Plan the Magic - Disney Planning Resource

I have traveled to Disney World with my family as a child, my friends, my husband, my husband and children and with the entire rest of our family which usually consists of approximately 25 people. When my family travels as a large group we always set up a Grand Gathering. Sure you could just call your travel agent and book a room, but there are several things you would be missing out on.

For instance, when you book rooms as a Grand Gathering, Disney gives some preferences in trying to keep you as close together as possible within your hotel. Now if you are with your entire family some of you may not want to be so close as you will be with them all day and may want to get away from them, but at the end of the day, it is nice when you can be around each other for the whole experience.

The other great thing about being a Grand Gathering is that when you book your dining reservations and place them under your Grand Gathering number they will do everything they can to keep you together in the restaurant. I do suggest with a Grand Gathering that if you are making dinning reservations you do so at the 180 day mark if you can – it will be easier to book the reservations together. Not that you will not be able to do after that time, it is just easier.

I have planned Grand Gatherings for my family year after year and I find that if you make a tentative itinerary for each day while your there everyone has a place to start their day from, but usually will at least meet up later on for a nice sit down dinner and finish out the night together. Also, this makes it easier for people to meet up during different points in the day.

The last thing that many people do not realize is that there are Grand Gathering Experiences available at Disney World. As of today they are several different Grand Gathering Experiences available, they are: Good Morning Character Breakfast in the Magic Kingdom at Tony’s Town Square Restaurant; Safari Celebration Dinner in the Animal Kingdom for an end of day tour of the safari and then dinner in the Tusker House Restaurant; and International Dinner & Illuminations Dessert Reception in Epcot for dinner family style and musical entertainment and storytelling activities and after all of that you are escorted to a reserved lagoon area to view Illuminations and enjoy a dessert buffet. There are extra charges per person for these experiences, but as a group you can enjoy something exciting and new.

So which way is better, just booking a room or booking as a Grand Gathering? Well there is no extra cost to book as a Grand Gathering so the benefits are that they will always try to keep you together in your hotel and dining. In addition, you open yourself up to try some new experiences that you might have otherwise missed.

While it can be complex to plan a Grand Gathering, having the right agent handle all of the details for you will make it that much simpler so that you can enjoy your Grand Gathering stress free with no extra cost to you.

Not sure if your group is the right size to be considered a Grand Gathering? As long as you are a party of 8 or more ages 3 and up you would qualify. If you would like more information on booking a Grand Gathering or on a Disney Vacation in general, please contact me at Lauren@PixieVacations.com or 732-961-3079 for a free quote!