Cabana Bay Beach Resort

[MrRoamer]

We were going to stay out there last Saturday, when we finally decided we were going to that morning we called to make a reservation and they were completely booked.

 

[TylerDurden]

We were going to stay out there last Saturday, when we finally decided we were going to that morning we called to make a reservation and they were completely booked.

Wow, thats great. Its good to see that even without Express the demand to stay on-site is there. I wonder if this took a chunk out of Disneys hotel occupancy or not.

 

[MrRoamer]

Wow, thats great. Its good to see that even without Express the demand to stay on-site is there. I wonder if this took a chunk out of Disneys hotel occupancy or not.

Well in fairness I don't think the other resorts were at full occupancy but the price jump was considerable for what we were looking for. $109 for the Cabana Bay, $254 (I think) for Royal Pacific and then up at the others.

 

[TylerDurden]

Well in fairness I don't think the other resorts were at full occupancy but the price jump was considerable for what we were looking for. $109 for the Cabana Bay, $254 (I think) for Royal Pacific and then up at the others.

Really? I would think the deluxes would sell out first...Express pass in the summer is a huge perk. I guess Universal and Loews were targeting the wrong demographic this whole time.

 

[Mad Dog]

Wow, thats great. Its good to see that even without Express the demand to stay on-site is there. I wonder if this took a chunk out of Disneys hotel occupancy or not.

Spirit on WDW Magic has been saying that WDW hotel " occupancy percentage" is down this summer even though they've removed a large number of rooms for refurbishing and DVC conversion. He said most of the Disney Deluxe's occupancy rates have been around 60%. And that the new suites at Disney Animation (Value resort) are not doing well....(On your other post)Your demographic comment is a good point. That's probably one reason we're seeing the new hotels as value/moderates. Universal is probably aiming to take the business away from the Universal Blvd. off site hotels for the value tourist plus keep the guests in their parks longer.

 

[Shucker]

Really? I would think the deluxes would sell out first...Express pass in the summer is a huge perk. I guess Universal and Loews were targeting the wrong demographic this whole time.

I have had two sets of friends that were going down that did not know the Loews resorts had the express pass included. Their fault for not researching, but I got them to stay at Royal Pacific and Hard Rock over CB since they both had children going with them. They are going end of this month, so the express was pretty much a must for them.

That being said, in slower months, I would absolutely recommend CB. Stayed there a few nights and was very impressed with whole complex.

 

[JungleSkip]

Really? I would think the deluxes would sell out first...Express pass in the summer is a huge perk. I guess Universal and Loews were targeting the wrong demographic this whole time.

The deluxes are pushing the amount people can afford. They're doing fine from what I understand, but they're never going to outdraw a more affordable alternative, Express or no Express. There's a reason the next 3 hotels will be closer to Cabana Beach pricing than deluxe pricing.

Spirit on WDW Magic has been saying that WDW hotel " occupancy percentage" is down this summer even though they've removed a large number of rooms for refurbishing and DVC conversion. He said most of the Disney Deluxe's occupancy rates have been around 60%. And that the new suites at Disney Animation (Value resort) are not doing well....(On your other post)Your demographic comment is a good point. That's probably one reason we're seeing the new hotels as value/moderates. Universal is probably aiming to take the business away from the Universal Blvd. off site hotels for the value tourist plus keep the guests in their parks longer.

Disney's occupancy has been hurting for years, not just this summer. They need to figure out how to lower their prices.

 

[TylerDurden]

The deluxes are pushing the amount people can afford. They're doing fine from what I understand, but they're never going to outdraw a more affordable alternative, Express or no Express. There's a reason the next 3 hotels will be closer to Cabana Beach pricing than deluxe pricing.

My thinking was that with the several cheap hotels very close to Universal, Cabana Bay would be a tougher sell...if I had $100 to spend on one night, would I spend it all at CB and have the only perk being good theme and one hour early entry? Or spend a little less with the only downside being no early entry? The deluxes worked because they are the nicest alternative in the area AND come with the boats, Express, etc.

I guess people care more about theming and early entry than I had thought, though. I have only stayed at Portofino (and Hard Rock I think once or twice), so Im looking forward to maybe booking a room during off-season at Cabana Bay to see what Universal was able to do with a cheaper hotel.

 

[JungleSkip]

My thinking was that with the several cheap hotels very close to Universal, Cabana Bay would be a tougher sell...if I had $100 to spend on one night, would I spend it all at CB and have the only perk being good theme and one hour early entry? Or spend a little less with the only downside being no early entry? The deluxes worked because they are the nicest alternative in the area AND come with the boats, Express, etc.

I guess people care more about theming and early entry than I had thought, though. I have only stayed at Portofino (and Hard Rock I think once or twice), so Im looking forward to maybe booking a room during off-season at Cabana Bay to see what Universal was able to do with a cheaper hotel.

I think the benefit of not having to drive/park is a big deal too, epsecially for the tour groups. They can get bussed in, dropped off, and never have to worry about leaving the property

 

[UK-Trigg]

I have always stayed a few days onsite except last year, I went for value on IDrive thinking I would save some cash. Never again.

The hotel was within walking distance (25mins)and cost $60 a night, and it was awful. The first room was damp and stunk and the second was not much better. I vowed never to go cheap and cheerful again as my stay was far less than cheerful and put me on a real downer.

