Riviera and Skyliner question/suggestion

[TraderStitch]

Literally a thought (pie in the sky idea), no need to drag me through the mud non-Riviera owners lol.

I can't remember or not but do Riviera dues pay to maintain the Skyliner station at Riviera? If no, please ignore the rest of this post.

If yes please continue...

Since we pay for a portion of the Skyliner, should there be a quicker line JUST for Riviera resort guests (I assume rack rate rooms are footing a small portion of the Skyline as well). This idea came to me after seeing the hour long wait lines on New Years that stretched back to Beach club. Yes, I am suggesting a priority/fast pass on transport. And yes, I also support this same idea on Monorail resorts since they foot the bill for their stations there as well.
I know this is getting very deep into the mud of things but it would be an easy DVC incentive/perk to tack on.

 

[CarolynFH]

In every DVC resort budget there’s a line item for Transportation. For RIV it’s higher than most, so consensus is that yes, RIV owners are paying to operate the Skyliner, and if you an owner make an appointment to view the detailed budget, you could see how much. And guests who stay at CBR, Pop or AoA are paying too, in their room rates. So at the IG, they’d have to implement a line for Skyliner Resort Guests, right? And at the monorail resorts, it would be a line - and separate security scanning? - for monorail resort guests vs. non-guest visitors.

I understand the desire - at Epcot closing, as a BWV owner with very tired feet I’d love special access to the Friendship Boats, since we pay to operate them - but I don’t think it’s gonna happen!

 

[WilsonFlyer]

Do you think that cash guests don't have a 'transportation fee' cooked into the price of their rooms? Just because it isn't a line item (yet) doesn't mean it isn't in there. It is. Probably more that we pay on points truth be known.

Due respect, I don't get any special treatment at BLT on the resort monorail when I walk over to the Contemporary either, and yet I pay for it every month and it isn't even at my resort technically! I don't expect any special treatment when I walk over there, any more so than I would expect special treatment at an AKK bus stop. Never even thought about it.

Unless something has changed drastically since the last time I was there, this is a solution looking for a problem that doesn't exist. Of all the Disney transportation systems at WDW, the Skyliner is about the quickest line/boarding at any of it, especially at the resort ends. I can't prove it, of course, but I don't think you would save any time whatsoever even if they did it. You're talking about outliers at NYE. There are extreme outliers everywhere, but it isn't the case at all on normal park days.

You asked.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

Does beg an interesting question though, recognizing that it's all just funny money on a ledger somewhere anyway, but who runs transportation? Parks or resorts? Or are they separate from both completely not only in name, and are they padding their pockets from both hands just like Washington does?

 

[TraderStitch]

Do you think that cash guests don't have a 'transportation fee' cooked into the price of their rooms? Just because it isn't a line item (yet) doesn't mean it isn't in there. It is. Probably more that we pay on points truth be known.

Due respect, I don't get any special treatment at BLT on the resort monorail when I walk over to the Contemporary either, and yet I pay for it every month and it isn't even at my resort technically! I don't expect any special treatment when I walk over there, any more so than I would expect special treatment at an AKK bus stop. Never even thought about it.

Unless something has changed drastically since the last time I was there, this is a solution looking for a problem that doesn't exist. Of all the Disney transportation systems at WDW, the Skyliner is about the quickest line/boarding at any of it, especially at the resort ends. I can't prove it, of course, but I don't think you would save any time whatsoever even if they did it. You're talking about outliers at NYE. There are extreme outliers everywhere, but it isn't the case at all on normal park days.

You asked.

What I'm getting at tho is if you own there, you should/could get a priority during a stay.

I wouldn't expect a Riviera owner to get on a priority line at Poly unless they owned there as well.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

You completely missed what I bolded, and...

You're essentially saying that Mr. Bond gets the taxi instead of you because, well, he's Mister Bond. Yeah. No.

 

[TraderStitch]

Not exactly there. I'm no Mr Bond, but I did drop a ton of money and committed to Disney for the next 48 years (time left on my contract) so there's that. Also, other monorail owners committed to the same thing.

