GF direct over Riviera direct is a no brainer

[BruinEd03]

This feels like a topic that keeps getting raised by posters who are predisposed to dislike Riviera. If you don't like Riviera--or ANY DVC resort--don't buy there. If you simply like VGF better than RIV, it's an easy decision to go with Grand Floridian. Nobody will ever debate that.

But if you prefer Riviera--which many people do--I don't understand the logic behind opting for an admittedly lesser resort over fears of the direction values may go. Is that really worth 40+ years of limited access to Studios and Tower Studios? Is that worth paying higher Preferred View points whenever booking Riviera at 7 months?

On the flip side, I also feel that people who love Riviera seem to try to convince everyone that resale prices are holding and that the resort is too popular for Disney to consider removing the resale restrictions.

I think that all of these can be true, that Riviera is an amazing resort, and that resale restrictions is hurting its sales, and that resale values may be poor in the future. It can also be simultaneously the right purchase for some and the wrong purchase for others.

 

[NVDISFamily]

On the flip side, I also feel that people who love Riviera seem to try to convince everyone that resale prices are holding and that the resort is too popular for Disney to consider removing the resale restrictions.

I think that all of these can be true, that Riviera is an amazing resort, and that resale restrictions is hurting its sales, and that resale values may be poor in the future. It can also be simultaneously the right purchase for some and the wrong purchase for others.

Yep! Love the resort enough to buy 500 points. The restrictions suck. LIkely don’t care much as I hope to never sell them or sell them so long from now that I’ve have way recovered my investment by a multiple and with typical inflation the points are likely worth way more than I paid in future (and hopefully) actual dollars. Benefit of having a pool of points that are good at future resorts was also part of the net benefit.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

Can you imagine how excited you would be having already bought into SSR or AKV and finding out those resorts were going to be skyliner additions?

Yes, I can imagine! When we bought Riviera the salesman said an expansion was definitely planNed. Yes, it’s a salesman, but he has been selling DVC since OKW. I completely expect an expansion, just where and when?

 

[SL6827]

Why? Its all part of the same resort. IMO, that is the reason they had to incorporate it into the same association because it was a quick flip, to give them something to sell along with RIV, while they wait for the new Poly tower to come online, since Reflections...that had been projected to start sales in 2022...got scraped.

I know, it just seems somewhat shady for those people who would buy in for those rooms and have no idea how hard it might get to book them. But I bet they did that with the CL and Value rooms at AKL too.

 

[SL6827]

I wonder if there will ever be a new DVC after the VGF-2 that won't have the new restrictions?

 

[Sandisw]

I wonder if there will ever be a new DVC after the VGF-2 that won't have the new restrictions?

Id be shocked if they get rid of them.

 

[SL6827]

Id be shocked if they get rid of them.

Probably not.

 

[hglenn]

Can you imagine how excited you would be having already bought into SSR or AKV and finding out those resorts were going to be skyliner additions?

With the way they've been gobbling up SSR and AKV, perhaps the plan is exactly that and they want points to be able to sell at $200+. I mean, SSR at $200 becomes a lot more attractive if there are no resale restrictions, member extra benefits AND on the skyliner!

 

[TraderStitch]

Yes, I can imagine! When we bought Riviera the salesman said an expansion was definitely planNed. Yes, it’s a salesman, but he has been selling DVC since OKW. I completely expect an expansion, just where and when?

I'm just thinking of the possibilities since you mentioned this. If they added on a spa to the west wing top floor, that would be amazing; not sure on if they can really add on to the existing building for more rooms though. However, I don't know the legality of it, but if they could build within the same association at the Seven Seas Lagoon, that would be a homerun. For example, Riviera at MK. Giving owners an Epcot location and MK location, within the same association. You'd see sales boom and resale definitely go up.

 

[NVDISFamily]

I thought I would share this little bit of magic with the thread to spread some love as we argue over the internet about silly things….. We have been trying to work with our family to see who would want to join us on our welcome home stay next year at WDW. Sister in law and her family were able to make it work and they will be joining us. Got a 2BR villa for their family (8 of them) and had a good chat last night about the plans.

During this call I learned that it would be her first trip to Disney in about 20 years and most of her kids have never been and the two oldest were very very young on that trip a long time ago so they likely have little or no memory of it. One comment really struck me hard, that at least some of the kids are still young enough to believe in some of the magic……

This DVC stuff we purchased to share with the family seems to be doing what we expected, allowing us to share in fun things that help bring family and friends together. Looking back at my life, we grew up with very little and I only got to experience many fun things due to the kindness of my “crazy” aunts and uncles who shared their timeshares, boats, trips, etc.

I guess it’s our turn to be the crazy aunt and uncle

So be happy, if you own at VGF or RVA (or both), you are in a great spot.

