Have You Done a Family Trip (Children/Grandchildren)to WDW?

[zippy2]

I have taken my children, spouses, and grandchildren in 2020 and 2023. We are going again next December with grandchild number four!

 

[Wood Nymph]

Our first family trip with children, spouses and grandchildren was in 2004, when our first grandchild was one years old. We stayed in a 2br villa at the BC. We repeated that trip in 2006 with two grandchildren. Both of these trips included our other children and my two sisters in separate hotel rooms. The villa was great for family gatherings and those trips coincided with our oldest grandson's birthdays.

We stayed at the WL twice and BC once with our youngest daughter, her husband and two children. This daughter didn't like the larger family trips.

Our biggest family trip was at POR. when we had free dining with the old dining plan that included one table service and one counter service. We saved a lot of money with that one. This trip had 10 people and was our largest group.

One of our very fun trips was a very short three-night stay in a 2bd villa at Old Key West. The rate was very cheap for that trip. The other very fun trip was a very short trip with our other daughter, her husband and 6-year-old son at the WL. We went to a halloween party.

We took one more trip with our oldest grandchildren, our son and my sister at BC. It was our last family trip. Not only was it getting too expensive, but the kids were getting older and wanted to spend more time at the pool than in the parks.

The 2-bedroom villas are a great place to stay because of the common meeting space and full kitchen. But it is pricey. Now we go to WDW with my sister and my husband's sister and stay at POR. The sisters share a room, and we all get along very nicely. But we enjoy the trips with just the two of us, too.

 

[georgina]

I am looking forward to going with our grandson in a few years. DD (his mom) pointed out to me that 3 holiday cards they received this year from friends featured the MK castle in the background!

Our youngest was 3.5 when we went for the first time in 1998. Personally I would never take a younger child, too much hassle. I am not a fan of the crying cranky kids we see all over in the parks. Grandson has no concept of the original Disney characters - Mickey, Minnie, etc. He has seen the Cars movie. Maybe when he is 5 we'll go. DSIL is a civilian DoD employee and eligible for Shades of Green so we will have to look into that more.

SIL who is not a huge Disney fan is looking forward to taking him to the Harry Potter areas at Universal; he will have to read the books first.

 

[hsmamato2]

Yes.... as an extended family we've taken more trips together than I can count.... heading down again in '25 with a large part of the fam to hang out and have fun. (prob about 13 people coming for this trip) we all plan your own accomodations, and usually one person in the group has specific ideas of what they'd like to do. We usually are pretty chill,and let that person lead the way (so to speak) when it comes to parks, meals together,etc. And we NEVER spend the entire trip all together,that would be crazy town! Usually how it plays out is most of us meet up at some point each day,do stuff together (rides,or meals) and then usually people break off in smaller groups based on interests. It's always fun

 

[hsmamato2]

wanted to share also as an example of options- on our largest fam trip together we had about 17 people, and we all (separately) booked rooms at Dolphin hotel...that was fun bc after running around,it was easy to hang out at the pool together.... most trips, it's more split up,I like hotels, some others prefer a timeshare/condo rental. In that case we just figure out where to meet up for the day.

 

[bakerworld]

Our son has an anxiety disorder he developed during puberty and seizures from brain lesions which appeared in his late 20's. When the kids were little/teens and followed direction it was fine. We were never commando and spent the afternoons at the pool. As an adult it's not so fine so no more family trips for us. His anxiety results in what looks to me like focal seizure activity but his neurologist doesn't agree. Some of his meds create anger issues. Our last family trip with grandkids was in '22. Nope. Not doing that again. His sisters didn't speak to him for almost a year, even though he groveled and apologized repeatedly. We had a family wedding in '23 which both girls only went because I didn't even tell our son about the wedding and went with just us girls.

 

[kathy884]

I'm 64 and I've been to Orlando about 40 times. For the three or more generation trips, I did one as the grandchild, nine as the child, and one with four generations where I was the second oldest generation. On that one I took my 85 year old dad to two days of Flower and Garden at Epcot (something that both of us had always wanted to do) and OMG all dad's kids and grandkids (one great grand kid only at the point) all ended up coming for part of the time too. We also did one day at SeaWorld. My dad and our entire family loves that park and it's a bargain compared to Disney parks and probably IMHO the best park in Orlando for a multigenerational group.

