VOLCANO BAY.....INFO AND QUESTION THREAD........

[Princess Merida]

Merida, from my research there are only 2 clusters with elevators, if you need that. They are cabana 13 and 14 which are in the River Village, it looks like between Whakawaiwai Eats and the Hona ika Moana. There are others that have ramps but those seem to be the only ones with elevators. I hope that helps a little!

I hope some will chime in if they've been there recently and let us know how early to get there and if it is truly first-come, first pick your cabana or if they just assign you a cabana ahead of time and you get what you get.

Thanks for the information! We do not need an elevator so I assume we won’t be in those. I will be there at the end of next week and will report back after my trip to let you all know how it goes for us.

 

[DISNEY FIX]

Am I correct in that the only way to get to VB from RPR is via resort shuttle? If so, how soon before park opening do they start running?

If we plan to take advantage of early admission at 9:30am, what time should we plan on catching the shuttle?

Interested as well...not doing any special seating...is it a problem to leave some stuff at ya chairs? Is theft a big issue? Thanks.

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

Anyone know how they are doing cabanas now that they've reopened? We are looking to go when we stay at universal later this year and we love renting cabanas or chair space. We have never been to Volcano Bay but have been to UOR

 

[sandam1]

Interested as well...not doing any special seating...is it a problem to leave some stuff at ya chairs? Is theft a big issue? Thanks.

Although admittedly we only do VB in short spurts (we stay at Cabana Bay so it's very easy to head over for 2-3 hours), we have never had an issue just leaving our stuff on a chair. BUT I also never take anything that I would be devastated to lose either - which means my phone gets left in the hotel room. My bag contains a towel, sunscreen, some water, and some snacks. I have a waterproof case that I wear around my neck that holds my room key, my ticket, a credit card and a little bit of cash. I suppose if I wanted to take my phone, I could get a bigger one that holds a phone too, but I can live without my phone for a few hours.

 

[DISNEY FIX]

Although admittedly we only do VB in short spurts (we stay at Cabana Bay so it's very easy to head over for 2-3 hours), we have never had an issue just leaving our stuff on a chair. BUT I also never take anything that I would be devastated to lose either - which means my phone gets left in the hotel room. My bag contains a towel, sunscreen, some water, and some snacks. I have a waterproof case that I wear around my neck that holds my room key, my ticket, a credit card and a little bit of cash. I suppose if I wanted to take my phone, I could get a bigger one that holds a phone too, but I can live without my phone for a few hours.

Perfect thank you...we leave stuff by chairs at bliz beach and typhoon lagoon..hoped it was no diff. We generally hit those parks for a few hours as well. Thanks! Is there a bag check on way in to vb? We've done the clear bag thing at bliz beach and get waved right by.

 

[sandam1]

Is there a bag check on way in to vb? We've done the clear bag thing at bliz beach and get waved right by.

Yes, there is a bag check. However, like the main entrance to Universal at City Walk, you just put your bag on a conveyor belt and it goes through a machine just like at the airports and you walk through a metal detector. Very quick and very simple!

 

[Mr. Drauer]

Anyone know how they are doing cabanas now that they've reopened? We are looking to go when we stay at universal later this year and we love renting cabanas or chair space. We have never been to Volcano Bay but have been to UOR

Cabanas have been available to rent since they reopened. You check in, are taken to your cabana, have the ins and outs explained, meet your server, and go about your day.

 

[TheGatekeeper]

I have a question about the current cabana policies at VB. I have reserved an Upper Level cabana for early April. My research (here and on youtube) stated that you should request the zone you want to be in when you reserve the cabana. I was told by the Universal staff member who booked the cabana that I am not allowed to request zones anymore and the policy has changed. It will be first-come, first-served the day of my rental. Does anyone have experience with this? I ask because I know my son will spend 99% of the day at the wave pool and I'm spending over $400 for the cabana and if it ends up being on the other side of the park, it will be a huge bummer.

Right now, my plan is to be outside the park entrance 90 minutes before early entrance (staying onsite) to try to get a Wave Pool cabana. If anyone has any experience on recently renting a cabana please share any advice and thank you very much!!

I was there earlier this month. I gave the number of 2 cabanas (asked for one or the other) that I preferred and was told that the cabanas were pre-assigned. I did not get anywhere near either cabana I requested. We still enjoyed our day very much.

 

[TheGatekeeper]

I'd like to know how they are handling the raft rides and water coaster. Before they combined groups to meet minimum weight. Heard they didn't do that during covid operations. Makes a difference for which AP I get since myself and DD12 probably wouldn't meet minimum if they don't combine.

When we were there in March they were not combining groups automatically but the couple in front of us didn't make the combined weight requirement. The lifeguards asked if we would be willing to ride with them. Of course we said yes.

