What's your party size threshold for traveling to and touring WDW for say 7 nights.

[fradz]

For parks in general (not limited to Disney) : 8 is my "normal max", I've done up to 12 (driving) once and it was too much.
I feel like above 8, managing each individual's expectations is too complex.
2 if I want to do something really special, 4 or 6 for a normal trip.

 

[HongKongFooy]

I once did a Universal trip with a group of 12 arriving from 3 different parts of US but we all shared a large vacation home very near the property and moved around essentially as one unit.

2 notches shy of a complete disaster



If that same arrangement had been a WDW trip then it would have been a complete trainwreck.



I'm thinking anything over 10 for a single touring unit is just begging for utter inefficiency and sheer frustration

 

[Smiley/OCD]

It takes a lot to plan, especially for that many. I do the same for my family. Now that our kids our older, of course I get their input and involve them. I enjoy doing it and yes, it's nice to be thanked, especially when the trips goes smoothly. I'm not sure I'd want to plan for extended family. I could see what you described happening. Just our group is enough!

We went together in 2013...my mom had passed the 18 months before, and we felt in important to get my dad to go. He was 83 at the time, always wanted to go (my mom was NOT into travelling). He hadn't been on a plane since he was in the Korean war. Yes, it was, at times, a logistical nightmare, but my DW did a phenomenal job keeping it all together. It was during the F & G show and he worked as a corporate landscaper for AT & T, so he was in his glory. Plus, he spent the week with his 5 grandchildren and up until he passed 2 1/2 years ago, he always talked about that trip. So, yes, it was SSSSOOOO worth it!

 

[KaliSplash]

I've done 9. But 4 is a lot easier.

 

[Nottamus]

Two.

Anyone more would solely depend on who they were.

We are coming up in a few years to grandbaby being Disney age, and I’m looking forward to that!

 

[NelleBelle]

When we go, typically as our family of 4 + mom or MIL (no more mom and MIL), when we come to rides that my mom doesn't feel like riding (RnRC--can't handle the upside down stuff anymore due to blood pressure), she's happy to wait in line with us and then step through the "chicken out" or ask the CM where she can wait. As both mom and I are T1 diabetics, we generally are the ones who get catered to for snacks, etc. DH and I generally pick the places we want to eat and the other 3 can just suck it up Oldest DS is picky, youngest DS will try anything, and mom/MIL both eat meat (the 4 of us are vegetarian and are usually limited in what is offered, but Disney is getting a lot better with that)!

I am looking forward to taking a girls-only trip with just my mom and me and with a good friend (will be first Disney trip) possibly next year! Never have done that so will be new dynamic at Disney!

 

[heapster411]

I would have to say 2, DW and I. If you ask the DW she would say 2, but on some days 1. If our group was not staying in the same room, probably 4-6. We find you can never make everyone happy, most people are not on the same time schedule as us and we DO NOT go full commando! Our pace is leisurely, to say the least. To those large families that do everything together, good for you, but that's not for us.

 

[EngineerMom]

We have done just the 4 of us. Us and my parents (6) and us and another family that brought us up to 10. All of those trips were GREAT!!! When we had more than just the 4 of us we typically had dinner planned where all of us were eating together. Even with as few as 4 we have separated some for different rides, etc then met back up. No one gets upset if someone wants to do something else and actually having MORE people sometimes makes it easier to split up as you can find someone who wants to do what you want to do.
We are actually planning a trip of just the 3 of us as our oldest is in college and our son keeps saying he wants another kid to come so he's not "stuck" with just mom and dad.

NOW our first trip my brother and his girlfriend came along with the 6 of us. It was a NIGHTMARE because they were pushy and inflexible. It was our FIRST family trip and everyone else was centered on our kids who were little.....my mom had invited them without asking us. They were even pushy about grabbing our kids away from us when say we were getting on a ride for the FIRST time. We were spending a fortune and missing out on our kids seeing things for the FIRST time! We didn't want to cause a scene at Disney so we just smiled and go on the next car. They were demanding on everything.

As I said we had a WONDERFUL time with 10 that was 2 families. We typically got up earlier and they would meet us at the park. The last morning we wanted to go to Epcot, they wanted to go to the Studios. We separated and met at Magic Kingdom for a late lunch. No one was upset that we were separating. It was all very easy.

So my point it is about the people in the group!
Oh and the toughest part of a big group is getting those dinner reservations.

 

[EngineerMom]

I forgot to add with YOUNG kids extra adults can be nice. My parents have watched the kids while we went out to dinner. My mom is not a crazy ride person, she has taken the kids to a playground while my dad, hubby and I ride a ride. And even stayed with the kids while they napped while we went for a walk. Then of course there were times we had the kids and my parents went for a nice walk...

 

[Gussie Granger]

With the assumption of flying or driving into WD together and staying at the same hotel and for the most part staying together as one touring unit mine is about 6.......perhaps as low as 5.

Considering differing dietary wants and needs, restroom breaks, forgetting items in the hotel to bring, different energy levels as a generality anything over 6 would just create too much inefficiency and chaos.

Four. The one time we brought one other person, it didn’t ruin our trip, but made it much less enjoyable. Our family of 4 is a tight, well oiled WDW touring machine. Anyone else just brings us down.

 

[jloucks]

The more the merrier! I say that, but my reason for going is very much about sharing an experience and bonding with loved ones. If that's not what it is about for you, then you might want to keep it small.

To put is another way, there is very little that I don't want to do at WDW. I am pretty easy going and that makes 'compromise' easy as I am not really compromising all that much.

We go as a party of 8 usually, and even tried 10 last trip. It was great! But, they were family, so maybe different than going with a bunch of acquaintances?

 

[EthylCooper]

My absolute max for immediate travel party is 4, but I prefer 2 or just me by myself. I often make trips with more people total and we split up for most of the time and meet up for specific events or an occasional meal. When friends ask me for recommendations about traveling in a larger group, I always say the same....split into groups of 2-4, and split by goals, not by relationship. It makes all the difference.

 

[aliceismad]

3. One day when my kiddo is old enough, we might bring a friend with us.

I have been to DLR multiple times with lots of family members. Our last big family trip was 14 (I think?) people, and it didn't go great because our extended family lacked communication and some people's feelings were hurt because expectations were not clear or were not realistic. It was unrealistic to expect 14 people to enjoy the same things, want to eat at the same time at the same place, want to do the same things, etc. and yet some people were upset that small groups with like interests went off on their own. It felt less like a fun vacation and more like an obligation to fulfill someone else's fantasy of a happy family Disney trip. This is not Disney's fault, of course, and I'm sure a group with different dynamics might have a more positive experience.

Given the extra complications and logistics of WDW, I'd prefer not to bring extended friends or family.