Tips for family/group vacation

[Sondra Sunflowers]

Hello friends!! I am going to start planning a family/group vacation soon and I'm wondering if you have any tips and best practices I can use! Some background - There will be 7 of us. My husband, 22-year-old daughter and I are DVC and have been to Disney many many times. It will be my daughter's boyfriend's (24) first time, and my in-laws 2nd time (including a niece age 6). I'm sure we will spread out and have 3 different groups of us at times. At times, we'll want to stay together. I know that it will be helpful to link My Disney Experience app to each other. Also, this will be a college graduation celebration for my daughter so I'd like to do something special for her. We are hoping to stay in a 2-bedroom @ Kidani and will be there 1 week.

Any tips, best practices, and lessons learned you can share? I want to share my DVC knowledge and plan some fun things that I know everyone will enjoy.... but I also don't want to take control of other people's vacation experiences.

And...go!

 

[Stargazer65]

Any tips, best practices, and lessons learned you can share? I want to share my DVC knowledge and plan some fun things that I know everyone will enjoy.... but I also don't want to take control of other people's vacation experiences.

We just did a similar type group family vacation last month after my son's college graduation. We had 9 of us, it was so fun. To start you may want to read this post from my Treehouse Trip report, even though we were at a different location than you are planning, some pointers may be helpful:
https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...ay-experience-june-2023.3922130/post-64878272

I will post some other things as I think about them.

 

[Stargazer65]

As you mentioned, we linked all 9 of us in the MDE app. That is definitely helpful, so you know what everyone is doing. Because everyone was adults, (except the 15 yr old), we typically were spread out into 3 or 4 groups that sometimes changed.
One thing we planned ahead of time was a few special meals for all 9 of us together. One was my treat (I paid for everyone), we voted on where to go a few months before, and "The Edison" won. So we had an evening dinner together there, all of us, that was fun. Additionally we also made reservations at Beaches and Cream one day and ate two Kitchen Sinks, and another day the SOG breakfast buffet.
We all went to the same TPs on the same days. Once we were there, we usually split into groups, but we did make some special rides together all 9 of us (i.e. GOTG and TRON).

 

[RoseGold]

You have enough experience in this group to ask some questions. I would ask what each person wants to prioritize and take it from there. If her BF is a Star Wars geek, maybe their schedule won't match yours much at all.

I would make an effort to plan at least one big group celebratory dinner and line up parks and plans at least for that one dinner.

For the six year old (assuming she is the princess type), I always make BBB number one priority. It is magical in this age range, and you can bring your own dress. If you're sneaky about it, they'll help you by sneaking it in and surprising her with it. Everyone meeting up with the six year old and making a huge deal about it could be a real peak experience for everyone.

 

[Dismas]

Definitely split up where needed as what appeals to adults might not appeal to a 6 year old and vice versa. Definitely celebrate your daughter, but also let the first and second timers dictate flow and pacing of the trip or groups. I assume the core 3 of you will be back many times in the future as well, so if you don't get to ride your favorite ride this time, next time. Let someone who has never been experience something high on their list.

 

[Sandisw]

When we do bigger groups, we decide from the start we going together but separate, We choose a few TS meals to do together and then take it from there.

We always try to have a tentative plan for the same park to visit first thing, but after that, everyone chooses their own priorities and as the planner, I try to guide everyohe.

The biggest piece that we agree upon from the start is that everyone gets to change their mind on what to do and where to go.

If people decide to sleep in, or are running late, they meet up with us when they want. If they decide they’d rather go to a different park, that is okay.

The other piece is that I go in with the mindset that people might cancel out and I end up with more space than needed. Since I don’t charge family for the rooms, I know I could have to change things or end up staying in larger rooms when we don’t need to.

With that mindset, it really keeps the trip and my sanity stress free, I do not offer to decide things for people….if they say, guide us, I tell them what I would be doing and they can decide if that works!

 

[CarolynFH]

I agree with recommendations above. When we have big family trips, we book one ADR each day and also make effort to ride the most important attractions together, e.g., got BGs for RotR together. Otherwise each family group was on its own, and who was doing what with whom varied throughout the day and the trip.

Think carefully about who will sleep where when booking your resort. A 2BR at Kidani is great because of the extra bathroom, but think carefully about whether a 1 BR (still has extra bathroom for those sleeping in the living room) and studio might work better in terms of allowing private space per family group.

 

[RoseGold]

Think carefully about who will sleep where when booking your resort. A 2BR at Kidani is great because of the extra bathroom, but think carefully about whether a 1 BR (still has extra bathroom for those sleeping in the living room) and studio might work better in terms of allowing private space per family group.

Yes, it might be time for a lock-off.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

Yes, it might be time for a lock-off.

There are advantages and disadvantages to that. The dedicated 2BRs have the extra 'real' bed, which we prefer!!

 

[Boopuff]

We had our family group of 7 as well. We plan one park each day. One TS each day to connect. We would all leave at different times, but often ended up in smaller groups touring around. We had a lot of fun, no pressure to stick together, we always ended up doing a late night swim together. Go and have fun!

 

[Sondra Sunflowers]

There are advantages and disadvantages to that. The dedicated 2BRs have the extra 'real' bed, which we prefer!!

This is what we are doing. The real bed is important. We try not to clutter the shared space as much as possible.

 

[ILoveMyDVC]

If you are not paying for the meals (no offense here, some hosts do if it is their family members; some don't if it is friends; and all other mutations, this post is not meant to be a cheerleading section for those that have the $$ or a beat up/shaming session on those that don't).

I have walked both sides. I always pay for my children and their spouses. I do not pay for the meals of friends.

So now that is out of the way:

I don't remember the rules here...but if you google "Disney World menus" you will find a site or two that has the current offerings AND PRICES for each on-site restaurant or QS.

After 30 years of hosting, this is my HIGHEST ANXIETY STRESSOR! I did the Dining Plan for years just to avoid the stress. My stomach (no pun intended) is in knots right now jus typing this.

Not everyone agrees on the value to fun or food. I will drop the $$ at California Grille to see the fireworks; others wouldn't eat anything on their menu and/or wouldn't want to touch those costs.

So my first piece of advice is make certain everyone paying for food, is aware of the costs - I warn them of the sticker shock - and let them know we can go anywhere for food including off site.

 

[CarolynFH]

but if you google "Disney World menus" you will find a site or two that has the current offerings AND PRICES for each on-site restaurant or QS.

Just go to the official WDW website and click on Dining. All the current restaurant menus are available there, with prices.

 

[DaveNan]

You mentioned that you might be 3 groups at times. My recommendation is to have a conversation ahead of time and get as much detail as possible around this. How often are we eating together? Does everyone walk at the same pace? Does everyone shop at the same pace? Do we shop in every store? What time do we arrive at the parks? How do we handle thrill rides (no 6 yo), kids rides, shows, parades? The first time we went with our DD's and their fiancé/husbands', my wife was a little frustrated as to how often they were on their own. We had discussed "spending" sometime apart, but we all had different definitions as to what that meant. It may seem uncomfortable or unnecessary, but all 3 couples need to have consistent expectations or there can be frustration and disappointment. There is no right or wrong, just a common understanding of what each group wants/expects.