The short version: It depends. If you’re going to be in the Universal parks from rope drop until close every day and you just need a clean bed, a great pool to fall into when you get back, and the cheapest way to get early park access plus walking access to Volcano Bay, then Cabana Bay is a stay. If you want a resort experience — properly looked-after rooms, attentive service, food worth eating, public areas kept clean — it’s a stay away. This is my third stay (2021, 2024, 2025) and the standards have slipped each time.
Quick facts
| Location | Universal Orlando Resort, Orlando, Florida, USA |
| Resort tier | Universal Value resort (formerly Prime Value) |
| Best for | Families and couples who’ll be in the parks from rope drop to close |
| Pools | Two main pools: north (with a kids’ slide and splash pad) and south (with the lazy river) |
| Lazy river | Yes, with actual current — at the south pool |
| Volcano Bay access | Walking access via a private gate. The only Universal hotel with this |
| Park transport | Free shuttle bus to Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, City Walk and Epic Universe |
| Early park admission | Yes, included for guests at all Universal hotels |
| Self-parking | $26 plus tax per night per vehicle (waived if booked via Virgin Holidays) |
| Bowling alley | Yes, Galaxy Bowl. Reservations recommended |
| Arcade | Yes, Gameama, with redeemable tickets |
| Gift shop | Large, themed and stocked with Universal IP |
| Visit date | 2 to 9 June 2025 (third stay; previous stays in 2021 and 2024) |
First impressions
Cabana Bay sells itself on retro Florida theming, a 1950s and 60s pack-up-the-station-wagon aesthetic, and on the three things that genuinely matter at a Universal resort: early park admission, walking access to Volcano Bay, and a price point that’s the cheapest way to get those benefits. On those three counts it still delivers.
The lobby itself works fine for check-in. Every time I’ve checked in here, the queue has been short — one or two people in front of me at most. The lobby for everything else? Always busy. There’s a character meet and greet area, a gift shop, the Swizzle bar, and the desk for park tickets. Behind reception there’s the food court, and either side of that the property splits into two halves with their own pool and their own block of rooms.
One small thing I clocked on this visit: the classic cars that used to line the driveway and the check-in lot have mostly gone. There’s one left, sat on its own. When I first stayed in 2021 there were four, five, maybe six of them — they really added to the theming, although they used to be annoying when they took up parking spaces during a busy check-in. I’m sorry to see them go all the same.
The pools
The pools are the best thing about Cabana Bay, and I’ll back this up: they’re better than the pools at most of the other Universal resorts and, in my opinion, better than every Disney property too. Two main pool areas, one at each end of the site.
The north pool has a U-shape, a zero-access ramp into the water, a kids’ splash pad, and a proper slide that the children will go on for hours. Just behind the trees you’ve got the Atomic Tonic café and bar serving food and drink to the pool deck.
The south pool has the same zero-access ramp, sanded areas if you want your feet in some sand, no slide, but it does have the lazy river. Crucially the lazy river has actual current — a real complaint about a lot of hotel lazy rivers is that they don’t move, so you’re really just floating in a puddle. This one moves. From the south pool you can also see the Krakatau volcano at Volcano Bay in the distance, which is a nice bonus.
Both pools have complimentary towels and towel returns, complimentary sunbeds and umbrellas, and (we found) buoyancy aids for the small children. The Hideaway Bar and Grill services the south pool the same way Atomic Tonic services the north.
Rooms: the catch with the windows
There are two main types of room. The first type is in the lower-rise blocks at the north end of the site, with external corridors, four storeys high, and on previous stays I had two of those. They feature two large beds, a separate storage area with a safe, a sofa that converts to a bed (although they don’t make it up for you — they leave the linen and you do it yourself), a fridge, microwave and a small kitchenette sink. Solid family room for two parents and two kids.
This stay I was in the other type — the seven-storey blocks with internal corridors, on the south side of the site. Same general spec, but a key thing to know before you book: half the rooms in this block are missing half the windows. Look at the building from outside and you’ll see colour blocks where windows would be on alternating rooms. So you have a fifty-fifty chance of getting a room with floor-to-ceiling windows and a great view, or a room with a big wall and small windows on either side. They’ve done it for the look of the building from outside, but as a guest it’s annoying. I drew the short straw on this stay.
