14 People - Unsure Where to Stay

[sunshinemelody]

Hi everyone!

I'm planning a surprise trip for my nephew's 4th birthday and I am unsure where to stay. I have been filtering between Saratoga Spring's Treehouse Villas, since there will be 14 of us on property and I can easily get two of those, and Polynesian Villages; however, a vast majority of those coming will be first-time visitors (such as my own mom, my SIL's family, and a few others), and based on Your First Visit, SS is the worst place to take first-timers whereas the Poly is the best. But also based on their chart, we can't even do Jambo House Villas, which accommodates 12 as it doesn't show up on the WDW website.

I have only stayed on property once (my very first time at Disney) at Shades of Green and I enjoyed what little time I had there, but we aren't a military family, so it's not even on our radar. After checking out the WDW website a little more, I figured we could do Wilderness Lodge, but I'm unsure if it will pique my family's interest.

Oh, yeah! I did try the Vacation Recommender on the website, but, it just doesn't work with a family as large as mine. It did give us great ideas for what to do (if based on a smaller group of people), but not really where to stay, so, if you can help a girl out, I would be eternally grateful. Thank you!

 

[Magical2017]

That sounds like a great family trip! My BIL often plans family trips for DHs family. He asks some questions via e-mail, then prices out four to five options and everyone votes, based on their budget. Then he makes revisions based on what people have voted on. I would price two on site an two off site options, if offsite is even a consideration (having to rent cars/vans might not be something you all want to do). There is a thread on the Orlando Hotels and Resorts board that talks about Bonnet Creek, which might be nice offsite option. You could also get a TA to help you. You may want to consider splitting people up and getting several villas if you want to stay at AKL.

 

[sunshinemelody]

That sounds like a great family trip! My BIL often plans family trips for DHs family. He asks some questions via e-mail, then prices out four to five options and everyone votes, based on their budget. Then he makes revisions based on what people have voted on. I would price two on site an two off site options, if offsite is even a consideration (having to rent cars/vans might not be something you all want to do). There is a thread on the Orlando Hotels and Resorts board that talks about Bonnet Creek, which might be nice offsite option. You could also get a TA to help you. You may want to consider splitting people up and getting several villas if you want to stay at AKL.

Indeed! I am not opposed to splitting up our party, I am sadly, opposed to staying off property. We did that back in 2016, and while unbothered for most of the trip, I want my nephew to have the absolute full experience from the MDE (none of us have done that either!) to using EMH and other amenities that come with staying on property.

I appreciate your reply and will take a look into a TA if things just don't seem to be going right. Thank you so much!

 

[Wood Nymph]

We've traveled many times with family and it often works out best to have separate rooms but all be at the same resort. You could have a few connecting rooms or rooms close together, to make it easier to gather together. Do you have a price range that you are looking at? There are a lot of options out there but we would need to know a little more about the composition of the group - i.e. how many separate family units, ages, etc.

 

[Magical2017]

We love the Magical Express. It might not be possible to book, buy you could attempt to rent DVC points. We have done this for two standard room in the past, but never for a large party. We used DVC Rental Store, but David's also has a great reputation. They can advise you on whether or not you could book for your party or try to wait list. Renting points is very popular, and if you are going next fall it might be extremely difficult to do with Star Wars Land opening. However, it never hurts to keep your options open.

 

[Spunky946]

I’d split into family units and do separate rooms at the same resort. Personally I’d want my own space at the end of the day with my own family.

 

[Sue M]

I agree with Wood Nymph. There are so many options. From several large villas like Treehouse, to doing separate family groupings at the same resort. Personally, I’d do separate family groupings so people can have some down time in their own space.
You are right to stay onsite with a large group. This way everyone can come and go as they want using WDW transportation.
If there are older children, Beach or Yacht club would be fun. Best pool on property and walking distance to 2 parks. They also have a DVC villas option.
If there are a lot of younger children an MK area resort would be good.

