A Spirited 15 Rounds ...

[Bocabear]

See, to my kids, the theming at AS Movies blows away the theming in the Universal pic. The way they look at the Andy's Room courtyard is like they've entered kid heaven. They wouldn't be overly impressed by the theming in the above pic of Universal at all. Sure, they'd love the slides and (hopefully - I don't know if they have one) kiddie swim area, but they're big on water play anyway. (Just ask Great Wolf Lodge...hubby and I aren't fans, but they both love it so we're soon going for the second time in less than three months.)

We've stayed at both CBR (pirate room) and AS Movies, and while they loved the main pool and splash area at CBR and could have spent days doing that without even entering the parks, they made sure both my husband and I knew that they missed Movies because of the theming. Personally, I'd rather stay at CBR or Port Orleans because they have theming style I prefer and the convenience of buses...but that's me.

These are just not a good comparison, and if you have been to Volcano Bay, you would see how really beautiful the park is...this picture does not even remotely capture it...it is beautifully themed and richly layered.... All Star Movies is a Motel6 with fiberglass props... If someone was going to make a comparison they should have at least compared hotel to hotel....and while kids may like fiberglass props, the theming at Cabana Bay is really quite well done...certainly more theme and detail than it's Disney counterpart of Caribbean Beach Resort...but there is no real way to compare the hotels since themeing property to property is so very different.... Now if Universal and WDW had hotels with the same theme, it would be a good way to actually compare apples to apples...

 

[Nj4mwc]

Well, they obviously haven't done anything on the scale of Potter. But I think Kong is on the same level of quality as Gringott's. And it has a lot of the exact same issues. Wonky pacing, less than successful screen integration, and an anticlimactic climax. I also think as a whole Fallon is a high quality D Ticket attraction. I truly don't see the popular talking point that unless an outside company holds their hand, Universal fails.

Fallon is a good ride, I didn't like the line experience, it should be explained better, you get your time to come back And you still wait forever, I want to know an estimated amount of Time I'm going to be waiting for the ride virtual line or not. Otherwise good ride

 

[Pixieish]

These are just not a good comparison, and if you have been to Volcano Bay, you would see how really beautiful the park is...this picture does not even remotely capture it...it is beautifully themed and richly layered.... All Star Movies is a Motel6 with fiberglass props... If someone was going to make a comparison they should have at least compared hotel to hotel....and while kids may like fiberglass props, the theming at Cabana Bay is really quite well done...certainly more theme and detail than it's Disney counterpart of Caribbean Beach Resort...but there is no real way to compare the hotels since themeing property to property is so very different.... Now if Universal and WDW had hotels with the same theme, it would be a good way to actually compare apples to apples...

Oh, I agree. But it's also opinion that is all in the eyes of the beholder. I only love AS Movies because my sons do and it's the first Disney resort they ever stayed at - for those reasons, it will always hold a special place in my heart. The last time we actually stayed there, it was in pretty rough shape (black wear streaks in the carpeting and threadbare bedspreads). I'm not saying Volcano Bay isn't beautiful - it truly is, but from the pic, it doesn't seem as immersive as say, Typhoon Lagoon (I hate Blizzard Beach). Also, I will admit that I have a "thing" against colored slides though - I'm an artist and for me the tan ones at Typhoon blend into the background better and it doesn't feel like your typical waterpark. Glaring colors like that just aren't my cup o' tea.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

See, to my kids, the theming at AS Movies blows away the theming in the Universal pic. The way they look at the Andy's Room courtyard is like they've entered kid heaven. They wouldn't be overly impressed by the theming in the above pic of Universal at all. Sure, they'd love the slides and (hopefully - I don't know if they have one) kiddie swim area, but they're big on water play anyway. (Just ask Great Wolf Lodge...hubby and I aren't fans, but they both love it so we're soon going for the second time in less than three months.)

We've stayed at both CBR (pirate room) and AS Movies, and while they loved the main pool and splash area at CBR and could have spent days doing that without even entering the parks, they made sure both my husband and I knew that they missed Movies because of the theming. Personally, I'd rather stay at CBR or Port Orleans because they have theming style I prefer and the convenience of buses...but that's me.