It literally costs Disney nothing except a sensor to scan a magic band lol

 

[WilsonFlyer]

It literally costs Disney nothing except a sensor to scan a magic band lol

Yeah it does. It cost them the PR with the guy standing in front of you that you just went around and left standing there, who's band didn't scan like yours did, when he just forked over $12k cash to stay there for a week. And he's mad. And rightfully so, I dare say in the opinion of most people. That's what you're missing IMHO.

Is Disney becoming more a 'class' system which it has verbally said it would never do over and over through the years? Every single day. But something as 'in your face' as this would be. I seriously doubt it.

Personally, I was shocked when we were finally given a dedicated AP turnstile at the parks. But my bet would be, that at least at the time; the primary reason was the visibility to other guests and that it would boost AP sales. Like a lot of other things, it had very little to do with 'us' and everything to do with future dollars. And in that particular case, the 'damage' to non AP guests was minimal to non-existent to begin with. Heck, a lot of times, the AP line is longer and we just get in the regular lines.

 

[jo-jo]

So who is paying (or not paying) for the water taxis that used to run between CR/FW/WL? Is that a reason for them not running?

 

[sndral]

I’ve often wished that they’d limit the resort monorail line to GF, Poly, & Contemp/BLT guests at MK closing when I’ve seen the mass of folks heading to the TTC & its’ MK parking lot jamming the resort monorail ramp - but they don’t, likely because they need all modes of transportation running to get all those folks reunited w/ their vehicles. Fortunately I have options - either the boat or if I’m not too tired I can now stroll ‘home’ to the VGF.
The Skyliner is a different beast, everyone trying to ride it at Epcot closing is likely heading back to their resort & everyone of those resorts ‘pay’ their share of the cost to run the Skyliner. The problem is twofold, there’s no alternate way to get ‘home,’ and the value/moderate resorts that share the Skyliner w/ the Riviera are huge - CBR, Pop, & AOA add 6400 rooms worth of people to Riviera’s 300 trying to return to their rooms.
If, as I suspect, they base the cost sharing formula on the number of guests at each resort using the system - the comparatively tiny Riviera is likely paying far less than the behemoths CBR (1556,) AOA (1984,) and Pop (2880.) Going w/ a preferential line for the resort paying the most - the guests at Pop should get a special line.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

So who is paying (or not paying) for the water taxis that used to run between CR/FW/WL? Is that a reason for them not running?

Every resort guest that stayed at any of those resorts on any given night. I don't mean to come across as a SA, but that's your answer. We all know nothing at WDW is free. Somebody's paying for everything, and usually it's pretty easy to figure out who it is. Haven't you noticed the price of rooms going down since they aren't running any longer?

 

[Sandisw]

Not exactly there. I'm no Mr Bond, but I did drop a ton of money and committed to Disney for the next 48 years (time left on my contract) so there's that. Also, other monorail owners committed to the same thing.

It literally costs Disney nothing except a sensor to scan a magic band lol

The fact is that both owners and cash guests pay for the transportation that services the resorts.

As an owner of RIV, we are billed for a share of its operations via dues. We are not paying for the Skyliner on our own.

It is like the buses...owners contribute to them in the same way as the Skyliner...we wouldn't be expecting special DVC buses.

 

[CarolynFH]

So who is paying (or not paying) for the water taxis that used to run between CR/FW/WL? Is that a reason for them not running?

Yes, those water taxis are paid for via the resorts' budgets, and I've read that a boat captain (as credible a source as a bus driver, of course!) said the GM at the CR didn't want to pay for it, so it hasn't come back.

I’ve often wished that they’d limit the resort monorail line to GF, Poly, & Contemp/BLT guests at MK closing when I’ve seen the mass of folks heading to the TTC & its’ MK parking lot jamming the resort monorail ramp - but they don’t, likely because they need all modes of transportation running to get all those folks reunited w/ their vehicles.

And checking all those MBs and KTTW cards would slow down the loading process even more.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

And checking all those MBs and KTTW cards would slow down the loading process even more.

I swear I remember them actually doing this for a while at some point a while back, or am I just imagining it? Maybe it was just some weird period in time or it never happened, but for some reason I'm remembering having my MB checked to get on the RM at MK.

Edit: Maybe it was during a period of time during covid's peak?

(This has very little to do with the OP's question since this would be all guests on the monorail line but I still find it interesting in the discussion.)

 

[Maria_Ohana]

Literally a thought (pie in the sky idea), no need to drag me through the mud non-Riviera owners lol.

I can't remember or not but do Riviera dues pay to maintain the Skyliner station at Riviera? If no, please ignore the rest of this post.

If yes please continue...

Since we pay for a portion of the Skyliner, should there be a quicker line JUST for Riviera resort guests (I assume rack rate rooms are footing a small portion of the Skyline as well). This idea came to me after seeing the hour long wait lines on New Years that stretched back to Beach club. Yes, I am suggesting a priority/fast pass on transport. And yes, I also support this same idea on Monorail resorts since they foot the bill for their stations there as well.
I know this is getting very deep into the mud of things but it would be an easy DVC incentive/perk to tack on.

It's a great idea. Maybe perhaps, having every other skyliner empty for Riviera guests? There were times during non peak times where we had to wait a long time from Riviera to catch the skyliner. It is always packed from CB guests. I'd vote for every other empty cart for Riviera guests.

 

[tjkraz]

At peak travel times (park closing, etc) there will always be long waits for transportation. That's true of monorail, bus, boat and skyliner. No, I do not see Disney creating a class system with DVC members receiving priority above others.

DVC members pay thousands of dollars up front for access to 5 decades of discounted lodging. And we get plenty of perks too. This ain't one of them.

 

[Chuck S]

What I'm getting at tho is if you own there, you should/could get a priority during a stay.

I wouldn't expect a Riviera owner to get on a priority line at Poly unless they owned there as well.

While the profiles for MDE show whether or not we are direct purchasers, I doubt they show which resort is our home resort. And as others have said, cash room guests pay for transportation services, also every WDW park ticket has a tranporation fee built in, to cover TTC to park monorails, ferry boats, and so forth. As others have said, it would hold up lines for everyone to scan those magic bands, and the PR would be awful. I remember when we had to show resort IDs, for bus transportation, and that took time as well. Resoirt IDs were cards, with no mag strip or any other electronis, that you used to board transportation and for room charging. The resort door keys were still brass keys.

 

[RoseGold]

This idea came to me after seeing the hour long wait lines on New Years that stretched back to Beach club.

That's not an hour long line. The Skyliner lines are long, but they move FAST. It's amazing how many people the Skyliner moves when the park closes, really.

You want VIP, pay the plaid and sneak out the back in the van. That's VIP. Not your 40% savings hotel room with 1-ply toilet paper.

 

[dioxide45]

It's a great idea. Maybe perhaps, having every other skyliner empty for Riviera guests? There were times during non peak times where we had to wait a long time from Riviera to catch the skyliner. It is always packed from CB guests. I'd vote for every other empty cart for Riviera guests.

I don't know if they would need every other one empty, but they should send a certain number of empty cars from CBR to Riviera. During peak travel times, how many people coming from CBR station are actually going to be getting off at Riviera? Nearly no one...

 

[tjkraz]

It's a great idea. Maybe perhaps, having every other skyliner empty for Riviera guests? There were times during non peak times where we had to wait a long time from Riviera to catch the skyliner. It is always packed from CB guests. I'd vote for every other empty cart for Riviera guests.

The load stations at CBR and Epcot should be leaving occasional cabs open for Riviera. It may not be as immediate as Riviera guests would like. And during peak times it doesn't make sense to overcompensate have cabs traveling the entire route empty if there aren't people waiting to board at Riviera.

Making adjustments to this process is much simpler than creating separate queues at each station and requiring CMs to police the process.