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[TinkB278]

Why is there such disdain for riviera? I haven’t ever seen such negative comments about any other DVC property. It’s mind boggling to me.

you would think the resort is absolutely horrendous or something the way people talk about it.

 

[ForWhomTheMouseTolls]

People don’t like the resale restrictions and the fact that you can see Caribbean Beach from your window. But the obsession is insane. I Have data science training, and wrote a quick website scraper. There are some people on this site where negative posts about riviera account for over 50% of their posts.

 

[TinkB278]

I just don’t think looking at CBR is that terrible, so that confuses me. Comes off as snobbish. I guess that’s just a personal preference thing.

I also understand not liking the resale restrictions (I don’t either) but with how much people dislike the location, lobby, pool, Skyliner etc, you wouldn’t think they would care since I wouldn’t imagine they would want to stay there with how awful it is, let alone own there.

 

[ForWhomTheMouseTolls]

It’s the most off putting part of this entire site. I love riviera, like my deal, and understand timeshares. I don’t want to feel like a second class citizen because some people don’t like the design of a resort.

 

[RivShore]

RIV is 2.5x the size of VGF. 5 million unsold RIV points sitting there at a ridiculous rack rate + another 5 millions at Aulani are the size of 4 VGFs. Maybe not a huge deal when resorts were selling out with cash and Disney was flush with cash, but right now, that's a problem.

Those are all post-Covid issues. I've been referring to the pre-covid sales numbers - the pre-March data simply does not support the poor sales narrative.

 

[RivShore]

People don’t like the resale restrictions and the fact that you can see Caribbean Beach from your window. But the obsession is insane. I Have data science training, and wrote a quick website scraper. There are some people on this site where negative posts about riviera account for over 50% of their posts.

That is not surprising and supports the fact that there is a concerted effort by some to blast the resale restrictions at every opportunity thinking it will somehow change DVC's mind.

 

[ForWhomTheMouseTolls]

Those are all post-Covid issues. I've been referring to the pre-covid sales numbers - the pre-march data simply does not support the poor sales narrative.

bingo. It was selling fantastically before the economy collapsed and Disney closed. Empirics are hard.

 

[Eastcoast02]

It’s the most off putting part of this entire site. I love riviera, like my deal, and understand timeshares. I don’t want to feel like a second class citizen because some people don’t like the design of a resort.

You are not a second class citizen; that would be the rest of us that bought resale You should not let anyone's opinion get to you. My home resort is AKV and people on here would never stay there (hi all you BWV & BCV people!). Heck, even my wife gives me grief for booking it when I do.

I think its just the big price hikes and increased dues that make me gawk at DVC now. You can justify the RVA dues however you'd like but they came in high & hot to start. It is the one part of DVC that gets to me because it is an ever increasing unknown. I felt like Riviera's initial offering was high as well at the time because it seemed like yesterday Poly direct was going for somewhere around $150/pt.

That initial interest has passed and now it is all sales tactics to move these points and as mentioned before it is a big resort. The math made sense when I bought 165 points at $79/pt, and my 25 point direct for benefits. I can imagine many of these direct contracts are financed though so many are just looking at it like another monthly payment. Its all preference and personal choice.

That said, I look forward to checking out Riviera's offerings.

 

[AliceIn]

It’s the most off putting part of this entire site. I love riviera, like my deal, and understand timeshares. I don’t want to feel like a second class citizen because some people don’t like the design of a resort.

I think the Riviera is absolutely gorgeous. The rooms are so elegant and the furnishings look so comfortable. The theme they were going for fits beautifully. The grounds will mature and it's going to be breathtaking. If only my husband would get over his fear of the skyliner!

 

[RoseGold]

I don’t want to feel like a second class citizen because some people don’t like the design of a resort.

You're not a second class citizen, that's me -- well technically I'm like 6th class?. The third class, well, 7th?, class citizen is the resale buyer of your contract. I'd argue math is better down here in the cheap seats.

RIV's policies (made by Disney) matter, because they have collapsed the thing that made DVC hold its value and not just be another timeshare you have to pay to get out of. The resale restrictions matter to us all, as do the constantly shifting rules and policies and benefits and procedures. That's why we are all on these boards.

I'm not sure why anyone cares what the sales rate was before Covid. That number doesn't matter much to the 10 million points sitting there now, that's just math. 10 million points worth of holding a bag is a scary place to be right now.

And hey, maybe I'll be a RIV owner too if its resale is worthless in a few years.

 

[Cabius]

I was very unenthusiastic about the Riviera from concept art and opening photos, but then stayed in the Martinique section of CBR in January and we walked over to the Riviera almost every evening. It was absolutely lovely.

The lobby was honestly underwhelming, but the rest of the public areas were MUCH better themed and more pleasant in person than I expected. What I had thought was "generic luxury hotel" was actually exquisite in real life.

I wouldn't buy there because I ride-or-die for PVB, but I certainly would never fault anybody for falling in love with it and wanting to call it Home.

 

[TinkB278]

I was very unenthusiastic about the Riviera from concept art and opening photos, but then stayed in the Martinique section of CBR in January and we walked over to the Riviera almost every evening. It was absolutely lovely.

The lobby was honestly underwhelming, but the rest of the public areas were MUCH better themed and more pleasant in person than I expected. What I had thought was "generic luxury hotel" was actually exquisite in real life.

I wouldn't buy there because I ride-or-die for PVB, but I certainly would never fault anybody for falling in love with it and wanting to call it Home.

I agree about the lobby and wish it was big and breathtaking Jambo house style. But having stayed in multiple places in france (including on the Riviera) I do think maybe the small lobby was intentional as most hotel lobbies in France are small. Even at some of the really nice (and expensive!) Marriotts.

