Hard Pass on Riviera Resort

[kboo]

Not sure how long I will stay reading and commenting, since people don’t seem to want to hear from people who have actually visited the resort and have positive things to say, but we just checked in today and my biggest complaint is that it took our bags almost half an hour to be delivered.

We also own at VGF and I have to say, my DH and I looked at each other when we walked in to the room and we both sheepishly admitted that we like the rooms here better. VGF has the better overall location and views, but RIV may have it beat in all other respects.

We are in a standard room overlooking the port cochere and bus stop. We also have a view of the Epcot ball and a semi-view of the Epcot fireworks.

 

[poofyo101]

Not sure how long I will stay reading and commenting, since people don’t seem to want to hear from people who have actually visited the resort and have positive things to say, but we just checked in today and my biggest complaint is that it took our bags almost half an hour to be delivered.

We also own at VGF and I have to say, my DH and I looked at each other when we walked in to the room and we both sheepishly admitted that we like the rooms here better. VGF has the better overall location and views, but RIV may have it beat in all other respects.

We are in a standard room overlooking the port cochere and bus stop. We also have a view of the Epcot ball and a semi-view of the Epcot fireworks.

Really wish the resale restriction didn't exist. I would have bought there most likely already.

 

[summerw]

Not sure how long I will stay reading and commenting, since people don’t seem to want to hear from people who have actually visited the resort and have positive things to say, but we just checked in today and my biggest complaint is that it took our bags almost half an hour to be delivered.

We also own at VGF and I have to say, my DH and I looked at each other when we walked in to the room and we both sheepishly admitted that we like the rooms here better. VGF has the better overall location and views, but RIV may have it beat in all other respects.

We are in a standard room overlooking the port cochere and bus stop. We also have a view of the Epcot ball and a semi-view of the Epcot fireworks.

I can’t wait to hear about your trip! Is half an hour long for Disney bell services? I’ve had rotten luck at some other hotels.

And yes, I think this whole conversation about the QS being too crowded in the smallest resort, where most rooms have a kitchen and the resort also has a TS, a pool bar with food and cafe with some food, seems like an irrational fear.

We waited a long time to even order at the Poly more than once, line into the lobby.

Hopefully Riviera’s “minimal theming” will keep it from being a spot others want to tour, such as the craziness that happens at all the monorail resorts, or the BW Bakery.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

Not sure how long I will stay reading and commenting, since people don’t seem to want to hear from people who have actually visited the resort and have positive things to say, but we just checked in today and my biggest complaint is that it took our bags almost half an hour to be delivered.

We also own at VGF and I have to say, my DH and I looked at each other when we walked in to the room and we both sheepishly admitted that we like the rooms here better. VGF has the better overall location and views, but RIV may have it beat in all other respects.

We are in a standard room overlooking the port cochere and bus stop. We also have a view of the Epcot ball and a semi-view of the Epcot fireworks.

Sounds like your standard view was not that bad? Would you book standard again?

 

[kboo]

Sounds like your standard view was not that bad? Would you book standard again?

Yes! I would book west wing for better chance at fireworks views, and east wing for easier access to topolino’s and the other restaurants.

edited: east wing standard also has chance of fireworks and Epcot view but they are off to the side a little.

 

[Bing Showei]

Not sure how long I will stay reading and commenting, since people don’t seem to want to hear from people who have actually visited the resort and have positive things to say, but we just checked in today and my biggest complaint is that it took our bags almost half an hour to be delivered.

Don’t blame you for growing tired of these sort of threads as an owner, but just keep in mind that while there is a very vocal minority of Never-Rivieras, a MUCH larger majority read quietly without comment, digesting the information that is shared. To that larger majority, your voice has real value which can’t be dismissed.

Personally, I find the never-Riviera posts that seem hungry to celebrate any shortcoming of the resort (perceived or real) as unhelpful as the fawning posts some owners are making to justify their buying decision. So your commentary, often one of the more reasoned voices on the topic, is refreshing.

And to say some real-world, on-the-ground information is lacking from a large part of the collective conversation would be an understatement.

Enjoy your trip. I hope to read more about it.

 

[ScubaCat]

Don’t blame you for growing tired of these sort of threads as an owner, but just keep in mind that while there is a very vocal minority of Never-Rivieras, a MUCH larger majority read quietly without comment, digesting the information that is shared. To that larger majority, your voice has real value which can’t be dismissed.

Personally, I find the never-Riviera posts that seem hungry to celebrate any shortcoming of the resort (perceived or real) as unhelpful as the fawning posts some owners are making to justify their buying decision. So your commentary, often one of the more reasoned voices on the topic, is refreshing.