In addition I would have each family book their own rooms after it’s decided what resort to stay at. And connect everyone on MDE as family and friends so making fast passes is easier. When everyone is booked get all the res #s and phone central reservations connecting all res as traveling together.
I think getting a Disney Travel Specialized agency may make planning a lot easier, and they may have suggestions you haven’t thought of. Everyone can work with the same agent.
First thing to do is get each family to make a MDE ACCT.

Helpful planning book: Walt Disney World, the Unofficial Guide. This was my bible of Disney trip planning and has taught me how to do WDW! Invaluable.

 

[sunshinemelody]

We've traveled many times with family and it often works out best to have separate rooms but all be at the same resort. You could have a few connecting rooms or rooms close together, to make it easier to gather together. Do you have a price range that you are looking at? There are a lot of options out there but we would need to know a little more about the composition of the group - i.e. how many separate family units, ages, etc.

Oh right, thank you!

Price range is open. In terms of separate family units: 2 couples with 1 child each, 2 adult couple groups, one nuclear family group of 3 - two adult sons and a mom, and one friend (Godparent). All adults, except for the two children.

We love the Magical Express. It might not be possible to book, buy you could attempt to rent DVC points. We have done this for two standard room in the past, but never for a large party. We used DVC Rental Store, but David's also has a great reputation. They can advise you on whether or not you could book for your party or try to wait list. Renting points is very popular, and if you are going next fall it might be extremely difficult to do with Star Wars Land opening. However, it never hurts to keep your options open.

I was thinking of DVC points, but thought it wouldn't work well for us mainly because DVC's are so hard to attain and for a group of 14 it would make the whole thing nauseating. Definitely on my radar for a smaller trip though!

I’d split into family units and do separate rooms at the same resort. Personally I’d want my own space at the end of the day with my own family.

We're a pretty close-knit unit and the one benefit to the SS Treehouses were the separate bedrooms, but that was really it. They're just so far away from everything that I don't want the party to be overwhelmed getting to destinations outside of the villas.

 

[sunshinemelody]

Based on @Spunky946 and your @Sue M's replies, I may have to resort (ha, get it!?) to thinking about splitting up the group. Maybe I'm just inside of my own head and want us to stay together, but if family units can have their own space, they should be allowed to have it.

You guys are all amazing and I can't thank you all enough for just replying, let alone conversing with me on such a heavy-laden jaunt I have put on myself.

 

[Sue M]

Based on @Spunky946 and your @Sue M's replies, I may have to resort (ha, get it!?) to thinking about splitting up the group. Maybe I'm just inside of my own head and want us to stay together, but if family units can have their own space, they should be allowed to have it.

You guys are all amazing and I can't thank you all enough for just replying, let alone conversing with me on such a heavy-laden jaunt I have put on myself.

You really wouldn’t be splitting up the group, just different rooms at same resort, and request they be near each other.
We stayed at Yacht Club in a standard view room over resort entrance. It’s unusual, but 4 rooms shared a large balcony. When I saw this I thought those rooms would be great for a large group.

 

[robinb]

Price range is open. In terms of separate family units: 2 couples with 1 child each, 2 adult couple groups, one nuclear family group of 3 - two adult sons and a mom, and one friend (Godparent). All adults, except for the two children.

So you have 14 people and basically 6 groups: 2 groups of couples with kids, 2 groups of adult couples, 1 group of adult sons and 1 group of mom and godparent. So, I'm counting 6 rooms/bedrooms as i assume that the adult couple are not going to want to share a room and the mom is not willing to share a bed with the godmother.

If price does become an object (I know that I would not want to spend hundreds of dollars per night on a deluxe resort) you may want to rethink Bonnet Creek. You are thinking about renting two treehouse at more than $1000 per day each for a total of $14,750 rack rate. An entire week at the most expensive time at BC (according to http://vacationupgrades.com) would be $4550 all in for a 4 BR unit and a 2BR unit. That's over TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS in savings. What does that $10K buy you? A free bus ride to/from the airport? Free bus rides to the parks? EMH? For a 4-year old's birthday? Frankly, the 4 year old won't give a darn where he stays and kids that age are often more interested in the pool than anything else. And ... speaking of pools, the BC pool is better than more WDW resort pools except for possibly Storm-along Bay. Even if you account for transportation to/from the airport and Uber/Lyft to the parks you are still saving nearly $1000 per day to stay off site v/s a treehouse or a deluxe resort.