Inside the room itself: two good beds, a seating area we used as a clothes shelf, a phone (which apparently can be set up to do a Universal-themed character wake-up call, although I didn’t try it), a TV, coffee-making facilities, a fridge, a small safe, an iron, and a bathroom with the sink in the room and the bath/shower behind a door — the standard American layout. The bathroom has a small night light, which is genuinely useful because some of the bedroom light switches don’t seem to do anything.
The rooms interconnect, which matters if you’re a family of more than four — book interconnecting rooms and you get four beds across two rooms.
The alarm clock on the bedside doesn’t work and shows the wrong time. There’s a fair bit of visible maintenance issues if you look closely. The toilet paper is not the best. There’s an upgrade option for a pool view at $12 per night plus tax which I’d skip — if you’re in the parks all day you barely see the room in daylight, never mind the view.
Housekeeping (the big problem)
This is the biggest issue and it’s worth its own section. Housekeeping at Cabana Bay is, in my recent experience, done by potluck. Across a seven-night stay we got it twice. We didn’t ask for “no service” and we didn’t put the do-not-disturb out. It just didn’t show up most days. I made a complaint about it.
The corridors aren’t well patrolled overnight either. Takeaway boxes, bags and rubbish get left outside rooms, and we’d come back from the parks late and see them, and still see them in the same spot the next morning when we left. Several days running, the same rubbish in the same place. There clearly isn’t an overnight portering or cleaning round.
For a property of this size, marketed as one of the great-value resorts at Universal, this is the area where the value calculation breaks down — because if you can’t trust the basics of housekeeping and cleanliness, the rest of the offer has to compensate. And on this visit it didn’t.
Food and drink
Most dining at Cabana Bay happens in the Bayliner Diner — a large food court banked on all four corners with cinema-style screens showing old commercials, with four food stations each doing a different cuisine. There’s variety, but I wouldn’t call it exciting and I wouldn’t call it four-star. It serves a purpose. The pricing is “according to its location” — which is to say, it knows you’re at Universal and it’s priced for it. Trays are supposed to be returned by guests, and most people do, but it isn’t enforced.
One thing worth knowing: drinks at the diner come in either bottles or in novelty refillable cups. The cup deal is not the same as the Coca-Cola Freestyle deal in the parks — it’s a separate purchase, and pricing is on a duration basis rather than per day. Eight days or more is around $30, four to seven days around $25. Reasonable if you’re a heavy drinker of soft drinks; not necessary if you’re not.
Other food and drink outlets across the resort: Shakes for ice cream and milkshakes, very popular. Swizzle Lounge in the lobby for cocktails and mocktails of an evening, with live music — but the lobby is a big open space and the atmosphere felt lacklustre to me. Starbucks opens at 6am and is by far the busiest food and drink outlet in the resort, with proper queues from opening; in my opinion it’s also the best place on site for breakfast — donuts, pastries, juices, the lot. Atomic Tonic at the north pool, Hideaway Bar and Grill at the south pool, Galaxy Bowl for sit-down food at the bowling alley.
Beyond the pools: bowling, arcade, fire pits, gift shop
Above the Starbucks, tucked away, is Galaxy Bowl — a proper ten-lane bowling alley with shoe rental, a full-service bar and a sit-down food menu. It gets busy. Reservations are strongly recommended; I’d almost call them required. A great rainy-evening option if the parks have worn the kids out and you want a low-key evening that still feels like part of the holiday.
The arcade, Gameama, has the usual range of ticket-redemption games. The kids loved it.
The gift shop in the lobby is properly stocked. Resort-specific merchandise plus the full Universal IP range — Simpsons, Minions, Jurassic Park, Harry Potter, Universal Studios — and basics like sun cream and over-the-counter medicine. Useful if you’re not planning to spend park time shopping.
New since my last visit: fire pits. There are about four or five around the property, free to use of an evening. You bring your own marshmallows.
There’s also a large gym on site with proper retro theming, which is one of the better-themed gyms I’ve seen in any resort. I didn’t use it. It’s there if you do.
