Hello Kennedy!
Welcome to planDisney! I love visiting Walt Disney World Resort with all my family and friends but these trips do require some planning for the best experience. Let me see how I can help!
I would ask each family unit to designate a person to create a
My Disney Experience account and connect on the
Family & Friends List. This is very important as it will make all your planning go easier and also allow for each family unit to make their plans too!
Then let's start
building your vacation and selecting your travel dates. You have a large party and there are right now no resort rooms that can accommodate your entire party of 17 but I suggest each family unit purchase a room for themselves or consider booking something like the family suites at
Disney's Art of Animation Resort and grouping. Each of the suites can accommodate 6 adults plus one child 2 and under. Some large suites such as the
Treehouse Villas at Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa hold up to 9 adults plus a child 2 and under. It may then work to split your party into two groups.
You will then be directed to purchase tickets and you all should decide if you want a ticket that lets you enter one Park per day or if you would like the choice to "hop" to another Park in the afternoon. There is also the option to include entry into the Water Parks! Make sure to also make your
Theme Park Reservations which can always be changed later as you figure out your plans.
It's now time to select
Dining Reservations. If you choose to stay on-site you will find that one of the
benefits is that you can book your dining reservations 60 days before your arrival day and be able to do so for your entire trip! I suggest planning a few Table Service Reservations together to rest and reminisce! Lately, it has been very hard to get reservations with parties larger than 6 or 7 so I suggest breaking your group up into two to three parties. The goal is to find reservations that are either at the same time or within 15 minutes of each other. Since there are a few reservations to coordinate I would aim to keep the timing close together and arrive at the earliest reservation at least 30 minutes earlier and ask the Cast Member at the front of the restaurant if you can all be seated together. It is not guaranteed but if you are patient and polite anything is possible. I want to make sure that you know that each reservation must be made by a person with a different My Disney Experience Account as one person can't hold two dining reservations around the same time. I recommend you check out Liberty Tree Tavern at Magic Kingdom Park as it is a crowd-pleaser.
I love matching t-shirts with large groups as it does help locate everyone when walking through the Parks and makes for some great family photos. I also love purchasing
Memory Maker. If everyone is linked together you can share photos without missing anyone!
I have some more ideas for your Park days but have no more space!
Reach out if you want to hear more!
-Nimmy