 

[jennypenny]

As a regular on the Dis I expected to dislike Riviera, but staying there changed my mind. It's lovely, including the lakeside area shared with Caribbean Beach. I also expected to hate the skyliner and then found it a fun way to get around. It must be me since I also liked the Tower room.

I think RVA's sales are surprisingly high given the low park attendance and the overall impact of COVID on everyone's finances and willingness to travel.

 

[UrsulaWantsYourSoul]

I'm not sure why anyone cares what the sales rate was before Covid. That number doesn't matter much to the 10 million points sitting there now, that's just math. 10 million points worth of holding a bag is a scary place to be right now.

You're right - so many points yet to sell and resale restrictions do scare some people off - a scary place to be for sure. Hopefully it won't take as long to sell as Aulani has. That said, it is a lot of points so should take more time than some DVC properties did to sell out. I think the point about pre-Covid sales is that it's a better way of comparing how sales were going before this unusual time hit. None of the other properties had a period where everything literally shut down. It will be impossible to do direct comparisons from here on out. But certainly will be fun and interesting to see how sales fluctuate with time and how long it does take to sell out. All very fascinating.

 

[LTJoeFlo]

People don’t like the resale restrictions and the fact that you can see Caribbean Beach from your window. But the obsession is insane. I Have data science training, and wrote a quick website scraper. There are some people on this site where negative posts about riviera account for over 50% of their posts.

I agree with you 100% but this is not new. There was similar animosity towards VGF when it first opened and for very similar reasons (high point chart, high MFs, no walking path to the parks).

But I have noticed that many opinions have changed after people have stayed at Riviera. It is not an established “brand” like the previous DVC resorts. Nobody was waiting for Riviera like they were for VGF, CCV, Poly. Unfortunately, the travel situation is making it harder for people to get familiar with the hotel. I am pretty confident that if DVC created a section in Yacht Club, it would sell pretty quickly even with the same restrictions. If the resale restriction is truly as bad as people make them out to be, Disneyland Tower is going to be a tough sell.

 

[striker1064]

Why is there such disdain for riviera? I haven’t ever seen such negative comments about any other DVC property. It’s mind boggling to me.

you would think the resort is absolutely horrendous or something the way people talk about it.

Because it's the new thing. You ought to search for when VGF, PVB, and CCV opened for sales - same vitriol. VGF points charts were way too high, PVB was all studios and points-sucking bungalows, and CCV could never hope to match VWL. People mellowed on each one as time went on and especially once the next resort was announced.

RIV is the newest thing so it's fun for everyone to hate, but it's got 2 things in particular working against it - those resale restrictions, and the next DVC was canceled. Indeed, the hate for Reflections was already ramping up even though all we had was concept art and a name - it's a retirement home, it's an eyesore on Fort Wilderness, etc.

In the end, it's a timeshare and there are no winners or losers - well, except Disney. Disney always wins.

Enjoy your vacations at RIV!

 

[Sandisw]

Aulani and RIV are huge. I think it's pretty obvious that DVD did not want Aulani at 50% and RIV 20% at this point. They were trying to expand DVC on a huge scale and print money, not shuffle around points from ROFR for a few bucks margin.

Gotta remember that sales were down for 3 months and now things are just not the same.

Also remember, RIV is a different product so I am not convinced that the expectations were to outsell previous resorts. I wonder if it was more staying competitive. And the months prior to shut down were trending well.

Given the numbers. It’s not too bad IMO. There have been about 12 months of actual sales.

 

[Sandisw]

You're not a second class citizen, that's me -- well technically I'm like 6th class?. The third class, well, 7th?, class citizen is the resale buyer of your contract. I'd argue math is better down here in the cheap seats.

RIV's policies (made by Disney) matter, because they have collapsed the thing that made DVC hold its value and not just be another timeshare you have to pay to get out of. The resale restrictions matter to us all, as do the constantly shifting rules and policies and benefits and procedures. That's why we are all on these boards.

I'm not sure why anyone cares what the sales rate was before Covid. That number doesn't matter much to the 10 million points sitting there now, that's just math. 10 million points worth of holding a bag is a scary place to be right now.

And hey, maybe I'll be a RIV owner too if its resale is worthless in a few years.

The pre Covid numbers matter when people say the sales of RIV are disappointing and imply it has to do with the resort and resale restrictions.

Post Covid, sales for DVC will be depressed and if RIVs numbers will be too.

Now, I agree that DVD may not be thrilled with overall direct sales because of the current state of things.

But that is much different than people saying they have to be disappointed in RIV sales and attribute it to the restrictions. Because prior to Covid, the sales were pretty good.

 

[E2ME2]

It’s the most off putting part of this entire site. I love riviera, like my deal, and understand timeshares. I don’t want to feel like a second class citizen because some people don’t like the design of a resort.

I agree, and as an SSR owner, I can relate to the DVC-shaming!
There are many who look down their nose at SSR, and that's been in place since long before Riviera was on the scene.
I remember one AUL owner that was actually upset with me in 2015, because I was able to grab a January stay in AUL with my SSR points.
He had just bought AUL, direct, and had just became aware of the 7-Month window, and the resale market.
I am quite content to use my SSR points at SSR, if I never stayed in another resort. I considered it a bonus when I was able to can 7-Month reservations at AUL/BWV/AKV.
I do think it's all a little classless, actually, to ridicule other owner's decisions. I celebrate every DVC owner's purchase on these boards, regardless of Home Resort, or Price Per Point.
ET

 

[RoseGold]

Disneyland Tower is going to be a tough sell.

I disagree. Months, maybe longer if the pricing is as sky-high as some have seen suggested. It's such a small resort, and the demand is THERE and has been for a long time. If WDW could plop RIV into DL, it would have.