Getting to the parks
Volcano Bay is the headline. Cabana Bay is the only Universal hotel with walking access to Volcano Bay — through a security gate at one corner of the resort, no fanfare, you just walk through. This works at any time of day and during the early-access window too. There will be a small queue first thing for early access. Everyone else has to come by bus and walk up from the bus terminal. If you’re driving back to the resort and want to nip into Volcano Bay for a few hours before checking out, you can also park in some closer spaces near the gate.
Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure are reached by free shuttle bus from in front of the lobby. The buses are regular, clean and the drivers were excellent. They drop you at City Walk for both parks. Early park admission applies — useful particularly for Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure at Islands of Adventure, which gets long queues quickly.
Epic Universe, Universal’s newest park, is a roughly 15-minute bus ride from Cabana Bay. Same shuttle service, free.
Practical things to know before you go
Self-parking is $26 plus tax per night per vehicle. That’s not nothing across a week. Two specific ways to dodge it: (1) book through Virgin Holidays — parking is waived as part of the package; (2) make a complaint about something legitimate during your stay. Cabana Bay’s go-to apology is a parking fee waiver because it’s the easiest thing to give. I had a 50-minute lockout situation in 2024 and even then it took some pushing to get acknowledged.
Premium rooms vs standard rooms. The towers at the very end of the south side have premium “volcano view” rooms overlooking Volcano Bay. They cost more. I haven’t stayed in one, but my honest take is that if you’re booking Cabana Bay you’re booking it for value. If you’ve got the budget for premium-tier rooms, you’d probably do better moving up to a different Universal resort entirely (Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, Portofino Bay) — those bundle in unlimited Express Passes, which Cabana Bay does not.
Express Passes. Worth saying clearly: Cabana Bay does not include Universal’s unlimited Express Pass benefit. That’s reserved for the three premier resorts. You still get early park admission, which is the next best thing for skipping queues, but you’ll be doing the full standby queue for everything outside the early hour.
Laundry is available on site, both self-service and a laundry collection service. The self-service machines run on card payments, no coins. They don’t sell detergent or fabric softener — bring your own if you’ll need it for a longer stay.
Vending on every corridor: drinks at $4 a pop, snacks, and complimentary ice machines.
Who is this hotel for?
Park warriors on a budget. If your plan is “be at the park entrance for rope drop, leave when it shuts, sleep, repeat,” Cabana Bay is the most cost-efficient way to get the early-admission perk plus walking-distance Volcano Bay. The room is just somewhere to fall over at the end of the day, and the pools and amenities are a bonus when you take a half-day off.
Volcano Bay enthusiasts. If Volcano Bay is the main draw of your trip, no other Universal hotel competes for proximity. Walk in and out as you please.
Families who book through Virgin Holidays from the UK. The waived parking fee, plus the bundled flights and tickets, plus the ability to walk to Volcano Bay, is a genuinely strong combination at this price point — provided you go in with realistic expectations on housekeeping and food.
Probably not for: anyone wanting the unlimited Express Pass benefit (book Hard Rock, Royal Pacific or Portofino Bay instead); anyone wanting a resort experience where service, food and cleanliness are part of what you’re paying for; light sleepers booking the towers near the lobby noise; anyone allergic to retro Americana theming. And on the current trajectory, families with very young children who’d be hardest hit by patchy housekeeping might also want to consider alternatives.
FAQ
Final verdict: stay or stay away?
It depends — and that’s an unusual answer for me. If you’re going to use Cabana Bay as a base for the parks, you’ll be in the parks from rope drop to close, and what you need from the hotel is a clean bed plus the cheapest way into early park admission and walking-access Volcano Bay, then it’s a stay. The pools alone would justify a half-day off in the resort. The bowling alley and arcade fill rainy evenings well. The price point is the price point. On those terms it works.
But if you want a resort experience — reliable housekeeping, food worth eating, public areas kept clean, complaints handled properly when something goes wrong — it’s a stay away. This is my third stay (2021, 2024, 2025), and across those three visits the standards have noticeably slipped. In 2024 we were locked out of the room for nearly an hour with maintenance taking 50 minutes to arrive, and the apology was perfunctory at best. This stay, housekeeping was patchy, public areas were grubby, and the food remains unremarkable. I’m a patient guest, willing to give way on lots of things, but when complaints aren’t dealt with properly that’s the line for me.
So: stay if you’re using it as a launchpad for the parks. Stay away if you want a resort. Pick which type of trip you’re on, and choose accordingly.
