I have a slight dilemma; any advice would be appreciated.

[Lumpy1106]

Check the points charts on just about every resort vs. RIV and VGF - still want to buy there? I would guess not if you are happy with SSR.

You will not miss the Blue Card. It takes an awful lot of discounts on churros to make up the $10k you will save buying resale.

 

[Epcot Forever Forever]

I’d rescind! If you are thinking maybe Riviera I’d stay there before dropping that kind of money on it.

If you are planning to stay mostly in 1 BRs or 2BRs I think buying resale is an easy call. It’s tougher with studios because the 7 month availability is harder. (If you’re planning on mostly doing 1BRs I’d suggest a direct purchase may not even be financially right side up vs just doing cash stays, which have less restrictive cancellation policies and more overall flexibility).

And also SSR is a perfectly lovely resort with somewhat reasonable dues. Bay Lake Tower may also be a good resale pick if you want to stay closer to the parks (or at least a park) with good dues and without insane point charts.

 

[Royal Consort]

I'm quite fascinated when people are so averse to the resale restrictions that they buy something they don't want and think that's better.

You're obviously having doubts and so, yes, rescind and do not buy VGF because that's 40 years of regret straight out the gate. If you want Riviera, for goodness sake buy it. Riviera is a wonderful property and remember the point of DVC is enjoyment, its not an investment portfolio.

 

[davidhr]

How much will you miss not being a blue card member? My bet is not that much. I’ve been a blue card member for a couple years and it hasn’t added a lot of value until now.

I just added more points to my membership and now I might start traveling twice a year and getting the AP, so now for that specific reason it might start adding some value.

What definitely adds value to me is the unrestricted points. I like the possibility of using my points wherever I want if there’s availability. I was resale first and I thought the restrictions wouldn’t bother me. I was wrong. I hated it and that’s considering that at that point it was only Riviera. Now we’re getting more resorts.

My first direct contract was riviera because I love that resort. Second was CCV. With the current incentives I added more Riviera points instead of the cheaper GFV because I don’t like that resort and after a few years I like Riviera even more than before.

So my recommendation is to rescind and take a few weeks to consider your next step. I wouldn’t have problems owning SSR as I like being close to Disney Springs and even use my points there sometimes. But owning only resale there and not being able to book resorts that I like, like Riviera, is a no no for me.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

Biased direct Riviera owner here.

We’ve recouped our investment in four years, so any trips now are gravy and just the cost of dues. I have forced my DH into several split stays, always half with Riviera, because it is our favorite. While I have found things we enjoyed at the other resorts, staying elsewhere just confirms that Riviera is our favorite. Having said that, I wouldn’t like ONLY staying at Riviera for 50 years If bought resale with no other home base.

If Riviera is your favorite, why would you buy SS resale, knowing you can never trade into Riviera? Buy Riviera direct so you have 11-month priority and have the option of trading into the complete current and future inventory.

I’m no Madam Leota, but I feel confident in a decade you could have many trips on Riviera points and, if need be, sell and at least recoup your initial investment. That’s a decade of trips for the cost of dues if you sold at a draw. Past practice has shown DVC retains/grows in value, and in another 10 years we’ll be -10 years for all the 2042s to remain. DVC will probably have at least another five new properties by then with resale restrictions, rendering all the pearl clutching pretty moot by then. You’ll still be a direct member, grandfathered into whatever new scheme they cook up. I say enjoy your favorite and stalk resale after you’ve sampled others.

We did Grand Floridian at Christmas, and while beautiful, we found it inconvenient to get to food; and the lobby, while amazing to look at, a total PITA to navigate the crowds 24/7. We also hated bus service there and were less than impressed by the monorail. So, if you’re already meh on GF, you’re not going to like it more after $30-$50k.

Timeshares are a luxury item. Buy the luxury you want. If you keep it the way it’s meant to be held, 47 years, resale will never be an issue anyway.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

I would just keep it, unless you want to switch to RIV. That way you can still book RIV. But beware: you mentioned that you book at 6 months out. This is us too. The booking advantage doesn’t matter at that point. I would say buy SSR resale, but that won’t get you into RIV either due to resale restrictions.

 

[intamin]

Originally I was team VGF and quickly converted after seeing the resort and especially the rooms. I said the same thing, I want VGF because no resale restrictions. But ultimately we bought RIV site unseen because we knew we wanted an Epcot area resort. No regrets. Planning to add an additional 200 at RIV soon on top of our original 150 direct.

A lot of people talk about how unfriendly RIV's point chart is.. but VGF's is even worse and if you don't even like the resort you shouldn't be buying there. By not picking RIV you're giving up consistent access to the standard view rooms which are typically 20% less than the preferred view rooms. Just imagine every 5 years you're giving up a year's worth of points. Obviously this is an exaggerated example because you're not going to spend all of your points at RIV and you can definitely book some standard views at 7 months but why give up that home booking priority unnecessarily?

