A Full Go on Riviera Resort

[Royal Consort]

I would say though Riviera does provide the unique situation in that a new buyer could purchase a GW in a standard studio and it being advantageous (guarantees that standard room) over owning BWV where a standard studio isn't guaranteed (to mitigate the exact point above which is true). For the first time GW now qualify for incentives so could be a good choice to lower that spread between Riviera and BWV to a manageable level if the purchaser traveled the same week usually. They could try and grab the week themselves and get back the 10% premium (which for some weeks is gone already since they haven't adjusted the GW costs yet) but if unsuccessful they still get the room.

This was the one massive advantage for us purchasing here. We purchased a guaranteed week standard view studio in November. The point chart reallocation reduced our premium and I estimate that the following year's point chart will narrow the premium further.

I also cancelled this year's fixed week booking and snagged the week myself, saving my 10% premium. Win.

 

[Sandisw]

Then perhaps create an anti-Riviera thread and use it to discuss all of the reasons buyers would be foolish to purchase there. I would propose that those who spend 5 minutes researching Riviera on the DIS will not read glowing praise in a single post and walk away convinced they need look no further.

I don't understand the incessant desire to poke holes in every buyer's individual decision. Financially, OKW or SSR resale has been the most sensible purchase for the last decade. Thousands of owners who purchased everything from BCV resale to Poly direct to Riviera direct knowingly made concessions along the way.

Every purchase thread doesn't need to morph into a list of points and counterpoints in the interest of allegedly saving others from making a similar "mistake" as the original poster.

Well said And right on target

 

[TexasChick123]

Can you tour any villas at RIV or do you have to go to SSR?

 

[crvetter]

Can you tour any villas at RIV or do you have to go to SSR?

I believe they have a model at the resort. When I was there this past weekend (not staying just visiting) they asked if I wanted to see a room (the implication is it was at the hotel since they said they could show it right then), but I declined having seen the models at SSR. I suspect if past is any indication as they had a model room at CCV they toured daily.

 

[kboo]

My DH was approached with an offer (in the RIV lobby) to tour a GV (even though he told them we already owned RIV points). They are offering some sort of onsite tour to current DVC members (again, as far as I know it’s the GV) but if you’re really interested you may as well ask. I wouldn’t bother if it’s at SSR but if you get to walk around the grounds, try the skyliner and have lunch, it might be worth it.

 

[DaveNan]

This never ending back and forth is getting tiresome. I personally do not plan on purchasing RR direct, the restrictions have me too concerned. I personally also prefer being able to walk to 2 resorts, and fortunately everyone in my family is mobile enough the walking is not an issue. For me personally, those are the only 2 big factors driving my current lack of interest. If the resale price settles low enough (around SSR, OKW, AKV) , I would consider adding a small contract (75-100 points). If it does not settle that low, that's fine I will stay with what I have.

This said, those are my and my families preferences. If anyone else decides to purchase direct or resale at a any price, that's fine. We all have different priorities, levels of risk acceptance, and decision making processes. We don't know where the resale market is going to end up. It is just a potential risk that it is lower than other/comparable resorts. I think as long as anyone understands the resale rules and the current modes of transportation and they choose to purchase at RR, than congratulations and Welcome Home!!

 

[TexasChick123]

Do they only offer tours during certain hours? We plan to dine at Topolino’s for dinner and ride the Skyliner this trip, so I was hoping to see the rooms in person without having to go to SSR.

 

[Spark65]

All the negatives about RIV at the end of the day can be summed up in a one liner "It's all about the Benjamins!". People keep denying it has to do with money but it always comes down to cost of MF fees or I can stay at this resort for less than RIV and resale value, woah, resale value and how much can I get from it.

Sound greedy much?

 

[DougEMG]

These are all really excellent and well thought out bullet points. Your post reassures me more about our purchase. I would add to this the larger rooms (except the tower studios), more outlets & USB ports, and the walking/running trail around the lake, which I haven’t seen anyone mention, but really liked when we stayed at Carribean Beach, years ago.

