Which resort (and room type) for a large family?

[TARDIS]

We aren't planning to go back until 2014. Our new baby will be just over a year and it gives us plenty of time to save up as well. It'll be our first time staying onsite with four children. I'm not really sure which resorts would be best for 6 people (room size). Will we need two rooms (I'm pretty sure that's a yes)? How do I do this without completely breaking the bank? Obviously, the more people, the more money spent. I'm under no illusions and I'm not a "disney is too expensive" person by any stretch.

I know it may be hard to suggest as you don't have an idea of our budget, but honestly right now, it'll be more like our budget will fit our needs. Since it's so far out I can get an estimate and work to save to that.

The level of resort is open.

 

[mickeynut1]

Any of the deluxe resorts (with the exception of WL and AKL) will work for one room as those will accommodate 5 + 1 under age 3. With that said, the Poly, GF, & CR have the largest standard rooms of all the deluxes, so any of those would give you more room space over BC/YC/BWI. With that said, the BC, YC, BWI, and WL all have deluxe rooms that accommodate 6 people, although those are quite pricey as they are club level rooms. You could also go with a family suite at All Star Music or AoA, FW cabins, or two rooms at any value, moderate, or WL/AKL. The DVC villas would also work with a 2 bedroom unit. With all of that said, we are a deluxe family and the Poly is our favorite, so my choice would be the Poly for the large room, convenience of the monorail, the volcano pool, and the beach for watching the fireworks. HTH .

 

[momof3ds]

We are a family of 5 traveling to Disney for he first time next month. With other trips, we always get a suite or 2 connecting rooms.

For Disney, we opted to try a family suite at AOA. Especially sinc Disney does not guarantee 2 connecting rooms. 1 room would not work for us.

 

[mkoerner]

While many mods have large rooms and can accommodate 5 plus a baby, they will not have the storage you will need. I recommend either the FW cabins, which have 2 televisions plus a fully equipped kitchen and daily housekeeping, or renting points and going with a 2 bedroom DVC. Again full kitchen, plus 2 bathrooms and washer / dryer in the unit.

 

[kddisney502]

Some great info about rooms for 5 or more can be found here on the wdw website: http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/planning-guides/in-depth-advice/groups/

 

[twinboysmom]

Depending on your budget and how much space you think you need, there are a lot of options. You could rent DVC points and stay in a 2 bedroom villa with a full kitchen, washer and dryer, and depending on what resort 2 or 3 bathrooms. A fort wilderness cabin if that is your style. One of the family suites at AoA or ASMu. You could also stay in the deluxe resort that hold 5 as a pp mentioned in one room or in POR in one room (would be tight). You could also get 2 rooms at a value or a moderate (could request connecting which is only a request, never guaranteed). And then there is the option of staying in a condo or rental house offsite. Have fun planning!

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

A lot of people overlook CSR when they have a large family but it is the only moderate to offer suites. They are very limited in number so planning far in advance is key. A 2 queen junior suite at CSR runs about the same price as 2 standard rooms. One room would have 2 queen beds, a bathroom, tv, desk, etc(like a regular room) and the adjoining room has a sleeper sofa, table and chairs, armchair, TV and a second bathroom. It is basically 2 regular rooms that are set up as the main bedroom in one and the living/dining in the other room with the benefit of 2 bathrooms and it is one room reservation so no need to worry about connecting rooms being honored.

 

[sharadoc]

We always use a villa, cabin or family suite even though there are only 4 of us. We need/love the space.

OKW and AKL have a sleeper chair in a 1Br villa, so you could stay in one of those. Your three children would sleep in the living room, and you and DH would take the king size bed and a pack 'n' play for the baby in the bedroom. You would also get the benefit of a washer and dryer and full kitchen which could definitely come in handy. Pack less and wash! At OKW, the 1BR has a laundry room, at AKL you have a stacking W/D.

The Contemporary rooms are really large and have a sleeper sofa/day bed that opens to a twin bed, so 5 fit comfortably. Love having the monorail right in the buildings, vs. trekking from an outlying building to the main one like Poly or GF. And it's close enough to walk if you're into that.

