How is Volcano Bay doing now? Is it worth visiting over a WDW water park?

[Weather_Lady]

Our first Universal visit is approaching (4/28-5/1). We're staying onsite at Royal Pacific Resort.

The plan for our third day (a Monday) is to visit a water park -- either Volcano Bay or Disney's Typhoon Lagoon (we're having dinner in Disney Springs that evening, so we'll be Ubering in that direction regardless. For this reason, transportation is NOT a consideration in our analysis). It will be me, DH, my 11-year-old son and 9-year-old daughter, all of whom enjoy everything from big slides to tame lazy rivers.

My question is: which water park should we choose (never having been to either): Volcano Bay or Typhoon Lagoon? Ticket prices are similar between the two. The reviews I've been reading for Volcano Bay seem to indicate that it's gotten slightly better at managing the long lines than when it first opened, and by staying onsite we'll get early entry. On the other hand, it looks like Typhoon Lagoon is just plain better at managing crowds, although I've still seen some sources that say the lines will be long there after the first two hours, as well. Whichever park we visit, we'd like to have sufficient opportunity to do everything in the park in about 5-6 hours (even if that means hitting all the slides right at the beginning), without having to consistently wait in long (>20 min.) lines. Do you think the early entry to Volcano Bay will adequately compensate for its difficulty with crowd management and unreliable tech, or should we just stick with Typhoon Lagoon, which has the better track record? If you had just one day, which park would you choose?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

 

[raven]

All depends on what you are looking to get out of a water park. Typhoon Lagoon has slides but is known for their massive wave pool. Volcano Bay has a LOT big slides, interactive special effects, rivers and virtual wait times so you can enjoy less waiting in lines. Each have their ups and downs.

 

[lebeau]

Just to kind of piggy back on what Raven was saying, the virtual queues at Volcano Bay mean that even when you are waiting for your next water slide, you don't have to be standing in line. If there are other slides that are "ride now" you can take advantage of them. If not, you can enjoy the lazy river, wave pool or a meal. We went to Volcano Bay when it first opened and the lines were long, but it didn't bother us because we were more interested in relaxing than hitting the slides. But with early admission, we could have ticked off a lot of boxes. Even when things were at their worst, those first two hours were pretty much wait free.

As it stands, it sounds like things are running a lot more smoothly now. But that's to be expected in February. The true test will be to see how things are running after the temperature rises. That first summer, I was cautioning people against going to Volcano Bay expecting to ride slide after slide. Hopefully by the time the busy summer season starts this year, they will have worked out all the bugs.

I will say, VB is the most beautiful, relaxing water park I have ever been to. It's a great way to unwind in between park days.

 

[UpAllNight]

Typhoon Lagoon for theming, Volcano Bay for thrill slides. I like them both, along with BB and Aquatica.

 

[ColinP29]

Volcano Bay will be busier and probably have longer waits for rides but you will be able to spend all day there.

Given the number of rides in Typhoon Lagoon (think 6 mayby 7 based on your kids ages) I think you will have gone through them all at least once in 2 hours.