Help! We're Gonna Need a Bigger Room (Lodging at Disney with a Big Party)
Disney's standard room will typically fit 4 or 5 people, if some people share beds. But what if your party is larger? It can take a little know-how to find a lodging solution for a group larger than 5.
Below is a breakdown of options, both on and off property, in varying price ranges to get you started.
For pricing, I'm going to use the below key to denote price per night.
$ 150-300 $$ 300-600 $$$ 600-1200 $$$$ 12000 and up
Standard Rooms
The typical Disney standard room has one or two double beds. This can sleep up to 4.
However, the following resorts can fit 5 in a standard room:
Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort ($)- Most rooms have been refurbished so they now have 2 queen beds and a trundle bed that can sleep an additional child.
Disney's Port Orleans Riverside Resort ($) - Double rooms in the Alligator Bayou section have two queen beds and a murphy bed that can sleep smaller children.
Disney's Polynesian Village Resort ($$)- Double rooms now have two queen beds and a pull down bed that can sleep a child. Do not try to sleep an adult on this pull down bed as it is slightly smaller than a twin bed.
Disney's Beach Club Resort ($$) - Standard rooms have 2 queen beds and a day bed.
Suites
Disney's All-Star Music Resort ($) - has a 6 person family suite option. This is configured like two standard rooms that connect through a small kitchenette area. The living area has convertible couch that can sleep 2, convertible chair that can sleep 1, and convertible ottoman that can sleep one. The master bedroom has a queen bed and room enough to fit a Pack-N-Play.
This is a value resort, so you won't find the decor or amenities of a deluxe here, but then again, the price is right, and this is one of only 2 value resorts that offers a family suite. Also, a big bonus here is 2 full bathrooms, which can make a big difference when rushing to get ready for the park in the morning.
Disney's Art of Animation ($$) - This is the one resort that seems to have been really designed with a large family in mind. The Family Suites here are themed (Cars, Finding Nemo, or Lion King). If you don't mind the garish decor, these are a great option as they sleep up to 6 and offer 2 bathrooms, a kitchenette, a living area, and a master suite with a door.
These feature a queen bed in the master suite, a full size pull down sofa bed, and an innovative table bed that can sleep 2. These also offer a kitchenette and plenty of space and may be one of the more budget friendly suites with 2 bathrooms.
Disney's Coronado Springs Resort - Offers Junior Suites, 1 bedroom suites, and Executive Suites, all of which sleep 6. All offer a kitchenette.
The Junior Suite ($$) - is approximately the size of two rooms and offers either one king or two queen beds, a pull down sofa bed, and 2 bathrooms.
The One Bedroom Suite ($$$) - This unit sleeps 6 and has a room with 2 queen beds, and a living area with a pullout couch. Also has 2 full bathrooms, 2 refrigerators, and 2 televisions.
The Executive Suite ($$$$) - Has a room with a King bed, a room with 2 Queen beds, and a parlor for entertaining with a pull out couch. Disney says this sleeps 8 adults. There are 3 (!) baths. 2 are full baths, and one, off the parlor, is a half bath. One of these baths, off the room with the King bed, has a whirlpool tub.
Disney's Beach Club Resort ($$$$) - There is a 2 bedroom suite club level available here. One room has a King, and the other has 2 Queens and a day bed. Because this room is club level, you also have access to the club lounge where you will find snacks throughout the day and save a bundle on buying snacks. You could even make a light meal out of what you would find in the club lounge. This is, however, your cream of the crop room, and has a price tag to go with it.
Cabins
Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground ($-$$)-- has both cabins and campsites where you can pitch your tent or RV for whatever your party size.
Since the campgrounds depend on what camping gear you bring, I'm going to focus on the cabins here. These are units that can sleep up to 10. One drawback is that Fort Wilderness is a very large resort, so it can take some time to even get to the bus stop, let alone to the theme park. But this is a great option if your family wants to relax a bit and spread out during your vacation.
DVC properties for very large groups
As you begin to look at this category of room, you may start to find more rooms that are considered Disney Vacation Club (DVC) rooms. This does not make them off-limits to the regular guest. There are a few ways you can go about trying to book these rooms.
During some seasons, DVC studios and 1 Bedroom suites are available for reservation by guests who aren't members of the Disney Vacation Club. If you can find it in your resort search on disneyworld.disney.go, then you may book it directly. However, it's a good idea to compare the rack rate to the rate if you rented DVC points.