 

[Nj4mwc]

These are just not a good comparison, and if you have been to Volcano Bay, you would see how really beautiful the park is...this picture does not even remotely capture it...it is beautifully themed and richly layered.... All Star Movies is a Motel6 with fiberglass props... If someone was going to make a comparison they should have at least compared hotel to hotel....and while kids may like fiberglass props, the theming at Cabana Bay is really quite well done...certainly more theme and detail than it's Disney counterpart of Caribbean Beach Resort...but there is no real way to compare the hotels since themeing property to property is so very different.... Now if Universal and WDW had hotels with the same theme, it would be a good way to actually compare apples to apples...

I just stayed at cabana bay for 3 nights And then 6 nights at all star movies. A world apart, my kids love the theming of movies but upon entering the room they declared the hotel to be trash compared to Cabana bay

 

[Pixieish]

Thanks for the pics! It is gorgeous!

 

[ford91exploder]

I just stayed at cabana bay for 3 nights And then 6 nights at all star movies. A world apart, my kids love the theming of movies but upon entering the room they declared the hotel to be trash compared to Cabana bay

Cabana bay is themed to a 60's hotel and its spot on right on down to the toiletries provided, Alberto VO5 shampoo i had no idea it was even made any more!!!

The lounge is out of Mad Men

And even with all this its less expensive than Disney's 'value' properties

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Thanks for the pics! It is gorgeous!

Those are just the 2 kids areas. The rest of the park is prettier.

 

[Pixieish]

Cabana bay is themed to a 60's hotel and its spot on right on down to the toiletries provided, Alberto VO5 shampoo i had no idea it was even made any more!!!

The lounge is out of Mad Men

And even with all this its less expensive than Disney's 'value' properties

HAHAHA...VO5...I have some conditioner in my bathroom as a back up in case I run out of the expensive stuff.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Cabana bay is themed to a 60's hotel and its spot on right on down to the toiletries provided, Alberto VO5 shampoo i had no idea it was even made any more!!!

The lounge is out of Mad Men

And even with all this its less expensive than Disney's 'value' properties

They still make the toiletries, but Universal has them packaged in the retro '60s packaging.

As opposed to

 

[Bocabear]

And Cabana Bay was not based on cheap hotels, but the beautiful old mid-century Miami Beach resort hotels... The design and theming are off the hook beautiful... I live in South Florida, so I am very familiar with the hotels they copied... they also have a great pool area and even a lazy river....that is just for the hotel, not part of the Water Park next door.....which has it's own rivers... When seeing the construction photos of Volcano Bay I was also concerned about the brightly colored slides...but in the completed park they fit beautifully. The whole park unfolds in front of you... Beautifully staged...and if you could compare it to opening day pictures of Typhoon Lagoon, before the landscape fully matures, I am sure you would say WOW! this is more Disney than Disney. I sure did.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

And Cabana Bay was not based on cheap hotels, but the beautiful old mid-century Miami Beach resort hotels... The design and theming are off the hook beautiful... I live in South Florida, so I am very familiar with the hotels they copied... they also have a great pool area and even a lazy river....that is just for the hotel, not part of the Water Park next door.....which has it's own rivers... When seeing the construction photos of Volcano Bay I was also concerned about the brightly colored slides...but in the completed park they fit beautifully. The whole park unfolds in front of you... Beautifully staged...and if you could compare it to opening day pictures of Typhoon Lagoon, before the landscape fully matures, I am sure you would say WOW! this is more Disney than Disney. I sure did.

 

[evilzorac]

And Cabana Bay was not based on cheap hotels, but the beautiful old mid-century Miami Beach resort hotels... The design and theming are off the hook beautiful... I live in South Florida, so I am very familiar with the hotels they copied... they also have a great pool area and even a lazy river....that is just for the hotel, not part of the Water Park next door.....which has it's own rivers... When seeing the construction photos of Volcano Bay I was also concerned about the brightly colored slides...but in the completed park they fit beautifully. The whole park unfolds in front of you... Beautifully staged...and if you could compare it to opening day pictures of Typhoon Lagoon, before the landscape fully matures, I am sure you would say WOW! this is more Disney than Disney. I sure did.

