Cabana Bay Comfortable for 5? Really????

[choppee]

so i have the thought of staying on universal's resort for our family's first trip to the darkside next year. because we are considered a 'large' family of five, our choices are somewhat limited. we could rent two connecting rooms, but the cost is somewhat prohibitive. we could stay off-site, but then we loose the early entry and the freedom of close proximity. so if we were to stay in the cabana bay family suite, perhaps we could make that work. however! when i look at the suites, the two queen beds are in the back part of the room, leaving the sofa bed in the front. what separates them is a partition that you can close for (semi) privacy. my question is, how comfortable would we REALLY be? my hubby and i would want to have some privacy, and sleeping on sofa beds are, well, uncomfortable to say the least! but if it's not us on the sofa beds, then we are still sleeping with the kiddos in the back! and really, will we get claustrophobic after seven days? i have a sneaking suspicion that we will, but i'm not sure. any advice from someone who has stayed and can give some advice? thanks!

 

[macraven]

so i have the thought of staying on universal's resort for our family's first trip to the darkside next year. because we are considered a 'large' family of five, our choices are somewhat limited. we could rent two connecting rooms, but the cost is somewhat prohibitive. we could stay off-site, but then we loose the early entry and the freedom of close proximity. so if we were to stay in the cabana bay family suite, perhaps we could make that work. however! when i look at the suites, the two queen beds are in the back part of the room, leaving the sofa bed in the front. what separates them is a partition that you can close for (semi) privacy. my question is, how comfortable would we REALLY be? my hubby and i would want to have some privacy, and sleeping on sofa beds are, well, uncomfortable to say the least! but if it's not us on the sofa beds, then we are still sleeping with the kiddos in the back! and really, will we get claustrophobic after seven days? i have a sneaking suspicion that we will, but i'm not sure. any advice from someone who has stayed and can give some advice? thanks!

the 3 deluxe hotels allow 5 in a room.
quite a few peeps bring along an air mattress to make a pallet on the floor for the 5th child.
housekeeping will provide linens, sheets, blankets, pillows, etc for making a bed/pallet in the room for the 5th person.

 

[damo]

The sofa bed in the family suite was more comfortable than the sofa beds at the deluxe hotels BUT it was still very thin and I don't think 2 adults would want to sleep on it.

The only thing I can think of that actually will give you some privacy if you don't want to be in the same room as the kids at night would be a family suite at Portofino or Royal Pacific. It is a very pricey option for privacy, though.

We found the family suites at Cabana Bay to be plenty big for 5 people...we had 3 adults, one child and a baby in a crib. However, privacy wasn't a concern for us. I'd have no issue staying in one for 7 days.

One of the things we thought was neat about Cabana Bay is that they had these large, open, unfurnished, carpetted areas on each floor. The little guy with us thought it was great fun to just run around there and it would be a fun place for kids to play for a while getting them out of the room. You'd have to supervise them, of course, but it was a space that doesn't exist in the other hotels.

 

[choppee]

the 3 deluxe hotels allow 5 in a room.
quite a few peeps bring along an air mattress to make a pallet on the floor for the 5th child.
housekeeping will provide linens, sheets, blankets, pillows, etc for making a bed/pallet in the room for the 5th person.

hmmmm.....we do have an air mattress, and could easily purchase a second if ever we wanted to have the kids all sleep in the front. not a bad idea at all with all that extra space!

The sofa bed in the family suite was more comfortable than the sofa beds at the deluxe hotels BUT it was still very thin and I don't think 2 adults would want to sleep on it.

The only thing I can think of that actually will give you some privacy if you don't want to be in the same room as the kids at night would be a family suite at Portofino or Royal Pacific. It is a very pricey option for privacy, though.

We found the family suites at Cabana Bay to be plenty big for 5 people...we had 3 adults, one child and a baby in a crib. However, privacy wasn't a concern for us. I'd have no issue staying in one for 7 days.

One of the things we thought was neat about Cabana Bay is that they had these large, open, unfurnished, carpetted areas on each floor. The little guy with us thought it was great fun to just run around there and it would be a fun place for kids to play for a while getting them out of the room. You'd have to supervise them, of course, but it was a space that doesn't exist in the other hotels.

i do like the idea of that extra open space in the front. seems like it would be an excellent chance to spread out! we have what will be during our trip a 9 yr old, 10 yr old and a 12 yr old, all with LONG legs (they get it from my hubby, not me!) and i think it would make for a really comfortable space overall if we could make it work! thanks to you both!

now, i would like to know if anyone would be willing to post some pix of the cabana bay family room? not the sanitized pix from the website, but for real, actual pix with people and their stuff! it helps to see it all in context. i know it's a bit of a stretch for me to ask, but i like to see it all with real people, you know?

 

[damo]

I find that looking at guest photos on tripadvisor is a great way to see real photos. Here is the link to the Cabana Bay photo album from tripadvisor.

http://www.tripadvisor.ca/Hotel_Rev..._Bay_Beach_Resort-Orlando_Florida.html#photos

One other bit of information....you can get adjoining family suites. Not sure when you are going but since you are going for 7 days, you obviously will be getting annual passes. Make sure you watch for annual pass deals by entering the code APH into the code box when you check for your rates. We got our pool view suite for just over $100/night in September.

