Tips for Large Families Going to Disney World (5 children)

[jamioday001]

Hi, Any tips for large families are greatly appreciated. We are not new to Disney, but we do need advice on where to stay with this many children, and any budget tips. They will be ages 9, 7, 4, 2 and 5 months when we go in June 2013. We'd love to stay onsite, and any other Disney World tips on saving money and/or convenience for transportation/stroller,etc,
Thanks!

 

[java]

We are a family of 6- we just stayed at the Art of Animation resort this year and really enjoyed it. The rooms are big- 2 bathrooms were great for us (2 teens) it was the perfect amount of space. I think it would work great with your crowd too!

It has a little kitchenette- which was great with kids as we brought tons of drinks and snacks with us. Also breakfast bars- (we loved the special K ones) that alone saved us a ton of $$.

Transportation is tough.We were not fans of the bus. We were stroller free. With a stroller I might think about staying on a monorail resort(not too budget friendly though) Or I would rent a car for the week. It makes life much easier. Plus we just left the stroller in the car when the kids were little to avoid the extra space suck from the stroller.

Have fun!

 

[Samar]

To stay on site, look into renting DVC points or look into 2 rooms at POP at a Value or Mod. See which would be cheaper.

Skip the "free dining" unless you plan on doing several character meals. My youngest 2 eat like birds, the dining plan would be a waste for us

Double reclining stroller and maybe one of those scooter boards for the 4 year old if they get tired of walking.

Bring your own snack stash and water bottles for each child. It's nice to just reach into your backpack or stroller for those instead of waiting at a CS place with one child in a melt down stage. Trust me, learned this the hard way

Don't go commando! Your older 2 might be able to handle it but your youngest 3 won't be able to handle it.


Buy misting fans at WalMart before you go. $8 is cheaper than $20 at Disney

We're a family of 3 but I come from a family of 5 children. I'm sure I'm missing a chunk of tips but these are the main ones that come to mind.

 

[Debbie]

Get ready to practise the count-1...2...3...4...5....1...2...3...4...5.. ..1...2...3...4...5.. ..1...2...3...4...5.... Luckily the youngest 2 will likely be in strollers.

I still remember the frantic look of my 5 year old running around the carousel looking for us, and me stuck at the bathrooms with the youngest two. At least he ran in circles and I caught him on the way 'round. He didn't stray too far after that.

We shared a lot of meals. It is easier to go and get something else, as we needed them, rather than throw things away.

Use the baby swap when you can, and get a fastpass, even if one or two of the kids don't want to ride....extra rides for the older ones.

Take time at the play spaces.

Ellen's Energy Adventure is a great place for an afternoon nap for those who are balking.

Mostly...work off 'kid schedules, feelings and needs', have fun and enjoy your family!

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

It's been awhile since my kids were that little, but I'll try to remember what helped us.

Dress the kids alike, at least in the same colors so they're easy to keep an eye on.

Decorate your stroller handle with ribbons or a bandana so it's easier to spot and don't forget a tablecloth or large poncho to cover it in case it rains while you're in a ride/show.

Don't forget about sunscreen or shade for the baby's legs and feet that aren't covered in the stroller.

Bring a change of clothes just in case.

If you aren't planning on the dining plan (which is may not make sense unless your kids are big eaters) look at a condo off site. You will have more room plus a kitchen to save money.

If you are not bringing your own stroller consider renting one from an outside company, it's much cheaper than at the parks.

Bring cupcake papers or plastic cup lids to put Mickey Bar sticks through so they don't make a huge mess when they drip.

 

[princessmorgan]

We'll soon be a family of 7! If you are going in June, I would probably rent DVC points for a 2 BR and get YES program tickets to minimize cost. My oldest DD really likes the classes they offer. If it's in the budget, then I would definitely try for Bay Lake Towers, Boardwalk Villas, or Beach Club villas to cut down on having to ride a bus as much. We usually take a double stroller and a single stroller and it is sometimes a pain, but my kids really love riding the buses. I will say though the bus transportation has been much better at the values we've stayed at than the DVC properties which share buses.

