Universal Hotels

[DonaldsNo1Fan]

We are planning our next trip in 2020 and thinking of staying on site at The Cabana Bay in Universal.
Looking at DIY, and booking direct with Universal for the hotel. The price appears to be the same as the usual sites, Expedia, Hotels.com etc. I prefer to book direct, less chance of something going wrong (I think). Has anyone booked direct before and if so I was wondering if after paying the deposit, can you pay the balance prior to arriving at the hotel or do you have to pay the balance on arrival. I would prefer to pay the balance prior to arrival.
All companies appear to have free cancellation so want to take advantage of this. I know I will be paying in USD if booking direct and GBP if booking with Expedia etc so I would also appreciate any recommendations for the other companies, Expedia etc.
Thanks for looking.

[nathanpayne]

I have booked directly with Universal before.

From memory, we didn't have the option to pay beforehand (other than the deposit). We had to pay on check-in. That being said our booking was made only a few days before we arrived, so that could have been why.

Something I will say is to keep an eye on the prices direct from Universal. We got a great deal that wasn't available anywhere else. The price difference between the likes of Booking.com/Expedia and booking direct was over £800!

[Guest]

Originally Posted by DonaldsNo1Fan

We are planning our next trip in 2020 and thinking of staying on site at The Cabana Bay in Universal.
Looking at DIY, and booking direct with Universal for the hotel. The price appears to be the same as the usual sites, Expedia, Hotels.com etc. I prefer to book direct, less chance of something going wrong (I think). Has anyone booked direct before and if so I was wondering if after paying the deposit, can you pay the balance prior to arriving at the hotel or do you have to pay the balance on arrival. I would prefer to pay the balance prior to arrival.
All companies appear to have free cancellation so want to take advantage of this. I know I will be paying in USD if booking direct and GBP if booking with Expedia etc so I would also appreciate any recommendations for the other companies, Expedia etc.
Thanks for looking.

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I have always booked direct. I have paid the first night as a deposit and the rest is paid upon departure.

[orlandoamber]

We booked with Orlando Attractions (you have to call or email - they’re good on the phone). They came out quite a bit cheaper than what I could find elsewhere online.

[DonaldsNo1Fan]

Thanks for all your advice and feedback.
I see that Attraction Tickets Direct are doing hotels. ( I never knew they did). With the above discount code the hotel is £100 cheaper than any where else. Has anyone used them before for hotels? Thanks again.