And yes, you can purchase DVC points even if you are not a Disney Vacation Club member. One site that makes it easy to do so is David's DVC Rental.
Because there is such variety in units and in how you book (either through the resort or by renting DVC points), it's impossible to discuss prices here. Know these are going to be more than your standard room in most (but not all) cases.
Studios that can accommodate 5 are found at Disney's Polynesian Resort, Grand Floridian Resort, Beach Club Resort, Wilderness Lodge, and Boardwalk Villas. Each might differ in configuration, but most studios will include a kitchenette, and possibly a second bathroom.
Below is a picture of our studio room at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort in February. It had a large queen bed, a pull out double sleeper sofa, and a pull down bed that could sleep up to 5. It also had a kitchenette, with a refrigerator, microwave, sink, and plates and glasses, and two bathrooms. However, the bathroom situation was odd in that only one bathroom had a toilet. The one had a sink and rain shower (oo-la-la!), and the other had the toilet, tub/shower, and sink and was very spacious.
1 bedrooms - Accommodate 4 or 5 and are designed so that there is a separate sleeping area with a door.
2 bedrooms - Accomodate 8 or 9.
Grand Villas - Are really something special and accommodate up to 12. This can be a budget buster, but if you have the cash, this is certainly a memorable experience. Also, if your party is adults splitting the cost, that can make the stay more affordable if you split costs and use max occupancy.
Unusual Accommodations
Still looking at DVC properties, Walt Disney World Resort has several options for larger parties that combine space with a novelty experience.
Treehouses ($$$) - Want to stay in a "treehouse"? Located along the Sassagoula River, Saratoga Springs Resort has treehouse villas that will fit 9. These units are located above the trees, many with a view of the river. There is parking for your unit right underneath if you have a car with you.
Bungalows ($$$$) - Disney's Polynesian Village Resort has over-the-water Malaysian-style bungalows. Each has its own deck that overlooks the Seven Seas Lagoon. This is a great viewing spot for Happily Ever After and the Electrical Water Pageant. However, this is one of the priciest units on property. My scale doesn't go as far as the current price, which is more than $2000 per night.
Cabins ($$-$$$) - Cooper Creek Village at Disney's Wilderness Lodge Resort is the newest DVC property and has cabins overlooking Bay Lake that can fit up to 8.
Off property
So far, everything I've listed has been Disney-owned and on property. There are a few reasons for this. For one, this is a Disney blog. I want to tell you what Disney offers, and can't possibly cover all that the Orlando area also offers.
The other reason I've held back is that while many off property options can be more economical, there is a certain magic to staying on property. Asked for my opinion, I will suggest staying on property every time. The perks of staying on property are numerous, including the extra magic hours, the earlier booking windows for Fastpass+, and the free transportation. But even with those tangible rewards, the greatest reward in my opinion for staying on property is that you get Disney guest service around the clock. Who wants to leave the Disney park for the day and deal with bad customer service and the other pains of the real world? Not me.
That said, I'm sure overall you'd save money and have a pretty decent time off property as well.
Hotel rooms that sleep 5 or more:
B Resort and Spa ($) - two queen beds and a sleeper sofa, situated between EPCOT and Sea World
Caribe Royale ($) - 1.5 miles from Walt Disney World, offers several room types that sleep 5, 6, 7, or 8.
Comfort Inn Maingate ($) - 1 mile from Walt Disney World, rooms can sleep 5 or 6. A queen double has two queen beds and a bunk. A deluxe queen has two queen beds and a pull out sleeper sofa.
Rentals in the Orlando area:
There are more vacation homes and units in the Orlando area to rent than can be detailed here. Those who do rent say that it is nice to get away from the crowds and madness of Walt Disney World for a night to their own private rental. Renting a unit also gives you the advantage of having a full kitchen so you can save some money on food by cooking your own once in a while.
I have had wonderful experiences booking rentals through VRBO, and highly recommend it. I've not used it for Disney (remember, I'm an on-property type), but have used VRBO to rent anything from a cabin in the Black Hills of South Dakota to a deluxe condo unit in a gated community on a private beach near Charleston, South Carolina. Prices are usually very reasonable.
So far, I've given a ton of information, so I'm going to break it all down into this handy-dandy chart below. So do not fear, you can find a property that will fit your group. It's just going to take some know-how.