We really love the walkability of Beach Club and Boardwalk but not in love with the rooms.

Love the location of both BCV and BWV and the vibe I get from being there, but the rooms are nothing special and certainly don't make me think I am in a deluxe room.

 

[Brianstl]

Could be true, but it’s still an opinion and not a fact. I am one who always loved being able to walk to parks and saw it as a big plus. But now that my Last few times have not allowed me to take advantage of it, due to my own health or that of my guests, those resorts lost their biggest value.

I think the location of BCV and BVW are even more important to people with mobility issues. The ability to always get to two parks with your ecv without having to ever deal with getting on a bus or gondola is huge. My father would decide just to stay at the resort most days if he had to deal with that everyday.

 

[Sandisw]

I think the location of BCV and BVW are even more important to people with mobility issues. The ability to always get to two parks with your ecv without having to ever deal with getting on a bus or gondola is huge. My father would decide just to stay at the resort most days if he had to deal with that everyday.

ECV maybe..though using the gondola from BCV to HS would be easier than the boat or riding all the way there. ECV at Epcot station would be very easy as you just roll in. Not sure at a RIV though.

The people I was with and myself when at BWV had issues that didn’t require ECV., So, we had to use the boats because the additional walking to parks wasn’t ideal. Even the park walking we did was limited.

 

[DVC BLT]

I intended for this to be a post where like-minded RIV owners and prospective owners could talk about the resort without having to hear the relentless banter about how expensive RIV is or the resale restrictions which are really the only two consistent criticisms of the resort that i’ve read. These two topics have been widely discussed on this board and is the reason for my new thread to begin with. However I never really addressed the resale restriction and how I got comfortable with it, and I guess I started this thread so I may as well explain the thinking of someone you might not understand. Afterall, I have found that most of our disagreements with each other in this world are based on the lack of understanding each other, so here it goes:

I start with this premise: if I want a high end living space, close to a desirable location/attraction, its going to cost me. This is a universal truth I’ve been unable to avoid thus far in my life. Disney is a for-profit entity and I live in a similar corporate world myself. Maybe that allows me to accept this truth easier? Perhaps. But this is the world we live in. In any case, my family is looking for a resort close to EP/HS. As previously mentioned, BWV and BCV were not a fit. With that said, we do love the parks and want to have quick / easy access to them. With those two “wants,” RIV fit the bill. This is the starting point for the fair value assessment, not with what we paid in the past or what we think it should be. The fair value assessment is based on what Disney corporate believes its customers (and they know their customers) will pay for each level of accommodation and its relative access to the park(s). Next, Disney knows they are going to build this premium accommodation (with a new transportation system to boot!) and using the current rules of the system, anyone who buys points from a 3rd party other than themselves will get access to it, without paying Disney a cent. That’s a problem for profits. At the same time, they know that if a prospective RIV buyer cant sell those points it to a 3rd party, it will impair their ability to market and sell the resort direct. Therefore a compromise: starting at a fixed date, any new secondary market legacy resort contract sale will not have access to the RIV resort. This change doesn’t “upset” the rule that the previous transactions took place under, therefore avoiding a loss in “trust” between Disney and those customers / transactions. Next, anyone selling the RIV resort points will result in the new buyer only having access to RIV. This will clearly put a cap on the price those points will sell at in the secondary market, giving Disney an opportunity to buy those points at a lower cost and selling them direct to a new customer, or not if the resort is no longer selling direct easily. Yes…it’s a change in business model, and yes … its for their profit. But at the same time they are delivering a product to me that I want, and in the end, its true that it will cost me more if and when I sell these points than it would under the old system we all know and loved. I suppose they could have also just charged a much higher price to achieve the same goal, but obviously for marketing purposes, its best to build it up on the back-end as some customers will never sell, so why penalize them?