Full transcript
Click to expand the full video transcript
Welcome to Cabana Bay Beach Resort here on this slightly overcast day here in Universal Studios Orlando, Florida. This is The Resort Report, and today I’m going to be taking you through this resort, giving you all the amenities that it has, all the top tips, and some things that really let it down as well. At the end of the video, you’ll find out whether this is a place to stay or a place to stay away. Stay tuned.
So, let me firstly take you into the lobby area. This is where you’re going to be checking into Cabana Bay. This queue here is for check-in. Literally, every time I’ve come to check in at this hotel, there’s been no problems checking in — literally one or two people in front of us. Every time I’ve come to the lobby for anything else, huge queue. Must just be the time I come in.
There’s a character meet and greet going on there as well, which is nice. Forget his name from Madagascar — what’s he called? Let me know in the comments. You’ve got the gift shop, I’ll take you in there a bit later on, and Swizzle will tell you about that later on as well. We have car and luggage services here, and on the other side is where you can find out about tickets for the parks as well.
Arguably the best bit about Cabana Bay is the swimming pools. There are two main areas for swimming. This at the northern end has a lovely U-shaped pool. There is a splash pad for kids and a great slide as well for the children. Just beyond those trees, there is the Atomic Tonic Cafe Bar. Now, with both sets of pools, there are complimentary towels available and towel returns for you to use, as well as complimentary sunbeds and obviously the umbrellas as well. For young ones, we found that they do have buoyancy aids as well, which is really, really helpful.
Now, while I’m with you here at this end, you can see the buildings around me. This is one specific type of room. These rooms are how I’ve stayed at this property the last two times, but not the present time. So I’ll show you some pictures of those rooms now. They feature two large beds, separate storage area with safe. Then they have a sofa which can be made into a bed, although please note that they don’t make the sofa bed for you — they just give you the linen and expect you to do it yourself. And then there is a fridge, a microwave, and a sink kitchenette area as well. So perfect for a family — you know, two two, a mother and a father and two kids. Here they are. External corridors for this block and the car parking is surrounding on the outside. There are ground floor rooms as well on this side, so no views out of the bedrooms because of course you’re just facing the hallways, but it does allow for some lighting.
So, I’m now in the southern block pool, which again is a fantastic pool. Cabana Bay really does have one of the best sets of pools of any resort in Orlando. Certainly better than most of the Universal and certainly better than all of the Disney properties. I back that with my word. Now, this pool here on the south benefits from the same zero-degree access, that kind of slow ramp in, that the north pool does. There are sanded areas if you want to get your feet in some sand, but it doesn’t have the slide. But what it loses with the slide, it gains with this lazy river. And you can see people drifting by there. Does have some actual current in there, which is a complaint of some lazy rivers at hotels — that they just don’t move. It’s just a stagnant river rather than a lazy river. This one does move, which is a really great perk as well. And in the background there you can see the volcano of Volcano Bay. Fantastic.
Now, there are a number of key benefits marketed to you as to why you should stay in a Universal property — and obviously Cabana Bay being one of the best-value properties to stay in. One of those benefits is the complimentary shuttle bus service to the park. One has just pulled up here behind me, and the service is fantastic. They’re regular, they’re clean, the team are incredibly helpful. From this resort, you can go to City Walk, which is going to be for Universal Studios as well as Islands of Adventure. And then there is a bus to Epic Universe, which is about 15 minutes ride from here. Now, of course, there isn’t a specific bus to Volcano Bay because you’re going to walk there, ladies and gentlemen. You can just walk there from Cabana Bay, which I’ll show you in a minute.
The area behind me is for check-in and check-out car parking. Once you’ve done that, you’re going to be moving into one of the parking lots or parking garages. And parking, unfortunately, is not typically free here. It’s quite expensive, in fact, adding quite a lot to a holiday if you’re staying here for a while — $26 plus tax per night per vehicle. Now, that doesn’t happen if you book through Virgin Holidays. So, if you stay on Virgin Holidays, you get that automatically waived. And given there’s so much to complain about here at Cabana Bay, if you do complain, typically they will then waive the car parking charge as it’s the easiest thing to give you to get you to go away somewhat happy.
