Tips for Disney World with a Large Group (Including Toddlers)
Disney World is one of the most popular destinations for a family vacation. We were so fortunate to experience Disney with the kids at such a young age (3 and 4) and we had an amazing time! Our entire group consisted of six adults and five kids. (Our family of six and my in laws.) We learned a lot on this trip and we will definitely be more prepared for the next one.
We stayed at the Disney Riviera Resort, which is close to Epcot. My favorite thing about this location was that we could see the Epcot fireworks from our room and we were able to take the skyline to and from Hollywood Studios. The skyline felt like another ride for the kids and was super convenient.
We visited Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom, and Animal Kingdom during our stay. I wish we had been able to spend a little more time in Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom, but hopefully we will make it back sooner than later. Overall, Magic Kingdom was my favorite and by far had the best fireworks show.
This was our first trip to Disney World with the kids and with extended family. We learned a lot, including what not to do, and will be better prepared for our next visit. Disney is always changing things up, so the experience will be different throughout the years. However, I put together a list of basic tips if you are planning a family trip in the foreseeable future.
10 Tips for Large Groups
1.Book as early as possible- I can not stress enough how important it is to book as early as possible. Reservations can be made online for dining 60 days in advance and with large parties, this is your best option to dine together at any in-park restaurant. You could possibly snag a last minute reservation, but most likely not for a large party. Extra tip: If you are able to walk in, try breaking up the party into smaller groups and when ready to be seated ask if you can all be put together, you never know and they try to be accommodating. Also, Disney has a lot of rules and regulations. Give yourself time to be prepared. For example, not all strollers are permitted and the Lightning Lane passes are available through 2 options, which you will need to plan ahead of time.
2. Stay at the same hotel- By staying in the same hotel, it will be easier to enjoy amenities and get family time together. We stayed in a two bedroom, two bathroom suite with a kitchen, dining , living area, and a washer/dryer. All five kids got to enjoy each other’s company and had a great time. I felt like we had plenty of room without being on top of each other and we didn’t have to worry about setting a meet up time/place everyday. (Their were two extra beds in the living area as well!)
3. Individual Lightning Lane passes or Genie+ – Are either worth the extra costs? Individual Lightning Lane passes, yes. You could do this option if there are a couple of rides you absolutely have to do. Personally, I feel like toddlers don’t care about the number of rides, but my four year old did have specific ones he wanted to ride, so the individual passes were perfect. Genie+ requires everyone in your party to pay the extra $15 per day. With 11 people we did not want to spend the extra money. If it is a really busy time of year and/or you only have one day in each park, it may be worth it to have access to the extra perks, such as the unlimited Lightning Lane pass with online reservations. If you are staying a week I think it’s unnecessary for the extra expense. (If you haven’t been to Disney in a while, the Lightning Lane is the new Fast Pass and Genie+ is a new app add on.)
4. Make dining reservations/have groceries delivered- I think one or two (depending on how long your stay is), in park dining experiences is enough. It is outrageously expensive, and how much will a toddler really eat while Mickey and Minnie are dancing around? I do think it’s a great way to see the characters up close. If you have girls and boys in your party, I would do two separate experiences and separate the group. For all other meals, have groceries delivered to your room. This saves money and is less stressful than planning too many meals “out” with littles. Amazon Prime and Instacart are super easy to use. Try them before your trip so you’re familiar with them.
5. Get familiar with the Disneyworld app before your trip- The My Disney Experience app and Genie+ are not what I would call user friendly. There is so much information on it and if utilized can be an excellent tool, but knowing where to find the information you need will save you so much time. One of my favorite features was the park map that shows your location inside the park and I easily navigated our group to specific rides. My least favorite thing was trying to connect our party in order to use the Lightning Lane passes. This cost us time inside the park because we had to get assistance. However, if each family books individual reservations this shouldn’t happen.
6. Split up in the parks- Most likely there will be a difference in age and height for the kids. Split up for some of the rides if you have a couple of older (or taller) kids in the group. My four year old was tall enough to ride Space Mountain, so him and Dad rode that while the rest of us rode some smaller rides. As I stated before, I would also split up for different dining options. Girls may want to see the princesses and boys may want to see Mickey.
7. Plan down time- I highly recommend taking the toddlers back to the room for snacks, lunch, nap, and/or quiet time in the middle of the day. A couple of hours to rest and be comfortable makes a huge difference in a toddler’s mood. If you’re staying a whole week, you may want to consider having a pool day at the hotel, especially if it rains (utilize the indoor pool) or the kids are becoming overwhelmed by going and doing so much. Also, plan a day to be flexible and let them choose as much as possible.
8. Plan riding partners- If you have several toddlers in your party, plan on pairing them up with an adult, even if you will all be on the same ride. It is much easier this way. If you have more toddlers than adults, pair up the oldest and youngest kid with an adult so the older ones can help.
9. Know the rides- Before arriving at any park, use the app to make a list of rides your kids can definitely get on. They have the height checks in the lines, but creating a list of specific rides they can absolutely do is super helpful. The app can help you plan the best approach to fitting in as many of them as possible. There are also several that don’t have a height restriction that you will all be able to do together and you may want to use your Lightning Lane passes for these.
10. Go late in the day- Two hours before the parks close, most people will be finding food and saving their spots to watch the fireworks. This is a great time to catch a couple of rides with little to no wait time. If your kids are just exhausted, maybe skip the fireworks to beat the crowds back to your room. That said, our kids loved the fireworks just as much as the rides. If you can stay, it is worth it.
Bonus tip: Don’t Stress! You will have more fun if you focus on the things you get to do and less on the things you didn’t. The kids aren’t going to care (or really know) if they didn’t get to do all the rides. If you don’t get to do as much as you wanted, remember it is a huge place and you probably did a lot overall. You aren’t going to conquer an entire park in one day, especially with a large group. The kids will have fun and if you try to keep things too scheduled you are only diminishing your own experience. Happy Disney planning mamas!
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