Travelling with large group to WDW

[jordanyosh]

My cousin and I are hoping to ask all of you experts out there for some advice. If you've seen my other post then you know that there are 12-13 of us converging on WDW Sept 14-21 followed by the 4-day cruise. We would like to ask if anyone out there has travelled to WDW with a large group and what their suggestions would be.

Thanks in advance for all of your help.

 

[CaptChris]

What type of info are you looking for?

I took a group of 15 teenagers to WDW 2 years ago, and may be able to help you. Let me know what you are looking for and I will be more than willing to give you my five cents.

 

[jordanyosh]

More info

I guess what we are looking for are suggestions that would help us organize our time effectively. We don't want to waste time trying to decide what ride we're going on. We also want to be accomodate everyone. Here's the breakdown of our group. 4 grandparents, an aunt and uncle--all over 50. 6 of us between 30-41. one baby, 13 mos. In addition, of those those 13, we have a few who have never been before or haven't been in over a decade.

What we decided so far is to schedule dinners together and also what park/parks we are going to each day. We also have a wide age range and would like any ideas on accomodating every age range.....

Thanks again

 

[Kingdom Konsultant]

HI! I'm the sponsor on this forum and I do create extensive personal Itineraries for clients traveling to WDW. I do charge a small fee per day of stay, but everything is planned out and you have no headache from trying to plan for your group.

Pam

 

[Yellow Shoes]

Do you have cell phones or radios? They will be extremely useful as you try to gather your group back together.

I've thought about doing this with my family, and what seems fun to me is to change groups every day, but keep it to a group of 4.

4 people works out perfectly for the rides. IMHO it's harder to stay together with a group much larger than that.

 

[Bagheera]

We took a group of 23 people down in 1999. (Have I mentioned that I LOVE the Disney Vacation Club?) We had a three-bedroom villa and three two-bedroom villas at the Old Key West Resort. We had 14 adults and 9 kids, with experience ranging from "mega-veterans" (us) to first-timers.

We had two or three planned meals, and one planned group photo. Beyond that, everybody was on their own. Groups were forming and dissolving throughout each day, sometimes aided by cell phones. We had an impromptu "hey, if everybody's in the Studios, we're meeting for lunch at Pizza Planet in 45 minutes for lunch" organized by a couple of our friends via cell phones. There usually ended up being an after-hours gathering in the kitchen/living room of one of the villas (usually ours, because the 3BR has SO much room), and frequently breakfast gatherings, as well.

My bottom line: keep it simple. Don't overplan. Let groups form and re-form. Use cell phones or FRS radios to keep in touch. Plan only a couple of group activities, but that that one big group photo. And don't get too bogged down in the details to HAVE FUN!

 

[jordanyosh]

Thank you so much

I cannot believe how supportive everyone at this site has been. Thank you everyone. There are some great ideas posted. Keep them coming.

Pam thank you so much for your advice on both my posts(so far). I will keep you informed should we need any pro advice and planning.

Bagheera. WOW!!!! 23 people. Congrats on the success of that trip. We are also trying to keep big group events to a minimum with the exception of dinner. We all want to spend a meal all together. Thanks again

 

[Bagheera]

btw, in case you're wondering, our big dinners were at Chef Mickey's (two tables overlooking the MK, three birthdays celebrated with cupcakes and napkin twirling) and 'Ohana. The group photo was taken in front of the Partners statue, and just about everybody was wearing the yellow "official" trip T-shirts that we designed and had printed. We still occasionally wear the shirts. (And our friends from California usually end up wearing them during every visit East!)

 

[Stellajack]

Originally posted by jordanyosh
My cousin and I are hoping to ask all of you experts out there for some advice. If you've seen my other post then you know that there are 12-13 of us converging on WDW Sept 14-21 followed by the 4-day cruise. We would like to ask if anyone out there has travelled to WDW with a large group and what their suggestions would be.

Thanks in advance for all of your help.

:wave: Hi jordanyosh. We traveled last Sept 18-26 with a family group of 13-stayed at Port Orleans-R. Since I was the official planner, I made each family unit a booklet (downloaded the planning sheets from another website). I did all the PS's for meals and emailed everyone, did all the reservations (rooms, flights, transportation pickup) and then collected $ from each. and mailed the planning sheets to everyone. PO-Riverside was perfect for our group (water taxis, proximity to DTD, large food court, etc.) We had a 2 1/2 yo and a 3 mo., and used the babyswap for attractions. We did everything that we planned and then some (but our planning was smart)! Arrived in the afternoon and did Whispering Canyon for supper, got an early night's sleep before the parks the next morning. We did the Ice Cream Social at Garden Grill (fantastic character interaction), 50"s Prime Time, and on our last night we did Liberty Tree Tavern in MK to top off our trip!
Don't forget to have everyone get a wakeup call from Mickey each day. Print our your Mousekeeping envelopes for your daily tip . These are great but I forgot the website. Maybe someone else will chime in!

 

[Since1976]

We took a group of 23 people down in 1999. (Have I mentioned that I LOVE the Disney Vacation Club?) We had a three-bedroom villa and three two-bedroom villas at the Old Key West Resort. We had 14 adults and 9 kids, with experience ranging from "mega-veterans" (us) to first-timers.

We had two or three planned meals, and one planned group photo. Beyond that, everybody was on their own. Groups were forming and dissolving throughout each day, sometimes aided by cell phones. We had an impromptu "hey, if everybody's in the Studios, we're meeting for lunch at Pizza Planet in 45 minutes for lunch" organized by a couple of our friends via cell phones. There usually ended up being an after-hours gathering in the kitchen/living room of one of the villas (usually ours, because the 3BR has SO much room), and frequently breakfast gatherings, as well.