Now, behind me, you’re going to see this classic car here. When I first came here in 2021, there was a bunch of these — a handful. It really added a lot to the theming, and they’ve gone now. We’ve only got one here at Cabana Bay sat here all on its own. I don’t know where they’ve gone — whether they’ve rusted or they’ve gone to the Universal parks as props or whatnot. But it’s a double-edged sword really, because it’s sad to see them gone, but it used to be really annoying when you couldn’t find a parking space. There’s hardly any spaces behind me now for people wanting to check in. There’s a queue on the other side of people trying to check in and they want somewhere to pull up and there’s nowhere. When they used to be six of these cars, four, five, six of them laid out, it was really annoying when they were taking spaces that you needed. But yeah, it’s a shame to see them go all the same. But glad this one’s still here, and long may it last.
I’m now in that super premium car parking lot. You can see that two-storey garage behind me. Both sides have that. You can see the difference in room types here, simply because the corridors are internal. These rooms are what I’m staying in this time, and I’m going to give you a full room tour in a moment. But this has another key difference in that it’s seven storeys tall — the north block only having four storeys.
I want to point something out super-important to you. Can you see those coloured blocks just here? These coloured blocks. Now those are aesthetically pleasing from the outside but incredibly annoying as a guest. What it means is that essentially half of the rooms here are missing half of the windows. So you have a 50% chance of having a room with ceiling-to-floor windows with great views out, either over the pool or the city. But you have a 50% chance of getting a big wall and some small windows on either side. So, that’s a shame. I can see why they’ve done it from an aesthetics point of view and maybe even a cost-saving point of view for not having the glazing. But yeah, somewhat annoying as a guest to have that form-over-function design here at Cabana Bay.
One of the other great benefits of staying at a Universal Studios resort property is you do get early access to the parks. Now, that’s particularly important for Islands of Adventure if you want to get on Hagrid’s Motorbike ride, because that gets incredibly busy. But also cool for Volcano Bay, which is just behind me. It’s literally next door to Cabana Bay. Now, there’s no great fanfare. You literally walk through this black security gate to get in on one corner of the site, and that’s going to get you into Volcano Bay at any time of the day, but also in that early-hours access. There will be a little bit of a queue when you come if you do come for that first-thing early access. There is no car parking for Volcano Bay, so everyone else is coming by bus, and you’ll pass the stairs to the bus terminal as you enter the park. But of course, you staying here at Cabana Bay, you can just walk in. Now, if you do need to get a little bit closer, because this is a big resort from start to finish, you can just come and park here. Indeed, I’ve done that. Staying at the north end of the site, I’ve come and parked in one of these spaces just here, and then gone into Volcano Bay for the morning before checking out. So that’s another top tip there. You can drive and park and get a little bit closer, but only if you’re staying at Cabana Bay.
Behind me, in this veritable skyscraper, are the super premium resort rooms of this resort. They include the volcano view rooms, so you can get rooms in this block that overlook the volcano in Volcano Bay. I’ve never stayed in any of these rooms, but I assume they have more space given the listings on the websites and third parties, and have some extra amenities. I don’t know if I’d recommend them over the price. Really, coming to this property, you’re looking for that great price point, that entry level into Universal Studios. And I don’t know whether getting the premium rooms at a budget resort is the best play, or whether you should use that money to go and stay in a nicer resort in a standard room. Guess that’s one for you to decide.
And so here is one of the standard rooms here at Cabana Bay. Now, have I been unprofessional and had the room all messy? No. Well, kind of. But really, it’s because housekeeping here at Cabana Bay is essentially done by potluck. You don’t know whether it’s ever going to get done. We’ve had it done twice during a seven-night stay, and it’s the subject of a complaint. You can see that big section there where we’re missing out on some windows annoyingly, but a great view out. You can actually see Icon Park out there in the distance, as well as the expensive car parking lot.
So within the room, you do have this seating area, which we’ve used for clothes etc. Two great beds. There is an alarm clock there that has the wrong time on and doesn’t work. You’ve got the phone to ring reception and try and complain. I actually understand that you can use this phone to get a morning alarm clock — a Universal Studios character wake-up — which is cool. You do get a nice pen though. You’ve got this fun kind of branded pen — always enjoy a good pen from a hotel room. The TV is decent, as are the coffee-making facilities. You do get a fridge in here, which is handy. These rooms are interconnecting, so if you have a family that’s larger than essentially two kids, you’re going to need an interconnecting room so you can get four beds.