 

[JoeyPeligroso]

I thought I would share this little bit of magic with the thread to spread some love as we argue over the internet about silly things….. We have been trying to work with our family to see who would want to join us on our welcome home stay next year at WDW. Sister in law and her family were able to make it work and they will be joining us. Got a 2BR villa for their family (8 of them) and had a good chat last night about the plans.

During this call I learned that it would be her first trip to Disney in about 20 years and most of her kids have never been and the two oldest were very very young on that trip a long time ago so they likely have little or no memory of it. One comment really struck me hard, that at least some of the kids are still young enough to believe in some of the magic……

This DVC stuff we purchased to share with the family seems to be doing what we expected, allowing us to share in fun things that help bring family and friends together. Looking back at my life, we grew up with very little and I only got to experience many fun things due to the kindness of my “crazy” aunts and uncles who shared their timeshares, boats, trips, etc.

I guess it’s our turn to be the crazy aunt and uncle

So be happy, if you own at VGF or RVA (or both), you are in a great spot.

Kindness and sharing go a long way in making lives better. Agree, this is a huge benefit of DVC sharing for those fortunate enough to participate in DVC. IMO this is not ”crazy” . It was the very reason to buy!

For me thus has also justified my add-ons and I have no regrets.

 

[RamblinWreck]

I'm just thinking of the possibilities since you mentioned this. If they added on a spa to the west wing top floor, that would be amazing; not sure on if they can really add on to the existing building for more rooms though. However, I don't know the legality of it, but if they could build within the same association at the Seven Seas Lagoon, that would be a homerun. For example, Riviera at MK. Giving owners an Epcot location and MK location, within the same association. You'd see sales and boom and resale definitely go up.

A single contract with 11 month priority in 2 different areas of Disney World would be incredible!

 

[wnielsen1]

A single contract with 11 month priority in 2 different areas of Disney World would be incredible!

Imagine the freakout on these boards if they put Poly2 in Riviera's association.

 

[Yankee626]

This is something I frequently see on the internet -- The need for objective validation. For example, I read a lot of photography forums. And people need to rationalize having spent $$$ on a particular camera or lens, so they will insist it's objectively the best.
You get the same thing from some people here in a DVC forum -- "since I am smart and do the smartest things.... and I decided to buy VGF.. or decided to buy re-sale, or whatever.... that means buying VGF or buying re-sale or whatever is the smart thing to do!"
And then, you have people on the opposite extreme, "everything is totally subjective"
And in all this, objective vs subjective factors get lost. Whether one prefers to be near Magic Kingdom or Epcot is a subjective question, preference for theming is a subjective question. Which studios are larger, is an objective question. Which resorts are the closest to a particular park, is an objective question. Point cost and expiration date are objective questions. And then there are simply unknowable/unpredictable questions (what will resale value be in 20 years? How many new restricted resorts will be off limits to re-sale buyers in the next 10 years? 20 years?)

Its not objective to say that the resale restrictions have devalued the whole product. I love the Riviera as a resort but its a totally different thing that to purchase it as a DVC resort with so many better options (meaning restriction free). My whole point is not to troll but to rebell against DVC for applying these restrictions. THATS IT !

 

[havoc315]

Its not objective to say that the resale restrictions have devalued the whole product. I love the Riviera as a resort but its a totally different thing that to purchase it as a DVC resort with so many better options (meaning restriction free).

??? There are no re-sales that are restriction free. Every single re-sale is restricted. A GFV re-sale is not usable at Riviera or Disneyland Tower, it may not be usable at Poly Tower. Ultimately, it may be unusable at most Disney resorts.

My whole point is not to troll but to rebell against DVC for applying these restrictions. THATS IT !

Here is a secret.... DVC is a rip-off. It's a way Disney manipulates the market to keep their resorts full, thereby keeping demand high relative to supply, and thereby keep their prices at astronomical levels.
Big Pine Key is being converted to DVC because WDW was having trouble filling Grand Floridian at anything close to rack rates. Disney was routinely secretly dumping Grand Floridian rooms on hotwire for 50% off.
So what would happen if collectively, everyone boycotted DVC? Everyone stopped buying it? Then rack rates would come down by 40-50%. So you'd suddenly be paying even less than DVC, without having to lock in booking 11 months in advance, without prepaying a huge chunk of change, etc.
So you want to rebel? Refusing to buy Riviera won't do much. Now, if we all refused to buy DVC, then WDW resort prices would be pushed down to reasonable levels. Suddenly, Beach Club rooms would be about the same as Swan/Dolphin.