By far the best value in Orlando for theme park hotels in my opinion. Have stayed many times and have never had a bad experience.

 

[Nj4mwc]

I

Cabana bay is themed to a 60's hotel and its spot on right on down to the toiletries provided, Alberto VO5 shampoo i had no idea it was even made any more!!!

The lounge is out of Mad Men

And even with all this its less expensive than Disney's 'value' properties

grew up visiting wildwood nj and lived there for a few years, which still has original 1950 beach style motels, original signs, themes and when I pulled up to cabana bay I felt like I was a kid again in wildwood. If Frankie Avalon would have been singing in the lounge I would have fainted from disbelief that it was replicated so perfectly

 

[hokielutz]

These are just not a good comparison, and if you have been to Volcano Bay, you would see how really beautiful the park is...this picture does not even remotely capture it...it is beautifully themed and richly layered.... All Star Movies is a Motel6 with fiberglass props... If someone was going to make a comparison they should have at least compared hotel to hotel....and while kids may like fiberglass props, the theming at Cabana Bay is really quite well done...certainly more theme and detail than it's Disney counterpart of Caribbean Beach Resort...but there is no real way to compare the hotels since themeing property to property is so very different.... Now if Universal and WDW had hotels with the same theme, it would be a good way to actually compare apples to apples...

Actually one really can't compare what Universal and Disney have done except for a few rare instances. Since Universal announced plans decades ago to build parks in Florida, its been a constant game of trying to one-up the competition. Uni wants a movie studio park in Orlando... Eisner & Co answer back with a similar themed park. Disney has the decade of expansion and Uni adds IoA. Uni builds Potter and Disney plays catchup with various expansions.
Also, comparing one water park to another is not exactly fair, unless they were both built around the same time. TL and BB have been around for decades, while VB is a new kid in town and the designers have done their homework on everything that is offered locally and worked hard to plus up everything. TL was built on a small mound and when it opened had one of the best speed slides, and was then bested by Summit Plumet.... VB was built in and around a mountain and its thrill slides top TL & BB. So there is no real fair comparison at this point, especially given the decades age disparity of these properties.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

I haven't seen many people say they think Volcano Bay looks bad or terribly themed. It was just over-sold as some kind of next-level in themed water parks. Universal fans also seem overly defensive about the theming.

If this was a new Disney water park, I think Disney and Universal fans would all cry out in unison that Disney was cutting corners by leaving the internal supports of the volcano exposed, not trying to blend in the slides and elevated walkways, etc. Sure, some Disney fans would have said it was perfect as is, but to suggest Disney fans in general swallow whatever Disney serves up to them requires ignoring almost everything that has been posted on these boards since the dawning of WDWMagic!

 

[Disneyhead'71]

I haven't seen many people say they think Volcano Bay looks bad or terribly themed. It was just over-sold as some kind of next-level in themed water park. Universal fans also seem overly defensive about the theming.

If this was a new Disney water park, I think Disney and Universal fans would all cry out in unison that Disney was cutting corners by leaving the internal supports of the volcano exposed, not trying to blend in the slides and elevated walkways, etc. Sure, some Disney fans would have said it was perfect as is, but to suggest Disney fans in general swallow whatever Disney serves up to them requires ignoring almost everything that has been posted on these boards since the dawning of WDWMagic!

Just an FYI. There are no steel supports for the volcano visible. That is another fake news talking point that has been repeated ad nauseam and excepted as truth.

It is not true.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

Just an FYI. There are no steel supports for the volcano visible. That is another fake news talking point that has been repeated ad nauseam and excepted as truth.

It is not true.

Well, whatever you call what you see around the 8 minute mark of this video, then.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Well, whatever you call what you see around the 8 minute mark of this video, then.

Those are the supports for the slides. Look past the slides and you see rock work not naked steel. That is the volcano.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

Those are the supports for the slides. Look past the slides and you see rock work not naked steel. That is the volcano.

Ok, but what do you think the conversation would have been like on here if this was Disney Water Park #3? I find it hard to believe you sincerely believe the dominant line wouldn't have been that Disney should have hidden those supports in rock work or something similar.

Again, though, I think Volcano Bay looks great!