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We do! We go to OBX with my entire family - 9 adults and 5 kids. It’s so much fun ... everyone kind of does their own thing during the day, and then at night we all do dinner together and board games. Two years ago we did our OBX trip and Disney (just is) in the same year and my son (4 at the time) asked to go back to OBX waaaaay more! He loved all the cousin time he had.

@cake2017: isle of palms SC. Giant houses, reasonable prices, really nice beaches

I have such mixed reviews on this topic. I wish I could just say we have and we do and we love it. But that's just not truthful. LOL. We used to vacation with my aunt/uncle/cousins when I was in school and it was great!

When we got married and had our first LO we went on a family trip with DH's parents and his 2 single sisters. We "thought" it would be fun... boy were we wrong. We survived but will never to that again!

I've gone on a family female trip with my aunt's, mom, cousins and it was a blast and we tried to plan a second one but come to find out there were some that were not "as happy" apparently and we all started fighting and it got really bad so we will no longer be doing that either. Pretty sad actually!

With all that said I think it will truly come down to the personalities in the group and if you all mesh well then it'll be a blast.... if there are any tensions or issues going in you can bet they will be magnified and possibly blow up in that close environment so just be aware of that.

We don't do it with the WHOLE family and we don't all stay in the same place. My mom's family is incredibly lucky to share a house on the coast of Maine- it was left to her family by her grandfather. It is a 3-bedroom house.
My family (husband, me, 3 kids) and my parents usually stay there together for a week in the summer. My brother, his wife and their daughter typically are also there for about half the time. Then for 2-3 nights my dad's brother & sister in law, and sister & brother in law (so 2 sets of my aunts/.uncles) come, but they stay at an Inn thats about 15 minutes down the road.

I LOVE it. I know that my brother's wife finds the whole thing a bit stressful, and my mom does too, but once you surrender to the absence of a schedule, and get comfortable with the messiness of relationships it works well. If my mom and I drink too much we sometimes have one big fight, but she and I are very close and its kind of just how we relieve tension in the relationship.
usually we plan one-2 group activities (going to a beach, a playground, a hike, etc) each day depending on the weather and whoever wants to come along can. Then we plan dinners and each family takes turns cooking. Some people go off on their own (fishing, shopping, whatever). We try to babysit so my brother & SIL can go out for a night. My parents used to also babysit for us to go out but now that we have 3 its a lot- maybe when they are older.

If you communicate well, and if people can generally adopt the "let it go" mantra, it can be so fun. Especially for the kids. It makes me feel so happy to see my kids playing with my aunts/uncles. I wish there were more kids there but I'm doing my part in that area and hopefully my brother will step up his game soon

We do this. Not every year but maybe every 3 years? Typically all the people with children get a big rental house and all the older generation get hotel rooms (or their own house). We usually have 30 people (including kids), and it’s a blast. But we also plan it at least a year in advance and we only plan 1-2 events with the “whole” family (this usually means we do one big family lunch and then a dinner at a rented banquet hall). Meals and plans are never everyone together. Usually it’ll be like “hey we’re going to a botanical garden/splash pad/ the beach/ the mall, anyone else want to go?”. Typically we also try to rotate babysitting so various couples can do a quick date. Sometimes we pool money to do a grocery run and get things like bread, eggs, peanut butter, coffee.

It works out well for us because we all get along. And all of us can be trusted to contribute the money. I also really like that we have 1-2 main “events” so we don’t feel bad just doing our own thing most of the time.

We’ve done it with both sides of the family and I think the best plan is to not try and do everything together with everyone the whole time. I find you waste so much time trying to decide everything it takes forever.

We did this once with my moms side of the family a couple of years ago to Orlando over Christmas break. We rented a super big house. All the dads went golfing, moms did spa days and shopping, my single childless cousins all went together to see Harry Potter world, and my little family took my two year old to Disney. It was fun. We sometimes did dinner together but some days didn’t but always grabbed wine and dessert in the house together.

We do! My family (me, my parents, my sister) have all stayed at a house in the outer banks of North Carolina since we were babies. We still go annually, now with my husband and two kids and my sister’s fiancé as well. OBX is a great place to go with kids! We stay for a week and always have a great time. There’s enough room for each couple and the kids to have their own rooms. We do a combo of cooking at home and going out to dinner, and mostly hang out on the beach every day. We all look forward to it! We all live in the same area now, and we’re pretty used to spending time together. Plus the houses are usually large enough that you can get time to yourself somewhere if you need it. Another plus—babysitters. We usually get out alone a couple of times. I’m sure we’ll return the favor when my sister has kids.

We haven’t since kids but we used to go with
Me and my husband
My husbands parents
My husbands brother and sister and sister in law
Sis in laws dad
My mom and step dad

It was great. We stayed at “wannabe by the sea” in South Carolina. Soooo nice.

We do this every year with both of our families.

With DH’s family, we go to a town on the Oregon Coast. In the past, we all rented one giant house, but it just got too hard with all the kids (I have almost 4, BIL has 4, plus one other sibling and my MIL). So, we have transitioned to all renting a unit in the same condo building directly on the beach. I like it a lot better. It’s nice being with everyone but also having my own space when I want it.

With my family, we usually rent a big lodge in the mountains. It’s 11 adults and 6 kids. We usually only do 3-4 nights and everyone is pretty flexible with sleeping arrangements and helpful with the kids.

Unless a house in the new location has been decided on, maybe you could help look for houses in the old location? Between vrbo and airbnb there are usually so many options.

Also, I wouldn't spend 2K on a 3 day trip. I am very pro-vacation and pro-family vacation BUT there does have to be a line for time vs. money. My personal goal is usually about $150 a day, ALL expenses included.

You know your kids better than me, but we have done a bunch of 5-8 hour drives with kids under age 3, and even under age 1, and it was always better than flying. I nursed many times hanging over the car seat or pumped then bottle fed. And even though my son is SO ACTIVE () he was /is happily occupied with lift the flap books, music-playing books, little new toys, facetiming relatives in the car, etc. So again. You know your kid best, but MAYBE don't write off the car ride option completely. Plane rides are so much more expensive.

Honestly, I would just lay it out - say that the new location is impossible for you, and see if you can find a third option.