Getting to the parks from Cabana Bay

[plumsiren]

Hi everyone! I suddenly find myself going on a trip to UO with BFF and her girls (10 and 12) but, while I know a ton about WDW, I know...basically nothing about Universal. Researching like crazy and reading on here, of course!

I'm wondering about the experience of people who've stayed at Cabana Bay. I know you can walk over to Sapphire Falls, but is it practical? Do you take the garden walk (we're booking interior family suite so we'll be in the buildings on the other side), or cross the actual street? Given the time it takes to go through SF to their water taxi, and the actual time the water taxi takes, does it make sense to get to the parks that way? How reliable was bus service to/from CB during peak times?

Thank you so much!

ETA: How much is the transportation affected by season? Are there fewer buses/boats during (relatively) slower times like early February?

 

[MrBellatrixLestrange]

Hi everyone! I suddenly find myself going on a trip to UO with BFF and her girls (10 and 12) but, while I know a ton about WDW, I know...basically nothing about Universal. Researching like crazy and reading on here, of course!

I'm wondering about the experience of people who've stayed at Cabana Bay. I know you can walk over to Sapphire Falls, but is it practical? Do you take the garden walk (we're booking interior family suite so we'll be in the buildings on the other side), or cross the actual street? Given the time it takes to go through SF to their water taxi, and the actual time the water taxi takes, does it make sense to get to the parks that way? How reliable was bus service to/from CB during peak times?

Thank you so much!

It's very practical. The garden walk is definitely the safer way to go particularly with kids and they discourage crossing the street though I've never been stopped. I generally prefer to just walk to the City Walk which I think takes a half hour or so but it's a nice walk. That said the boat ride is relaxing so I do that occasionally as well but I'm usually going to the parks at less busy times so I don't know if there's a long line during peak times.

 

[DoryGirl1963]

We've stayed at Cabana Bay several times & always just use their FANTASTIC bus service - it's NOTHING like Disney - they roll those busses continuously !

 

[DizneyFamof4]

We much prefer using the buses over walking. Why do I want to add another 30 minutes of walking to my day

 

[MrBellatrixLestrange]

We much prefer using the buses over walking. Why do I want to add another 30 minutes of walking to my day

That's understandable, I went with a buddy last winter, his first trip there so he was basically following me, I have long legs, he doesn't, he was so exhausted by the end of the trip he told me he couldn't drink a beer, I miss that guy...

 

[cschaaf]

Short version: I'd take the bus.

We've never used transportation from CB to the park, but I'd guess that the bus is the fastest. The shortest path from CB to SF is across several lanes with no cross walk.

The boat is a nicer ride but they come less frequently than the busses. If you just miss a boat, you might wait 10 minutes or so for the next one.

Walk-wise, I'd think the walks would be about the same between the bus and the boats. The bus side, your long walk will be through the security hub and City Walk. For the boat, the long walk will be from CB to the boat. If you're willing to do the Frogger path across the road, you'll save some steps.

Many prefer the security check at the boat doc vs. the check in the security hub (if you take the bus). Our last trip was the first time we did the security hub (our Aventura days) and the other days, we took a boat from Portofino. It's all down to the luck of the timing, but we found we often waited longer at the dock than at the hub.

That said, the hub 'feels' more hectic and it 'feels' like you wait longer. At the dock, it almost doesn't matter how long you wait for the security line - if the boat isn't there, it's no rush.

 

[tony67]

So in my experience at Aventura the buses are really good.

I would usually walk or take the boat from Aventura to the park - find the security less stressful there - but if a bus was waiting sometimes I just jump on and go - its not that bad.
I would really not recommend crossing that street = its pretty iffy IMO
Coming back the bus is much easier - you can wait a couple of boats sometimes to get back and the buses are constant and shared with CB\Aventura - really impressive service

 

[plumsiren]

When we're exhausted after a day at the parks we will definitely be taking the bus back, no question. Maybe we'll do the boat once or twice in the mornings, just for the experience!

 

[Ross Kratter]

The buses are great at Universal. They run much more frequently than Disney buses. Just bear in mind that the buses let you in right before security; it's still quite a walk into the parks from there, through CityWalk.

 

[kristenabelle]

Like previous posters have said, Cabana Bay buses are super frequent and fast. I'd be an even bigger fan if they didn't drop you off at main security for CityWalk, but otherwise they're great.

 

[wdwrule]

Hi everyone! I suddenly find myself going on a trip to UO with BFF and her girls (10 and 12) but, while I know a ton about WDW, I know...basically nothing about Universal. Researching like crazy and reading on here, of course!

I'm wondering about the experience of people who've stayed at Cabana Bay. I know you can walk over to Sapphire Falls, but is it practical? Do you take the garden walk (we're booking interior family suite so we'll be in the buildings on the other side), or cross the actual street? Given the time it takes to go through SF to their water taxi, and the actual time the water taxi takes, does it make sense to get to the parks that way? How reliable was bus service to/from CB during peak times?

Thank you so much!

ETA: How much is the transportation affected by season? Are there fewer buses/boats during (relatively) slower times like early February?

We are big walkers as we prefer to be in control of our own transportation. We stayed at CB in early September and walked to and from each day. Loved the little security check point! We had, at most, one family in front of us at security every time. We timed each walk and averaged 15-20 minutes every time. It’s all in what you prefer though.

 

[SPAM]

I did a mix of both last trip. I liked walking to the parks in the morning, only about a 15-20 min walk and it gave me a chance to bypass the giant security hub for the small security check by Margaritaville. At the end of the day I would take the bus back.

 

[nouvellefleur]

The boat ride is nice, but in the mornings I don't think we ever waited more than 5 minutes for another bus to arrive and usually one would pull up as the other left. Logistically, it really was easiest to take the bus in the morning from CBBR.

 

[cfoxga]

We stayed at CB on our first trip and use both busses and boats. The walk between SF from the far end of CB was rough, especially at the end of a long day. But we loved the boats so much that we dealt with it.

The busses were always available, but it is a long walk from the drop off through the security hub and through CityWalk to get to the parks. That said, it was fine for our first trip and we had a blast. We did have a split stay at DSS last Thanksgiving and the busses were still good then. But I really missed the boats...

 

[AJA]

You can take the boat at SF for a fun experience. Take the garden path walk to cross over the street. It will take longer than the bus though so allow time, or use it in the evening. But like all the pp’s have said the Busses at Universal are nothing like Disney! The bus service is very quick!