Cabana Bay or Royal Pacific for first onsite stay?

SnowWhiteOz · Oct 2, 2015

Hi all,

I'm planning a visit to universal in October next year after an awesome trip this year. However this time I want to stay onsite. I will be travelling by myself.

In pricing it out I can do a 3 night stay at Royal Pacific with 3 day park to park tickets for $1065. Or I can do 3 nights at Cabana Bay with 3 day park to park adding on unlimited express pass for $831.

I will be spending at least one afternoon at the resort while I'm there (probably the first day). I would prefer a quieter hotel (especially at night as I'm a light sleeper) and have heard that Cabana Bay is really noisy.

Is it worth the extra $220 to upgrade to Royal Pacific for a first time stay? Or is it just a noisy?

I'd appreciate everyone's opinion especially those who have stayed at both.

Thanks :goodvibes

bas71873 · Oct 2, 2015

I've never stayed at either. We love HRH and stay there, but, I personally would stay at RPR just for the FOTL pass along. Especially in October when US/IOA is busy for HHN.

macraven · Oct 2, 2015

Stay at rpr
Well worth it

sk8jdgca · Oct 2, 2015

Since you are going by yourself, you can use the single rider lanes on the big rides, so no real need for Express pass. I'd go for the cheaper room and spend the savings on a nice spa day or other fun treat for you ( whatever rocks your boat!). Cabana Bay looks fun. As a single eater, I'd rather be in a caffateria setting then fine dining.

wdwfan51 · Oct 2, 2015

My husband and I just returned from 5 nights at Cabana Bay. Sept 16/21. Crowds were light so longs weren't too long, but FOTL passes would have been nice for a few rides. HHN may make for longer lines in October though, I'm not sure. As for noise levels at Cabana Bay we really weren't disturbed by any and we had a family of 6 next door to us for several days. We also really did enjoy the food court. Food was well priced and very good. They even have a salad bar I believe, but healthy eating on vacation isn't much fun for me. Busses were timely and staff was great. Next visit in Jan will be seven days for us split between Royal Pacific and Cabana Bay so we can try the FOTL passes. Maybe you could do a split stay one night deluxe, getting FOTL for check in and out day, in case of longer lines then do Cabana Bay.

HM · Oct 2, 2015

SnowWhiteOz said:
Hi all,

I'm planning a visit to universal in October next year after an awesome trip this year. However this time I want to stay onsite. I will be travelling by myself.

In pricing it out I can do a 3 night stay at Royal Pacific with 3 day park to park tickets for $1065. Or I can do 3 nights at Cabana Bay with 3 day park to park adding on unlimited express pass for $831.

I will be spending at least one afternoon at the resort while I'm there (probably the first day). I would prefer a quieter hotel (especially at night as I'm a light sleeper) and have heard that Cabana Bay is really noisy.

Is it worth the extra $220 to upgrade to Royal Pacific for a first time stay? Or is it just a noisy?

I'd appreciate everyone's opinion especially those who have stayed at both.

Thanks

We heard no one in our room at Cabana Bay. (we were toward the end of a hall)
We had a family who sent their kids out into the hallway first thing in the morning at RPR.....when they continued to play around loudly, I had to get up and open the door to ask them to be quiet since some people were still sleeping.

At both resorts we did EE and mornings in the park, afternoons at the pool, and then evenings in the parks again. At CB, we did not have EP and did just fine with lines at those times of day (we skipped the three roller coasters).

If I were you, I'd do CB and try doing without EP the first day and see how it goes. If you find you need it, buy for the next days. Don't get it ahead of time. You'll save yourself a lot of money.

SnowWhiteOz · Oct 3, 2015

Thank your all for your advice and input! Not sure if I've made up my mind yet but I've loved hearing all your tips and experiences :goodvibes

pcstang · Oct 3, 2015

My vote is for RPR also. We did a split stay once with CB being our non park days. The kids had a great time and it really is a fun and nice property. However, I heard kids running up and down the halls all night. It didn't bother me, just my experience. You said you wanted a peaceful day at the pool and RPR is definitely more peaceful in my opinion. Plus, overall it is a beautiful resort! Just my .02!

GaryDis · Oct 5, 2015

bas71873 said:
I personally would stay at RPR just for the FOTL pass along

The OP factored in the cost of an a la carte Universal Express Unlimited pass (aka FOTL), and it still came out cheaper to do Cabana Bay even with the extra expense, largely because it's just one person.

I don't mean to pick on you. It's just that the free UEU pass at the higher end resorts gets mentioned so often that it's easy for people to miss that anyone can buy the pass (even staying off-site), and that they have to do the math. Four people in a room will likely save by going to a higher end hotel, one person probably won't, two or three definitely need to do the math. And if you're planning a week-long stay, it's unlikely you'll need a week-long UEU pass, so the cheaper hotels win on total cost.

