Riviera is suffering from Ill Will created by Disney

[cvjw]

I have absolutely zero interest in buying riveria points. It has nothing to do with ill will created by Disney with the resale restrictions. It has more to do with the location of the resort, the high points needed per night, the high maintenance fees and the overall look of the resort. We weren’t impressed. Add to the fact that it is basically part of Caribbean beach, and we just have no interest. If we want to stay in an Epcot resort, we will use our points at BWV and BCV.

I am happy that some people love it. That is the great thing about dvc - something for everyone.

 

[Chuck S]

I don't know...I think maybe it is better to have the resale restrictions spelled out up front rather than the way they kept adding restrictions and grandfathering previous people. There were complaints about that, too.

 

[dez1978]

It's my feeling RR direct buyers are extra-sensitive to any criticism of RR.

We can complain about the lack of a quality QS, unavailability of standard view studios in the Fall, long hallways and a crazy clown pool at BWV ALL DAY LONG and owners don't get defensive.

I agree with the PP, RR is selling just fine; thanks to the recent incentives and offering 2019 points at no charge (wink, wink). Mostly to people who think *life* can't possibly happen to them, IMHO.

I feel like this is the equivalent of calling RR owners snowflakes lol. Also, I bought a RR, and Idc if anyone criticizes it, bc the fewer ppl that buy there, the less I have to worry about getting a room I want. Complain away. As an owner, I def don't think it's perfect. I wish there was a bigger store and better qs. But it works for us.

 

[dez1978]

Using 160 for 6 nights in a preferred studio, same nights would be 111 in a boardwalk view BWV. That's 44% more.

I just booked 6 nights, preferred studio, the week of thanksgiving, for 136 points at RR.

 

[DebbieB]

I just booked 6 nights, preferred studio, the week of thanksgiving, for 136 points at RR.

Week of April 19 is Magic Season, Week of Nov 22 is Choice Season, except Nov 25-27 is Magic.

 

[DVC BLT]

I have absolutely zero interest in buying riveria points. It has nothing to do with ill will created by Disney with the resale restrictions. It has more to do with the location of the resort, the high points needed per night, the high maintenance fees and the overall look of the resort. We weren’t impressed. Add to the fact that it is basically part of Caribbean beach, and we just have no interest. If we want to stay in an Epcot resort, we will use our points at BWV and BCV.

I am happy that some people love it. That is the great thing about dvc - something for everyone.

Good & honest critique... no doubt its expensive. Just look at the dues & price per point. Both very high and are doubly high due to the number of points to book any given room in any given season compared to other resorts (excluding GFV, which is the only true comparable on property).

As far as the look, I think its beautiful. The roof, awnings, etc. Its a nice looking building. Even at night it has a really impressive look from the skyliner. The outside grounds beg to be walked casually with an espresso... But I get it, if your looking shock and awe via a true visual transportation to another place, its not happening at RIV for sure (thinking WL, AKV, BWV, etc).

 

[tidefan]

You do realize a lot of resorts take a huge hit when you buy direct and sell resale right? Poly is $245 direct and is selling at $145 a 41% drop. If you buy with incentives around $175 at Riv and sell at $130 thats a 25% drop. Everyone is taking a hit now that direct prices are going up and up not just Riv. Most most resorts take a 25-40% drop in resale, its the reason people are buyimg resale because its 25-40% cheaper.

This is a bit skewed. We bought Poly for, if I remember correctly, around $160/pt direct, so our "value" there hasn't dropped near that much.

Also, we paid $145/pt for our VGF points and I suspect I could get at least that today...

 

[Sandisw]

This is a bit skewed. We bought Poly for, if I remember correctly, around $160/pt direct, so our "value" there hasn't dropped near that much.

Also, we paid $145/pt for our VGF points and I suspect I could get at least that today...

I think the poster was referring to those buying any resort at today’s direct prices,

So all direct buyers today, whether they buy RIV or not, will lose big if they have to sell right away.

The risk for RIV is that with The restrictions, the pool of buyers are smaller, so even as direct prices rice, it may continue to all, unlike the other resorts which may not

 

[tidefan]

I think the poster was referring to those buying any resort at today’s direct prices,

So all direct buyers today, whether they buy RIV or not, will lose big if they have to sell right away.

The risk for RIV is that with The restrictions, the pool of buyers are smaller, so even as direct prices rice, it may continue to all, unlike the other resorts which may not

I get that. My point was that most Poly or VGF buyers didn't pay anything close to $245 a point and when those buyers did buy, there wasn't near as large a delta between a newly on-sale resort and it's resale value.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

I know DVC is not an investment. It is pre-paying for hotel stays.
That said, the only reason we were ok with buying in to DVC (besides the Fact that we are Disney fans) is because unlike other timeshares, DVC does hold at least some of its value. We don’t plan to sell, but you know what they say about when people plan....
We love the look of Rivera rooms. We plan to get more points. But we can’t get past the potential for the resale restrictions to make the points unsellable in the event of an emergency.
is it more complex than this? Yes. But for us, the resale restrictions are keeping us from giving Disney more money.