Note: We are more budget oriented than many and always stay offsite (usually get two condos at one of the nice offsite timeshare resorts and a rental minivan) and also use one grandson's car (we have one in the family that lives in Orlando). Also usually in a six day / seven night trip we only do two or three theme parks and do a lot of resort and less expensive activities on the other days which are very enjoyable too (We are just so excited to all be together). As for a scooter, in fact my dad at 85 would only consider Orlando or one of our homes as a vacation destination. He loves how scooter friendly the parks are. At home uses a cane, but he loves the freedom that a scooter gives him at the parks. In case you are interested, we have most often stayed at one of these two condo timeshare resorts: Sheraton Vistana Resort or Cypress Pointe (great value for price -- often we do owner rentals and a trade of the timeshare condo in Sedona. Cypress Point often has good retail prices too.). With dad we request and have always been able to get a nice first floor unit.

The other place we have done multigenerational trips a lot are at a great timeshare resort in Sedona, AZ. Our kids have a great fondness for our trips to both of these places. Not to be a "Negative-Nellie" about Orlando at all, but I think they even look at Sedona more fondly than Disney thinking of their grandparents as it was more nature and family time. They all are in love with Disney and SeaWorld (like Universal too), but there are so many entertaining things that are in Orlando while there is lots of family time the way we did it too, the Orlando trips don't conger up the family memories as well as Sedona does. We all though have an unbelievable fondness and memories of both places.

With my dad no longer traveling, I think the days of the multigenerational WDW trips for me are over. Dad's doing great, but he is in an Assisted Living apartment now and doesn't do more than an occasional day trip to my brother's house 10 minutes away or a scenic drive with me when I am visiting. I though also don't have grandkids. DH and I like to travel with DS and his husband though. We are taking them on two trips with us in 2025 -- late February (Puerto Vallarta) and July (Glacier National Park). Do realize though that my spouse doesn't like Florida, theme parks or Disney. That doesn't totally slow me down though. In early February I am going to be in Tampa for two days to visit a cousin who lives in assisted living there and then I am staying three nights with my favorite nephew who lives in Orlando and my son is traveling with me too. And with those two fun guys we're doing a day at the Magic Kingdom and dinner at Ohana and then a day at SeaWorld -- I do though there need to leave the SeaWorld park by 5 p.m. for an evening flight home.

Yes -- I was brought up to be a Disney girl and the place has so much nostalgia for me, and each time I go creates new great memories too.

 

[kathy884]

Our first family trip to WDW was in 1985 (FT. Wilderness Cabins). WDW turned out being our vacation destination of choice.

OMG I LOVE Fort Wilderness. As a kid I stayed there in the 70s when my family and grandparents both had motorhomes. Per post above, we do the offsite timeshare resort now, as most in the family don't have RVs. But boy do I love Fort Wilderness. So glad you enjoyed your trip so much and are going to do it again. It's pricey (always has been), but it's a very special place and a great place for creating family memories that will stay with you forever.

An offsite camping place we spent a lot of time at and really enjoyed too is Outdoor Resorts of America.

 

[RickNJane]

We have been going to Disney as a family since mid 90's. Bought into DVC in 1997. Great family times. Our last trip was with our oldest DD, her husband and our 2 granddaughters 4 and 7 December 2023. Our SIL was not a huge Disney fan before. He is now! He saw the wonder and excitement in his kids eyes. Really won him over. We stayed in a 2 bedroom villa at BLT. Our youngest grandkid asked "do we live here now?" and broke down a little when we had to say no. Really broke my heart. They keep asking when we are going again. Now we can say November 2025! This time it's a split stay between AKV Jambo house, BLT and BoardWalk for 14 nights. We typically go a few days before the rest of the crew. It is nice to have some quiet time before the madness. Don't get me wrong, it is happy madness! We always rent a car. This time it was a mini van. We plan on going at least every other year with the grandkids. Once they get a bit older we may take them without parents to DLR. We are on the west coast so DLR is not such a long flight. It is really great to re-experience things through the eyes of the kiddos. Makes everything fresh, new and exciting. I cannot think of a better family vacation.