And to say some real-world, on-the-ground information is lacking from a large part of the collective conversation would be an understatement.

Enjoy your trip. I hope to read more about it.

Yep, all exactly right. There will be never-Reflections resort threads, too, it'll sell out, then the next one will get it's "never" threads.

100K points sold in November, pre-opening, tells me there's plenty of interest.

It's the cirrrrrcle of liiiiifffeee (and DVC)......

 

[tjkraz]

Yep, all exactly right. There will be never-Reflections resort threads, too, it'll sell out, then the next one will get it's "never" threads.

Sadly true.

Threads like this would benefit from a little less “the resort is awful and here are all the reasons you’re a sucker for buying” and a little more “it’s not for me but I’m glad others have found something they like.”

 

[summerw]

Don’t blame you for growing tired of these sort of threads as an owner, but just keep in mind that while there is a very vocal minority of Never-Rivieras, a MUCH larger majority read quietly without comment, digesting the information that is shared. To that larger majority, your voice has real value which can’t be dismissed.

Personally, I find the never-Riviera posts that seem hungry to celebrate any shortcoming of the resort (perceived or real) as unhelpful as the fawning posts some owners are making to justify their buying decision. So your commentary, often one of the more reasoned voices on the topic, is refreshing.

And to say some real-world, on-the-ground information is lacking from a large part of the collective conversation would be an understatement.

Enjoy your trip. I hope to read more about it.

As always, a voice of reason. I really enjoyed you on the show, btw. Thanks for all you do for these forums.

 

[clm10308]

I don’t understand why it is a problem for one resort to cost more than another. Some people will still stay there and others won’t.

And I don’t understand why it is a problem for people who are not staying at a particular resort to go eat at a restaurant. How many people go to Disney and only eat at resort restaurants?
We have a Riviera trip coming, and I am already looking at the restaurants over at Caribbean Beach that I would like to try out.

I agree that the Tower studios are small. They are only for 2 people, so I don’t see a problem. I don’t need room for 8 people (or even 4) on vacation, so why shouldn’t there be an option for those of us with small families?

No one thing will appeal to everyone, and that should be okay.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

I am confused about the resale restructions with RIviera. Would a resale be able to book at Reflections and any future new DVC?

 

[Sandisw]

I am confused about the resale restructions with RIviera. Would a resale be able to book at Reflections and any future new DVC?

Not as it currently stands, All resale points at RIV will be limited to RIV u less Disney changes the rules, which they can do if the want.

 

[kboo]

Ok one thing I’ll admit - the skyliner kind of sucks today. We took it to park hop from HS to EP earlier this week, and “home” from EP last night, all without incident. But this morning it was down for about half an hour before they told everyone they were offloading passengers on the CBR-RIV-EP line with no idea when they’d be back up. We bused to HS. we missed our first FP for all the delays (fixed with a GET CM) but 3 hours later the CBR-RIV-EP line was still down or down again and so we waited almost half an hour for a bus back to RIV. Hopefully they get their kinks worked out (yesterday we waiting at Contemporary for a resort monorail so long that the CM ended up adding an any-park/Tier 2 FP to everyone waiting in line). The skyliner, when it’s running, is great. When it’s not running, buses are a bummer of a backup.

That said: I am noticing so many touches in the room and at the resort overall that RIV is probably our favorite resort now, even with the Skyliner issues. The room is a lot “smarter” than any others we’ve seen. USB ports in the rooms, plenty of outlets, and you can cast Disney+ and any other chrome enabled app onto the TVs. There’s great storage space throughout, and many small touches that are very convenient. For example, when you pull down the Queen Murphy aka Giant Bed of Death, there are shelves on both sides of the bed, as well as outlets and USB ports to make the bed feel like a real sleeping space. And the mattresses are comfortable. The artwork throughout the resort is lovely.

 

[badeacon]

Ok one thing I’ll admit - the skyliner kind of sucks today. We took it to park hop from HS to EP earlier this week, and “home” from EP last night, all without incident. But this morning it was down for about half an hour before they told everyone they were offloading passengers on the CBR-RIV-EP line with no idea when they’d be back up. We bused to HS. we missed our first FP for all the delays (fixed with a GET CM) but 3 hours later the CBR-RIV-EP line was still down or down again and so we waited almost half an hour for a bus back to RIV. Hopefully they get their kinks worked out (yesterday we waiting at Contemporary for a resort monorail so long that the CM ended up adding an any-park/Tier 2 FP to everyone waiting in line). The skyliner, when it’s running, is great. When it’s not running, buses are a bummer of a backup.