We've done a 2 BR at OKW and since they don't share either, the buses were great and the 2 BR is huge! Having a washer/dryer and a full kitchen is also fantastic. I don't really cook, but it's nice to have sandwiches/snacks/hot dogs, etc, so we don't have to eat every meal in the park.

We've stayed off property at Bonnet Creek which we really enjoyed, but having to rent a van, carry car seats, luggage, etc was a pain! Staying onsite to use Magical Express and not have to worry about that makes it worth it for us. Since Disney is not a once in a lifetime trip for us we just pick our favorite things to do in the parks and let the kids decide what they want to do. It's a lot more relaxing and enjoyable for us.

 

[PrincessSteph]

Dress the kids alike! I bought transfer paper from AmyMickey and we made fun shirts for the kids (shirt was the same color but each kid picked their design). Another fun idea was to do the Mickey tye dye shirt - during our trip this summer I got seperated from the rest of my party and a cast member asked "are you with the other shirts...they went that way".)

My kids earned their spending money...we had a chore chart and they earned Disney Dollars (found on the Creative Disigns board). Every time they earned a set number of Disney Dollars they traded them in for Disney gift cards. It really helped with shopping because they were more selective when it was their money being spent.

Mickey left a present for each kid in our room on the day we arrived. I filled the gift bags prior to leaving with fun stuff as well as necessities (from our trips I have done: pj's, sweatshirts, new outfits, plush animals, pez dispensers, books, costumes, inexpensive toys, gift cards, etc).

Have breakfast in the room and snacks / drinks in the stroller. Also take ponchos with you. We had dollar ones from Walmart and definately got our money's worth the week we were there.

Because I knew we were planning to eat at Rainforest Cafe, I took the $0.99 kids meal vouchers with me (I found these via google). We had our car, so we ate off site often (Pizza Hut, Subway, McDonalds).

Lastly, I traded in my bank reward points for gas gift cards, purchased Disney gift cards on week's when I had extra grocery money remaining and asked for gift cards for birthday / Christmas gifts (for myself not the kids). I figure every little bit helps!

Enjoy every minute of the time you are spending with your kids!

 

[Lucky'sMom]

Tip #1: YES Program. We just did it in July and it saved us alot on tickets!

Tip #2: If you would consider "offsite"...look into Wyndham's Bonnet Creek. The 2 bedroom villas (kitchen, Washer/dryer, 2 baths) are $120 or even less through some 3rd parties. There are also 3 and 4 bedroom villas. If interested, read the thread on the Orlando Hotels and Attractions board. The pools here are wonderful for little ones, there is a water play/splash area, pirate ship/fort area, lazy river, etc. They offer free transportation to the parks, but it isn't quite as frequent as Disney buses. It is right in between the Caribbean Beach and Typhoon Lagoon.

 

[Lilliputian]

We'll be there this fall with our five boys, who will be 9, 8, 5, 2, and 5 months, so that's almost the same ages. We're staying off-site in a rental house in Windsor Hills, but we're going to stay for a month, so on-site wasn't really an option this time. If we were going for a shorter trip, we'd probably have gone during free dining and gotten a 2 bedroom unit at one of the DVC resorts. If that was out of our price range (or we couldn't go during free dining or another good discount), then we'd probably stay off-site in a house. 2 connecting regular rooms or a family suite at AoM would only be on the table if we were staying 4-5 nights or fewer.

It's a good idea to put some thought into your stroller. You'll want a good double stroller where each side can recline separately that folds compactly, and is somewhat light. On our last trip (kids ages 7, 6, 3, and 11 months), we took a twin side-by-side Peg Perego. That was nice. That stroller folds up incredibly flat and is one of the lightest double strollers you can get. It's old and worn out now, though, and I'm fairly certain I'm replacing it with a City Mini double. It will be a bit heavier, but it steers really well. (I have the single right now.) It doesn't fold as small, but it folds easily, and maybe it will last longer because I don't have to slam it around every time I fold it.