 

[Sandisw]

I get that. My point was that most Poly or VGF buyers didn't pay anything close to $245 a point and when those buyers did buy, there wasn't near as large a delta between a newly on-sale resort and it's resale value.

Of course, that is a definite. Someone was talking about how much a person buying RIV loses right out the door, and today, that’s A con for anyone buying direct, regardless of resort because they have raised those prices so much.

 

[Granny]

You should have been here 20 years ago in the old "OKW vs BWV" days. Everyone talked about BWV's "tiny rooms" and "you can answer the door from the couch".

Agree with Debbie - we closed many threads that turned "nasty" and "sanctioned" quite a few posters for "unDIS-like" comments.

Aw Debbie and Carol...you two just gave me a Richyams moment! He also liked that at BWV you didn't have to get out of your chair to reach for a beer in the fridge!

Thanks for the memories.

Right now, DRR seems to be a hot topic (along with walking). But this too, shall pass - although based on 20 years of history, walking will come back again next year about the same time.

We can only hope!

 

[DebbieB]

Aw Debbie and Carol...you two just gave me a Richyams moment! He also liked that at BWV you didn't have to get out of your chair to reach for a beer in the fridge!

Thanks for the memories.


We can only hope!

That was it, I knew you could do something from the couch!

 

[RivShore]

It's my feeling RR direct buyers are extra-sensitive to any criticism of RR.

We can complain about the lack of a quality QS, unavailability of standard view studios in the Fall, long hallways and a crazy clown pool at BWV ALL DAY LONG and owners don't get defensive.

I agree with the PP, RR is selling just fine; thanks to the recent incentives and offering 2019 points at no charge (wink, wink). Mostly to people who think *life* can't possibly happen to them, IMHO.

As some have said, I think the overly sensitive responses to the negativity were mainly due to criticisms of a resort that had not even opened yet.

As the OP said, those early criticisms were stoked by the restrictions and the push by some to make them fail. You had people with hardcore closed minded negativity about a place they had not yet seen in person. It can't be compared to critical comments about BWV/SSR/OKW since those resorts had been open for some time and had most likely been visited by the criticiser. Now that RIV is open, I think we have seen less of that sensitivity directed at critiques from people who have actually visited it.

 

[Royal Consort]

As some have said, I think the overly sensitive responses to the negativity were mainly due to criticisms of a resort that had not even opened.

As a Riviera owner, I wouldn't say I am sensitive. What I would say is after 10 years of visiting WDW and flirting with the idea of DVC, we finally bought in. It was exciting and a big deal to us. I had wanted to share this excitement with other owners and members as Disney is a passion all of us share. What happened was a lot of self-righteousness from some members that want to tell you you're wrong. Buzzkill. Whatever.

 

[CanadaDisney05]

Wow, this thread pretty much proved your point about Riv owners being uber-sensitive to ANY criticism. You say anything against it (and I’ve seen this in other threads as well) and they all jump on you. Sorry, but I feel like if you feel the need to be super and reflexively defensive of your decision to buy or of the resort itself (which is extremely underwhelming imo) then you must not be totally confident in your decision(that’s psychology). People always hate on SS or OKW or BWV, and you don’t see those owners getting out pitch forks. Just sayin.

I think this thread proved another point. There hasn't been a single "sensitive" response to anything negative said about the resort. All of the "sensitive" responses have been to the broadly based judgement on RIV owner's lack of sound decision making skills.

This is a bit skewed. We bought Poly for, if I remember correctly, around $160/pt direct, so our "value" there hasn't dropped near that much.

Also, we paid $145/pt for our VGF points and I suspect I could get at least that today...

Yes, but that is due to an increase in market demand over the passage of time..... not because Poly was able to be sold on the resale market for the same price right out of the gate. If DVC values continue to rise, there will be a point in time where RIV will sell on the resale market for more than it was purchased direct.

 

[tidefan]

es, but that is due to an increase in market demand over the passage of time..... not because Poly was able to be sold on the resale market for the same price right out of the gate. If DVC values continue to rise, there will be a point in time where RIV will sell on the resale market for more than it was purchased direct.

Actually, we will see. The question will be what the delta is between direct and the first resale contracts. That will be a more appropriate comparison...

 

[kboo]

Using 160 for 6 nights in a preferred studio

Last year we stayed over Easter break for 6 nights in a standard studio at VGF for 196 points. It was right after booking that stay (back in 2018), that we added on at VGF.

Right now, DRR seems to be a hot topic (along with walking). But this too, shall pass - although based on 20 years of history, walking will come back again next year about the same time

I own at DRR and I have walked reservations in the past, and will do so in the future if I need to. I must be a troll!!

I was a "never direct!" DVC owner until Riviera. Internally, I had set my own price to get a small Riviera resale contract some years later at $120 pp for split stays. It remains to be seen whether resale contracts will get to that point. After 1 stay at RIV, though, I can see us shifting our balance of split stays to spend more time in the EP/HS area, staying at RIV.