Into the bathroom then. So, as with so many American bathrooms, you have the sink separate out here. I did manage to secure some extra towels so that we could have some fresh towels. Into the bathroom then, standard affair really — shower over a very shallow bath. It’s clean. You’ve got the branded toiletries here, the V05 in the 1950s feel, same with the bath soap. There is some maintenance issues — that is really quite scary stuff, but it works. Toilet paper’s not the best, but hey, what can you do? One of the cool features is there is a nightlight in here, which you’re not going to be able to see, but that is on. Switch it off so you can see. So you can have that on at night and be able to get through, which is great because some of the light switches don’t do anything at all. So that’s less than ideal. You do have a safe in here and some storage, as well as an iron, so it’s okay. I would have preferred the full view out there — would have had a great view otherwise.
In terms of pool view, we were offered for only $12 extra per night plus tax — you can get a view of the pool, which I don’t think represents any value at all, especially if you’re out in the parks all day. So there you go. Rooms okay, generally clean. Housekeeping service when it happens is good, but poor because it doesn’t happen. Really, which is a shame. And that is your standard room here at Cabana Bay.
If you are staying for a longer period of time, there is laundry service, both self-launder, like you can see in front of me now, and laundry service from your rooms. When I was here for an extended time, I needed to use the laundry. They use card, you don’t need coins. And someone had left some powder, some washing detergent, which I was able to use. I assume if you don’t have any, if you haven’t brought any, then you’re going to have to buy some to use these laundry facilities, which is less than ideal on holiday. And they don’t sell laundry detergent or fabric softener. Here on every corridor there is plenty of vending. You’ve got drinks, although they come in at $4 a pop. You’ve got snacks, and then complimentary ice.
The corridors aren’t particularly well patrolled overnight. You’ll often find takeaway boxes, takeaway bags, rubbish outside of rooms left overnight. We know that because we see them when we come back from the parks late at night, and then we see them when we get up in the morning in the same place when we’re off out to the parks once again. So clearly they don’t have night porterage here at Cabana Bay keeping things tidy. Literally still there days later.
If you’re dining here at Cabana Bay, you’re probably going to be here in this large room, this dining hall, which is banked on all four corners by large cinema screens showing old adverts. It’s a relatively simple affair. Again, in the corners, you have drink stations where your pre-bought drinks are dispensed from. Trays are expected to be returned, as you can see this lady doing here, but it’s not enforced. Given the price you’re paying for the food, you kind of think you should have that included, but here we are.
As well as proper meals, there are lots of snacks here at Cabana Bay. You can get your drinks in bottles, or one of these novelty cups which you get to take home with you. Annoyingly, it’s not the same Coca-Cola fountains as you’ll find in the parks. Here you’re going to have to buy a separate one and pay again, although you can do it over a longer period of time, which is helpful — not just daily. So 8 days or more for $30, 4 to 7 days for 25, and so on.
Whilst there is some variety in the food, I’m not going to say it’s particularly exciting. We’ve got four stations, each serving a different type of food. At breakfast they do combine into a tighter spread of food. As I say, there is that selection, but not particularly exciting. I wouldn’t say altogether the best quality either. The meals I’ve had, I wouldn’t say they’re four-star. But hey, it serves a purpose. It’s here. It’s priced according to its location, is what I’ll say. Condiments are included, though, ladies and gentlemen — you do get your condiments at least.
One of the most popular food outlets here at Cabana Bay is Shakes, which has ice cream and of course milkshakes. Here in the lobby of an evening, Swizzle does get popular serving cocktails, mocktails and the like. They’re playing some nice music, but I find the atmosphere a bit lacklustre given that you’re in a large lobby. It does escape out, but yeah, some nice drinks of an evening if you fancy one.
The busiest by far outlet here at Cabana Bay, certainly when it comes to food and drink, is Starbucks coffee. It opens at 6am and essentially there are long queues from that point with everyone trying to get their fill of their morning coffee. To be honest, it is the best place to grab a breakfast bite in my opinion as well. Obviously, they’ve got the donuts, pastries etc., as well as juices and the Tetra Pak coffee too.