The OP has a good handle on the cost difference, so this is really for the benefit of other readers of this thread.

schumigirl · Oct 7, 2015

No question........Royal Pacific........

Grumpy92 · Oct 9, 2015

The good thing is that no matter which resort you stay at you can use the pools at the other resorts as well.
We have stayed at RPH and CBBR. Loved RPH and did not want to book CBBR but family really wanted to stay there. Have to say I don't know if I will go back to RPH. Loved the pool area and just thought the whole resort was relaxing.

HerRoyalHighness · Oct 13, 2015

If you want a deluxe, book what you want and just keep checking prices. I had us at the Hard Rock for a few days next week, but yesterday something popped up at Royal Pacific for $200 less than what we had, so I switched the reservation. We're 2 adults/2 juniors, so different situation, but I don't think it was the tickets that dropped in price.

kbelle8995 · Oct 13, 2015

I have stayed both at CBBR and RPH. They are both very nice. CBBR is not too noisy. If you want a quieter room, stay in a tower room. Much more quiet with indoor corridors.

I would be tempted to just stay at CBBR. It seems like from your calculations even with Express pass you save some money. You can also always use the single rider entrance.

SnowWhiteOz · Oct 13, 2015

pcstang said:
My vote is for RPR also. We did a split stay once with CB being our non park days. The kids had a great time and it really is a fun and nice property. However, I heard kids running up and down the halls all night. It didn't bother me, just my experience. You said you wanted a peaceful day at the pool and RPR is definitely more peaceful in my opinion. Plus, overall it is a beautiful resort! Just my .02!

GaryDis said:
The OP factored in the cost of an a la carte Universal Express Unlimited pass (aka FOTL), and it still came out cheaper to do Cabana Bay even with the extra expense, largely because it's just one person.

I don't mean to pick on you. It's just that the free UEU pass at the higher end resorts gets mentioned so often that it's easy for people to miss that anyone can buy the pass (even staying off-site), and that they have to do the math. Four people in a room will likely save by going to a higher end hotel, one person probably won't, two or three definitely need to do the math. And if you're planning a week-long stay, it's unlikely you'll need a week-long UEU pass, so the cheaper hotels win on total cost.

The OP has a good handle on the cost difference, so this is really for the benefit of other readers of this thread.

schumigirl said:
No question........Royal Pacific........

Grumpy92 said:
The good thing is that no matter which resort you stay at you can use the pools at the other resorts as well.
We have stayed at RPH and CBBR. Loved RPH and did not want to book CBBR but family really wanted to stay there. Have to say I don't know if I will go back to RPH. Loved the pool area and just thought the whole resort was relaxing.

HerRoyalHighness said:
If you want a deluxe, book what you want and just keep checking prices. I had us at the Hard Rock for a few days next week, but yesterday something popped up at Royal Pacific for $200 less than what we had, so I switched the reservation. We're 2 adults/2 juniors, so different situation, but I don't think it was the tickets that dropped in price.

kbelle8995 said:
I have stayed both at CBBR and RPH. They are both very nice. CBBR is not too noisy. If you want a quieter room, stay in a tower room. Much more quiet with indoor corridors.

I would be tempted to just stay at CBBR. It seems like from your calculations even with Express pass you save some money. You can also always use the single rider entrance.

Thank you all for your feedback and suggestions. I've decided to go with RPR for now - this is a trip for my 30th birthday so I decided to go for the deluxe option where possible to treat myself!

I'll definitely keep an eye on prices and see if I can get the package any cheaper than what I've locked in. And hopefully my TA does the same

pcstang · Oct 14, 2015

Excellent choice! Have a great and relaxing trip!

kbelle8995 · Oct 14, 2015

SnowWhiteOz said:
Thank you all for your feedback and suggestions. I've decided to go with RPR for now - this is a trip for my 30th birthday so I decided to go for the deluxe option where possible to treat myself!

I'll definitely keep an eye on prices and see if I can get the package any cheaper than what I've locked in. And hopefully my TA does the same

Have a wonderful time and Have a Happy Birthday.

Cabana Bay or Royal Pacific for first onsite stay?

SnowWhiteOz

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bas71873

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macraven

Proud Redhead

sk8jdgca

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wdwfan51

Mouseketeer

HM

My tag from the Tag Fairy is now too long to use.

SnowWhiteOz

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pcstang

Always Universal Orlando bound!

GaryDis

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schumigirl

It's a bit of a roodie doodie word for lady parts

Grumpy92

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HerRoyalHighness

Mouseketeer

kbelle8995

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SnowWhiteOz

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pcstang

Always Universal Orlando bound!

kbelle8995

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