We love the cabins and recommend them highly. There's so much to do at the Fort for the other kids when baby is napping!

Family suite at ASMu gives you a sleeper sofa, sleeper chair and sleeper ottoman for the 3 kids, then parents get a queen bed with baby in the bedroom. The kitchenette is great too, and the advantage is 2 bathrooms. AofA looks fun, but the sleeping is different. 2 kids in a sofabed, 1 in the dining room table bed. May not be ideal with the little ones to split up. Plus I don't like the idea of two small rooms vs. the one large one at ASMu. 2 bathrooms at both options, though.

Honestly, the CSR suites seem very high priced. Depending on the season, they are definitely higher than a cabin and close in price to the 1BR villa. I think they run somewhere around $500 when I've looked into them.

Folks will recommend renting DVC points. If you've never been to Disney before, I think it's too much to handle when you have so much else to plan. You can get a decent discount during most seasons on the villas that can bring the cost close to renting.

OT - 5 new episodes of the Doctor in September, plus the 50th anniversary! Yesterday at ComiCon, Matt Smith gave the impression that something is definitely in the works!! The 11 Doctors???? (realizing that 3 of them are dead of course, but the first one was dead in the 5 Doctors).

 

[Reddy]

how is your family with camping?? you can have up to 10 people in a campsite

 

[MMS1125]

We usually stay in 2 rooms but my kids are older. With your crew I think the new suites at Art of Animation would be great. It would still give mom and dad a room of their own and the kiddos could split the sofa bed and table bed. Cheaper than a villa and guaranteed to be together (although in the numerous times we've requested connecting rooms only once have we not had it granted and that was during peak holiday season)

Your cheapest option would be 1 room at POR with 5+ infant but there will be absolutely no room to store anything especially if you add a pack n play and stroller and stuff.

I think checking out AoA wouldn't break the bank and ev1 would be happy!

 

[TARDIS]

Great advice, thank you so much to all who responded. I hadn't considered DVC. I'll have to investigate that further. I think having a little bit more space might be good for us. I'll have to see. I do love the look of the Fort Wilderness Cabins (I've only seen them online) and that sounds like a lovely option as well. I've always wanted to stay at WL, so this might be as close as I get for awhile. I just really like the woodsy theming quite a bit. You've pointed me in some good directions. Now to do some more research!

 

[VAfamily1998]

What is your definition of "breaking the bank?" Would $300/night break the bank for you? $500/night? Etc.

 

[TARDIS]

I'll be honest, I'm not totally sure. Since it's about two years out I've quite a bit of time to save and I can adjust dating as necessary. I suppose breaking the bank would be a vacation that, in total (flight, food, tickets, resort) cost beyond 6- 7 grand. But I feel like I'm sort of groping in the dark with even that figure. I'm trying to be flexible with the reality of going with a large family. On my last vacation there in May it was just me and my two girls at a value and prior to that it was offsite via my in laws or when I was a teenager. Point blank, we aren't rich.

 

[DisneyMom5]

Didn't read all the other suggestions, but if I only had 4 children again, I'd be back at the Fort Wilderness cabins in a heartbeat. We loved it.
If that's not your cup of tea, we have gotten connecting rooms at Pop Century.

That's my big family opinion. LOL

 

[Aliceacc]

How about a Deluxe Alcove room at the Dolphin? If by any chance you can get the teacher discount, it's really quite reasonable.

 

[bellebud]

Most of the 2 bedroom villas are a 1-bedroom w/ a connecting studio. I would be concerned w/ the connecting studio's access to the hallway. (but that's just me, I'm neurotic!) Just something to consider. There are some 'dedicated' 2 bedrooms - don't know which resorts have them.

And some of the 1 bedroom ones have an extra bathroom (1/2 bath or full, I'm not sure)... maybe in the new AKL? That would be a nice option. I LOVE having a washer/dryer in my room. WAY less packing! I do a laundry every day. Throw it in the washer before bed, and in the dryer as soon as I wake up. Clean clothes every morning! Check the different villa resorts for different prices... they're not all the same.

