Opinions?

[reneaterry]

About ready to purchase direct but keep going back and forth so looking for outside opinions. Husband doesn't want resale so it's not an option.
125 or 150? Paying cash for either.
AK or Riviera? Haven't been to either but home resort not super important we go in off times about every other year.

We're a family of 4, with 1 teenager and 1 preteen.

 

[kanerf]

I would go with the cheapest unless extended expiration date of Riviera is important to you. I own at both and both are very nice.

 

[davidl81]

Be aware that "off times" for DVC is totally different than "off times" for the parks. DVC's highest use time is Sept-Jan, where the parks are busier in the summer. Just something to be aware of when thinking about home resort.

Between the two you are looking at I would lean AKV just based on the point charts. You can stay more nights for less points at AKV than RIV. But really besides that it's pretty close. Cost wise I would guess they are about the same, and dues are pretty close. RIV has the skyliner, and AKV has the animals. Both are nice resorts, just with totally different themes.

 

[Nabas]

About ready to purchase direct but keep going back and forth so looking for outside opinions. Husband doesn't want resale so it's not an option.
125 or 150? Paying cash for either.
AK or Riviera? Haven't been to either but home resort not super important we go in off times about every other year.

We're a family of 4, with 1 teenager and 1 preteen.

A few things for you to consider.

More than anything, you really should visit both resorts before buying at either.

The off-times of the year are actually the most difficult to book at DVC. DVC members like to book during when the points, crowds are less, and the weather is nicer.

You should consider how difficult the resort is to book at 7 months:

• RIV is really popular at the moment but once it's completely sold out (and all rooms are available to DVC members), it should be a bit easier to book since it is moderate sized. My guess is that, long term, RIV will be somewhere in the middle of how difficult it is to book at 7 months.
• AKV is one of the easier resorts to book at 7 months. However, the AKV Value and Club Level rooms are extremely difficult to book, even at 11 months. You need to own at AKV if you want a realistic chance of ever staying at these rooms.

Don't for get to take into account Maintenance Fees, you are going to be paying these for decades. AKV currently is at $8.0728/point. RIV is at $8.3833/point.

The RIV Studio has a separate foldout sofa and Murphy bed. You can fit one of your children on the Murphy bed as long as they are not too tall.

 

[Sandisw]

Other than AKV value and AK Concierge, which are hard to get anyway, AKV will be easier to get than RIV at the 7 month mark.

RIV is more expensive and the point charts are higher. But, you do have easier access to two parks via the Skyliner.

Two completely different feels and resorts. I personally do not like AKV because of having to bus everywhere, as well as it’s just not my style. I like the modern feel of both RIV and VGF.

Since you have not stayed either place, I think you just have to decide what the pros/cons are of each for your wants/needs/likes

 

[MomOTwins]

We did a test trip to do short split stays at DVC resorts before buying and boy was it a good idea. Our expectations of what we would like turned out to be so different from real experience. When you consider the cost of buying a contract, it's so worth it to stay a couple nights at each one you are considering.

I also think home resort advantage will start mattering more and more as time goes on. Each time Disney adds a new DVC vacation property, that increases the number of people competing to stay at other resorts at the 7 month mark. Points to book a stay keep going up, which could also result in more competition for resorts that cost fewer points.

We've stayed at Riviera and AKL and I personally would choose Riviera for the convenience of the skyliner, and just because I prefer the overall theme. But I really liked both. AKL is more cost-effective for sure.

 

[sethschroeder]

125 or 150? Paying cash for either.

Always more points hahaha but that comes down to your personal plans and if you need/want the extra 25 points. I might split the extra 25 off though in to a separate contract to give you some flexibility to sell a portion off in the future and keep your blue card.

AK or Riviera? Haven't been to either but home resort not super important we go in off times about every other year.

I would go Riviera but I am a huge fan of Epcot, the location (skyliner is great), compact resort, nice walking areas around the lake/CBR.

Flip side while AK is a nice resort its transportation is sub-par (IMO), its spread way out, and is really easy to book in comparison anyways. So if you want to stay at AKV you can.

We're a family of 4, with 1 teenager and 1 preteen.

Being a family of 4 doesn't really impact things one way or another but will say RIV rooms will be bigger than AKV.

 

[sethschroeder]

I would go with the cheapest

That can be hard to say though. I think right now AKV is going to be slightly cheaper upfront but I would pretty much expect the RIV MFs to end up lower than AKV so long term you will always be paying more on an annual basis for AKV.

Is it $181/point at AKV vs $190/point at RIV?

While RIV is $0.30 more on MFs after they applied credits it was significantly less I think. RIV should see MFs not increase much the next 2-3 years while AKV will continue to see increases that likely have it move by RIV for the rest of the resort lifespan (animals, space, vegetation, pools, lower point costs, ect all add up to why it likely will be more expensive).

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

RIV is the better direct deal

 

[DVCanadian]

Buy 150 RIV
Can’t see a reason to buy AK direct.