 

[NVDISFamily]

Here is a secret.... DVC is a rip-off. It's a way Disney manipulates the market to keep their resorts full, thereby keeping demand high relative to supply, and thereby keep their prices at astronomical levels.
Big Pine Key is being converted to DVC because WDW was having trouble filling Grand Floridian at anything close to rack rates. Disney was routinely secretly dumping Grand Floridian rooms on hotwire for 50% off.
So what would happen if collectively, everyone boycotted DVC? Everyone stopped buying it? Then rack rates would come down by 40-50%. So you'd suddenly be paying even less than DVC, without having to lock in booking 11 months in advance, without prepaying a huge chunk of change, etc.
So you want to rebel? Refusing to buy Riviera won't do much. Now, if we all refused to buy DVC, then WDW resort prices would be pushed down to reasonable levels. Suddenly, Beach Club rooms would be about the same as Swan/Dolphin.

The one significant issue I see with your assessment is that you are taking a discount that is sometimes available at a Disney resort 50% and then saying that because of this any time someone want’s to go it must be available. I’d also have to ask if this discount is always available for all room types or just for just basic rooms. As someone who has been hunting for deals at Disney resorts for years I was never able to get these deals for any of the times I wanted to stay there.

I will agree somewhat in the fact that I consider both the base cash rate as well as a reasonable 25% discount in the cash rack rate when trying to factor in my “savings” with DVC.

As a side note, yes resorts will do some insane discounts to unload unused inventory at less popular times. This is also considered a marketing expense to get you in to experience the premium resort in the hope you will get hooked and come back during the busier times that most people travel (let’s face it most people don’t always travel at the off peak times). First taste is “free” kind of thing (or big discount). Once you start getting used to premium suites/resorts it does make it more difficult to stay at a lower end product

Working with hotel systems and professionals for many years has given me some respect for them. They do a lot of magic to keep the rooms booked and make money. It’s an interesting profession for sure. We have a few hotel rooms in Nevada…..

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

I'm just thinking of the possibilities since you mentioned this. If they added on a spa to the west wing top floor, that would be amazing; not sure on if they can really add on to the existing building for more rooms though. However, I don't know the legality of it, but if they could build within the same association at the Seven Seas Lagoon, that would be a homerun. For example, Riviera at MK. Giving owners an Epcot location and MK location, within the same association. You'd see sales boom and resale definitely go up.

Sorry, I mean Skyliner expansion, not Riviera expansion. Although, Poly 2.0 drawings seem to indicate it will be a single tower, like Riviera, which we prefer to many sprawling buildings.

 

[TraderStitch]

Sorry, I mean Skyliner expansion, not Riviera expansion. Although, Poly 2.0 drawings seem to indicate it will be a single tower, like Riviera, which we prefer to many sprawling buildings.

Ack!!! My pie in the sky dreams are dashed lol. Even so, a skyliner expansion would definitely help with Riviera value!

 

[havoc315]

The one significant issue I see with your assessment is that you are taking a discount that is sometimes available at a Disney resort 50% and then saying that because of this any time someone want’s to go it must be available. I’d also have to ask if this discount is always available for all room types or just for just basic rooms. As someone who has been hunting for deals at Disney resorts for years I was never able to get these deals for any of the times I wanted to stay there.

I may have been hyperbolic. Point is, DVC has allowed Disney to manipulate their vacancy rates. If nobody was buying DVC, if nearly 1/3rd of the deluxe rooms with not pre-paid/guaranteed full, that would lead to dramatically lower prices.

I will agree somewhat in the fact that I consider both the base cash rate as well as a reasonable 25% discount in the cash rack rate when trying to factor in my “savings” with DVC.

As a side note, yes resorts will do some insane discounts to unload unused inventory at less popular times. This is also considered a marketing expense to get you in to experience the premium resort in the hope you will get hooked and come back during the busier times that most people travel (let’s face it most people don’t always travel at the off peak times). First taste is “free” kind of thing (or big discount). Once you start getting used to premium suites/resorts it does make it more difficult to stay at a lower end product

Working with hotel systems and professionals for many years has given me some respect for them. They do a lot of magic to keep the rooms booked and make money. It’s an interesting profession for sure. We have a few hotel rooms in Nevada…..

 

[BeachClub2014]

I thought I would share this little bit of magic with the thread to spread some love as we argue over the internet about silly things….. We have been trying to work with our family to see who would want to join us on our welcome home stay next year at WDW. Sister in law and her family were able to make it work and they will be joining us. Got a 2BR villa for their family (8 of them) and had a good chat last night about the plans.

During this call I learned that it would be her first trip to Disney in about 20 years and most of her kids have never been and the two oldest were very very young on that trip a long time ago so they likely have little or no memory of it. One comment really struck me hard, that at least some of the kids are still young enough to believe in some of the magic……

This DVC stuff we purchased to share with the family seems to be doing what we expected, allowing us to share in fun things that help bring family and friends together. Looking back at my life, we grew up with very little and I only got to experience many fun things due to the kindness of my “crazy” aunts and uncles who shared their timeshares, boats, trips, etc.

I guess it’s our turn to be the crazy aunt and uncle

So be happy, if you own at VGF or RVA (or both), you are in a great spot.

Thank you for sharing this positive perspective. It is helpful and appreciated.