 

[tinkerjo]

Our great big 4 generation trip was a disaster. My DIL was such a pain in my rear. I will not be paying for her again. 2 of my kids treated us a couple years ago to a family trip (there were 8 of us) and we had a great time. This year we are taking our youngest DS (17) and 3 grandsons 10,9,6 (their mom was the pain) and staying at Ft Wilderness, and I went with DD and DGD in September. We just can’t afford to take everyone at once. It’s the price of the tickets!!! Other than DIL on the one trip, I love the big trips

 

[Goofy4]

Our great big 4 generation trip was a disaster. My DIL was such a pain in my rear. I will not be paying for her again. 2 of my kids treated us a couple years ago to a family trip (there were 8 of us) and we had a great time. This year we are taking our youngest DS (17) and 3 grandsons 10,9,6 (their mom was the pain) and staying at Ft Wilderness, and I went with DD and DGD in September. We just can’t afford to take everyone at once. It’s the price of the tickets!!! Other than DIL on the one trip, I love the big trips

Sorry about DIL. About 1/3 or our trips have been with family. For the most part everyone has played along with my planning even when I wasn't paying. I know it doesn't always work out and I've stopped encouraging people to join us who would rather learn Disney lessons the hard way.

 

[Draco0801]

We do about 2 to 3 trips a year with the Grand kids (5 & 7). One or 2 of them with just us Special treat with just us and the other with Daughter & Son in Law and Sister-in-law. It is easier I find with just the 4 of us but I do love when we all go. The Grandkids have been going since birth, they love everything so it's an easy trip to plan plus close enough drive.

 

[Pooh2]

Our first granddaughter was born in Celebration and we were there for her first Disney trip when she was 5 months old.
The character meal photos we got with pooh and friends was the only time I felt a character meal price was well-worth the money!
They've since moved back to the northeast and we have 5 more grandkids. Would love to be able to go with both son's families next year. Boy, the prices have gotten frightening!

 

[tinkerjo]

Boy, the prices have gotten frightening!

We are renting a camper and staying at the Fort. Not that it’s a whole lot cheaper. By the time we rented the camper, paid for a premium site, and rented a golf cart, I probably could have rented points and stayed DVC. The tickets are the big thing. We are staying for a week but only doing 4 days in the parks. Lots and lots of saving to make it happen for the grandkids

 

[weewuvvdisney]

We would love to go back to Disney but with checking numbers, I don't know. We (dh, adult dd and I) would like to go. It has been so long. We would like to ask Family members to join us. Definitely wouldn't be for this year but I did check out the dates that we would go which would be the first week of March.

I had put in 10 days with an 7 day pass for three in a room (2 beds - only preferred room available) at Disney All Star Movies, and the total was 4,965.11 US. With the exchange rate about 30%, this would cost us $6,454.64. Not sure if taxes are included in this total. Definitely doesn't include airfare from Canada, meals etc.

Going to be a hard sell I think.

 

[LuvMyEAR]

My first WDW trip as a grandmother was a real joy. My DD and her wonderful husband had to use up an airline credit after cancelling a trip due to her pregnancy. They decided to go to WDW with another couple, but as the trip approached, DD found she was not yet ready to be separated from her 8-month old son for 7 days.

I unselfishly offered to pay my own way and provide round-the-clock grandmothering, keeping baby close to Mom throughout the trip. Oh - the sacrifice! It was magical, from the moment we arrived. I followed the young adults through the parks, and would keep my grandson company While his parents enjoyed anything that was not suitable for him. He turned out to be a wonderful traveller, loved the big face characters, parades, fireworks, music, lights. In general, everything. He had only one really fussy episode, while we were having dinner one night. I took him outside and pushed the stroller until he drifted off the sleep. I think I made it back to the table before my dinner had completely cooled.

