Travelling With a Large Family: Accommodation

You can book using points with Marriott or Best Western for more than four people in North America. Other big chains do it too.

By writing directly to hotels through Facebook for example, they often agree to accommodate us in a standard room made for four. We’re bringing a cot for one of our three daughters. It’s pink, so it’s the ultimate bed for the lucky lady who sleeps in it.

Virginie

Here, you will find a link to the map of all Best Western locations in Canada. Those marked with an asterisk indicate that they accept large families of five or more. However, try your luck for others and let us know what you find so that we can keep the card updated.

At the Residence Inn, Spring Hill, Townplace and Fairfield hotels at Marriott, you can mention that the family consists of five members when you make the reservation. Rooms with two queen-size beds and a sofa bed are available if needed. Plus, they have kitchenettes.

For a single trip, we’re talking about $3,000 saved on hotel nights because they were paid for with the bonus of three Bonvoy cards (personal and SME).

Marie-Pier

For large families travelling in Europe, it is suggested to turn to hotel or aparthotel residences.

Several families deplore the fact that they cannot find anything in the all-inclusive segment that is under $10,000 for six people, except in Cuba.

One mother adds that she believes going to an all-inclusive facility with three or more children is not financially advantageous. Her only experience led her to conclude that renting a villa would be cheaper. Depending on the country, you could also hire the services of a cook.

However, one member of the group reported that she had found what she was comfortable with.

Her large family has joined the Bahia Privilege Club. It costs her about $4,000 a year for a week in an all-inclusive resort for her family of five in Mexico or the Dominican Republic. Plane, accommodation, meals, and some activities included. For the school break week, she prefers to leave from Monday to Tuesday, which reduces the total amount paid.

However, the contract is for ten years, which could not please everyone. Some comments online advise you to be vigilant, some people having enlisted for thirty years without being able to disengage.

Of course, there are accommodations like Airbnb, Sonder, VRBO and condos that allow you to have two or more bedrooms, two bathrooms and a kitchen. It’s a luxury if you also have a washer-dryer. Larger families can then save money on the meals they will prepare on site. The currencies of some credit cards will in these cases reduce the cost of accommodation.

One of the mothers we interviewed, who is herself an Airbnb hostess reported having referred friends, which earned her credits, which she was then able to use to pay for some of her own bookings. When she rents her house on Airbnb because the family is going on holiday (five weeks in the summer and three more weeks in the year), the profits cover half the costs of her own rentals.

We reorganize the house (clothes, toys we don’t want to share, etc.) and we do a good housekeeping before renting. But it’s worth it, because in the summer we earn nearly $6,000 for those five weeks. If we do not manage to rent through Airbnb, we then put the house available on Home Exchange in order to earn GuestPoints.

Maude

A trailer or a motorhome… and they say you’ll be at home anywhere. We invite you to read the article on milesopedia about the “Van Life“. Rental information is included.

In Canada and in the USA, several places where you can spend the night for free (or almost free) have been found thanks to the following apps: Ioverlander, Freecampsite, the Superliste de VR camping or with Group Camping Boondocking Sharing.

A mom in the group also reports that her family was able to camp in the National Forest in Florida: free, wild and beautiful. Parents and children met very welcoming local residents. One of them graciously offered them a boat tour, a real guided tour, in a place worthy of the most beautiful advertising posters.

Let’s add the large Walmart parking lots, when you want to do your groceries when the crowd is asleep in the evening or in the morning. No need to waste time there, but it works when you go to bed led or if you are an early riser!

It is also possible to sleep in the parking lots next to the activities planned for the next day. All you have to do is ask.

We had to pay for parking at Canada Wonderland last year. As long as we had to pay and spend the day there, we asked them to stay for the night, which was possible.

Maude

And then there is Europe.

Sleeping in a mobile home in campsites is economical and suitable for large families.

Here is an example of this type of accommodation 30 minutes from Paris by RER. There are campsites of this kind all over France because it is very popular with French people and tourists from Northern Europe.

Outside of July and August, mobile homes can be found for 40/50€ per night, according to one of our members, who is of French origin.

It loses its charm because you don’t enjoy the atmosphere of the city center as much, but for the little ones, after a day of visiting, it’s nice to have a swimming pool at your disposal and places to run and play.

Marie