Family Reunions

Identify a central location that could be easily accessible to the majority of your group either by car or plane. St. George, Utah is becoming a popular destination because groups can easily and affordably fly into Las Vegas International Airport or there are direct flights into St. George Municipal (SGU). It is also a central point to families that are spread from Colorado, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, Nevada and California. All of these states are within a 2-6 hour drive from Southern Utah.

The biggest worry for most family reunion planners is how are we going to coordinate so may busy schedules and living situations. The most important thing to remember in dealing with group planning is that there is no perfect date for every person there is just the majority. One best practice is to send out a Survey Monkey survey. In that survey you could either suggest several dates or have your group suggest 3 dates that would work for them. I suggest giving 3-6 potential dates and let them vote for their top dates. Some planners have included a question about the max budget each family would be willing to spend on a family reunion trip.

6-9 Months

Once you have narrowed down a date or two that works for the majority of the group now you can find the perfect destination and vacation rental. There are a couple of keys to finding the perfect destination. They are as follows:

Weather: 

Is the weather going to be conducive to the activities in the area? This is a great question to ask and research before identifying your location. Sunny St. George lives up to its name boasting 255 sunny days per year. The US average is only 205 sunny days. What does that mean to your group? Southern Utah is a year round family reunion destination and with over 5 lakes, splash pads and the elevation of Zion National Park bring on the sunshine. 

Surrounding Activities:

Identify at least a few activities that would be suitable for the entire group. If you are unable to identify at least 2 activities near your identified destination, you might want to look for a different destination. St. George is the perfect hub for large group adventures. There are several national parks close by including the majestic Zion National Park. If you are looking for something in the evening, Tuacahn Amphitheater is a fabulous choice. Your group could book pre-show dinner, behind the stage tour, broadway musicals, comedian acts and concerts. Some groups enjoy bringing their boats or renting boats, kayaks and wave runners at Sand Hollow and Quail Creek reservoir. 

Identify Accommodations

Before landing on a location it is crucial to identify a few properties that can accommodate your group based on your dates of travel. This is where our team shines. We have everything from 1,2 and 3 bedroom condos with connecting balconies to 4-10 bedroom townhomes that can sleep up to 40 in each home. Whether your family reunion is 10 guests or 200 guests we have the right vacation rentals for you. Once you have spoken to or inquired online with our highly trained reservations team and identified a few options and pricing, you could send out another survey to the family to get a vote on the preferred property option. Some family reunion organizers opt to identify the property based on budget themselves as to not raise any heated discussions from opinionated members of the group. 

Note: There are benefits to using vacation rentals as opposed to someone’s house or a park. You know your family dynamic and you will be the judge on whether booking one home to share or having individual families book their own rentals. Some groups like their privacy and the reunion will run much more smoothly if they have their own rentals. However, some groups try a hybrid approach with our rentals and some families book larger rentals to share with families they are comfortable traveling with to save money and some opt to book their own rentals for just their family.

4-6 Months

Food and Final Preparations

To some of your guests the food is one of the most important aspects of their vacation. Food assignments will save your guests money and bring everyone together. Most of our vacation rentals are large enough that everyone can dine en-suite.

Coral Springs Resort features a lounge area that can be booked for a minimal fee of $100 per day and is a great setting for catered meals poolside. Your guests will enjoy the indoor and outdoor pools, tennis court and basketball courts during your meal time. The lounge also provides an ideal setting for a family presentation or talent show.

Coral Ridge Resort is ideal if you are going to be doing a lot of potluck meals that require a small kitchen area. The lounge area has a TV, foosball, ping pong and putting green. In the outdoor area there is a playground for kids, 2 outdoor pools and 2 outdoor hot tubs.

The Eighth at Coral Canyon Resort has 7 and 8 bedroom duplexes with over 4100 square feet. The open layout and private pools and hot tubs create the perfect group vacation atmosphere. These homes are along the 8th hole of the Coral Canyon Golf Course and have custom BBQ pits for grilling for the masses poolside. If your group is into golfing, you can call the course and they will set up a small tournament or block of tee times for you.

Town Center at Coral Canyon Resort features 42 townhomes ranging from 4 bedrooms to 10 bedrooms that surround an outdoor pool, hot tub, pickleball courts and splash pad. For small groups wanting to eat together the spacious layouts are conducive to hosting a group of 18-22. If you have a larger group that booked multiple homes you would want to look at local parks and pavilions to host your lunch time meals. There is also a beautiful restaurant within walking distance to all of our Coral Canyon Properties. Koral Cafe  has a fine dining side of the restaurant that could seat a large number of guests and the other side of the restaurant is a sports bar and grill. The owners name is Treva Jones 435-627-6262 she would be the best person to book large group reservations. 

Mollies Landing Adobe Estate is a fabulous property featuring 2 kitchens, BBQ patio area poolside and a large amphitheater for family meetings or talent shows. Dining table seating is for 24 guests but that does not include all the barstool seating in the kitchen and several outdoor patio tables and seating options. This home can sleep up to 30 guests.

Other Dining and group options:

Larry Miller Megaplex will rent out an entire theater for a meeting/ movie or a dinner. We had the Polaris Motorsports executives and several family reunions host a meeting or movie showing there and it worked really well. 435-627-9700 is the number to call to book space. 

Viva Chicken –  Popular Peruvian  435-359-8947 place that caters for a great price. Catering head charge is Colby Lavrum. 

Anasazi Grill is a very cool option for corporate groups to dine in. The have a separate dining room for large corp. groups. Great experiential meal for the entire family.

Coral Canyon Golf Course has a great group meeting space along with a full service bar and grill. They have great catering options as well. Click the link to see all of their great catering options.

Games and Entertainment:

There are family reunion games that are fun and take very little planning or execution on the organizers part. This video shows some great examples of games that could be played onsite or at a local park.

Finalize any offsite excursions that would need reservations. Below are some that you would want to contact prior to your arrival.

Tuacahn Amphitheater – Firm up any pre-show dinners, day care reservations and backstage behind the scenes tours for your group at least a few months prior to arrival.

Zion National Park – If you plan on visiting the national park or state parks in the area make sure to read through our Ultimate Zion National Park Guidebook

Tours – If you booked any hiking, zipline or ATV tours make sure to firm up your reservations for a large group booking. Make sure to let them know you are staying at a Coral Canyon Resort to ensure you get our pre-negotiated discounts with the vendors.

Golf – If you have any golf in your plans, make sure to call ahead a few months to secure your tee times. I would suggest booking a block of tee times and doing a scramble with a small prize.

Las Vegas Shows – If you are going to make a trip to Vegas to see a show make sure to secure your seats a few months prior to arrival.

You are in the final stretch! There are a few things to do as you button up your plans.

• Send out an invite either by mail or email. Find a free invitation template here. They are quick and painless to create and it will remind families to do their own personal planning before arrival
• Make sure all the meal assignments go out and that everyone is pulling their weight with food.
• Double check any catering or dinner reservations
• Call Coral Canyon Resort to double check and confirm that all your reservations are booked and there are no loose ends.

Most importantly safe travels and enjoy making memories with your loved ones.