That said: I am noticing so many touches in the room and at the resort overall that RIV is probably our favorite resort now, even with the Skyliner issues. The room is a lot “smarter” than any others we’ve seen. USB ports in the rooms, plenty of outlets, and you can cast Disney+ and any other chrome enabled app onto the TVs. There’s great storage space throughout, and many small touches that are very convenient. For example, when you pull down the Queen Murphy aka Giant Bed of Death, there are shelves on both sides of the bed, as well as outlets and USB ports to make the bed feel like a real sleeping space. And the mattresses are comfortable. The artwork throughout the resort is lovely.

I agree with you about the skyliner. We were at Boardwalk 12/16-20 and used the Skyliner which is great when working. We took the Skyliner from Epcot to Riviera and Skyliner was down because of lightning in area, so trip delayed for about 90 minutes. I feel it will be down a lot for lightning because of the frequent thunderstorms in Orlando. Also at the time was down for lightning, there was no noticeable lightning in area to me and radar on phone showed storm at least 10 miles away and not moving towards the skyliner. We also noticed skyliner not moving several times and Boardwalk had sign in lobby several times saying Skyliner out of service and to use alternate transportation.

 

[A2DisneyMom]

Oh, that’s good information about the Skyliner shutting down with lightning. Makes sense, but somehow I didn’t think of that. That is something I’ll definitely need to keep in mind. Leaning towards Uber/Lyft as my backup, rather than the buses. Personal preference, of course, but I will do just about anything to avoid the buses. Regardless, obviously a really important consideration to take into account for FP, ADR, etc. Thanks for the tip!

 

[Soap_1984]

That sucks about the delays on skyliner and I wondered about the lightening. How long is the bus ride from Riv to epcot? And I assume that bus takes you to the front gate. One huge negative for me for monorail is that the monorail wastes time going half way through the park and it takes you to the front gate; going to international gateway is a big plus.

The rooms look really nice. I'm glad to hear people are enjoying it the reviews so far have been positive, although I haven't watched any from resort owners so it is interesting to hear feedback; I also appreciate the honest feedback on the resort.

 

[Sandisw]

Oh, that’s good information about the Skyliner shutting down with lightning. Makes sense, but somehow I didn’t think of that. That is something I’ll definitely need to keep in mind. Leaning towards Uber/Lyft as my backup, rather than the buses. Personal preference, of course, but I will do just about anything to avoid the buses. Regardless, obviously a really important consideration to take into account for FP, ADR, etc. Thanks for the tip!

This is me. I have paid For years to be driven to AK. Now I use Uber/Lyft to get places to avoid buses, at least to the parks.

I just budget for it. When I stay at RIV, I will be sure to plan for the Skyliner to be down and budget more!

 

[jarestel]

Ok one thing I’ll admit - the skyliner kind of sucks today.

I have noticed that, anecdotally anyway, the Skyliner does still have some kinks to work out. When it works, it's awesome, but when it doesn't it can be a bit troublesome. Hopefully, it's a work in progress that will only get better with time!

That said: I am noticing so many touches in the room and at the resort overall that RIV is probably our favorite resort now, even with the Skyliner issues.

I'm really looking forward to your overall observations of the resort. We will be there in a few weeks and first hand impressions are tremendously valuable for our trip planning. Thanks for checking in!

 

[starstruck93]

I feel like very few people are mentioning the location of RiV. Most of the deluxe resorts are desirable simply because of location. The location of RiV just doesn't justify the cost IMO. We purchased BLT direct in 2009 and while the theming may be bland to some, the location makes up for it and any other minor shortcomings such as the small lobby or pool. I'm shocked at the cost of direct contracts only 10 years after we purchased.... we paid $112 a point with an additional years worth of points (160). We've stayed at nearly every DVC resort at DW, in addition to Aulani and Vero and never had an issue booking at 7 months out. We've wait listed a few times and have gotten our waitlist. I think purchasing at a different resort would be best or even purchasing resale. The OP hit the nail on the head with this thread... all.of.it. One of the huge selling points for RiV were the "sky buckets" which don't seem to be all that great after all. I think people should really consider whether the direct member benefits are worth the price increase (as opposed to buying resale). If someone told me I could only stay at the original 14 resorts I wouldn't have an issue with it. Disney can keep building resorts at DW but the best locations have already been taken IMO. With that said Reflections peaks my interest way more than RiV.

 

[starstruck93]

This is me. I have paid For years to be driven to AK. Now I use Uber/Lyft to get places to avoid buses, at least to the parks.

I just budget for it. When I stay at RIV, I will be sure to plan for the Skyliner to be down and budget more!

Same! We stopped using busses and switched to Uber about 4 years ago... we just budget for it. You can get to anywhere on property for around $12.... my time at Disney is worth the extra $$.