 

[Mayhem1976]

We are doing our 3rd family vacation this August at Beach Club. We like it because in August we spend a decent amount of time at the pool. There are 4 families, my parents, my family brothers and sisters. 16 all together with 8 kids.

Separate rooms are nice, especially with kids, they need some time to wind down. Last time my sister and I had adjoining rooms and my brother and parents.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I would pick the resort you like and simply book separate rooms. You will have so much more flexibility in terms of resort options if you go this route.

 

[Nancyg56]

Have you considered Old Key West on a cash basis? We are used to traveling together, so sharing space is not as issue. OKW is one of the most affordable DVC units, and has the largest rooms, as I understand. I booked a 2 bedroom villa in December for 7 of us. The rack rate for 8 nights with 9 day hoppers was 13,219. You could book two of these villas and have a large area for the kids to play, the family to gather, and still have a decent level of privacy. BEcause we are not renting points we will still have the services that come with a resort room, which for this trip was important to us.

I have not yet stayed at this resort so I cannot speak to convenience, etc, however there is always a "first time" at any resort, and the booking is blind until you experience it. We watched multiple youtube videos before decking on thsi resort for this specific trip, and when we considered the layout, as well as the cost differences between this oe and the other DVC villas, this one won. It is a special trip for us because like you, we have a newbie, and we want her experience to be memorable, in a good way! LOL! We would have loved a monorail or EPcot resort, however we also needed to consider the savings, and how that money could enhance out trip.

I woud suggest that before you make any decisions, you should discuss what the budget is and how you will share costs. You would be surprised how that little thing can cause issues. My family just counts the number of adults and then splits the total bill between adults. Not every family is okay with this arrangement, so best to get that out of the way early on.
I would also make sure you know who can or will share space, and if a number of you can all stay in one unit. It is not as concrete as it sounds, and being honest about family dynamics can make the difference between a good vacation and a disaster that no one recovers from.

If you know that having an escape is important I would book rooms for each family, but at the same resort. This way you all can use the pool together, but can have privacy as well.

 

[Euby]

Have you thought about the cabins at Fort Wilderness? They supposedly sleep 6 adults each. I've never stayed there personally, but I've heard good things.

 

[Babsy]

you do need to think a little about budget. The amount of money required for a deluxe stay at an MK resort is quite a bit different from that required for a stay in ASMu suites, for example.

If it is within reason, I would book a MK monorail resort for the best immersive experience at WDW. CL would give you an option to get together in the lounge, while separate rooms allow each group some privacy and a place to call their own. If staying with a lake view in the CR tower, you would all be on the same floor and even on the same side of the CR so your rooms would be fairly close together. Easy to meet at the central lounge when leaving for the parks. Staying CL at either the Poly or GF SL would put you in an outer building, but all in the same one and again with a lounge to gather in. This would be my go to option, but the cost could easily be prohibitive.

Depending upon when you are planning to go, suites at CSR may be nice, but I wouldn't choose that option until sometime next year at the earliest. There will be a lot of closures and construction there this fall.

POFQ is a small moderate resort. If you book rooms there, you cannot be too far away from one another as the resort itself is relatively small for a moderate. It also has a pool area that the 4 year old should enjoy. POR is gorgeous and booking preferred rooms would put you close to the main building in AB as well as near the main themed pool.

If value is the price range that makes sense, then ASMu has suites that are all in the Jazz Inn or Calypso buildings, so again, not too far apart.

If you want to be on property, but want a great location and reasonable price, also consider the Swan or Dolphin. They are Disney owned but are in the Epcot area and are right next to the YC/BC and BWI. The Swan is smaller, so it might keep you closer together if you booked there. They have larger suites as well as many different room categories. Also discounts are frequently common and quite good at these resorts.