Long story short, rescind and buy RIV.

 

[Yankee626]

Biased direct Riviera owner here.

We’ve recouped our investment in four years, so any trips now are gravy and just the cost of dues. I have forced my DH into several split stays, always half with Riviera, because it is our favorite. While I have found things we enjoyed at the other resorts, staying elsewhere just confirms that Riviera is our favorite. Having said that, I wouldn’t like ONLY staying at Riviera for 50 years If bought resale with no other home base.

If Riviera is your favorite, why would you buy SS resale, knowing you can never trade into Riviera? Buy Riviera direct so you have 11-month priority and have the option of trading into the complete current and future inventory.

I’m no Madam Leota, but I feel confident in a decade you could have many trips on Riviera points and, if need be, sell and at least recoup your initial investment. That’s a decade of trips for the cost of dues if you sold at a draw. Past practice has shown DVC retains/grows in value, and in another 10 years we’ll be -10 years for all the 2042s to remain. DVC will probably have at least another five new properties by then with resale restrictions, rendering all the pearl clutching pretty moot by then. You’ll still be a direct member, grandfathered into whatever new scheme they cook up. I say enjoy your favorite and stalk resale after you’ve sampled others.

We did Grand Floridian at Christmas, and while beautiful, we found it inconvenient to get to food and the lobby, while amazing to look at, a total PITA to navigate the crowds 24/7. We also hated bus service there and were less than impressed by the monorail. So, if you’re already meh on GF, you’re not going to like it more after $30-$50k.

Timeshares are a luxury item. Buy the luxury you want. If you keep it the way it’s meant to be held, 47 years, resale will never be an issue anyway.

What is inconvenient about getting food at the VGF ? Its got more food options than any other resort by far . You have 2 signature restaurants (Citricos and Narcoosees), one 5 star restaurant, one great quick service res., Grand Floridian Cafe and its the only DW resort with room service. Not to mention food at both pools and at the Enchanted Rose bar. The Riviera has Topolinos which you need to reserve 2 months in advance an average quick service restaurant, and a great coffee shop. But I do agree the bus service to AK and the Studios suck.

 

[The_MT]

Based on what you've said, I'd say cancel VGF and buy Riviera. Gets you priority at the resort you love, blue card privileges, and access to book at any current and future DVC resorts.

 

[Sandisw]

What is inconvenient about getting food at the VGF ? Its got more food options than any other resort by far . You have 2 signature restaurants (Citricos and Narcoosees), one 5 star restaurant, one great quick service res., Grand Floridian Cafe and its the only DW resort with room service. Not to mention food at both pools and at the Enchanted Rose bar. The Riviera has Topolinos which you need to reserve 2 months in advance an average quick service restaurant, and a great coffee shop. But I do agree the bus service to AK and the Studios suck.

Much easier to get QS food at RIV than at VGF being it is all in one building and offers great options....personally, better than the ones at VGF. As you say the coffee shop is a great option that is a big one for us over VGF.

To be fair, we are not signature dining people so having those TS restaurants isn't material...even Topolino's isnt something we have done yet.

 

[Red Dog Run]

If you really want Riveria, I'd look into Riveria resale. That way you get where you want to be. I'd ditch the VGF if you don't feel fully happy with it. This is a big investment, so I suggest being content with your choices.

 

[bakerworld]

We bought AK because it was the deal and BL because DH wanted it but the reality is we use both contracts to stay at BC. When it became impossible to transfer into BC at 7 months for Fall we finally bought BC. First a small contract to stay every other year and then ('uncle') an add-on to stay every year. Wasted money and time. We should've just bought BC. We're old so who cares about the short contract length and the newer villas are just as worn as the old.

Buy where you want to stay.

 

[DonMacGregor]

We did Grand Floridian at Christmas, and while beautiful, we found it inconvenient to get to food and the lobby, while amazing to look at, a total PITA to navigate the crowds 24/7.

The lobby crowds are the #1 reason we haven't purchased any points at any Monorail resorts. Every time you go into either the Poly or GFH lobby, it's a mass of humanity, particularly Poly, with the Ohana waiting area consuming 1/2 of the mezzanine when it's busy. The Grand Floridian lobby can feel worse than a shopping mall on Black Friday as well. We opted to purchase most of our points at BRV and enjoy the fantastic lobbies over there, without the ridiculous crowds.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

The lobby crowds are the #1 reason we haven't purchased any points at any Monorail resorts. Every time you go into either the Poly or GFH lobby, it's a mass of humanity, particularly Poly, with the Ohana waiting area consuming 1/2 of the mezzanine when it's busy. The Grand Floridian lobby can feel worse than a shopping mall on Black Friday as well. We opted to purchase most of our points at BRV and enjoy the fantastic lobbies over there, without the ridiculous crowds.

