Riviera tower studios

[BamaGuy44]

RIV owners: I I know it varies, can't predict the future, etc but in general: How hard are the tower studios to book at 11 months? We usually go in May and late September/Early October, and would book it for 3 or nights. We are weighing options for a direct add-on, and RIV is one we are definitely looking at. Would you say the towers are like Value/CL at AKV? Basically "maybe if you're lucky and want to walk it for 3 months you MIGHT be able to score one, but probably not ever?" It's not a deal breaker for RIV if the towers are basically impossible to get, but if so we wouldn't factor them into our decision making. Thanks for any advice!

 

[RoseGold]

RIV is only half-sold, and there's no real resale in play. The resale, over time, will all be stuck in that resort trying for tower studios.

Whatever its availability is now, the future could change with the resale restrictions in play and millions of points left to sell.

 

[BamaGuy44]

RIV is only half-sold, and there's no real resale in play. The resale, over time, will all be stuck in that resort trying for tower studios.

Whatever its availability is now, the future could change with the resale restrictions in play and millions of points left to sell.

True. My shelf life for using DVC is about 15 more years, so hopefully the conversion to resale would be slow enough not to affect me too much. My son can worry about that when he inherits the points

 

[Sandisw]

They go fast but May will be easier than the fall, In order to get them consistently, you have to own there.

Same with SV rooms, they go fast now at 11 months so already popular with owners

 

[drusba]

The tower studios currently have an 11-month issue, where, even if you try to reserve online at 8 a.m., 11-months out from date of arrival, you may not get the reservation.Thus far it is a somewhat limited issue, mainly surfacing during the high demand "fall" season (late Sep to marathon weekend in Jan), although once in while it randomly occurs at other times of the year.

An issue is that the problem may become worse as the resort sells out, and resales limiting use of points to Riviera increase. Based on the limited number of Tower studios and the low point cost in comparison to the rest of the Riviera resort, it has a real risk of becoming a problem similar to AKV value studios, i.e., before selling out, AKV value studios developed only a limited 11-month issue mainly for some times in the fall season, now some years after sell-out, it is a year-round issue.

 

[tjkraz]

Based on the limited number of Tower studios and the low point cost in comparison to the rest of the Riviera resort, it has a real risk of becoming a problem similar to AKV value studios, i.e., before selling out, AKV value studios developed only a limited 11-month issue mainly for some times in the fall season, now some years after sell-out, it is a year-round issue.

Functionally it's a bit different than AKV value because of the lower occupancy. Aside from being a few sq ft smaller, AKV Value rooms are identical to Standard and Savanna rooms, but with a lower cost. The Riviera tower studios are cheaper, but limited to a smaller party size and with an more obvious downgrade in accommodation quality.

How that translates in terms of demand remains to be seen. I'm sure they will be quite popular among groups looking to economize but they aren't an option for any party with more than 2 people. And difficulty booking at 11 months is certainly feasible.

Not sure the resale restrictions will have any long term negative effect. Yes, people who buy riviera resale can only use points for riviera. That increases demand for Riviera from one aspect. However, resale owners from all other locations are blocked from Riviera, eliminating demand from another source. It's a trade off.

Of course, tower studios will most often be gone inside the 11 month window, which makes the resale situation somewhat moot. Restrictions or no, tower studio availability would be mostly limited to owners.

 

[DVCsloth]

Looks like July and August are pretty much wide open, once you get into September availability drops off. Probably need to walk the more popular times.

 

[BamaGuy44]

Looks like July and August are pretty much wide open, once you get into September availability drops off. Probably need to walk the more popular times.

Thanks. I don’t have any RIV friendly points so I can’t look at availability.