A sling or some type of baby carrier is important. You can't take strollers in the lines, and babies are so much easier to carry in a sling. I use a Sutemi, which is almost exactly like an Ergo. We've used it at WDW with an 11 month old and 15 month old, and it was wonderful, so it will be even easier with a 5 month old. Then when you stay for fireworks and leave the parks with the masses, you can put the baby in the carrier and put your littlest 2 in the stroller. Whoever isn't pushing the stroller holds 2 hands, and no one gets lost!

 

[swilshire]

Ellen's Energy Adventure is a great place for an afternoon nap for those who are balking.

I dozed a time or two myself on our last ride.

God bless you. We've visited with four kids, but our oldest and youngest are 13 years apart.

The biggest thing we learned when the older ones were little is never to visit the parks two days in a row. The only exception to that is if we have season passes and don't mind going for just a couple of hours some days.

I understand you would rather stay on-site, but realistically are you likely to split up? That's the only major reason I can see to stay on-site. And of course, all the Disney resorts are great for the kids if you're going to spend a lot of time OUT of the parks.

If not, you'd get more value for your money off-site. Book a 3 bedroom unit somewhere and give everybody room to spread out. Eat breakfast and dinner in the room. Unless your kiddos are more patient than mine ever were, you don't want to spend time waiting in a restaurant for food.

Sounds like a fun trip as long as everybody keeps a good humor and is willing to roll with the flow.

Sheila

 

[swilshire]

Bring a change of clothes just in case.

Head to toe. I had to buy socks for youngest DS at Epcot after a major "accident" once.

Sheila

 

[RMAMom]

If your budget is limited look at the value suites, all star music is much cheaper than Art of Animation

Book a few character meals, its a great way to see the characters without waiting in line. Some of our favorites are Chef Mickey, Tusker House and Crystal Palace. For Princesses you just can't beat Akershus breakfast.

 

[JessB320]

I have to vote for bonnet creek as well. With our 5 kids the only way we can do Orlando is with the space and kitchen of bonnet creek. It feels more like vacation to me than a rental house and has lots of stuff for all ages to do which is nice .

 

[momxx5]

Mommy of many......5 kiddos !
We have been many times when the children were young. We did a splurge trip and many, many budget trips.

1. The nicer, easy, everything you need places to stay are at the Boardwalk villas or the Beach Club villas. Full kitchen, laundry, lots of room, non-stop Disney tv, lots of room for many little feet. Extremely close to MGM & Epcot. We often drove to other parks because we had double strollers, etc and wanted to be able to travel on our time schedule, however buses run to all areas,

2. Fun, adventurous way....Fort Wilderness Cabins. We stayes in them at least4-5 times. When making reservations ask for a cabin 2-3 into the loop. We have stayed in them when youngest was 18 months old. Nice kitchen, living area, huge bathroom, bedroom with bunkbeds and full bed, murphy bed in living area, large deck, grill(smores), 2 tvs, wonderful outdoor feeling. Feels like being "away from it all and still have the best of Disney experience". Boat ride to Magic Kingdom & Contempary for dinner at Mickeys. We often drove to Downtown Disney or waterparks, as well as to other parks. When staying on property you can park free at any of the parks. Another great perk was never feeling like other vacationers where right next to us.

One trip we did at PopCentury. Great resort, however we need two rooms and had no kitchen, etc. Also with rooms so close we heard every door slam and people coming and going all night long. At the cabin all you hear are crickets and birds

Let up know what you pick.

 

[disneymarie]

We just did an off site with a car. It was a condo at Westgate Bluetree. Seven nights for less then $800 prepaid, two bedrooms, two bathrooms. The kitchen was stocked, dish rack, dish washer with the cleaners included. We had maid service once during the stay but did not need it, just restock the towels. Having the extra space was amazing. We were at exit 67, I think exit 66 was the start of the World.

