the room was perfect for us (two full baths!). I'd love to stay in an Epcot area resort, but I'm concerned that three standard hotel rooms might be out of budget. Perhaps a couple villas would work better? Renting DVC points seems complicated, but I'll spend some time researching that as well. Thanks for any and all recommendations and Happy New Year!

 

[_auroraborealis_]

With 9, generally speaking, you would need a DVC 2BR or Grand Villa to all be together, or multiple rooms based on the composition of your group - probably your parents + sister in one, sister-husband-family in a second, and then you+son in a third. Even with DVC rental, your cheapest option for this group would be 3 Standard rooms at a Value resort. Because the 2 year old wouldn't count for occupancy, this COULD be done with 2 Value rooms (but you said "comfortable," and I don't know that you'd count you+son with your parents, and single sister in with sister-with-family, at a Value, as comfortable! I wouldn't!)

In most 2BR DVC units, there would be a King bedroom (likely your parents), a second "bedroom" that would either be 2 queens, or a queen and a sleeper sofa, with maybe a murphy bed. The living room would be part of your sleeping setup, with a sleeper and (sometimes) a chair bed. Bathroom arrangements would depend on resort.

Relative to DVC, I rarely think trying to rent multiple units for a large group is a good idea. Logistically, because rental is usually a final transaction, you need one owner with sufficient points for all units (which can be tough), or multiple owners. Any owner can only book one room at a time, so if you're trying for a high-demand season (or even if not) there's risk that the first room booked is the last available.

Another key point to mention is that DVC high season does not match what most people perceive as "high season" at WDW. It lasts from mid-September through the first weekend in January, with other holidays and runDisney events also having very high demand. So even to rent a single unit in that season requires 11-month planning, comfort with the inability to change or cancel any DVC rental, and cash up front. Because you say "up to 9," my concern with the final-transaction nature of 95% of DVC rentals is perhaps obvious. Wrangling and getting hard commits from a large group is a nuisance. At least renting 3 rooms via Disney, you'd have the generous cancel policy.

 

[WishUponAStarryNight]

Thank you! You've confirmed much of my thinking at this point. Not to sound selfish, but if I'm doing all the planning, I don't want to be relegated to a sleeper sofa and because my parents would take the king and my sister and her family would take the other bedroom, that's likely what would happen. And you're right, the flexibility to cancel would be huge for us. I hadn't thought of the difficulty of renting DVC for large groups - thanks for that info. Three rooms seems to be the way to go - no to figure out where!

 

[DisneyWishes14]

You might want to look into Swan/Dolphin (we prefer the Swan). You will be in the EP area for, typically, a lower price than YC/BC and BWI. You would lose some onsite perks (DME, 180+10 ADR reservations and charging back to the room), but you will still be within walking distance of two parks, get Disney transport to the parks, EMH and great restaurants. For the best prices, go directly to their website and become an SPG member (Starwood Preferred Guest). It might be worth pricing out.

Otherwise, maybe 2 AoA suites or 3 mod rooms?

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Thank you! You've confirmed much of my thinking at this point. Not to sound selfish, but if I'm doing all the planning, I don't want to be relegated to a sleeper sofa and because my parents would take the king and my sister and her family would take the other bedroom, that's likely what would happen. And you're right, the flexibility to cancel would be huge for us. I hadn't thought of the difficulty of renting DVC for large groups - thanks for that info. Three rooms seems to be the way to go - no to figure out where!

A Grand Villa would probably work. A master at most GVs is the king, and the two additional bedrooms are a queen+sleeper or two queens. (You'd drop the kid on the sleeper, at resorts with the queen+sleeper setup.)

But GVs can be challenging to rent into many seasons, and are generally going to be more expensive, even with point rental, than 3 Value or Mod rooms, without the benefit of the cancellation and payment policies. When wrangling a larger group, multiple kids, elders... it's up to your risk tolerance.

 

[Gracie09]

Also look at the treehouses. They are 3 bedroom/2 bath. One of the bedrooms has bunkbeds (probably good for the kids). Two others have queen beds (I think or king) and then there is a pull out sofa and chair in the living room. They are self-contained units (not attached) and have full kitchens.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Also look at the treehouses. They are 3 bedroom/2 bath. One of the bedrooms has bunkbeds (probably good for the kids). Two others have queen beds (I think or king) and then there is a pull out sofa and chair in the living room. They are self-contained units (not attached) and have full kitchens.

OP would still probably end up on a sleeper sofa again, or sharing a bed with her kid.

Sleeping setup:

• Bedroom 1: Queen
• Bedroom 2: Queen
• Bedroom 3: Bunk beds (not full length)
• Living Room: Sofa bed, chair bed

The more aged parents get a queen, two of the three kids get the bunk beds. You have another couple, OP, another kid and the single sister to use a sofa bed, chair bed, and a queen bed. Now, maybe OP could insist on getting the queen and sleeping in it with her kid, and having the married sister on the sofa bed, and the single on the chair bed. But the overall split down might be more awkward.

 

[Dakota731]

We are going with eight later in the year and are renting three studios. I don't mine staying in one room when it's just my immediate family but when other adults are involved, I want my own bed and bathroom!

 

[WishUponAStarryNight]

These are all good suggestions, thanks! Yes, a bedroom and bathroom for my son and I would be nice. The 9 of us travel together annually, but we rent a 4 bedroom house. It has only 2 bathrooms, but we make it work. The idea of sleeping on a sofa during a trip that is far more expensive than our annual beach trip is tough to stomach. If we go 3 separate rooms, how easy is it to request that we're located close together (neither connecting nor immediately adjoining is necessary) while at the same time requesting preferred location?

 

[Hopefully]

These are all good suggestions, thanks! Yes, a bedroom and bathroom for my son and I would be nice. The 9 of us travel together annually, but we rent a 4 bedroom house. It has only 2 bathrooms, but we make it work. The idea of sleeping on a sofa during a trip that is far more expensive than our annual beach trip is tough to stomach. If we go 3 separate rooms, how easy is it to request that we're located close together (neither connecting nor immediately adjoining is necessary) while at the same time requesting preferred location?

It is easy to make such a request, but it is never guaranteed. If they are able to they will meet your requests.
A way to make it more likely is to "link" all of the rooms as "Traveling With". The room assigner then knows that you want to be near each other. Also you could make that your only request. Preferred location is generally a booking category, not a request, so that should not matter.
The more requests you make the harder it is to meet them all.

 

[WishUponAStarryNight]

It is easy to make such a request, but it is never guaranteed. If they are able to they will meet your requests.
A way to make it more likely is to "link" all of the rooms as "Traveling With". The room assigner then knows that you want to be near each other. Also you could make that your only request. Preferred location is generally a booking category, not a request, so that should not matter.
The more requests you make the harder it is to meet them all.

I forgot about the ability to link the reservations. That should be a big help. Thanks!

 

[AshleeH]

We had a party of 9 on our last vacation - my family of 5 and our best friends (family of 4). We used our DVC points to rent a 2 BR - this is our norm, even for our family of 5, so it was a great deal for all. Our friends paid for the Dining Plans for everyone. My husband and I took the master with our toddler. My boys, who usually stay in the second bedroom, slept on the pullout sofas in the living room and used the full bathroom next to the door to the room. And our friends had the second bedroom with their own private bathroom.

 

[Sugart]

I've stayed in the Grand Villas at Saratoga Springs. 3 bedrooms, plus pull out sofa and 4 bathrooms can't be beat for space. I've used dvcrequest.com 3 times, it's not complicated and it's as easy as booking through WDW, mostly