Volcano Bay: General Discussion

[Stonecoldfreak1]

I don't think they offer Express for Volcano Bay, no? I know they planned to initially when the park opened, but then they realized all of the slide capacities were severely inflated...

Double checked on the website and Express is still offered. It just bypasses having to use the Tapu. With that being said, I don't know how Express would work now, unless they are going to construct special lanes or send people up through the exit?

 

[Parkscope Joe]

I don't think they offer Express for Volcano Bay, no? I know they planned to initially when the park opened, but then they realized all of the slide capacities were severely inflated...

They've offered it for YEARS.

 

[Clive]

They've offered it for YEARS.

Huh! Today I learned!

 

[Brian G.]

I don't think they offer Express for Volcano Bay, no? I know they planned to initially when the park opened, but then they realized all of the slide capacities were severely inflated...

I think they added Express about a year after opening when they worked out the kinks.

 

[BBPH]

Oh… well this now makes a lot more sense.

More tickets incoming, seems to mostly be detaching VB from the usual three park offering.

And a new international 14 day ticket, also without VB.

I’m assuming capacity is coming into play here.

Have they final decided to stop calling VB a theme park?!… probably not.

 

[HandsomePete]

Huh! Today I learned!

Same, I remember it getting yanked but never went with it there. I’ll revise my sentiment to “Seems like what you’d do if you want to sell more Express Passes.”

 

[Tbad556]

The ups & downs of Volcano Bay haha.

- Losing Vol: Bad
- Vol is back-ish: Good!
- No more Tapu Tapu lines: Great! (IMO haha)
- No more tap to pay/tap to open lockers/tap to interact: Bad
- Full park refurb late 2026/early 2027: Incredible!

 

[Mad Dog]

The ups & downs of Volcano Bay haha.

- Losing Vol: Bad
- Vol is back-ish: Good!
- No more Tapu Tapu lines: Great! (IMO haha)
- No more tap to pay/tap to open lockers/tap to interact: Bad
- Full park refurb late 2026/early 2027: Incredible!

The main reason I never went to VB was the confusing mess that Tapu Tapu is for tourists. Great for regular locals though. I'll probably hit it up sometime now that Tapu is gone. I dislike anything that reeks of VQ... I'm one who prizes being able to do what I want, when I want....when touring theme parks. SPONTANIETY is key to a RELAXING theme park vacation, to me.

 

[Clive]

The park needs the extended refurb. Waiting til 2026 is probably the right call given the Epic of it all, though I do wish they could get some of the shuttered slides back online sooner. The park needs more to do, and it currently offers less than what was available opening day.

Could go either way on Tapu Tapu.

 

[RFRees]

Get ready to stand in 60+ minute lines.

VQ was the biggest reason I preferred this water park over the others. Basically now the only time I'm going to ride something is at park open or during off season... Cause there's zero chance I'm standing in line for sixty minutes for a slide.

 

[Jake S]

Yeah, Tapu is a huge part of what made this such a great water park and we'll almost certainly visit less frequently without it. Waiting in lines? Bad. Waiting in lines at a water park? Truly the worst.

 

[MartyMcFly]

We need to think a bit more critically when news like this happens. There’s no official word about Volcano Bay going seasonal. The park hasn’t had major maintenance in years, and it’s deeply integrated into Universal Orlando Resort’s infrastructure, right next to Cabana Bay. This isn’t like Typhoon Lagoon or Blizzard Beach, which are more isolated. A long-overdue refurbishment is the most logical explanation.

Confuses me that a lot of people jump to worst-case scenarios without evidence or a lot of common sense. Really dont get it.

 

[rhino4evr]

If you are going to get rid of your core marketing and park ride reservation , why not wait until after the seasonal closure?

My first assumption is the park isn’t bringing
In enough revenue , mostly because it’s usually a cheap add on to a multi day ticket , and not a park being buy stand alone pricing for .

I really don’t understand getting rid of Tapu Tapu as a cost saving measure , unless the cost of the bands themselves has made it unprofitable ..maybe based on where they are made and the current tariff issues ?

The whole idea of VB and Tapu , was that guests would utilize that free time to spend more money at the park .

I think this decision will back fire and the park will become less popular ; and make even less revenue . Plus side is shorter lines ?

 

[TheCodeMan95]

The main reason I never went to VB was the confusing mess that Tapu Tapu is for tourists. Great for regular locals though. I'll probably hit it up sometime now that Tapu is gone. I dislike anything that reeks of VQ... I'm one who prizes being able to do what I want, when I want....when touring theme parks. SPONTANIETY is key to a RELAXING theme park vacation, to me.

I'm going to be honest with you, and someone may dsagree - but Tapu Tapu is not a confusing mess at all. It is significantly easier to navigate than a typical VQ system, as well as offering an easy way to store your ticket, rent a locker, etc.

What I'm most upset about here is losing the interactivity throughout the park - as well as losing the ability to not worry about getting your ticket wet. I'm assuming the lockers will now be changed over to the facial recognition ones we see at EU.

 

[RFRees]

I'm going to be honest with you, and someone may dsagree - but Tapu Tapu is not a confusing mess at all. It is significantly easier to navigate than a typical VQ system, as well as offering an easy way to store your ticket, rent a locker, etc.

Totally agree, not sure where the "confusing mess" sentiment comes from.

Universal's decision is most likely based on a cost benefit analysis. They were probably originally hoping Tapu Tapu would lead guests to make more purchases, due to being able to pay from their wrist and not carry around money. It likely just ends up costing Universal more money to operate the Tapu Tapu system than it makes. It likely has very little to do with the guests' satisfaction or understanding of VQ.

Keep in mind that they decided on Tapu Tapu for VB ten years ago. A lot has changed. More people have smart watches or phones with a payment system attached, with more expected in the coming years, so the need to use Tapu Tapu for payments diminishes.

 

[Jwhee]

The park needs the extended refurb. Waiting til 2026 is probably the right call given the Epic of it all, though I do wish they could get some of the shuttered slides back online sooner. The park needs more to do, and it currently offers less than what was available opening day.

Could go either way on Tapu Tapu.

Which slides are closed?

 

[Journey_On]

Which slides are closed?

Tai Nui (green drop slide in the Volcano).

 

[RFRees]

Which slides are closed?

Green slide at top of Volcano has been down for a while. Really hoping they don't wait for a year and a half to open this one.

 

[Frank Drackman]

Double checked on the website and Express is still offered. It just bypasses having to use the Tapu. With that being said, I don't know how Express would work now, unless they are going to construct special lanes or send people up through the exit?

pretty sure they did not use Tapu's for this past off season. I believe they used wrist bands for Express (guess it is unlimited as opposed to standard).

 

[UniversalRBLX]

...what if they just use facial recognition instead of expensive arm bands that constantly get lost/broken?