Lots of families-- including my own-- have three (or more) kids, which can lead to some frustrations, when a hotel or resort allows a maximum of two adults and two kids per room. These rules are especially irksome if the kids are little and would happily snuggle up on one bed.
Most hotels and many resorts offer adjoining rooms, which may be a good -- if costly-- solution with teenage kids. Little kids, however, can't stay in a room alone, so sleeping arrangements get more complicated still.
Fortunately, many places do welcome families of five (or more.)
Multiple Locations: Chain Hotels
•Embassy Suites: typically, a one-bedroom suite with two double beds and a pull out couch can sleep six; a two-bedroom suite with pull out couch can sleep up to eight. Kids under 18 stay free; two adults are included in the cost; additional adults incur extra costs. Price includes a major breakfast buffet for all the kids.
• Homewood Suites by Hilton likewise offers suites and complimentary hot breakfasts; all units also have fully-equipped kitchens. Suites can sleep up to six people.
• Great Wolf Lodge resorts with indoor waterparks have all-suite guest rooms, including Family Fireplace Suites, Grizzly Bear Suites that can sleep eight, and themed Wolf Den, KidCabin and KidKamp, each with a "room within a room" for kids.
• Other chain hotels -- especially of the "Suites" variety -- can accommodate families of five: Staybridge Suites, for example, can handle five (or more) in 2-bedroom suites; Candlewood Suites has one-bedroom suites that accommodate four plus a baby using a crib. At Holiday Inn Sunspree Resorts (in North America, Mexico, and the Caribbean), some rooms have two double beds and a rollaway.
• a web site called Sixsuitcasetravel.com has a handy list of properties in each US state that can accommodate families of six.
Orlando
Disney World Resorts: Walt Disney World has three types of resorts: Luxury (with kids club), Moderate, and Value. Value resorts don't accommodate five people, but a portable crib can be brought in for kids under three. Otherwise, two connecting rooms can be booked and the price is still reasonable especially during promotions.
In the Moderate resorts, the Alligator Bayou section of Port Orleans-Riverside is the only resort that can sleep five (using a trundle bed.) Meanwhile, many of Deluxe resorts' rooms will sleep five.
Also at Disney World -- and with all the perks of a Disney World resort-- is the giant Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground. Camping is surely the most economical way to stay on-property at Disney World. Or rent one of the Fort Wilderness Homes (trailers that look like cabins, and have full kitchens) which can sleep six.
Nickelodeon Suites by Holiday Inn: such a fun place, with two water parks and entertainment and games by Nickelodeon. A two-bedroom Kidsuite has king-size bed in one room, two twin beds (bunk beds or side by side) in a small second room, and a pull out sofa in the "family room". Larger 3-bedroom suites are available too.
By the way, vacation home rental is an excellent option for families visiting Orlando.
Caribbean and Mexico
Sally Black -- founder of VacationKids.com travel agency, and a mother with three kids herself-- has a useful list of resorts in different Caribbean countries, Hawaii, and several regions of Mexico.
- see VacationKids' extensive list of Family of Five properties that sleep five or more
Also, check the web site of popular holiday packager Apple Vacations for promotions specifically for Families of Five.
In Mexico, there seems to be a trend for resorts to include extra-large units suited to extended families; many Mexican families like to take inter-generational vacations at all-inclusive resorts.
Europe
Check out some places where European families like to holiday, with large recreational properties and kids activities, such as Eurocamp and Center Parcs holiday villages, with units that can accommodate bigger families. (See Europe Trips for Families.)
Also, the Sleeps5.com site lists places in many parts of Europe that can sleep five or more.
Bottom Line
- When searching for accommodation for five (or more), your most economical option will be those places where five people are allowed in a single guestroom, which may be perfectly adequate when kids are small.
- All-suite hotels and resorts are the next notch up, in pricing; the extra bedroom(s) are a big convenience with older kids.
- At resorts or hotels that offer only a limited number of suites, rates can rise steeply for those units which will often be "luxury" level.
- If you need to book two adjoining rooms at a hotel or resort, look for a discount for the second room. (Many places offer a discount of 50% for families.)
- the age of your children can affect your room rate: in some places, kids up to age 18 stay free in parent's room; at other places, the maximum age might be as low as 12.
- Families of five or more may also want to consider Vacation Home Rental: lots of space plus all the conveniences of home.