Sure the buses, The boats, location, express, and early hours entry are all big pulls for staying onsite but the biggest thing for me, especially after last year, is that you know you will get quality for your money. This time I am staying at CBBR resort for only $29 a night more than I paid in that hell hole and that $29 gives me 1hour EPA the luxury of being able to get the bus home, a nice pool and above all, peace of mind that I will enjoy my stay and feel comfortable as well as safe. This would mean even more to me if I had family with me.

Now that is $29 a day well spent.

 

[MrRoamer]

I have always stayed a few days onsite except last year, I went for value on IDrive thinking I would save some cash. Never again.

The hotel was within walking distance (25mins)and cost $60 a night, and it was awful. The first room was damp and stunk and the second was not much better. I vowed never to go cheap and cheerful again as my stay was far less than cheerful and put me on a real downer.

Sure the buses, The boats, location, express, and early hours entry are all big pulls for staying onsite but the biggest thing for me, especially after last year, is that you know you will get quality for your money. This time I am staying at CBBR resort for only $29 a night more than I paid in that hell hole and that $29 gives me 1hour EPA the luxury of being able to get the bus home, a nice pool and above all, peace of mind that I will enjoy my stay and feel comfortable as well as safe. This would mean even more to me if I had family with me.

Now that is $29 a day well spent.

I had a very similar experience last year when we decided to try to save some money staying off site a few times during HHN. Double Tree is pretty nice, cabs are reasonably priced and quick to pick up drop off, and the rooms were good.

Hilton Garden Inn on the other side was a train wreck. Rooms were dank and uncomfortable, I4 could easily be heard, and there is no way I would even try that walk on an HHN night with the crowd and walking across I-4. The only other option was to take a taxi which I believe either ripped us off or is a rip off with a $20 fare I think and took about 20 minutes to come pick us up.

My basic thought is that if I am going to be staying multiple days RP, HR, or PR are a definite because of the Express and Water Taxis. If it is only for a single night I'll most likely go CB.

 

[TylerDurden]

I had no idea these hotels were so terrible

 

[jh32488]

My basic thought is that if I am going to be staying multiple days RP, HR, or PR are a definite because of the Express and Water Taxis. If it is only for a single night I'll most likely go CB.

I thought the same thing. Then decided against it and will be staying one night at PR.

The way I see it with my discount one night at CB is $122.63 and one night at PR is $274.50 those include tax. The difference is $151.87.

I'm going with my girlfriend and we split it all in half. So its going to cost me $75 more to stay at PR.

For that $75 I get two days of unlimited express on saturday (August 2) and sunday (August 3) during the summer. (on top of staying at one of the "Deluxe" hotels).

If you were to buy express for one person it would cost more than that just for one of those days and thats not unlimited. buying express for two people both days would cost me MORE than the hotel stay.

Also let it be known i LOVE CB and have already stayed there twice and will be there for 7 nights for HHN.

 

[Miketheboss]

I have always stayed a few days onsite except last year, I went for value on IDrive thinking I would save some cash. Never again.

The hotel was within walking distance (25mins)and cost $60 a night, and it was awful. The first room was damp and stunk and the second was not much better. I vowed never to go cheap and cheerful again as my stay was far less than cheerful and put me on a real downer.

Sure the buses, The boats, location, express, and early hours entry are all big pulls for staying onsite but the biggest thing for me, especially after last year, is that you know you will get quality for your money. This time I am staying at CBBR resort for only $29 a night more than I paid in that hell hole and that $29 gives me 1hour EPA the luxury of being able to get the bus home, a nice pool and above all, peace of mind that I will enjoy my stay and feel comfortable as well as safe. This would mean even more to me if I had family with me.

Now that is $29 a day well spent.

What were you expecting for a $60 a night hotel? I just checked and for August, it is $160 a night for CB.

 

[Hockeyman55]

Curious to hear HTF's review now on this resort. For those of you who follow him on Twitter you might have an idea

 

[Zombie-C]

I'm sure he will give it two middle fingers up!

 

[UK-Trigg]

What were you expecting for a $60 a night hotel? I just checked and for August, it is $160 a night for CB.

I wasn't expecting a great deal to be fair, I knew it was cheap so expectations were indeed low.What I didn't expect and shouldn't have gotten were rooms that smelt of urine, the first one was so bad it took your breath away. Dangerous furniture, cupboards and wardrobes with split wood leaving sharp edges not to mention nails sticking out. Dirty tired old bedding and linen that belonged in the bin. The place should have been closed down never mind been allowed to charge 60 a night. Oh and the rude unpleasant unhelpful staff, like I said though, lesion learnt.

For the record, I am checking into CBBR on 23rd Sept for 5 nights for a cost of just under $450.

 

[UNIrd]

Curious to hear HTF's review now on this resort. For those of you who follow him on Twitter you might have an idea

What happened?

Nvm. I just saw. Wow, horrible. I've stayed there 3 times already and never had less than a perfect stay.

 

[MrRoamer]

I've heard stories of bed bugs, ants, and other friendly insects roaming the area but after staying there twice never saw anything. We did have some mishaps with not having any towels but that was somewhat quickly remedied. I hate to see them getting bad press so soon in the game, hopefully they can figure out where the problems are originating and bring up their public image quickly.

 

[Hockeyman55]

I've heard stories of bed bugs, ants, and other friendly insects roaming the area but after staying there twice never saw anything. We did have some mishaps with not having any towels but that was somewhat quickly remedied. I hate to see them getting bad press so soon in the game, hopefully they can figure out where the problems are originating and bring up their public image quickly.

I think those types of issues can and do happen in many other major travel destinations, heck I read an article a few years back about the Poly having an issue with bed bugs.