 

[Grumpy Mouse]

We love the African theme and food at AKV so we bought a resale contract there (we also like that it's separated from everything else), but we also wanted a completely different experience for some of our (regular) stays, so we bought a direct contract at RIV. One of the reasons we chose RIV as our direct is because of its proximity to Epcot - our "go to" park (for a couple of old folks) - which is likely less than ideal if your "go to" park is MK.

Similar to your husband, I also wanted at least one direct contract. Why? True "blue card" membership and access to the plethora of benefits offered by Disney when owning a direct contract.

I want to say this plainly so you'll understand: that was a terrible mistake on my part.

We love the Riviera Resort (style, location, etc.) and bought there knowing full well of the resale restrictions - that part of the decision was fine.

My mistake was believing that direct DVC owners would always enjoy "favored nation" status with Disney; they would always have access to benefits that resale owners - or non-owners - wouldn't have. What I failed to realize is direct DVC owners might not have access to those benefits in the future either.

Which is exactly what is transpiring with the pandemic - as we have watched benefit after benefit yanked away. New direct DVC owners really got the short end of the stick with the inability to buy annual passes - and therefore get the DVC discount on them. The trips we have planned are going to cost us considerably more $$$ w/o AP's.

At present, there is almost no reason to choose direct over resale - but thousands (as in thousands of $$$) to choose resale over direct.

So without sounding condescending, you (your husband) REALLY need to ask the question: WHY are we only considering direct contracts? Thinking you'll get some great benefits that no one else gets? Think again. Thinking as a "blue card" member you'll have some special relationship with Disney? Think again. In my correspondence with DVC's compliance officer (about these very issues), they have made the parameters of the relationship very plain: Disney/DVC has the legal right to do just about anything they want regarding benefits, extras, or the relationship in general.

All you really get for sure is a room - the same thing you get with a resale contract.

I encourage you (strongly) to look at resale contracts. Find the resort(s) you'd truly love to stay at - then look for the most economical way to make that happen.

 

[808blessing]

Do you drive a car around WDW? If so AK is no problem and has other trade offs that make it wonderfully worth it. If relying on a bus, that’s a big drawback. I haven’t personally taken AK buses but I imagine it could make a big impact, not only time to drive but also walking to depot, lobby, food and pool.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Love AKV. LOVE IT.
I visited Riviera, and to be honest it didn’t do anything for me. Seemed like a crowded Hilton. That said, I have not seen inside the rooms (but the pictures still seem like a Hilton).
Did I say I love AKV..??

 

[RoseGold]

RIV is the better direct deal

Yea, but that’s wiped out with RIV’s crazy point chart. RIV is the much, much more expensive choice. A huge component of DVC cost is the dues per point, so the chart matters a lot.

We don’t know what your goals are here. Cost effective? Luxury? Cool detailed theming? Pass it down? Hold resale value to sell in a few years?

I’d never buy either because you’re missing the most important luxury in DVC IMO: walking to parks.

 

[Ruttangel]

Too many RVA lovers on this thread, just to add to @RoseGold point, a quick compare of 2022 point charts for a RVA preferred view to a AKV savannah view studio.
You’ll need 32 more points a week in Season A going up to a whopping 62 extra points in Season G.

 

[DVCsloth]

I would choose Riviera, this way you have the
11 month booking advantage. You can always use your points to book other resorts. Just make sure you are familiar with the resale restrictions for Riviera.

 

[justadreamaway77]

I would do 150 BUT get two 75 point contracts.....smaller contracts are easier to sell/go for more money OR two 75 point contracts would be easier to split in a will/trust for your children.

 

[miTnosnhoJ]

I bought 250 points direct at VGF 6 years ago. My main regret is that we should have bought more points. We did add on resale later, but still, we should have bought more when we could.

Between AK and RIV, I love AK. We are staying in a grand villa there in August.

But if you love Epcot, especially the restaurants in the World Showcase, then Riviera would be great for that.

 

[crisi]

Buy 150 RIV
Can’t see a reason to buy AK direct.

Because if you decide to resell it to pay for college for those kids, it won't have resale restrictions.

 

[davidl81]

Too many RVA lovers on this thread, just to add to @RoseGold point, a quick compare of 2022 point charts for a RVA preferred view to a AKV savannah view studio.
You’ll need 32 more points a week in Season A going up to a whopping 62 extra points in Season G.

The point chart is the biggest down side to RIV IMO. We looked at adding on last summer and the price per point for the 175ish point contract at RIV was attractive at I think $165 a point or so. Plus buying direct is just so much easier and faster than resale. Ultimately the dues to an extent, but mostly the point chart lead me back to SSR. I just do not think I could ever feel good about spending the amount of points for a room at RIV versus other options. Let's say we booked a 1 bed room next week at RIV, it would be 321 points for a standard view, and 391 points for a preferred view. I could stay at BWV for 218 or 264 points and I can walk to two parks. 258 points to get a savanna view at AKV (133 points less than RIV)! The only property on site that matches RIV is VGF, and to me VGF is a true flagship resort that can demand the higher point chart, and RIV is not.
My point of all of this is I cannot see any time that I ever would book RIV due to it's chart, thus making owning there very little sense to me personally.