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Introduction, and Yes, I’d Sent Yue There When She was Younger

Yue Little and I decided to go to Universal in Orlando for a daddy-daughter week at Universal Studios. We picked Cabana Bay because it was far cheaper than the other Universal Properties, at about $648 all in for our week. We also liked that it was by Volcano Bay. (We also went to Sea World when we were there, where YL loved Manta, there were no lines, and she remembered the “scary green eyes” from the Atlantis water ride from when she was there at age 5.)  I thought I’d give a quick review. We used UAL coming and going. Yue LOVED getting to go first class on the 777 segment.

Check In

We went during a low period (before Thanksgiving) of travel and had a quick check in; we were upgraded to a family suite for free and stayed in the Starlight portion of the hotel. This is distant from the lazy river if that’s a priority for you, but otherwise just fine. We liked that we got to keep the souvenir keycards with our names on them. Also, it was very amusing that the check-in folks couldn’t figure out how to spell “Yue.” I told them, “No, it’s Yue. YUE.” So you can see we got U A Y U E.

Room

We were upgraded to a pool-facing family suite which had all the room we needed. The room did seem a little dark, but other than that we loved it. It had two TVs and something of a sitting/dining room to help keep leftover food from making its way to the beds. Everything was clean; no bedbugs or the like.  

Theme

60s flavor is all over Cabana Bay. It is definitely designed as a family hotel, so if you’re just going with your spouse, I’d choose something more romantic, or really just hop across the street to Aventura or Sapphire, as they cut off a few minutes of walk time from the park. That said, being in a themed hotel was cool for my kid. 

Location/How to Walk to Universal

Compared to Lowe’s Royal Pacific or Hard Rock, if you walk to and from the park (we only walked from), it’s a bit more of a hike, but it’s still doable, unlike Endless Summer Dockside/Surfside. We jogged it for fun one night in about 10 minutes, whereas walking took about 15-18 minutes. However, we always went the “scenic” route to see the old floatplanes in the water. The direct path probably shaves off a few minutes. The resort of course has routine buses, but we only found those convenient to use getting there. Volcano Bay’s entrance is adjacent Cabana Bay, so if you stay in a tower or one of the zig-zag buildings, you’ll be closer to it, but farther from City Walk.

Below you can see the path we used in yellow; the first image is to get to Volcano Bay. The blue dotted path is the most direct way, but the yellow way is most scenic, with cool waterplanes and such. Ignore the blue dotted path going south where it overlaps the yellow line, however, and use the footbridge with the yellow and solid, light blue lines.

Amenities

Cabana Bay has a shopette, bar, bowling alley, outdoor movies, lazy river, pools, a variety of food options, etc. Super kid friendly. Room service is limited to pizza, however. You can also use the early-in feature if you are staying at Cabana Bay, which is really great if you have a kid who is ready to get after it. If you want food off resort, your best option is City Walk or uber.  Unlike the most expensive Universal hotels, Cabana Bay does not come with Express Passes, so factor that in when making your decision. I find the park pass system (days/intrapark/express passes) to be a bit obtuse on purpose, though manageable.

Staff

Staff was about 75% incredibly friendly and 25% hostile, including one match of raised voices between Universal employees who held differing views on Universal policies. 

Yue’s Rating of the Parks

Yue Little loved Islands of Adventure, and found the comic book section and Jurassic Park to be her favorite places. I liked the Middle Eastern area (which seems rather random) and Hogwarts the best. Next, Yue liked Volcano Bay, and then Universal Studios. Last was Epic Universe, though we went on the hottest day and didn’t stay until after dark, and the theme park expo was in town and all at Epic (it seemed like), so wait times were ludicrous. We mainly all felt that Epic Universe seemed barren compared to the older parks; it was crazy how little shade there was, and with the “portals,” the entire park seemed rather…empty. However, we loved Stardust Racers! When we return, we are only going to go there after dark, when we hope that the themes will “pop” more. 

Oh, and the first ride of our entire trip was the Body Slide at Volcano Bay, which really detracts from the intensity of everything afterward, so save that for last. It is also definitely more enjoyable the less you weigh. For me, it was really more akin to being waterboarded for 20 seconds, then banged around for another 15. 

Favorite Rides

Hagrid’s Motorbikes, Velocicoaster, Stardust Racers, and the Bourne Stuntacular, which is not a ride, but very much worth visiting. (Note that Yue loved Manta at Seaworld, but we will not mix-and-match.)

Various rides and parks. We met up with my old controlling friend Wes and also my brother. Wes and his family live in Orlando now, and my brother lives in Atlanta. Kids call my brother Tio Guzman.

Least Favorite Rides

Fast and Furious: Supercharged. (What the crap was that?)

Overall Rating

The primary selling points of Cabana Bay are its friendliness towards your wallet, hour-early access to the parks, and adjacency to Volcano Bay. For those seeking upscale lodging, it’s best to look elsewhere.