My bottom line: keep it simple. Don't overplan. Let groups form and re-form. Use cell phones or FRS radios to keep in touch. Plan only a couple of group activities, but that that one big group photo. And don't get too bogged down in the details to HAVE FUN!

I know it's an old post, but I thought it was worth bumping.

This post embodies precisely the type of family vacation I want to plan. We have 4 families adding up to 23 people, and we're thinking of a trip in late 2007 or early 2008.

 

[KHockett]

Hey - that sounds great - I have sort of been planning for a "Middle size group" but one thing I have found - make your PS arrangments early - and be prepared that you might have to sit at two tables. That happened a couple of times for our party of 7 so just to let you know. Have fun!

 

[Kingdom Konsultant]

It's quite a large undertaking with groups that large. I have a group of 24 going in January. Definately get the dining made early since the large groups of dining get booked up fast.

If you need help with our upcoming Grand Gathering, please feel free to contact me.

Pam

 

[Nansafan]

Group of 12-13, that's nothing. The first time we went was a group of 16 in 1980. Since then the smallest group was 5. We average 8 with our trip in 2 weeks with 10. Cell phones are your savior. We like to stay together but this is always not possible. Plan your big dinners and go from there. We are having a "get acquainted" meeting the Saturday before we leave to let people meet the couple of people who are new to the group. We'll also discuss a general plan of attack. We already have our dining reservations so what day we'll eat at what park is a go. What we believe, our mantra if you will is "the more people, the more fun." Thanks again Pam, changing our room reservation 3 weeks out like that was unbelievable. You are awesome. --Nancy

 

[Kingdom Konsultant]

HI! I'm the sponsor on this forum and I do create extensive personal Itineraries for clients traveling to WDW. I do charge a small fee per day of stay, but everything is planned out and you have no headache from trying to plan for your group.

Pam

Wow is this old. I no longer charge for Itinerary planning. It's FREE to my clientele.

Pam

 

[Kingdom Konsultant]

Group of 12-13, that's nothing. The first time we went was a group of 16 in 1980. Since then the smallest group was 5. We average 8 with our trip in 2 weeks with 10. Cell phones are your savior. We like to stay together but this is always not possible. Plan your big dinners and go from there. We are having a "get acquainted" meeting the Saturday before we leave to let people meet the couple of people who are new to the group. We'll also discuss a general plan of attack. We already have our dining reservations so what day we'll eat at what park is a go. What we believe, our mantra if you will is "the more people, the more fun." Thanks again Pam, changing our room reservation 3 weeks out like that was unbelievable. You are awesome. --Nancy

Thank you Nancy

Pam:wave:

 

[DisneyLindz]

My family of 12 (myself, parents, sister, brother in law, fiance, and 6 cousins) will be heading down there next Saturday. We range in ages from 54 down to 9 months. We've got veterans like myself, and then first timers,like my fiance and little baby cousin. We've done large party vacations like this before, and it ends up working wonderfully.

We plan one big meal a day that everyone will attend. We have also planned what parks we are hitting on what days. We all start out together in the morning, and then end up breaking up into smaller groups around mid afternoon. Some people stay at the parks, some go back to the resort for a nap or swimming. We all end up together again for our big dinner, and then go from there. Usually at that point my parents will head back to the room and watch the little ones so us "big kids" can have fun at night.

Just keep in mind that not every person wants to do the same thing, and it's ok to split up for awhile! Just have a 'meeting up' place and time in mind if you want to get every back together later in the day.

Have a fantastic trip, it's a blast sharing it with so many people in your family! :animwink:

 

[MaryMcMagic]

It's quite a large undertaking with groups that large. I have a group of 24 going in January. Definitely get the dining made early since the large groups of dining get booked up fast.

I am part of this group of 24 going in January! After reading the wealth of info that Pam offers to all of the members of WDWMagic, i knew I had to contact her when we started planning our trip! My Dad owns his own business and has decided to take all of his employees to WDW in January. How cool is that, by the way?!? There are 8 children ages 3-16, and 16 Adults ages 21-62. We have decided as a group that we are doing a few meals together and then everyone is free to make other rezzies on their own. Smaller groups are beginning to form between families with similar interests, i.e. preschoolers, girls who want princess character meals, adults only dining, etc. I gave everyone info on kid friendly places to eat and 2006 Official Guides to get a better idea of what is in store. All in all, planning seems to going well. Everyday someone asks me a new question since I have become the resident planner for the group.

I feel it's impossible to keep the group together at all times and time keep the group happy. We'll be in WDW for 6-7 days, so if a family breaks off because there is something they really want to experience, there will be plenty of time to spend together, too. Everyone else seems to be in that same boat. Right now I feel my goal is to get them as much info as possible about all that exists within the parks, and all there is to do, so that everyone will have a really great time on their vacation. Time will tell!

 

[sarajo]

My extended family of approximately 30 people travel to Disney every Christmas... and believe me, you want somebody to take care of advanced reservations for dining out. Without reservations, it's next to impossible (actually it is IMPOSSIBLE) to get everybody into a sit-down restaurant at one seating. Appoint one person to be "in charge" and start making the reservations as soon as your window of opportunity opens. We generally do one big meal per day (usually dinner) and then pretty much have the rest of the day to do whatever. If you want to do some evening events- like Illuminations, pick the night you want to do that and arrange for your meal to be in that park.

 

[Kingdom Konsultant]

maisco30 I did get the princess breakfast booked. (FYI)

Pam:wave: