Multi-Generational Magic: Mastering Disney World with Your Whole Family

In this episode of All Things Travel, Ryan and Julie dive deep into planning the perfect multi-generational Disney World vacation. Whether you're traveling with grandparents, parents, or little ones, our experts share invaluable tips to ensure a magical experience for everyone.

Key points covered:

• Choosing a "team captain" from each family for streamlined planning
• Resort recommendations for multi-gen groups, including Art of Animation and Caribbean Beach
• Transportation tips for arrivals and on-property travel
• Strategies for dining reservations with large groups
• Navigating the new Lightning Lane system as a family
• Park touring advice: why traveling as a herd doesn't work
• The importance of rest days and pool time
• Special experiences to enhance your multi-gen trip

Plus, learn about Memory Maker for group photos, extended evening hours at deluxe resorts, and how to balance different family members' needs and preferences.

Whether you're a Disney pro or planning your first family trip, this episode is packed with expert advice to make your multi-generational Disney World vacation truly magical.

Don't forget to share your own family travel stories with us on social media!

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A travel podcast for women over 45 who want to explore this big beautiful world.

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Chapters

• 12:49 [Ad] Untethered & Wanderwise: Female Travel Over 45
• 13:13 (Cont.) Multi-Generational Magic: Mastering Disney World with Your Whole Family

Transcript

Julie: 0:00

Hello and welcome to all things travel. This week, Ryan and I are diving into multi gen magic, navigating Disney World with your whole family. We'll be sharing our top tips for making your multi generational trip to the happiest place on earth a success for everyone from grandparents all the way to toddlers. Get ready for our expert advice on planning your trip, choosing accommodations, and how to tour the parks to keep your whole crew smiling from Main Street to Tomorrowland. Listen in with travel advisors and destination experts, Ryan and Julie. He is your travel professor teaching you everything you need to know to have a magical vacation. And I am a Disney loving Maryland mom of three and specialist in family travel. Whether we're discussing incredible destinations, top vacation tips, or sharing personal stories, it's always all things travel. Hello, Ryan. Happy Sunday night. We always record on Sunday

Ryan: 1:02

we are. Even though people are like, wait, this is Wednesday morning for us. This is Sunday night. For years, when Shane and I started, I think after the first couple episodes, we landed on Sunday night. And Sunday night from seven to nine for years has been podcasting time.

Julie: 1:23

I didn't have a choice in the matter. I showed up and was just

Ryan: 1:25

I was like, Julie, this is when we do it.

Julie: 1:29

Yeah, exactly. Exactly. But I really like this topic. This is, like, Right up in my wheelhouse. This is my GM.

Ryan: 1:39

Yeah, absolutely. This is what Julie is known for, to be quite honest. When you talk to Julie about some of her favorite trips, her largest trips, they all involve multi generational groups. They all involve Disney. I'm excited to talk about this with you today

Julie: 1:52

I know you're probably going to learn a lot from me. I'm just going to

Ryan: 1:54

Oh, well, you know, I always learn a lot from you whether it has anything to do with travel, I don't know but

Julie: 2:01

That's true. Today we're going to talk a lot about multi generational travel. We're going to focus on Disney. But really, I've done a lot of family trips recently, like Ryan's Many generations in my personal family. A lot of the trips I've planned have been multi generational trips, especially to Disney. Because it's just a complicated thing to do to try to keep everyone happy. It seems like a really daunting thing to be like, Hey, how are we going to coordinate 20 people on this vacation? So that's kind of been like my little niche because I've been doing it with my family for so long. I've learned tips and tricks that I can't wait to share.

Ryan: 2:39

Before we dive into all this Make sure you go back and check out last week's episode because we took your questions when Julie and Michelle and I were on a cruise last month and we answer those questions including one of the biggest questions I always get is the drink package worth it so give that episode a listen. And make sure to follow All Things Travel Podcast on our new ish Facebook page. Just go into Facebook and search All Things Travel Podcast. You will see our logo, click to like and follow, and you will join in the fun.

Julie: 3:16

The first thing let's dive into with multi generational trips to disney is the planning process Because this is the part that seems the most daunting Yeah, and

Ryan: 3:28

I think a lot of folks just they try to skip over this step or at least the beginning of it and that can be a problem from the very beginning this first tip you're going to give julie is The number one tip in this entire thing

Julie: 3:45

that's going to be to choose one member from each family to be the representative

Ryan: 3:50

them the team captain. I said who's going to be the team captain of this group

Julie: 3:55

exactly, maybe you have grandparents and It's their three children and then their children. Maybe one person is in touch with the travel advisor, but from each of those individual families, they all kind of report to each other as well. Also within each family, have an individual family meeting, know your general budget and your preferred travel style so that you can communicate that effectively to everyone else. The one thing that really does not work when we're trying to plan a multi generational trip is everyone being like, I'm good with whatever. And then we plan it and you're not good with it.

Ryan: 4:33

If you say that, you better gosh darn mean it, right?

Julie: 4:37

yeah, yeah. And the very first thing you have to nail down is having a family meeting to determine dates that work for everyone. And again, don't just say I can go anytime. No, if you want to avoid something for your kids in October, don't say you can go anytime, say not October. If you don't want to go over a holiday, make sure you say you don't want to go over a holiday, but kind of work within each other to come up with a couple of date options and then bring them to us as your travel advisor. And we can say this date is going to be the best for you because of x, y, and z. I also want to say be respectful of everyone in the planning process. Be respectful of everyone in your family and their budget, especially when it comes to your resort choice. If everyone has a different budget, Maybe we choose the more moderate resort level. And if you want to plus up your trip in other ways, you can do that later on.

Ryan: 5:32

I like

Julie: 5:32

because the resort is the one thing that you definitely have control over how much the resort is, the tickets are going to be the ticket costs regardless, right? But choosing a value versus a moderate versus deluxe can be a big price difference. And it really, truly is best when everyone is at the same resort. If you can compromise there, that's the best way to do it. I think it's just so much easier when everyone is coming from the same resort and going back to the same resort at the end of the day. if you're at different resorts, you waste a lot of time texting and calling and trying to coordinate meeting up in the park and what time are you leaving and what monorail did you get on and, and I feel like that's a huge waste of time And you can just meet at the bus stop and go,

Ryan: 6:15

I think that works if your family all runs on the same time clock like, if everybody's going to be there on time, you can do that. I will throw an audible in with this, Julie, that's not in your notes. People will ask, well, can we get rooms that are all together? The answer is, we'll try. So Disney definitely takes requests, but it's just that it's a request, it's a preference. If we link all of your reservations together, Disney knows at least you're traveling together and they will try to accommodate that. Just because you're traveling together will not mean that you have connecting rooms necessarily. Disney will try but do not expect that's going to be the case even if you are traveling as a larger group.

Julie: 7:03

you know, pros and cons to that, Ryan, right? Some people want

Ryan: 7:06

Yeah. Oh

Julie: 7:07

definitely do not want connecting

Ryan: 7:10

I would say most of the time when I make that request it's honored. At least proximity, and it could be grandma and grandpa kind of want their own space.

Julie: 7:19

And I feel like the other thing that I have noticed as far as those room requests for being near each other is, if that is the most important for you, don't make any other requests. And this is something that I've seen a lot. For Disney You can do an online check in 60 days prior to your arrival and there is a place to put a request in there things like upper Floor lower floor near an elevator Something like that if I have already placed a request for you to be near your family Disney gets confused and they don't know which request is more important and they pick. The other thing that happens is if you put on there that an early check in time is the most important thing to you, you're probably not going to be near each other.

Ryan: 8:01

It because because it'll just take whatever room is first available, right?

Julie: 8:06

Yes. So I always tell my clients, I have this request placed. I recommend going to the front desk. You can do your online check in, but don't put a room request on it. I recommend going to the front desk. Even though technically you can skip it, I recommend going there and just confirming and saying, Hey, are you able to get our rooms near each other?

Ryan: 8:27

I always recommend going to the front desk regardless, even if you have your room number. If you have any sort of special requests or questions, don't go to your room. Go to the desk. Make sure you're where you want to be. Everything's set. And then you can start from there. One suggestion I will make and I know you're going to talk about this in a second Julie is I've had multi generational groups that want to be close together And so they all book club level because they know then they're going to be in very close proximity to each other

Julie: 8:59

Yes, at least like in the same hallway or same building. One other factor, now that we've talked all about your resort room location, is that Disney does not allow pool hopping. So if you're planning on having a resort day and

Ryan: 9:11

good. I yeah good good suggestion.

Julie: 9:13

If you wanted all the cousins to play together at the pool, you can't. It's not gonna happen. Disney does not allow pool hopping, and we have to tell you, Disney does not allow pool hopping.

Ryan: 9:24

Yeah,

Julie: 9:25

So, that day that you might be imagining isn't gonna happen. I will say

Ryan: 9:31

at least by the

Julie: 9:32

favorite resor That's why I said, did we have to say pool hopping is not allowed. I do have some favorite resorts for multi gen travel when I have clients come to me and they want to do a multi gen. First, if you're looking on the value side, I think art of animation is a really good option because the theming is great for little kids. The pools are great. They're really fun, but they also have options for family suites and standard rooms. So within that value resort. You can have two different price points. That also means if you don't want to be near somebody, just book a different category of room and you'll be on the opposite end of the resort. I love that option. And it's on the Skyliner and I always recommend staying somewhere that has a second option for transportation other than a bus. I also really like Caribbean Beach for multi generational trips. Again, it's on the Skyliner. I think they have a great pool. You can be spread out or close together as well. And if you have some of your family that's like, no, we really want to be in a deluxe resort, they can stay at Riviera, which is right next door. And I think that's a really good

Ryan: 10:39

That is a really good idea, Julie, because like you said, other than the pool, they can meet for meals, they can spend time with each other. I, I really, really like that option. I love the Riviera Caribbean Beach Lake area. I that's just such a great location in and of itself.

Julie: 10:59

I would also recommend the yacht and beach club they're connected, but they're two different themes. So, if you want more of a family friendly, you can stay on the beach club side, or if you want a little more of that elegant, elevated feel, you can stay on the yacht club side. Plus, it's a great location at Epcot. And, of course, you know that I'm going to mention the Polynesian, but I'm going to specifically say the club level because all the club level rooms are in the same longhouse. And there's this awesome two story club level lounge that is a great gathering place for your family to be. So, yeah. Any other resorts you want, Ryan?

Ryan: 11:37

No, this is the list. I, I think this is great. Yeah. So let's talk transportation. So, Arrival. If you have people coming from all over the place, you don't have to arrive together. But if everyone does plan to fly from the same area, it's easiest to choose the same flights so you can book your ground transfers together. If some are flying, some are driving, just do your best to accommodate. Don't worry if you have, one couple or one family that's coming in on their own. Uber, Lyft, Mirrors, all very, very easy. You're not leaving anybody behind, right? I will say if everybody's flying in together, so for instance, I've had like four families all traveling from Cleveland at the same time. A private transfer is the most economical, depending on your number of guests, and if you need car seats. If that's a concern, having that private transfer. Or you can consider if people have driven, picking up those folks at the airport. The good thing about transportation, Julie, and you know this from Disney, once you're there on property, you're golden, you're good to go. Disney's got your back.

Julie: 13:05

Okay. This is like the second biggest part of planning your trip. After you pick your resort, your dining.

Ryan: 13:12

Grandpa wants to know where you're eating and when.

Julie: 13:16

I mean, seriously. That, that usually is the case. So you usually have, Some family members that are really concerned, they want good food. They want good restaurant experiences. You've got a couple that want character meals. You've got a couple other people in the family that are like, my kids will not sit down at a restaurant and I want to make sure they've got Mac and cheese. So there's a lot of moving parts when it comes to sorting out dining for your trips. I always recommend you have a family meeting together to discuss your dining preferences and that each individual family has a different Kind of have a little bit of an idea of what you want to do. You certainly don't have to have all your meals together, but it is a good idea to plan a few family meals together. And I'll get into that part later when we talk about touring the park. I will also say again, be respectful of everyone's budget, especially if you're not on the dining plan, because breakfast is going to be a lot cheaper than a dinner reservation. So if you have some people that might want to be a little more budget conscious or maybe they think their kids do better in the morning, Breakfast is going to be a better option. You can always split up too. So maybe everyone does breakfast, but maybe grandma grandma and grandpa have a nice dinner by themselves later on.

Ryan: 14:29

It just so happened the first time that my parents went to Disney with us My dad found out that one of his high school friends was actually staying across the lake We were a boardwalk and he was at Beach Club and they are DVC members and have extended families come and stay with them and I thought it was interesting the way that they do it as the grandma and grandpa is They have you know, five or six different families that Rotate around to visit them and they choose a day and wednesday They're with this family and thursday. They're with this family and friday so basically they get their time Specifically with each family and then they have a day where it's just them having that kind of focus is okay. What I always tell folks and this isn't necessarily with dining We'll talk about park strategy in a second is if you think you have to travel as a herd You People are going to be ticked off the entire trip.

Julie: 15:21

Yeah, I talk a lot about that later on because

Ryan: 15:23

All right. Then I won't, then I'll, I'll let you hit that later.

Julie: 15:26

You don't have to go any further. The one caveat with dining and larger groups is that most of the time, if you have more than six people, which you will, We need to split up your reservations and as a travel advisor this is where I shine because I do this all the time. I like to book the dining for you if you're gonna have a large group because I know the system like the back of my hand. I'm used to doing it. There is a way for me to go in and make two separate reservations. For the same restaurant, the same day at maybe a time that's like five minutes apart. And then all you do is you show up at that restaurant a couple minutes early and say, Hey, this reservation and this reservation were actually all together. Could you set us together or near each other? And I have never not had that request

Ryan: 16:14

Not nine times out of 10, unless you are hitting them when they are absolutely slammed, they're going to, they're going to accommodate you.

Julie: 16:21

Yeah. Yeah. Occasionally they'll say, can you wait an extra 10 minutes? Something like that. But I've never had a problem getting accommodated. There was, there's been only one time I think when they didn't sit us all together and that was at Hollywood Brown Derby, but we were sitting across from each other. So still talking distance, it was fine. But just know that that is going to be something to think about. Say I have four people reserved under my name and my dad has four people reserved under his name. That doesn't mean that my dad has to sit with that group of four and I have to sit with my group of four. You have two tables of four. You can sit wherever you want. It's just. Someone is a primary contact. So some of my favorite options for families when I do their dining is the Annapolis and Epcot because you can split those massive pizzas and they're delicious. I love Crystal Palace and the Magic Kingdom, especially breakfast. Really good character option. And I think they have good breakfast. I think it's a good, use of time in the Magic Kingdom. Tusker House and Animal Kingdom. Again, character meal. It's so much fun. The food is so good. If you're at Disney Springs, I liked Rainforest Cafe because they do accommodate bigger groups. I know you don't love it, Ryan,

Ryan: 17:33

ha ha ha ha

Julie: 17:33

it accommodates a lot of, a

Ryan: 17:35

Okay, alright, alright.

Julie: 17:37

Ohana is always high on the list because, again, they do have bigger tables and it's a fun experience. Chef Mickey's because it's just, Iconic. And actually,

Ryan: 17:48

E Everyone has to suffer, I mean experience, Chef Mickey's once during their Disney vacation times.

Julie: 17:54

Absolutely. But you know what? It'll be worth not waiting in line for each of those characters.

Ryan: 17:59

And this last one, Julie, this is Gosh, I love this restaurant.

Julie: 18:05

Yeah. So Storybook Dining at Artist's Point, which might be a little bit of a surprise for multi gen, but actually I've gotten many reservations here for eight and 10 and 12 people. And we've always been accommodated. And for some of us who are very concerned about food, It is actually really good food. It's a signature restaurant

Ryan: 18:23

is such good food. It is

Julie: 18:26

there's characters. There's fun characters,

Ryan: 18:28

Yep. It's awesome.

Julie: 18:30

Okay. All right. So

Ryan: 18:31

All right. Lightning Lane, here we go. We are just now seeing how the Lightning Lane system works. So, as this continues to roll out, just know this episode is coming out in the summer of 2024. So, stay tuned. There may be some changes in the works here, but we feel pretty good about this. If you think back to some of the strategies with FastPass Plus, Genie Plus you'll see how this still kind of works, the same ideas for, for multi gen families. Make sure that everyone has downloaded the My Disney Experience, at least one person in each group or one person in each room. I say one person in each family. Here's my disclaimer with that. It is a lot easier, and you may disagree with me, Julie, if you have one account per family. Because what happens is, everybody starts adding it at the last minute, right? And then they clone themselves in the system. And we don't know who these people are, and all of a sudden they're not connected because they've created these separate accounts that we don't know about, and so we have to go into Disney IT and get all that cleaned up. So, I always tell folks, one per family, and then connect those. You're looking at me like you don't agree.

Julie: 19:57

no, I think that's a good idea. I tend to recommend that each adult have one.

Ryan: 20:03

if you're going to use it, have your own account. If you don't care, it's better that you don't have an account. Like, if Grandpa doesn't care and just wants to be the same as Grandma, then don't have two accounts. If, if, you

Julie: 20:17

Oh, yes,

Ryan: 20:18

it, what I'm saying is, don't muddy the waters with everybody, just because your 12 year old has a cell phone doesn't mean they need their own My Disney Experience account.

Julie: 20:28

Definitely not. And I will say to the effect of having those duplicate people on the account, I'm usually catching that at dining reservation time because that's when I start logging into the accounts, making sure everything looks good. So that's when I'm calling My Disney

Ryan: 20:44

right. We can, we can deal with, we can deal with it. It just, it's just, especially like you said at the beginning when people say they don't care. And then all of a sudden they start creating accounts and it's like, yeah, it just gets a little messy. Every family should have their own account at least and then decide from there. I would say.

Julie: 21:04

but, hold on, pause though, because when you say each have account, that means a login. Everybody does need a profile

Ryan: 21:10

a singular My Disney Experience login. And then mom, dad, kids, partner, spouse, whoever is part of that family unit, then is connected to a ticket within that one account. And then those accounts, correct, and then those accounts are linked together. And,

Julie: 21:28

do a whole episode about how to use

Ryan: 21:30

Correct. And if you've been to Disney in the past, even years ago, you have an account that you can still use in a link. So, each family should have a meeting or discussion about what their top three attractions are. Because with this new system, we're looking at three attractions. And. Then as a larger group, what are your must dos? And then you start to look at planning those lightning lanes based on that.

Julie: 22:01

See what overlaps,

Ryan: 22:03

If you have things that some people want to do, some people want to do Everest while other people want to go on Flight of Passage. Some people want to do Slinky Dog Dash while others want to focus more on Toy Star Mania. That is okay. Just because you're together does not mean you all have to do the same thing. And, Just because you're on the same My Disney Experience account doesn't mean you have to do the same thing. You can mix and match however you want to do that. So the way this newer system works, seven days before you arrive, you make your lightning lanes, and I would suggest having one person responsible for that day. Don't all log on and try to get the same things. The system's gonna freak out. You're gonna get frustrated.

Julie: 22:48

Because you can pick your time. So if you do want to experience the same attraction together, you don't want to say, well, I picked Peter Pan for 10 a. m. and you picked it for 2 p.

Ryan: 22:59

If the cousins and the uncles want to do something completely different, then they can handle that themselves. If somebody's trying to get something for the larger group, make sure it's one person that's sitting down and doing that. Designate one person to reserve the rights for Monday, maybe another for Tuesday, and so on, so that you're getting those as quickly as possible when the system opens up. If this seems complicated, please work with us. One of the reasons you're working with the Travel Advisor is we can help you map all this out and give you your play by play for what you need to do that day. Also, please, please, please, you have not ruined your vacation. If you don't get that exact lightning lane at that time you want, if you don't get that one sit down meal, there's tons of sit down meals. You have not ruined your vacation, ever. You Okay, I tell people this all the time. It will be okay dining reservations open up lightning lanes open up we can make it work and you're still gonna have an amazing time. All right, julie We have so much still to talk about because this is such a great topic But first I want to talk about where in the world does all things travel I often talk about larger cities or places around the globe where all things travel is listened to But I also love it when I see little towns pop up and for the first time this week. I saw libertyville Illinois, so libertyville. Illinois is a small suburb in the northern part of Chicago, it's five miles from Lake Michigan on the Des Plaines river and one of the things that I love is when you look at pictures of Libertyville, it just looks like classic americana. In fact Libertyville's downtown was largely destroyed right before the 1900s. And so, the village board mandated brick to be used in the reconstruction. So, you still have, from the early 1900s, all these beautiful brick buildings that are still used today. And the National Trust for Historic Preservation actually gave Libertyville a Great American Main Street Award, calling the downtown, quote, a place with its own sense of self, where people still stroll the streets on a Saturday night and where the tailor, the hometown bakery, and the And the Vacuum Cleaner Repair Store are shoulder to shoulder with the Gourmet Coffee Vendor and the Micro Brewery. If it's Thursday between 7 a. m. and 1 p. m., it's Farmer's Market time between June and October on Church Street across from the park. A tradition that's more than three decades old. Does that not just sound awesome?

Julie: 25:49

It does. It sounds like a really lovely

Ryan: 25:50

So I want to meet our listener from Libertyville at the Farmer's Market on a Thursday. I would love to buy you a loaf of sourdough bread and something yummy there at the Farmer's Market. Please reach out to Julia or myself. You can do that via Facebook or email because I want to send a little thank you gift up to Libertyville, well up for me, up to Libertyville for being featured on the show today. All right, so to go along with lightning lanes, genie pluses, fast pass pluses, all that fun stuff, Julie, you have some really good ideas for park strategy.

Julie: 26:26

I do. And this is such an important part of your trip. This is what everyone is always worried about. And this is where we again, like we shine and giving

Ryan: 26:35

Yeah, and I, and I will say before all this, same thing plays out. You're not going to ruin your trip. This is going to be an amazing trip for your family regardless if you hit 10 out of 10 things or you only get seven out of 10 things.

Julie: 26:50

Right, exactly. the biggest piece of advice that I always give clients on a multi gen trip to Disney is to plan to start at the same park together. So maybe everyone arrives to the Magic Kingdom together and you can all just say, Hey, we're here. We're here. We're here. Maybe you walk in together, whatever it is. If there are some attractions that you want to do together, maybe you get those done in the morning. And then maybe you plan up later to have a meal together. Whether that is a table service that you've made a reservation for or just a quick service. It can be a planned thing or it can just be, Hey, we're going to go to the Columbia Harbor House around noon. We'll meet you guys over there. I think that this works the best because then you are not traveling as a herd. I think it's good to have awareness of what the other families are doing, but please do not go around together. So for example, for my family, we would all arrive at magic kingdom together, but I know my kids are going to spend most of the day in fantasy land and. Seeing the shows, whereas my parents or some of my nieces that are older, maybe doing attractions that have more of a thrill factor, but we'll find them at some point in the day, whether it's the parade or like I said, like a lunch or something. Do not travel as a herd, everyone will be miserable, and you will also spend half the day waiting for each individual person to go to the bathroom. Because,

Ryan: 28:19

half the day for me to go to the bathroom.

Julie: 28:20

right, but what happens is when you have like 15 people, like one person goes, but no one else has to go, but you're all waiting and then you start walking and then someone else has to go. So just, just don't, just don't do it. You'll also be able to see each other's lightning lanes and dining reservations on the app, so that's also an easy way to keep track of like, Oh, I see that, Ryan has made a lightning lane for Small World for later today, so I know he'll be there around that time. Maybe I can get one for that time, or at least oh, he's in Fantasyland. I will also mention, that Memory Maker will be linked, if you're all linked. So, you can each take individual pictures, and they will all go to the same Memory Maker,

Ryan: 29:00

One family or one account needs to get memory maker, then you're all linked together You'll have access to all the photos if you don't have memory maker You'll still see it with the watermarks, but don't worry. You can get them without the watermarks you just have to have the person that has technically bought it do that for you.

Julie: 29:20

And then my last big piece of advice for park strategy is don't feel like you need to leave the park together either. If some of you have smaller kids and they are melting down and breaking down and it's time to go, don't feel like you need to stay because the rest of the group is staying, put your kids first, do what your family needs, your family's needs are most important. And see everyone else tomorrow. And just a quick aside remember that when you stay at a deluxe Disney resort, you do get access to those extended evening hours,

Ryan: 29:49

This right here is the reason why you should book deluxe. I mean, I know it's easy for us to say, but we've been to these hours. In fact, we were together at these extended hours in January. They're fantastic.

Julie: 30:03

Yeah. What I always tell people is yes, there's a price difference in going deluxe, but you also, wouldn't need genie plus or lightning lanes for that day, because You don't need them. There's no line. And also just to use early entry, which everyone gets, but you know, everyone should be on board for doing early entry. And if you have access to those extended evening hours, enjoy them as you can. But again, biggest thing, do not travel as a herd.

Ryan: 30:30

So I am going to throw an audible in here for that idea, Julie. If you have families that are late starters, agree. Rope drop is always best. Starting out together at the beginning is always best. I will always advocate rope dropping, but if you have families that really can't do it, that's okay You can have you can have a b team if you will that will come later in the day And then maybe they stay later and use those extended hours And everyone else has already had their time.

Julie: 31:03

I think the biggest piece of that is that you've had your family meeting and you know that those things are happening

Ryan: 31:09

I say that because I know me, I would be really frustrated if there was another family that I was constantly waiting on. I would just say, we know that this is how you guys roll. We're going to do this if you're not there ahead of time We're just moving on so we just know that we're separated in that way

Julie: 31:27

Communication is key for that to say, we're getting there at 830. Don't expect everyone to get there at 830 if they don't want to.

Ryan: 31:34

So julie talked about park strategies. I'm going to talk about the other end of the spectrum your rest days Julie our rest days important when you plan a disney vacation

Julie: 31:45

Yes. Yes.

Ryan: 31:46

rest days even more important when you want to spend time together as a multi generational family?

Julie: 31:53

Yeah, this is the best time to do it.

Ryan: 31:55

These are some of the best memories of your vacation. And usually they're made spontaneously. It's times around the pool. It's playing cards in the lobby. It's, the Cousins having an ice cream eating contest from the quick serve, just fun stuff that's going on That doesn't have to do with the parks. I think a rest day could be a great option And obviously it works best if everyone's at the same resort or similar resorts if you're in the Epcot area, you're close if you're at Riviera Caribbean Beach, you're close Pool time is magic when you're a kid I you and I both had our kids where it's like We spent all this money to go to the parks and all they want to do is spend time at the pool And so it's just magic and

Julie: 32:40

I know.

Ryan: 32:41

parents adults can trade off supervising maybe others go do laundry or maybe that's nap time maybe a couple of the adults go off and grab a beer at geyser point, That's just the time where you can just take a breath, right? Maybe Rest day That's a great night to have your family dinner. So have something at the resorts nice restaurant or a nearby resort, maybe head to Disney Springs. That's a good night where everybody maybe dresses in their, resort wear that's a little nicer and you get some nice pictures outside the resort. I think this is a really neat day.

Julie: 33:17

Just to call back to what you were saying about, like, pool time as a kid, you know that I love the Polynesian Ryan. But the reason I love it so much is because it is so nostalgic for me. We went there on a big multi generational trip when I was eight. My family, my cousins grandparents, aunts, uncles, One of the peak memories from that trip is going down the slide at the pool of the Polynesian over and over and over again, because that was just the day to have fun. And then we all went to Ohana for dinner that night. That's that time that's like not planned. So that's the time that you can really just let go and enjoy yourself

Ryan: 33:57

I love it. I absolutely love it. Let's not forget about some of the special experiences that might enhance your multi generational trip. The first is the capture the moment photo shoot. And this is a 20 minute photo shoot at the park of your choice. 20 minutes doesn't sound like a lot, but I've done this in the past a couple times. In fact, just a couple weeks ago, I did this with my daughter who had just graduated from high school. So we got her the Disney graduation ears and we did a photo shoot around Magic Kingdom. You get tons of photos. They're professionals at this They're awesome to get in park shots Bibbidi bobbidi boutique for maybe the cousins to experience together Fishing charters, fireworks, dessert parties, or cruises. I've talked about one of my families that I've worked with doing this with a pontoon. This was a multi generational trip that did this. Or maybe this is a time where you do, the Halloween party or the Christmas party and experience that together as a family.

Julie: 34:58

A pro tip if you do want to do those parties. Maybe grandma, grandpa don't want to stay out very late. Maybe you don't want to bring your kids. So maybe that middle generation of the adults get to go together while the cousins hang back with grandma, grandpa. Or it's also another opportunity for if one family doesn't want to spend the extra money, but another one does. It's easy to kind of upgrade your vacation

Ryan: 35:20

I like that. Yeah, I like that idea. Silence.

Julie: 35:39

and another family is dead set on rope drop, just understand that and be respectful of everyone's differences. If you want to do a lot of things together, voice that, but if you want to do a lot of things on your own, voice that too, just so that there's no miscommunication during the trip. Not everyone has to plan dining reservations, lightning lanes, special experiences. Like I just mentioned, these are ways for each family to follow their own budget and make the trip their own. I also recommend having a group text or a messenger or a WhatsApp or something. Just as an easy way for everyone to communicate. It's not like you're going to be chatting on it all day. So don't worry about that. It's more for like a quick, Hey, leaving our room now. Hey, we're over here now. Just like a quick check in. And I love this last tip because I've had clients say this to me before, but the older generation and the younger generation will travel similarly. So they might pair well together. They need a lot of snacks, a lot of naps. and a lot less thrill rides. So,

Ryan: 36:41

I think I'm in the older generation. Other than the less thrill rides this sounds like me.

Julie: 36:47

Just be conscious that different members of the family have different needs and let them meet those needs.

Ryan: 36:54

Whew! We have covered all the bases for our multi generational Disney trips, Julie. Your expertise shined today,

Julie: 37:04

told you.

Ryan: 37:04

As we talked about this so remember plan ahead stay flexible and focus on family moments What are you doing together that you're going to remember? Disney's got magic for every age from toddlers to grandparents and everybody in between. Do you have any family travel stories? When we post this episode, I want you to share with us on the post. What are some of your favorite family travel stories when it comes to Disney or other places that you've gone with multi generations in your family? You

Julie: 37:52

So you can focus on the fun and creating memories. You can reach me at julie at creatingmagicvacations. com.

Ryan: 38:00

can reach me at Ryan at CreatingMagicVacations. com. We look forward to talking to you next week on All Things Travel when we preview holiday travel options,