Right across from Walgreen's, down the road from great food, three miles from Walmart. Ate breakfast in, brought supper back. All our stroller and equipment rentals dropped off.

This fall will be free dining, we have to get two rooms....I will miss all that homey roominess.

 

[wendow]

We are going this Sept. and we are a family of 6. Our youngest two will be not-quite-4 yo and 17 mos so we will be using two strollers that we are bringing ourselves. They are lightweight, boys are already used to them and it'll help in the airports. We decided to rent DVC points to be on the monorail. We will be going back to the room everyday after lunch and then heading back to the park in the late afternoon so we wanted easy back & forth convenience. Our place has a washer/dryer, full kitchen and 2 bathrooms.

We also are having both our girls do the YES program which saved us $417 I think over UC ticket prices.

And we are not doing the dining plan. We will get a grocery order delivered and plan to take lunch into the park on a few days as well as eat a few dinners in the room. All breakfast except an ADR we have on our departure day will be in the room. We are there for 9 nights so we'll have plenty of time to try some of the eating places but we simply didn't want to be tied to ADR's and we think we can eat on our own much cheaper. We'll be sharing some of those meals out when we can. Some of my kids are pretty decent eaters but they'd also rather eat a light meal and then indulge in some yummy snack later

Having given all that info, I will say that my mom & her dh are going too and they chose to stay at Bonnet Creek. We really, really considered it b/c the price was way less than what we are spending. But, for us, with 4 young children, we wanted all the Disney magic we could get for our first trip and a whole lot of convenience too. If it wasn't our first trip, I think we'd be more comfortable with staying off-site cause that really is the best value. This may just be our only WDW trip so we wanted to 'have it all'

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

We have 5 kids and joined DVC for the ability to stay in a 2br with our family. It works out great for us and is money well spent. If you get a 2br at BLT or Kidani then you get THREE bathrooms which are priceless with 2 teenage girls. We were upgraded to a Grand Villa once and didn't want to leave. It was amazing and so much room!

You may want to look at the Treehouse Villas, Ft Wilderness Cabins or rent points and stay in a DVC 2 bedroom villa. The rooms with kitchens made it easy to have some meals in our room (at least breakfast and snacks) and a washer/dryer in the room was such a luxury. I did all of our laundry halfway through the trip and then again our last night so that we took home clean clothes.

Good luck and enjoy the trip!

 

[kellyg403]

Our first trip we were a family of 8! Our youngest was 8, so no strollers or little people to tend to or bring extra equipment for. Though my ds did manage to get lost in AK..well we lost him but thats a different thread..

Some things I felt we did right were charachter meals. There were very few characters that were 'boy' related. But the girls wanted to see as many as possible. So we did the meals with the charachters so that the boys had something to keep them occupied without standing in line wasting time (to them).

Let everyone have a say in what to see, and split up in groups, one with mom and one with dad if you need to. There were several times in MK we had to do that since my 8 yo wasn't into thrill rides at some point.

Rest, or at least factor in rest. With so many people in such tight quarters (we did two MOD rooms to utilize transportation and free dining)getting up early, going to bed late and 3 teen girls and one tween. My family had to take a break, every single day. For the pool or for a nap.

Have fun!

Kelly

 

[mommy4]

We have 5 kids too and have started a blog www.wdwforbigfamilies.blogspot.com
We have gone the past 4 years and are going again this year (minus 1 kid who wants to stay home- crazy kid).
We went with a 4month old the last time and I would suggest you take advantage of the Baby Care Centers! They are wonderful! It's a quiet place with real changing tables.

 

[jamioday001]

Thanks for all of the great tips! I would love to rent points at BLT, to be close to Magic Kingdom and have a larger space, bc/ that would make it within our budget. I have so much fear about this though, as we have never done that before. It does seem to cut the cost in half though! Maybe we'll try the David's website too? Still afraid to take that plunge.