Any bookings should be made as "travelling with' all the other bookings. I would request rooms as close together as possible as my only request.

Enjoy your trip!! It sounds wonderful regardless of where you choose to stay!

 

[KBoopaloo]

I've done 3 trips with the same general group of extended family and we've always been a group of 15 or 16 with lots of small family groups. We have always done (2) 2 bedroom villas and a Studio to accommodate all of us and it has worked out well. We've done it twice at Kidani Village and once at Boardwalk. If you can rent DVC points, I'd recommend giving that a try. The nice thing about Kidani is that there are 3 bathrooms in a 2 bedroom which gives you extra space.

Assuming that someone (maybe the one adult godparent) doesn't mind sleeping on the pull out in the living room of a two bedroom, you could put the 2 couples with no kids in each of the master bedrooms, the 2 couples with 1 kid in the room in the 2 bedroom with 2 queen beds and the nuclear family of 3 in a studio. The nuclear family of 3 could even split up with one of the adults sleeping on the pull out in one of the two bedrooms (with the godparent sleeping on the pullout in the other 2 bedroom). I hope that makes sense.

I know lots of folks always advocate for as many separate rooms as possible (even our DVC guide suggested renting multiple studios to accommodate each of our small groups individually rather than using the 2 bedrooms) but you know your group best. We've never had an issue sharing space this way and have always had a lot of fun. The biggest question is whether anyone is willing to sleep on those living room pullouts because those have the least privacy but at Kidani they'd be able to have their own bathroom space at least.

 

[jtwibih]

Based on @Spunky946 and your @Sue M's replies, I may have to resort (ha, get it!?) to thinking about splitting up the group. Maybe I'm just inside of my own head and want us to stay together, but if family units can have their own space, they should be allowed to have it.

You guys are all amazing and I can't thank you all enough for just replying, let alone conversing with me on such a heavy-laden jaunt I have put on myself.

When are you planning on going or did I miss that? We have been with large groups plenty of times. We typically stay at AKV Kidani because of the number of 2BR villas available along with theme. It's been fairly easy to have the suites close to or right across from each other.

 

[Monykalyn]

Maybe I'm just inside of my own head and want us to stay together, but if family units can have their own space, they should be allowed to have it.

With this many people, and a couple young children-separate sleeping areas where kids and adults who want to sleep early while rest have a place to hang out-may be much better than all in one space. PLUS the more bathrooms for that many people the better!
There is boat service from SSR and the treehouse villas look so fun! But we own a timeshare at Lake Ozark that is this treehouse design (although ours has a loft sleeping area and a lower level area with bedroom/bath) so I am biased towards this. We stayed Grandstand area in a studio last summer. First on busses and close by a secondary pool, short walk to main pool. Just remember if you are relying on a pullout for sleeping area the worst beds at Disney that I've encountered was at SSR! The pullout was awful.

Have you thought about the cabins at Fort Wilderness? They supposedly sleep 6 adults each. I've never stayed there personally, but I've heard good things.

They do sleep 6 -2 queens (one in bedroom, one pullout in Living area-this was actually very comfortable) and a set of bunk beds, but one bathroom. Does have a nice kitchen, sitting area, deck etc. We loved the cabins!! and going to MK on the boat launch is magical!

Happy planning! That many people my personal preference would be my own space, but with a central gathering area (couple 2 bedroom villas).

 

[Deb & Bill]

Both the Treehouse Villas (which sleep nine each) and the Ft Wilderness Cabins (which sleep six each) have a set of bunk beds which are shorter and narrower than a standard twin sized bed and might not work well for adults. If you are looking at Grand Villas at AKV, they only sleep 12 just like the rest of the Grand Villas at all the DVC resorts. But Grand Villas are going to be hard to book for cash. Finding a DVC owner with enough points to book grand villas, plus additional villas is going to be hard since they require so many points.

You might be better off looking at the Family Suites at the All Stars and Arts of Animation which sleep six each with no bunk beds, but some of the beds are convertibles, not standard beds. However, individual rooms for each family might work best so each family member can book what they need for the price they want to pay.