Skip to content

Top Navigation

Real Simple Logo Real Simple Logo
  • Food
  • Home
  • Life
  • Health
  • Money
  • Style and Beauty
  • Holidays & Entertaining
  • News
  • Shopping
  • About Us

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • My Account
  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Free Organizing App this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Real Simple

Real Simple Logo Real Simple Logo
  • Explore

    Explore

    • How to Measure Your Ring Size at Home

      How to Measure Your Ring Size at Home

      Try one of these three easy methods to make sure your ring fits perfectly, every time. Read More
    • Here's the Right Temperature for Your Refrigerator and Freezer (Because a Few Degrees Makes a Difference)

      Here's the Right Temperature for Your Refrigerator and Freezer (Because a Few Degrees Makes a Difference)

      Keeping foods chilled properly helps them last longer and stay fresher. Sticking to the ideal refrigerator temps can help you avoid potential foodborne illnesses, too. Read More
    • 34 Great Books to Suit Any Mood or Interest

      34 Great Books to Suit Any Mood or Interest

      This list has you covered, no matter how you're feeling. Read More
  • Food

    Food

    See All Food
    9 Cheeses You Can Eat Even If You're Lactose Intolerant

    9 Cheeses You Can Eat Even If You're Lactose Intolerant

    Not all dairy is created equal. 
    • Recipes
    • Real Simple Cooking School
    • Cooking Tips & Techniques
    • Shopping and Storing
    • Kitchen Tools and Products
  • Home

    Home

    See All Home
    • Cleaning
    • Organizing
    • Decorating
    • Gardening
    • Home Improvement
    • Green Living
    • New Uses for Old Things at Home
    • Quick Fix
    • Real Simple Home
  • Life

    Life

    See All Life
    • Family
    • Entertainment
    • Technology
    • Wedding Planning
    • Travel Ideas
    • Career
    • Get It Done
  • Health

    Health

    See All Health
    Feel Like You Don't Enjoy Anything Anymore? There's a Name for That—Here Are 8 Ways You Can Break Through It

    Feel Like You Don't Enjoy Anything Anymore? There's a Name for That—Here Are 8 Ways You Can Break Through It

    Mental health experts explain anhedonia and how you can bounce back from this joyless state of mind.
    • Preventive Health
    • Mental Health
    • Health Coach
    • Crisis Coping
    • Fitness & Exercise
    • Sleep
    • Healthy Eating
    • Well Fed
  • Money

    Money

    See All Money
    Are You Keeping Too Much Money in the Bank? Here's How to Tell

    Are You Keeping Too Much Money in the Bank? Here's How to Tell

    Putting money in the bank is smart, but too much cash savings can actually be a poor use of that money.
    • Money Confidential Podcast
    • Saving Money
    • Money Planning
    • Money Confidential
    • Spending
    • Money Etiquette
    • Invest Better
  • Style and Beauty

    Style and Beauty

    See All Style and Beauty
    How to Measure Your Bra Size at Home

    How to Measure Your Bra Size at Home

    All you need is a tape measure and a little free time.
    • Clothing
    • Skincare
    • Shoes
    • Hair
    • Clothing Care
    • Makeup
    • Hair Body Face
  • Holidays & Entertaining

    Holidays & Entertaining

    See All Holidays & Entertaining
    PowerPoint Parties Are the Party Trend You Have to Try: Here's How to Host One

    PowerPoint Parties Are the Party Trend You Have to Try: Here's How to Host One

    PowerPoint nights are the new fun way to party together—even when you're far apart.
    • All Holidays
    • Gifts
    • Father's Day
    • Passover
    • Entertaining
    • Home for the Holidays
    • Come Together
    • Hanukkah
    • Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
    • Valentine's Day
    • Easter
    • Mother's Day
  • News
  • Shopping
  • About Us

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • My Account
  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Free Organizing App this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Real Simple
  2. Life
  3. Family
  4. A Family Reunion Planner

A Family Reunion Planner

By Valerie Rains Updated April 08, 2016
Each product we feature has been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn commission.
Skip gallery slides
FB Tweet
Outdoor party
Credit: Miki Duisterhof
Plan a fun and stress-free get-together for your clan with this essential guide.
Start Slideshow

1 of 5

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Getting Started

Outdoor party
Credit: Miki Duisterhof

Whom to invite: Everyone, ideally. After all, sometimes it’s the random second cousin you never thought would show up who ends up being the life of the party. If you can’t include every branch of the family tree, “the general rule of thumb is that you should decide the parameters first―whether you’ll invite first cousins, second cousins, or beyond―then include everyone that falls under that umbrella,” says Haltzman.