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

Cabanas have been available to rent since they reopened. You check in, are taken to your cabana, have the ins and outs explained, meet your server, and go about your day.

Awesome-is there a chair reservation policy or smaller area to rent instead of a cabana or no? We aren't a lot of people and don't require something big but still want some peace of mind.

 

[StefBar]

I was there earlier this month. I gave the number of 2 cabanas (asked for one or the other) that I preferred and was told that the cabanas were pre-assigned. I did not get anywhere near either cabana I requested. We still enjoyed our day very much.

Thank you for sharing your experience. Were you allowed to request a section when you booked your cabana over the phone? I was also thinking cabanas would be pre-assigned because on youtube videos I have watched they arrive at the cabana and there is a welcome sign outside the cabana with their name on it so getting there and picking one didn't make a lot of sense. Thanks for your help!!

 

[soniam]

Awesome-is there a chair reservation policy or smaller area to rent instead of a cabana or no? We aren't a lot of people and don't require something big but still want some peace of mind.

You can only reserve/rent premium loungers. They have 2 loungers, a lockbox, and a partial cover. You can rent them ahead of time. I don’t know what day-of availability is like. They will try to rent you enough loungers for your party. For instance, there are 3 of us, and they always try to get me to rent 2 pairs. Rarely are all 3 of us there. I just rent 1 pair.

 

[becauseimnew]

You can only reserve/rent premium loungers. They have 2 loungers, a lockbox, and a partial cover. You can rent them ahead of time. I don’t know what day-of availability is like. They will try to rent you enough loungers for your party. For instance, there are 3 of us, and they always try to get me to rent 2 pairs. Rarely are all 3 of us there. I just rent 1 pair.

I was told that the max people at a pair of loungers is 4... I only reserved one pair for our family of 4.

 

[LORIANN]

Im headed to Volcano Bay in April, haven't been there in 3 years. Ive booked a Cabana and my only option was a first level one, no standalone ( Private) ones were available. Does anyone know of a Map that shows which cabanas are the 2 story ones?

 

[TheGatekeeper]

Thank you for sharing your experience. Were you allowed to request a section when you booked your cabana over the phone? I was also thinking cabanas would be pre-assigned because on youtube videos I have watched they arrive at the cabana and there is a welcome sign outside the cabana with their name on it so getting there and picking one didn't make a lot of sense. Thanks for your help!!

I think it's worth a try to request an area while reserving! Last summer after we returned home from renting one I received a survey about our cabana experience. I did write that I thought that some cabanas were in obviously more desirable areas and that they should charge more for those, and/or let people request at booking.

 

[Claudia1]

I'm trying to work out details for a 16 member family day trip to VB from WDW. I've booked a family cabana (one of the two large ones that holds 16) and already have our tickets. Our number includes a 1 yr old and a 2 yr old. 6 of us have seasonal Universal APs but we are going during a blackout period and the rest have never been.

1) Do we get early entry with the cabana? How early?
2) Is the VB transportation drop-off very far to the entrance? We have a couple of family members that usually use scooters in the parks but won't be taking them. We will use Mears or Tiffany (if available).
3) Are strollers allowed in VB? The would be good for naps.

 

[drjackal31]

Quick question, which has probably been answered somewhere but there are too many pages to go through. Are you allowed to bring anything on the slides with you? Like if I have a waterproof phone case (IE lanyard pouch kind)? Or to at least have my ID/a mask in a baggie if we want to go get an adult beverage.

 

[TreeFalls]

Quick question, which has probably been answered somewhere but there are too many pages to go through. Are you allowed to bring anything on the slides with you? Like if I have a waterproof phone case (IE lanyard pouch kind)? Or to at least have my ID/a mask in a baggie if we want to go get an adult beverage.

You can get away with a small waterproof bag with park tickets, mask and ID, but make sure you secure it well, my husband had ours in a velcro pocket and nearly lost it in the lazy River. I saw people with waterproof phone cases in the rivers, but I'm not sure if they are allowed on slides. We didn't bring our phones at all because we didn't want to get a locker.

 

[LORIANN]

Im staying offsite, is parking at the parks and then taking the bus the only way to get to Volcano Bay? Does Uber/Lyft drop off right in front? Looking for the best solution

 

[Sehsun]

Im staying offsite, is parking at the parks and then taking the bus the only way to get to Volcano Bay? Does Uber/Lyft drop off right in front? Looking for the best solution

Yes, if staying offsite, you will park at the parking garage at CityWalk and bus over.

If you take Uber/Lyft, they will still drop you off at the parking garage and you will have to bus over. Unfortunately, they cannot drop you off at the front of the park (only for Universal buses).