We have so many fantastic memories of that trip, and still tell him the stories years later. Happy to say, we have gone to enjoy many wonderful family trips to WDW with all of our grandchildren in the years that followed. They are never to young. If you have the time, health, financial ability, and the good fortune of a loving family relationship, don’t wait to go.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

We originally purchased DVC in the 90s with the intent of doing trips with our family of 4, and also some extended family reunions. Over the years, we've added points, and have done 5 family reunion trips with groups ranging from 14 to 22. Are the trips perfect? No. But they are some of the best family memories we could have - so much so that after the first one, we did them again and again and again! We learned some good tricks over the years, and we'll do it again in the future. Very special times and a lot of fun.

 

[disneyseniors]

I am looking forward to going with our grandson in a few years. DD (his mom) pointed out to me that 3 holiday cards they received this year from friends featured the MK castle in the background!

Our youngest was 3.5 when we went for the first time in 1998. Personally I would never take a younger child, too much hassle. I am not a fan of the crying cranky kids we see all over in the parks. Grandson has no concept of the original Disney characters - Mickey, Minnie, etc. He has seen the Cars movie. Maybe when he is 5 we'll go. DSIL is a civilian DoD employee and eligible for Shades of Green so we will have to look into that more.

SIL who is not a huge Disney fan is looking forward to taking him to the Harry Potter areas at Universal; he will have to read the books first.

I agree with you on waiting until the youngest is 5 years old. We took our daughter when she was 5 and my son was 7. They really were able to enjoy the trip, and so did we. They also loved playing in the hotel pool too I think 5 is a great age for them to "get" what WDW is about and to enjoy it.

 

[goofyernmost]

I agree with you on waiting until the youngest is 5 years old. We took our daughter when she was 5 and my son was 7. They really were able to enjoy the trip, and so did we. They also loved playing in the hotel pool too I think 5 is a great age for them to "get" what WDW is about and to enjoy it.

Our number was 6 years old. When we first started to think about going to WDW my youngest was 6. When I took the whole extended family my only requirement was that no one was to be younger than 6 years old. It paid off everytime, my own now middle aged children still remember a lot about the trip and how much of an adventure it was. The extended family trip many years later and now the participants are in their 20's and remember almost all of it. Two of the grandkids were 6 and one was 8 and one of the reasons I wanted to wait was because for the grandkids this was their first trip to WDW and I wanted them to remember that it was grandpa that took them for the first time. And they do. Mission accomplished. There were other reasons, of course, like potty trained, able to walk, able to talk and not make us try to guess what the problem was and just the fact that we could all ride most things together without worry about having to have someone sit it out while they fed, changed or let them nap as other members were just having fun.

I know so many people seem to delight in how their baby or toddler reacts to the sights and sounds but they will not remember it and if you want to see the reaction just wave a flashlight in front of them you'll get the same reaction. That's my opinion anyway, others results and reasons may differ.

 

[CarolynFH]

We've done several family trips, starting with having my parents share a 2BR with us while our young-adult son stayed in a studio by himself, back in the early 2000s.

We later had a trip in a grand villa at BWV with 12 - our two kids (adults by then), one son-in-law, a granddaughter, my dad, my sister, and my brother-in-law. My dad, DS, and DBiL actually slept offsite in a different timeshare, but they were listed on our reservation so they had room keys and could access parking as well as other onsite benefits, which helped us stay together when we wanted - and split up when we wanted as well.

In December 2020 we brought DD and DSiL as well as DS and DDiL along with DGD and two stepDGSs, in two BWV 2BRs. We had booked the trip in January, before Covid started, and all the way through the year we were concerned about whether it would or wouldn't happen. Happily, it did, and we had a wonderful time. Due to our fast-fingered children, we scored Boarding Groups for Rise of the Resistance on two days!

And we just completed another week in a GV at BWV, with DD, DSiL, a different DGD, and DS and DBiL. Again DS and DBiL stayed offsite but were listed as guests on our reservation. The timing of last week's trip was set by DD running the WDW Marathon. Otherwise we might have waited until DGD was older - she's only 20 months now and much preferred running around on the Village Green or dancing at the parties in Epcot to riding rides!

But every trip has been very special in its own way, and DH and I are so very happy that we've been fortunate to experience them. Our DVC ownership made them all possible!