Can you go to Riviera for CS if you aren't staying there?? Heard people were being turned away.

For you. But MANY on here and in other forums post asking "How long can we park at [insert resort in walking distance of a park here] because we're having breakfast there and want to walk over to [said park] after for the day and don't want to move our car. Is that ok?" And so Disney had to crack down.

People abusing things is why we can't have nice things.

I understand the reasons why... but Disney has a lot of information linked to the app and magic bands. Simply granting access to people without access to MK (park reservation) and tracking spending habits with technology could improve individual guest experience and increase profit.
All major goods manufacturers are giving notice of price increases and this will be passed along to the Disney customer. Inflation will not be kind to Disney or visitors
 
So I am staying at CBR right now, and we tried to take Skyliner to Riviera for breakfast this morning at 8:30, and a cast member wouldn't let us on the Skyliner without a restaurant reservation. We went there for breakfast at Primo Piatto yesterday on the Skyliner with no problem, but it seems to be restricted access (only on Skyliner) when Epcot isn't open yet. As we walked away, the cast member who turned us away from Skyliner said, "It's an easy walk." Which it isn't, with two preschoolers, but thanks for the tip.
 
I expect this is one of those situations where they reserve the right to deny entrance as needed at crowded times. Technically, the "official" policy is no entry to a resort hotel without being a guest or having an ADR. It's only been an unofficial exception that you can get to a resort by disney transportation. I've also heard a couple of anecdotal reports about people not being allowed on boat launches to MK area resorts without a reservation. With how difficult dining is at WDW right now, I can see them getting complaints from hotel guests that they aren't able to get breakfast because too many people are arriving from outside the resort. Particularly where it gets you a "transportation advantage" like breakfast at Riviera with the aim of being at the closest skyliner station to Epcot prior to EP opening.
 
Monte Cristo is NOT currently on the menu. I'm here now and can attest to that. According to the bartender I spoke to, there is no eta on when it might return. (Of course, I'm not sure if bartender = bus driver for things like this, so take it for what it is).

Steve
Always trust a longtime bartender! I’m wondering if the Monte Christo is a menu item that has ingredients that they don’t use in any other dish? I’m not a monte cristo fan (please don’t ban me for saying this!!) so I’m not sure what it could be. Maybe ham?
 

What they have on the menu currently at Bar Riva can all be found at Primo Piatto as well, so I have to assume that they are only using the one kitchen. I've always heard that the kitchen at Bar Riva where they made the Monte Cristo was very small, and not conducive to social distancing. Hence, it was closed and the Monte Cristo was unavailable. Again, I can't confirm that, but it does fit the observed situation.

Perhaps as things are now beginning to open up significantly more, they will be able to reopen the kitchen and bring back more menu items.

This was actually one of the most disappointing things about our 10 day stay at the very beginning of May. The places that were open had very limited menus. As good as the Croque Monsieur at Primo Piatto is, you can only eat it so many times before you really can't stand it anymore.

Steve
 
The place was empty and the food is nothing to write home about. I can remember the days when Disney wanted my money
I think the answer is within your statement, “The food is nothing to write home about.” WDW has systems in place to track almost everything. If 70%+ Mobile orders from guests outside CR are cancelling or just ordering a muffin, it’s pretty clear to see what’s going on. If guests aren’t go for the food then why are they going?
 
You can just ride the Skyliner over from Epcot or the Hub... We checked out Rivera one afternoon, plus you can use the mobile order at Primo Piatto. The Bar restaurant is also open and they serve the Monte Cristo!
we are staying at POP and planned to take the Skyliner over to eat. will do mobile order.
 
Actually, this was sort of my experience. May 7th, My friend and I rode the Skyliner from Pop (where I was staying) to CBR and planned to head to Epcot area resorts for QS (and thus would need to head to riviera first). It was around 8ish am, and the CMs would not let us on the Skyliner route to riviera/Epcot unless we had an ADR. Apparently they had a problem with people going to the Epcot area resorts and then crowding at IG prior to open. She did of course say it was only a 5 minute walk from the CBR station… we ended up riding to DHS and walking to the Beach Club.
 
I can see March being an issue, because crowds were terrible. Sounds like they are still having crowd issues. The Skyliner all last year was a mess in the mornings. Hopefully, things will start easing up a bit.
 
For what it's worth, I've done that walk from the CBR station to Riviera a couple of times, and it's a really pleasant walk, also waaaaaay shorter than the path from the Studios to the Boardwalk.
 
So I am staying at CBR right now, and we tried to take Skyliner to Riviera for breakfast this morning at 8:30, and a cast member wouldn't let us on the Skyliner without a restaurant reservation. We went there for breakfast at Primo Piatto yesterday on the Skyliner with no problem, but it seems to be restricted access (only on Skyliner) when Epcot isn't open yet. As we walked away, the cast member who turned us away from Skyliner said, "It's an easy walk." Which it isn't, with two preschoolers, but thanks for the tip.

This was our experience this past Friday. We did end up walking. From CBR. They said it was an 8 minute walk, but it was longer than that.
 
If you use the Skyliner there's no way of knowing whether you are a resort guest or not. They are not checking magic bands on everyone that gets off the Skyliner. And when you go get off, there are 3 possible directions you can take, it would be kinda difficult to check everyone's magic band. People get turned away if they try to arrive by car and don't have a reservation.
 
I didn't know this might be a problem. First, I thought I could get on the skyliner for any reason, and since I've never ridden the skyliner, I planned to next month. Second, I've never heard of being turned away from Rivera. I'd planned to take the skyliner from Epcot to Rivera next month and have lunch at Primo Piatto (Greek Salad, not like I've planned or anything). You can bet I'll feel lots better once I leave Epcot when I get into PP, hoping no one stops me.
 
Just wanted to add a data point. I did a resort only trip over Memorial Day weekend, split between AKL Jambo and Copper Creek. On Memorial Day, I Uber-ed to BW, had breakfast at Trattoria al Forno and walked around the boardwalk area.

Then I hopped on the Skyliner and spent some time at Riviera. I didn't get stopped and Riviera was hopping. The pools were packed, tons of people inside and outside and there was a line to get in the gift shop. I walked around, got some coffee at La Petit Cafe and sat outside for awhile. Then I Skyliner-ed over to walk around Pop and AofA. Then took a bus to MK and a boat back to Wilderness Lodge. Basically covered ALL the transportation.
 
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I think the caveat for being turned away is trying to ride the Skyliner before the Epcot line is open, which was reported to be (not sure on this) about an hour before park open. So unless you had a reservation for an Epcot resort sit down they could turn you away.
 














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