If you were going to do the Poly or Contemporary, just be aware that some of the rooms at the Poly don't have balconies. That would be important to us. DH uses our balcony every morning since he's an early riser (5am). He sits out there reading while the kids and I sleep in a bit. Also, the layout of the Contemporary is very convenient if you stay in the tower, especially w/ lots of kids. An elevator ride away is all the shopping, food, arcade & monorail.

We love the cabins. You'd have a separate bedroom to put any napping kids or early sleepers in, while the older ones can be in the living room. And the cabins are just really cool and fun! AND you don't have to worry about a crying baby or loud kids disturbing others.

I'd be nervous chancing connecting rooms, since if you have 2 adults, it's never guaranteed.

My first choice if I were you would be a villa (because of the washer/dryer), second choice would be a cabin (no washer/dryer though) but lots of privacy.

Have fun deciding!

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

We aren't planning to go back until 2014. Our new baby will be just over a year and it gives us plenty of time to save up as well. It'll be our first time staying onsite with four children. I'm not really sure which resorts would be best for 6 people (room size). Will we need two rooms (I'm pretty sure that's a yes)? How do I do this without completely breaking the bank? Obviously, the more people, the more money spent. I'm under no illusions and I'm not a "disney is too expensive" person by any stretch.

I know it may be hard to suggest as you don't have an idea of our budget, but honestly right now, it'll be more like our budget will fit our needs. Since it's so far out I can get an estimate and work to save to that.

The level of resort is open.

I didn't read the other replies but if I were you I'd go with the Art of Animation! I think it would be the perfect resort for small kids. The rooms look absolutely adorable and are perfect for people traveling on a budget. I wouldn't do a deluxe room with 4 kids even though number wise it would work, I think its just too cramped. Everything I've read says the resort is beautiful, the pool is amazing, I really think it would be your best choice.

 

[party-of-five]

Hi, we too are a family of 6 (11, 9, 6, and the baby will be 14 mo. when we travel) We are planning a return trip the second week of Dec. and will be staying at CSR with free dining. We have reserved 2 rooms and Disney guarantees that they will be connecting (with a door inside the rooms). We have done this before without any problems. We like having two bathrooms, two refrigerators, and two tvs. Plus, at night, DH and I can tend to the baby, if necessary, without waking the other kids. 2 rooms at a mod are less than one at a deluxe.

We are flying out of pvd and the trip in total (2 rooms, 5 day tix, airfare, with the free dining) is costing around $4700.

Happy planning!

 

[TARDIS]

Hi, we too are a family of 6 (11, 9, 6, and the baby will be 14 mo. when we travel) We are planning a return trip the second week of Dec. and will be staying at CSR with free dining. We have reserved 2 rooms and Disney guarantees that they will be connecting (with a door inside the rooms). We have done this before without any problems. We like having two bathrooms, two refrigerators, and two tvs. Plus, at night, DH and I can tend to the baby, if necessary, without waking the other kids. 2 rooms at a mod are less than one at a deluxe.

We are flying out of pvd and the trip in total (2 rooms, 5 day tix, airfare, with the free dining) is costing around $4700.

Happy planning!

This quote of yours is really helpful! This was one thing I just wasn't sure about. I didn't want to under estimate or over estimate our needs (to a fault). Thanks for your input!

Thank you to everyone for all of the suggestions. They've been wonderful and I've been browsing around based on some of these tips so far. I'm taking notes!

 

[Irishlisa]

I did some agonizing research on this exact issue last month. My husband and I are travelling with our 4 kids, ages 8, 6, and 4 (twins), and my sister. We owned a time share and have rented a house before but we wanted to stay on property this time. I went back and forth trying to decide on 2 connecting rooms at a moderate or a villa at a deluxe, and everything in between. We ended up buying DVC points and booking a 3 bedroom Grand Villa at AK Kidani Village. Even though a 2 bedroom villa would have probably worked for the 7 of us, we decided on the Grand Villa because we got a good deal on the points and we'd rather have more than enough space than not enough