When did single hotel rooms stop working for your family?

[MamaBelle4]

If I could stay in one room (me, DH, DD10, DD8, DD6, DD3 & DS1) we absolutely would. First off, we are hardly even in the room, just to shower and sleep. And secondly, well to be perfectly frank, when I was growing up, I lived in a van and also a 1 room cabin with my 4 siblings and parents. After that, really, anything is a luxury.

But according to fire codes we don't fit so it is what it is.

 

[Patches Lee]

We still only get 1 room but it's a constant struggle between DH snoring and DD10 whistling/humming in her sleep for me to get rest. Usually end up with a TV on to blend a bit of the noise. Having only 3 of us can't justify spending the $ on a suite or 2nd room on property.

 

[McNs]

We have two girls aged 10 and 13 who share a bed. Haven't had any issues (apart from fighting over which side of the bed they are sleeping in). Our first time in a single room was 2013 when they were 4 & 7, I was worried about keeping them awake at night while we watched tv etc, but it wasn't a problem at all.

Not expecting to change arrangements any time soon - the day they won't share a bed is the day they don't go on vacation!

 

[Bran Fox]

We have been getting two rooms for several years now. Kids are now 17, 16, and 14. Our issue was more that DH and I wanted alone time on vacation. I love sending the kids to their room at night and snuggling up for some quiet adult time. It makes the whole vacation for me.

 

[Simba's Girl]

As a family of 5 we choose rooms at deluxe resorts because as they got older (19,16 & 12) and bigger, we needed more room. Our feeling is also that there is more space to relax outside of the room at a deluxe as well.

 

[TJA]

We are a family of 4 and love staying in one room (kids are twin girls age 15). However, the room must have 3 beds so we can spread out, and we prefer the larger deluxe rooms for comfort.

 

[Lilsia]

the day they won't share a bed is the day they don't go on vacation!

Haha! That is what I told my girls too when they started complaining about sharing. It's either share, sleep on the floor, or stay at home. They are happy as clams to share if it means going to WDW.

 

[tsme]

Once our DS became a teenager. Before that I’d sleep with him & our DD slept with my DH.

 

[TammyLynn33]

Totally depends on your parenting style and your family. We are a family of 5 and we travel a lot for sports.
Single mom a 17,13,6,5 year olds. We are perfectly fine in a single room but we are a totally open family.. right now 5 and 17 year old are curled up in my bed with me watching tv.. no one locks bathroom doors, etc..
we have booked the 5th sleeper at CBR and it will work fine for us.. dd13 will sleep on it. Ds gets 6 year old , I’ll get the 5 year old ..
do what’s right for you and your family

 

[StacyStrong]

When the kids were old enough to start paying for their own room - my family traveled oa budget. Share a room or don't go was what my parents would say.

 

[Disneypro1]

There is only 4 of us. So never.— Two beds. Dad and son mom and daughter. Although lately I use a cot so the boy can sleep alone. Maybe next trip we’ll get an air mattress for the wife and I. Well see. But never two rooms for 4 of us. Heck I’ll sleep somewhere. Lol.

 

[Rach3975]

We're a family of 5 (kids 10, 13, and 15) with one child who has a sleep disorder. Even at 13, he's asleep most days by 8:30 pm and awake by 4:30 am. We learned pretty early on in his life that we needed a second room available otherwise the entire family was up too early and miserable all day. (He has autism and ADHD, and it wasn't until pretty recently that he could reliably be considerate of others who are sleeping.) At Disney that translates into only staying in Family Suites. Given how the costs compare between the Family Suites and the 5-person moderate rooms, there's no incentive for us to try going back to a single room that sleeps 5; the Family Suite makes for a better experience for all of us than a nicer hotel would. At non-Disney hotels we're more likely to find suites where there's 1 bedroom for all of us plus a small sitting room. That's fine, too--we bring a blow up mattress for the 5th person so that we can have the sitting room empty for parents in the evening and my 13 year old in the morning.

If it was just the 4 of us without sleep disorders, I think we'd still stay in single rooms for the cost savings. DD and I would share one bed and DS and DH could share the other.

 

[PHXscuba]

We're kind of facing the reverse -- shrinking vs. growing family.

As a family of 6 it was always 2 adjoining rooms or a suite for years as very few rooms let you put 6 people in legally. When older DS went to college and it was the 5 of us, it was 2 rooms if we were staying several nights or 1 room with queen/queen/pullout if it was just for a night. Now older DD is gone too and we have downsized to traveling with just DD17 and DS14 most of the time. We did a road trip last summer with most nights in one room (often with DS on an air mattress, which he doesn't mind much). But we all hate sleeping in the same room -- for DH it's not a vacation if he can't relax for awhile without the kids around. He snores and I sometimes do too. And DD17 needs white noise with all of us sleeping together. The one bathroom isn't too big a deal. So I guess I am back to each trip evaluating if one room and bath will cut it for the situation and price. If we go back to WDW I will probably do AoA for the 2 bathrooms, kitchenette, and 3 good sleep surfaces (we did All Star Family Suite with the 4 kids before).

PHXscuba

 

[toodycat]

Our last stay in one room was when DS was 17. We went to Las Vegas and stayed at the Wynn in a tower room. Although there was plenty of room, two queen beds and everyone maintained privacy well, my son was very fatigued from the time change and heat. So he napped a lot. DH and I had to vacate and go to the pool or wander the hotel so he could sleep. After that, we’ve always booked separate rooms or a villa. In the last couple of years, he’s felt too tall for the sofa beds at DVC or Embassy Suites. Last year, we stayed in a two-bedroom at Kidani Village and that was perfect.

 

[Sleepy425]

As a family of six, we stay in one room if the hotels fit us (2 beds and a pull out couch). We bought DVC once kids 4 and 5 came along so we could all stay together at Disney.
Growing up with a sister who was just 15 months older than me, my family always stayed in one room, even on a cruise. We traveled often and I never even considered that we should have two rooms. It just wasn't an option. It wasn't until my sister and I were 20 and 21 that my parents got us our own room on a cruise.
Oh wait - once when I was 16 my parents decided to get my friend and I our own room for an offsite Disney trip. But all other trips when she came we shared a room (my parents would borrow her and leave my sister at home for Disney trips once she hit 8th grade. It made everyone happier).

 

[DisLiss]

As long as our boys don't mind, we'll stick with the single rooms. We just ask on a trip by trip basis. They are old enough now to realize that 2 rooms means less days or less add-ons, so I think that helps them stay determined to put up with one another a bit longer.

Now, if we reach a point where they get too argumentative or grouchy with one another in the small space, then DH & I may decide it's time for a change ourselves.

 

[Dug720]

We are all adults and still will often stay in one hotel room when we travel as a family.

ONE time my senior year in high school my sister and I got our own room, but that was because the organization my dad worked for put us up in a hotel over Spring Break so we could look for a house (Daddy was already living in Nashville in a temp apartment until I graduated because his job started in December). Other than that, we always shared.

 

[MainMom]

Family of 4, 2 kids DD 17 & DS 13. I asked them if they would rather have 2 rooms at pop or 1 room at BWI. They chose the one room even if they had to share a bed.

My kids are pretty heavy sleepers when tired. DD will fall asleep on the couch with tv on, people talking, etc. DS, once asleep, is difficult to wake up. We have tried bunk beds at AKL (kids said they were ok) and are trying a studio in June with 3 sleeping surfaces. Hoping for the best!