When to start planning: Set a date as early as possible, preferably a year in advance. Families with school-age children generally need to plan around the school schedule.

How long it should last: For an annual reunion, a weekend will suffice. If reunions don’t occur as regularly, plan a few extra days for those who can stay longer. But remember: “The longer a reunion lasts, the more space you should have to spread out,” says Scott Haltzman, a psychiatrist and the author of The Secrets of Happy Families ($25, amazon.com). “I don’t recommend sharing a small cabin if it’s a weeklong event.”

How to organize it: Pick a point person from each nuclear family so that wires don’t get crossed, and take an informal survey of what people are willing to spend and when they would like to go. For help in organizing your party—down to finding vendors and designing special T-shirts—try Punchbowl.com.

1 of 5

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 5

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Choosing Your Reunion Style

People enjoying an outdoor party
Credit: Rob Howard

The Home-Hosted Affair

Best for:

Smaller groups, families with elderly relatives, or families concentrated in one geographic area.

Pros: Almost everyone saves money.

Cons: One family can get stuck footing the bulk of the bill. Collect cash before the event, or hold a raffle or a silent auction at the reunion with each family contributing something of value, whether it’s a homemade quilt or a framed painting. The hostess can then use the money to replenish her pantry, pay the caterer, or enlist a maid service to help with the cleanup.

Where to go: Ultimately, wherever someone is willing to host. If that someone is you, take heart in the fact that not everything has to take place in your living room. Give yourself a well-deserved break by planning a few activities―volleyball, tennis―at a local park (see if you need a permit). If you have more than one option, it can pay to check out the airline hubs that various family members live near.

Dealing with downtime: Mark local maps with spots like coffee shops, walking trails, and bookstores for fidgety early risers or other folks who need to get out for a bit. “It’s important to remember your limits as far as togetherness goes and to know that everyone needs his privacy at some point,” says Laurie Bisig, a family-travel veteran based in Louisville, Kentucky.

Organizing meals: If a majority of the guests live within an hour’s drive, consider a potluck. If you do choose to cook most of the food, see Reunion Menu Planner. And buy more ingredients than you think you’ll need; it’s easy to run out of food when you’re not used to cooking for 40 (and who is?). If ordering in, consider a caterer, or tell the restaurant how many people you’re ordering for. They can assess how much food you’ll need for a large party.

2 of 5

3 of 5

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

The All-Inclusive Package

Cruise ship
Credit: Emily Nathan

Best for: People who are allergic to planning or talking about money.

Pros: No one person gets stuck bearing the whole burden of organizing, and all the financial awkwardness is removed, since each family pays up front for everything (lodging, food, drinks, child care). Because group decision making is at a minimum, a lot of potential friction is eliminated. “At an all-inclusive resort, the group is not going to have to decide about where to eat, what to do for fun, and who’s in charge,” says Haltzman. Bonus: “If the activities end up being a disappointment, the blame lies on strangers,” says Jeremy Greenberg, author of Relative Discomfort: The Family Survival Guide ($15, amazon.com).

Cons: Some family members may feel cooped up at an all-inclusive. In many cases (on a cruise, say), families can’t tailor the length of their stay to their budgets or vacation time, says Suzette Mack, a family-travel specialist based in San Jose, California. And for some families the cost of the entire trip can be hard to swallow.

Where to go: Many cruise lines offer special services for family reunions, as do some beach resorts and ranches. Carnival Cruise Lines (carnival.com) offers free event-planning assistance before departure and can provide private parties in lounges and dining rooms on a ship (from $2.50 a person for coffee, tea, and cookies to $38 a person for a two-hour affair with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres). Norwegian Cruise Line (ncl.com) offers group rates for families booking eight or more staterooms, plus a cocktail party, passes for on-board bowling, and other perks. If your family is less obsessed with sun and sea, a deluxe dude-ranch trip can fit the bill. The Red Horse Mountain Ranch (redhorsemountain.com), in Harrison, Idaho, offers private cabins, meals, cocktail hours, horseback riding, fishing, and kids’ activities from $1,718 per adult for a one-week stay. (The entire ranch can be reserved at a reduced rate for groups of more than 30.) Tip: Don’t count out international destinations; they can be cheaper and easier to reach than some domestic spots. Mack likes the Riviera Maya, in Mexico, for its kid-friendly resorts.

Dealing with downtime: The primary entertainment is provided by the cruise, the resort, or the ranch. But pick a few events over the course of the trip that almost everyone will want to participate in, or have sign-up sheets for different events that people can attend together to help retain the reunion feel.

Organizing meals: Fortunately, this is not your problem. To get the most out of the mess-hall (or banquet-room) experience, however, consider mixing up the nightly seating arrangements so that everyone gets to mingle.