Somewhat tucked away above Starbucks, you do have Galaxy Bowl, which is this resort’s very own bowling alley. It does get busy, so reservations are recommended. I’d almost say required. If you don’t have your own shoes, there is shoe rental, and there is a full-service bar as well. So you can have a great evening here at Galaxy Bowl. If the parks haven’t worn you out enough, to Galaxy Bowl we have Gameama, which is the resort’s arcade. It’s well-appointed with a plethora of different games, most of which print out tickets so you can redeem some prizes as well, which is great fun for the kids. I know my kids love this kind of thing. I’m sure yours will as well.
The resort has a large gift shop, which features products suitable for both kids and adults. There’s resort-specific merchandise, as well as all the things you might expect. You can see Simpsons, Minions, there’s Jurassic Park, Universal Studios and everything in between. Yeah, Harry Potter over there. It really does have a great selection. Even some Christmas stuff there, one of my favourites. So yeah, if you’re not able to spend much time shopping in the parks or just don’t want to spend time doing it, there is yeah, great selection — as I say, here in the shop at the resort, as well as some of those basics that you might need. We’ve got some medicines here and sun creams available.
One nice touch which they have added since my last visit is these fire pits. So there’s about four or five fire pits around the property now which are open and free for use. I think you have to pick up your own marshmallows to roast, but it is a really nice touch of an evening to enjoy with friends and family.
As I explained, the resort is split into two main halves. On the Americana and Continental side we have the Hideaway Bar and Grill, which becomes popular during the day and the evening, servicing the pool.
Using this map, you can more easily see the two main halves. Here we have the first half surrounded by family rooms, and that pool has those slides. On this side, we have the slightly higher buildings with the more standard sizing and proportion of rooms. We have more car parking, a two-storey multi-storey car park, and then the skyscrapers on the end which overlook Volcano Bay. That central lobby in the middle, with car parking all around, so you can park pretty close to your room wherever you’re staying, which is yeah, really big plus point on a resort as big as this.
There is a big gym here at Cabana Bay for those who like to do that kind of thing while on holiday. It actually has some really great theming — some of the best kind of periodic theming that you might like to have at a place called Cabana Bay. So you can get immersed in the theme while you sweat or do whatever one does in a gym while on holiday in Orlando, Florida. As if the parks aren’t active and strenuous enough for you already.
So, this is the third time I’ve stayed here at Cabana Bay. The first time being in 2021, I’m afraid to say things have gone downhill over that time. The first time we stayed here was with the wife and kids, and we went off without a hitch and we’ve thoroughly enjoyed our time, although there were some maintenance issues then. But things have compounded since. My second stay in 2024, we had a relatively serious issue where we were locked outside of the room on one of those external corridors and maintenance took 50 minutes to come and help us get in the room. Effectively we were sat with almost an hour, not being able to go in the pool, just sweating on a corridor with “yes, they’re on their way, yes, they’re on their way.” It took an incredibly long time for someone to come and help, and then an apology wasn’t forthcoming either. When I spoke to management they weren’t particularly helpful either. So I was somewhat unhappy with how that went. And then this trip — yeah, housekeeping and public-area cleanliness has been poor. That’s a shame for a resort that otherwise should be excellent.
So, is it a stay or is it a stay away? Well, I’m going to give you a conditional response to that. Listen, if you’re here and like me you’re going to be in the parks from essentially rope drop until they close, then Cabana Bay is a great place to lay your head down and you get that early access. You get the best price point for the early access to the Universal parks, which is really valuable, and walking access into Volcano Bay, which is arguably the best water park in Florida now. So yeah, if you’re doing that, it’s a stay. It’s great value, even with price rises that have happened over the years.
But if you’re here to spend a lot of time in the resort, use the amenities, then maybe go and stay somewhere else, because they really have dropped the ball with housekeeping, with maintenance, with looking after their guests, the food is poor, etc. etc. I have been disappointed once again, and I leave disappointed. I’m leaving disappointed this time and left disappointed last time. That’s not great for a resort to have people leaving. I’m an incredibly patient guest. I’m willing to give way on lots of things, but when you struggle to complain, when complaints aren’t dealt with, you really can’t forgive that. So, if you’re here for a great resort experience, it’s a stay away from me at Cabana Bay in Orlando, Florida. Until next time.