Where are the kids?

[divawife]

Hi,

I would love to take my 2 nieces on some of these trips. I would like to go in about 2 years when they are 10 and 8. I have an interest in the US ones but also in the Ireland and Italy.

Now I understand there are adults only tours. But as I read through the threads I see that there aren't as many kids going on the family tours as I orig, thought. Do you all think it is the cost? or not enough publicity about the tours?

I didn't know they existed until my recent trip to DW and saw it advertised on the ASMu tv.

I would like them to experience these tours with other kids. Am I wrong is thinking that there just aren't as many kids going to any of the tours esp the overseas tours?

Thanks so much

 

[kristilew]

I can't speak to how many have been on tours in the past, but I do know that as you are ready to book, you can call ABD and ask how many kids are booked so far on the trip you are considering. They will give you a number that falls in the age range of the kids you will be taking. For example, I am taking dd10 on the Peru trip, and they told me there are 5 kids in the 8-13 range on my departure.

 

[divawife]

Thanks! It just surprised me that so many adults are going without kids (I mean in addition to the adults only tours).

 

[cydlei]

Hi,
There were 7 kids and 2 teens in our group. I imagine you'll see lots more kids on the tours in the summer months. Even if ours had been the only child and teen on the tour, I know they would have had a blast. The guides make sure everyone is having fun! You won't regret booking!
Cindy

 

[eva]

Thanks! It just surprised me that so many adults are going without kids (I mean in addition to the adults only tours).

Well those adult only trips fill up quick. DH and I wanted to take the 09/11 adult only Viva Italia trip and all the early booking discounts were gone over 12 months out. So we opted for the next one on the 14th. I was a bit concerned that it would be full of young children and that DH and I would feel out of place. But the cm told me that so far most of the fall ABD in Europe have very few children on them. She said it tends to be like that during the school year. If you want to be fairly assured that there are more children, you might want to book late in the spring or over the summer.

 

[InstImpres]

Also keep in mind with ABDs small group sizes (40) there is never "a lot" of anything. As OP said, ABD will tell you if there are already other children booked

 

[inkkognito]

I too was quite surprised on the small number of kids, at least on our Backstage Magic tour. Granted, we went while school was still in but I still thought there would be more people who would take their kids out for the trip.

 

[glassslipper2004]

Our 8/14 Viva Italia trip has 15 kids, out of 40 total. Seems like a good number to me, as there will likely be several kids for my 8 and 10 year olds to hang out with, but not so many as to overwhelm the adults.

 

[abdmom]

Our 6/1 Enchanted China trip has about 15-17 kids. When I discussed the number of children vs adults with the concierge agent, she said that most of the families that go on these trips are usually 2 parents, 2 kids or maybe 2 parents, 1 kid. They are so expensive that it's not economical for families with more kids. It's not economical with 2 kids, but no way would I be going if I had 4 or more to take.

Give ABD a call. They were very forthcoming with the numbers of kids for the trip I booked.

 

[jenbadeaux]

Just curious how you all found out how many adults and kids were on your trip. We are going on the Southwest Splendors on 8/2. It is me, my dh, my dd19, ds11, ds9, and dd6 (and yes it is very expensive for those of us with larger families!). When I called to make the final payment this month, I asked how many were on our trip. I was told they could not tell me a number, but they could tell me it was almost full but still had some room. I asked kids and ages, and was told they could not tell me that either. They could only tell me that mine were not the only kids, and the other kids were preteens and early teens but could not tell me how many or exact ages. I would love to have a few more details... is there another number I should call or a better way to phrase my question?

 

[abdmom]

When I called to book and then again to finalize, I asked how many spots were left. They told me the exact number. When I asked how many kids there were, they gave me the number 11 and under (I think that was the age) and then 12-17. They didn't give me exact ages. Perhaps if you ask how many kids there are that are 11 and under, they will let you know. Perhaps they told me because it had some bearing on whether or not I booked the tour.