3 of 5

Advertisement

4 of 5

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

The Great-Outdoors Reunion

Family telling a ghost story by a campfire
Credit: David Tsay

Best for:

Camping fanatics, the cash-strapped.

Pros: It’s low-cost, and everyone can choose lodging that fits his own budget.

Cons: “National parks tend to book six months in advance, so that requires early planning,” warns Mack. Access can be difficult, too, as many parks are several hours away from a major airport. And if bad weather strikes, you could face several long days of playing Go Fish.

Where to go: If you can reserve a spot in time, national parks are a great bet, as most offer year-round activities for kids. The nationwide chain of KOA campground facilities (koa.com) provides another affordable option. Most offer cabins, RV hookups, and no-frills campsites to suit any level of outdoorsmanship; many also have swimming pools and other amenities on-site. The Newburgh, New York, location, in particular, throws in arts and crafts, basketball courts, and nighttime movies and offers a full-service reunion-planning package with activities, outings, and meals orchestrated specially for your group (from $87 a night for a cabin for four; reunion extras not included). Church-retreat grounds, like the Windermere Baptist Conference Center (windermereusa.org), in Roach, Missouri, are another alternative and have abundant outdoor activities (think cave tours, hiking trails, and parasailing) and the facilities to feed groups (motel-style lodging from $66 a night per family, with basic cabins for less and luxe lodges for more; three meals a day for $20 a head; some recreation costs are extra). Even the YMCA has reunion-appropriate destinations: The YMCA of the Rockies (ymcarockies.org), in Estes Park, Colorado, offers hotel-style lodging and family cabins and can arrange campfires, meals, and activities just for your clan (from $119 a night for a cabin for four; reunion extras not included).

Dealing with downtime: Be sure to bring plenty of board games, puzzles, and books to carry you through any foul-weather days. Or create a conversation-sparking deck of cards that features a family photo (about $20 a deck at shutterfly.com or kodakgallery.com).

Organizing meals: For meals not provided by the facility, designate each family to be the provider of a different meal for the whole group―whether it’s cooked over the campfire or trucked in from the nearest takeout joint.

4 of 5

5 of 5

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

The Destination Vacation

Atlantis
Credit: Diane Cook and Len Jenshel

Best for: Families that need a little extra motivation to get together or families who have trouble getting time off work and need the reunion to double as a vacation.

Pros: The base price will probably be lower than for a cruise or an all-inclusive resort. Families can tailor their accommodations or length of stay to their schedules and budgets.

Cons: More of the burden of planning activities rests on you. You’re on your own for meals.

Where to go: Look for a destination with a wealth of entertainment opportunities for all types of interests. Mack likes San Diego for its mix of family-friendly attractions (the zoo, Sea World), great year-round weather, beach activities, and fine dining. Even a resort that is not all-inclusive, like the Atlantis in Paradise Island (atlantis.com), in the Bahamas, can be a good compromise, since families can choose which features they want to shell out for ($179 a night per person for four nights; kids under 11 stay free). “Over the past few years, we have seen a marked change in the numbers of large family groups traveling together,” says Lauren Snyder, CMO, Atlantis, Paradise Island Resorts. “As a result, we’ve upgraded our connecting rooms and created a Family Olympics program for large groups, including events on the beach and trophies for the winning team.”


Other factors to consider: Choosing a location you can navigate on foot relieves a lot of the logistics and the expense tied to carpooling, parking, and arranging designated drivers. Wherever you stay, be sure to book accommodations that have large communal areas that people can gather in. For the best rates on multiple-room reservations, book through Groople.com, a group-travel site.

Dealing with downtime: Designate someone to bring along a portable DVD player or a laptop and several family-friendly movies for times when the adults are content to “just talk” and the kids are dying of boredom.

Organizing meals: Do research in advance to find local restaurants that are friendly to large groups, and make some reservations. You don’t want to be stuck in a strange city trying to find a table for 40 on a Friday night.

5 of 5

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Valerie Rains

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 5 Getting Started
    2 of 5 Choosing Your Reunion Style
    3 of 5 The All-Inclusive Package
    4 of 5 The Great-Outdoors Reunion
    5 of 5 The Destination Vacation

    Share & More

    Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print
    Real Simple Logo

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • About Us
    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Help
    • Advertise
    • Content Licensing
    • Accolades this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    Sign Up
    MeredithAll products and services featured are selected by our editors. Real Simple may receive compensation for some links to products and services in this email on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Real Simple is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2022 Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Real Simple. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.realsimple.com

    Sign in

    View image

    A Family Reunion Planner
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.