Our family vacation this summer was a trip to Florida where we spent three days at Disney Parks and three days at three gorgeous beaches. We had such a great time and discovered a few tricks and ideas that I wanted to share if you’re planning a trip with a big family or a big group of people. Check out these Disney tips for big families and be sure to leave me a comment if you have your own great tips!
General
Disney is made for large groups and big families. No one bats an eye when you walk up with seven people who want to sit together. It was actually a very refreshing place to be!
Before you head to Florida, look for discount tickets. But beware: there are only a couple of authentic discount sellers. Don’t get scammed!
Skip the park hopper passes unless you’re absolutely certain you’ll visit more than one park a day. By the time we saw every attraction in the parks on our given tour days, we were way too tired to think about dragging ourselves to another park. The only thing we wanted to do was hit the hotel pool or take a nap!
It’s definitely possible to tackle one park a day. Magic Kingdom is the most difficult to pack into one day but it’s still possible.
Use the Disney World app to plan your time at the park.
Get to the parks when they open. The parks get more crowded as the day goes on, lines get longer, and the weather gets hotter.
Consider starting at the back of the park when you arrive in the morning. The majority of people start at the front and you can avoid long lines.
Bring hats and sunglasses for everyone.
If visiting during the summer, bring spray bottle fans. You can buy them outside the park for a third of the price that you’ll spend inside the park.
Consider bringing cheap ponchos for everyone to wear when rainstorms hit. And they do hit! {You may also want to avoid wearing white.}
Develop an “if lost” plan. With a large group or family, it’s easy to get separated.
If you can, visit in the off season to save money.
Consider bringing a stroller for younger kids. You can rent them at the parks but you’ll save money by bringing your own.
Magic bands are not a necessity and it’s one way to save money. Unless you hate the idea of carrying your passes around, skip the bands.
Lodging
For more affordable lodging, stay outside the parks. For the amount of time you’ll actually spend at your hotel, it’s not necessary to have all the bells and whistles. We stayed outside the park, had a seven minute drive from our hotel to the parks, and stayed in a two-bedroom, full kitchen suite that slept eight for under $200 a night. It was ideal.
If you’re relying on shuttle service to the parks, be sure to check with the hotel before booking. Some hotels offer limited shuttle service and you won’t be able to arrive at the parks for opening. We drove each day. Parking might be one of the most reasonably priced things at the park and it was great to be able to leave when we wanted.
Rides
Go straight to popular rides when the park opens. You can knock out a handful of rides in the first hour. Later in the day, those same rides will have long waits.
Strike up authentic conversations with Disney workers while you’re waiting in lines or using fast pass machines. Many of the workers have fast pass coupons they can give away and authentic conversations gained us extra fast passes with two different workers. We were also given a free Elsa cupcake {a $5 value} and free Disney stickers after talking with Disney workers. Being kind pays off!
Figure out who’s going to sit with who before you get to the front of the ride. The workers will quickly usher you into spots.
Be strategic with fast passes. Book the day’s fast passes in advance and, if possible, book them in the morning, close together. You can’t fast pass more rides/shows until you’ve used them all and booking them in the morning allows you to add multiple fast passes throughout the day. We were able to cover one park per day and hit every ride by fast passing strategically.
Avoid long lines by using the Disney World app to hit rides with low wait times.
When the weather’s hot, alternate outdoor rides and activities with indoor rides and shows.
Try to hit the hot rides {like Kilimanjaro Safari} in the morning and save water rides for the afternoon.
Souvenirs
The cheapest souvenirs in any park or Downtown Disney are the souvenir pennies. For fifty-one cents, you can get a penny pressed with a popular character. When you get home, turn the pressed penny into a DIY pressed souvenir penny bracelet.
Free buttons for many occasions are available at gift stores within the parks. If it’s a first visit, you’re celebrating a birthday, you just got married, or are celebrating any other occasion, ask a cashier for a souvenir button.
Bring your own DIY autograph books for a cheap souvenir and add character photos when the trip is over.
Have the kids keep journals of the trip as a fun keepsake.
For the most part, every park contains the same merchandise so encourage kids not to make hasty souvenir decisions.
Food
Bring your own meals into the parks to save money. Feeding our family of seven cost $75-85 per lunch. We brought lunch with us one day {peanut butter sandwiches} and saved a pile of money. Just remember: no glass containers.
Have kids carry snack packs with water bottles and snacks they can eat throughout the day. Not having to buy snacks is a great way to save money and time.
Bring a plastic water bottle for each person. There are water fountains in many locations throughout every park. You can also get ice water for free where fountain drinks are sold.
If you’re able to get a deal with the dining plan, I’ve heard it can save a lot of money. One thing to note: I’ve heard gratuities are added for parties of six or more so plan for extra costs.
Characters
For fun photos, take pictures as the characters are signing autograph books. This is when they’ll often do funny things that are perfect for capturing on film.
Characters are not as easy to see as they used to be. If it’s really important to you to see certain characters, use a fast pass.
Take part in interactive shows if you have the chance. Not only are they fun, but it’s a great way to get personal character photos!
Talk to characters as they walk by. They won’t usually stop but they will often high five the kids or give a wave.
And my final tip: enjoy every minute! A trip to Disney is full of special moments!
For more Disney tips and everything you need to know about visiting Disney, be sure to check out this post from Crafting Chicks.
would you mind sharing what hotel you stayed in?
Sure! It was the Melia Orlando Suite Hotel at Celebration.