 

[Bobo912]

I just called to update the passport information on our reservations and I asked about the number of kids on the trip. She wasn't able to tell me the exact number, but she did say that there were several families traveling with children between the ages of 8 and 12. So at least we know that my kiddo won't be the only one on the trip.

 

[Bobo912]

The booking agent just called me back and told me the exact number of kids on the trip. There are 13. She said they used to not be allowed to tell the exact number, but they just had a policy change.

 

[bookjunky]

To my dismay, we found that our son was one of only two children on the ABD tour of Italy (Rome, Tuscany, Venice) this May. The balance of the attendees were adults who would sign up for a Disney trip without having children. Need I say more?

Would never do a Disney trip again and would not recommend. The tour was almost completely adult-oriented and the pace much too intense for children, IMO. Also the guides got POd at us for reasons unknown - maybe because with a small child we could not keep up with the pace?

Too bad - we will travel again in Europe but never again with Disney. Not a good value.

Also the food was surprisingly bad!

 

[glassslipper2004]

Wow, that's unfortunate. Can you give more details about what went wrong? I thought there were supposed to be one guide for the kids and one for the adults... maybe they changed plans since there were only two kids? Not really fair to your child. How old were the kids on the trip?

As for the bad food... was this in any particular location? Any tips/recommendations?

 

[wdwsos]

To my dismay, we found that our son was one of only two children on the ABD tour of Italy (Rome, Tuscany, Venice) this May. The balance of the attendees were adults who would sign up for a Disney trip without having children. Need I say more?

I'm just wondering what this means because maybe I'm reading it wrong. I'm an adult who would sign up for a Disney trip without children. My boys are all in their 20s and we've done an AbD with and without them. I guess they're also considered adults who would sign up for a Disney trip without children. I go to WDW without kids and cruise DCL a couple of times a year without kids. I still like kids in the parks, on the cruise, and also on my AbD trips.

Were the adults on this trip not friendly? Rude to your child? Did they make you feel unwelcome because you had a child with you? I hope that's not the case.

I'm really sorry you had a bad experience! I don't know the age of your son, but I know the two 6-year-olds on our Imperial Cities trip would have loved being the only two kids, just for the extra attention!

Also, was the total food experience bad? We did this trip in 2006, and the only meal we didn't care for was the Tuscan barbeque at the villa -- but there's a whole story that goes with that. Plus, the limoncello made everything okay in the end.

Dotti

 

[glassslipper2004]

Dotti - What's the story with the BBQ at the villa? Anything we can do to prepare?

I've heard that you should bring snacks, etc. to the villa, is this something you would recommend? Is it difficult (impossible?) to get a soda or snack while you are there? What tips do you have?

 

[redzinner]

The balance of the attendees were adults who would sign up for a Disney trip without having children. Need I say more?

You are kidding, right?!? Have you never 'played' at a Disney Park as an adult without children? Disney is a comfort zone for us. We know its quality and attention to detail. There were many tour groups to choose from for the Italian tour but we chose Disney because our experience with them. It had nothing to do with Mickey Mouse or children for that matter.

Unfortunate for you that you didn't enjoy your holiday. Better luck next time.

 

[wdwsos]

Dotti - What's the story with the BBQ at the villa? Anything we can do to prepare?

I've heard that you should bring snacks, etc. to the villa, is this something you would recommend? Is it difficult (impossible?) to get a soda or snack while you are there? What tips do you have?

The villa where we stayed was a different place entirely. The restaurant was lovely and the service was great. They just weren't prepared for the amount of people (or our large appetites) when we had the BBQ, so ran out of some food and undercooked some of what they had in the rush to refill the serving plates. It honestly wasn't a big deal; it just wasn't up to par with the rest of the meals. None of us were upset -- by that time, we had become friends and the company was more important than the food!

We did bring snacks and drinks to the villa but, again, we were in a different place so I'm not the best person to answer that one. In 2006, we were also on the road more and spent less time at the hotel.

Dotti