It’s so true! While I totally appreciate the grand lobbies as a looky-loo, when I am staying at the resort as my home away from home, I really get internally *****y with the sea of humanity! LOL. I love bopping down to Le Petit Cafe in quiet for a coffee, or window shopping in La Boutique, and not having to weave around folks every step of the way.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

And I LOVE Boulder Ridge’s lobby. So cozy and lounge-y. It begs for a glass of wine and a good book fireside.

 

[NVDISFamily]

We were going to buy VGF over the phone based on all of the things we had read on this forum about resale value, the resort, etc. So glad we decided to take a tour of WDW before making the purchase and during our tour, Riviera won our hearts. We like fancy resorts and such, but VGF just isn't our style (looking forward to staying every now and then, but glad we don't own there).

The lobby crowds are the #1 reason we haven't purchased any points at any Monorail resorts.

100%. The lobby at Wilderness Lodge and Boulder Ridge are amazing but way less crazy. You can actually relax and feel like you are on vacation in them. Now if we could just do something about the crowds at the Grand Cal....

 

[Bmramaut]

I DID THIS EXACT THING IN FEBRUARY 2023. We bought 150 points direct at VGF even though I wanted Riviera. We rescinded after two sleepless nights. It was the easiest process ever the CM who handles the phone call asked no personal questions and made the transaction easy. There was two things in play- the cost which made me very uneasy and the fact that we owned where we didn’t want to stay.

We also were kind of in a time is money sort of pinch. We were taking 3 plus trips to Disney a year on rented points. My children aren’t getting any younger. At the time, the minimum was 150 to buy direct with Disney which was to much for us as a family.

We ended up buying SSR for SAP and getting “our foot in the door” with DVC membership with cheaper resale. We immediately added on a small 50 point Riviera contract. We still ended up with 150 points but at about 10 grand less than our original purchase. With current incentives, it’s obviously less than that but still less.

The small contract is great because like you the restrictions gave me pause. It’s way easy to sell should I have to. But honestly, now that I own Riviera, that SSR contract would be sold before I would ever sell RIV. I plan on buying more RIV points as we are able and using the SSR points for big family stays. I have zero regrets.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

What is inconvenient about getting food at the VGF ? Its got more food options than any other resort by far . You have 2 signature restaurants (Citricos and Narcoosees), one 5 star restaurant, one great quick service res., Grand Floridian Cafe and its the only DW resort with room service. Not to mention food at both pools and at the Enchanted Rose bar. The Riviera has Topolinos which you need to reserve 2 months in advance an average quick service restaurant, and a great coffee shop. But I do agree the bus service to AK and the Studios suck.

We love the GF dining options, but I am referring to not having any coffee/snack/quick service in the VGF building itself. We don’t love going out in the heat and humidity or pouring rain to grab a simple snack or breakfast to bring back to the room. We’re more park 2nd shifters now and like a leisurely start to the day, and throwing on the sunblock or rain gear to get to food isn’t a thrill.

Yes, GF has the covered walkway, but when it’s pouring sideways and you’re juggling hot coffees and bags of food in 100% humidity — ehh, not so much.

The dining options ARE great at GF, it’s just the convenience I find lacking with kids. Riviera, I mobile order and send the kids down to grab the order. They’re back in minutes. We are never NOT together on vacation, so our opportunities for fine dining are limited. We hope to buy Poly 2.0 and walk/scooter over to GF dining as the kids get older and don’t need that level of supervision.

 

[Bmramaut]

We love the GF dining options, but I am referring to not having any coffee/snack/quick service in the VGF building itself. We don’t love going out in the heat and humidity or pouring rain to grab a simple snack or breakfast to bring back to the room. We’re more park 2nd shifters now and like a leisurely start to the day, and throwing on the sunblock or rain gear to get to food isn’t a thrill.

Yes, GF has the covered walkway, but when it’s pouring sideways and you’re juggling hot coffees and bags of food in 100% humidity — ehh, not so much.

The dining options ARE great at GF, it’s just the convenience I find lacking with kids. Riviera, I mobile order and send the kids down to grab the order. They’re back in minutes. We are never NOT together on vacation, so our opportunities for fine dining are limited. We hope to buy Poly 2.0 and walk/scooter over to GF dining as the kids get older and don’t need that level of supervision.

Adding on at Poly2 as well. 2024 can’t come fast enough lol

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

I’m constantly checking online for Poly 2.0 construction updates. I do think it’s going to be similar to Riviera with a quieter lobby and rooftop dining — or else KILLER grand villas up there. I really like how VDH has the extra bathroom in the one and two-bedrooms. Ever since SS refurbishment introduced Murphy beds and modern upgrades, each updated resort has been a win in my book. Excited to see in person new floor plans next year.