 

[disneyhottie]

We paid $79.00 per night for a Family Poolside suite at the end of may(booked in Feb. when 1st bookings were open)we were 2 adults and 2 seventeen year old girls. My Husband got a bad cold while we were there and got put out to the sofa bed The only thing that we didn't like was the bathroom accommodations. It did not feel like you had any privacy. We liked the kitchenette area..anyone driving could save a lot of money, if they brought their own food. We had a microwave, coffee maker, mini fridge, they also provided all plates and utensils.And lots of cabinet space for storage. The sitting area was nice...I like to have somewhere to sit besides the bed!

 

[damo]

We paid $79.00 per night for a Family Poolside suite at the end of may(booked in Feb. when 1st bookings were open)we were 2 adults and 2 seventeen year old girls. My Husband got a bad cold while we were there and got put out to the sofa bed The only thing that we didn't like was the bathroom accommodations. It did not feel like you had any privacy. We liked the kitchenette area..anyone driving could save a lot of money, if they brought their own food. We had a microwave, coffee maker, mini fridge, they also provided all plates and utensils.And lots of cabinet space for storage. The sitting area was nice...I like to have somewhere to sit besides the bed!

We were given a handicap accessible family suite. There was just one door and everything (shower, sink, toilet) was in one big room. That might be something that your husband prefers.

 

[cgattis]

WRT the air mattress in a regular room....this is what we did in October. Two adults, three kids. Smallest kid got an air mattress between the bed and window. Worked perfect for two commando days. Seven, though--we couldn't have made it. Just TOO much togetherness! (We've actually been spoiled now by the two bathrooms at AoA!!!!)

 

[glocon]

If privacy is your main concern, a regular room will not give you that. The deluxe resorts have "kid suites" where you walk into a room with the bathroom, king size bed, table with chairs and a sofa. Then there is the "kid suite" part of the room where you can access the room for the kids which has two twin size beds, desk and dresser, and their own tv. For safety, you can only access the exit door to the corridor through the main room, not the kids room.

However, these rooms are pricey, but you can get aph discounts for them (ours was 30%). With the deluxe rooms you also get the unlimited express pass, so that might make it more worth it for you. No kitchen though.

We did both CB and the JP kids suite at RPR on our last trip, and I would for sure pick the RPR room over CB for privacy, comfort, ease of getting to parks (boat) and express pass. But I would pick CB over off-site anytime.

 

[glocon]

Not sure if this was clear- but the large open space to run around is not in the room, it is out by the elevators. There is not a lot of space in the kitchen/tv room area of the family suites. We did have the sofa bed open and a twin size air mattress for the two 18 yo boys in the front, but it was "cozy".

 

[choppee]

I find that looking at guest photos on tripadvisor is a great way to see real photos. Here is the link to the Cabana Bay photo album from tripadvisor.

http://www.tripadvisor.ca/Hotel_Rev..._Bay_Beach_Resort-Orlando_Florida.html#photos

One other bit of information....you can get adjoining family suites. Not sure when you are going but since you are going for 7 days, you obviously will be getting annual passes. Make sure you watch for annual pass deals by entering the code APH into the code box when you check for your rates. We got our pool view suite for just over $100/night in September.

WRT the air mattress in a regular room....this is what we did in October. Two adults, three kids. Smallest kid got an air mattress between the bed and window. Worked perfect for two commando days. Seven, though--we couldn't have made it. Just TOO much togetherness! (We've actually been spoiled now by the two bathrooms at AoA!!!!)

Yeah, as much as I would like to do it, financially having two adjoining family suites would be crazy price-wise. Can't bring myself to do it! And the time we are trying to go is prime--Christmas 2015 for 9 days! I wanted to give ourselves enough time to really enjoy the parks without feeling rushed, and that's also the reason why I want to stay on site, early entry and the included unlimited express pass. As far as being an annual pass holder, it didn't even cross my mind....is this something we should consider? Never have done Universal and am feeling my way around here. Any advice is most welcome! I figured Cabana Bay would be our best bet, with me adding on the unlimited express pass to our txt since its a value and doesn't participate in the complimentary uep . Am I approaching this wrong?

 

[damo]

Yeah, as much as I would like to do it, financially having two adjoining family suites would be crazy price-wise. Can't bring myself to do it! And the time we are trying to go is prime--Christmas 2015 for 9 days! I wanted to give ourselves enough time to really enjoy the parks without feeling rushed, and that's also the reason why I want to stay on site, early entry and the included unlimited express pass. As far as being an annual pass holder, it didn't even cross my mind....is this something we should consider? Never have done Universal and am feeling my way around here. Any advice is most welcome! I figured Cabana Bay would be our best bet, with me adding on the unlimited express pass to our txt since its a value and doesn't participate in the complimentary uep . Am I approaching this wrong?

You are doing it correctly. It is just going to be which is the most economical. With 5 people in the room that you have to purchase the express for, it just may be cheaper to be staying at RPR.