Still, with this new setup, along with an expensive point chart, I know this resort is premium priced. But there is no where else where we can get the “fix” we get when we are in the parks, along with the accommodation level we desire. My suggestion to those angry about this is not to take it out on the resort or buyers of the resort, but to simply move on and not buy it. If Disney isn’t able to sell, you will be right. But constantly posting negativity everywhere is akin to yelling at the dark. I’m not mad at you, quite the opposite. I completely understand what it is your feeling. Believe me, I wish it wasn't so expensive, but in the end, our health and our time is what we have on this earth. I don't plan to spend it fighting for cheaper Disney vacations. With that said, I just want to celebrate this exciting time with other like-minded disers.

Best of luck to everyone, I hope you all get what you want. In the meantime, enjoy your DVC, and like a previous poster said, we’re all neighbors after all! Hope to see you guys on a gondola at some point, and if so, the first round of drinks are on me!

Warm Regards.

 

[Punkrockbebop]

Can you tour any villas at RIV or do you have to go to SSR?

We were able to see all the villas when we visited Riviera on December 20th, but we had to have an appointment. It was only because of my persistence that we didn’t have to go to the Saratoga Springs model. We struck out when we spoke with someone at a DVC counter (at the Boardwalk) to get an appointment at Riviera in the short time we had left on our trip, so we decided to ride the skyliner the next day just to check out the grounds, at least. I decided to try my luck at the Riviera DVC podium again, while we were there. Since it was our second to last day and I told them we didn’t have the time to go to Saratoga, they squeezed us in for a presentation. Our pitch was in one of the grand villas, and our guide showed us all of the other room styles in person, and gave us a pretty good tour.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

FWIW, they are replacing sofa beds with murphy beds everywhere they can.

See also: Saratoga, aka "the low rent district of DVC." They are the first to get it, but it is in the plans at BRV as well. If they can fix the issues, of course.

 

[summerw]

To lavish this sort of praise on the new Disney timeshare venture and dismiss the shortcoming in order to declare the Riviera a crowning Disney achievement, ignores the direction that Disney is heading with its timeshare model; placing a deluxe property, on a non-ideal location that forces heavy reliance on mass transit, charging prices and creating point charts that challenge any timeshare value proposition, and fundamentally changing the product ecosystem for the sole purpose of getting a bigger piece of the pie.

I have no issue with people being happy/excited about their Riviera purchase. I was close to being one of those people for a lot of the same reasons; beautiful resort, 50 year value proposition, 2042, wife, etc., but when posters talk about how Riviera is a great purchase because other timeshare resort properties are worn down, or the idea that Riviera is in fact a better, future-proofed location than BWV/BCV, or the way you’ve spent pages upon pages with all sorts of financial gymnastics to argue that Riviera is comparably priced to BWV, I start to get the sense that ownership is coloring subjectivity.

And when there are biased perspectives in any direction, whether it’s a starry-eyed Riviera owner or an incensed anti-resale-restriction owner, we should all hope there will be dissenting voices that will provide some measure of balance to that.

Thank you for saying these things in this way. First, I love "wife" is listed as a reason to purchase. Lol.

Second, I think a lot of the starry-eyed-sounding defense of the Riviera comes because of how others talk about the points you mentioned. Agreed that not only does Riviera have resale restrictions, but the cost/point charts are in a different value range than DVC ever has been and it's unsettling. Whether that's the new norm and whether that's still of value to those who desire and are able to purchase direct in this market SHOULD be a matter of debate on these boards.

However, instead of saying, "my aversion to Disney's new approach to pricing/restrictions will probably prevent me from buying," some people here (obviously not you) and so many on Facebook jump in anytime someone is celebrating their purchase saying those people are naive or haven't considered their purchase, the resort is Disney's ugliest, it will be crowded, the Skyliner is awful and on and on. Not everyone gives fair and balanced responses as you do and it wears thin, causing hyperbolic responses that, I think, might otherwise be more measured.

4. The non-feature pool is long enough for real laps. Other than the Swolphin lap pools, this is the only place I'm aware where you can swim laps on Disney property.

5. You can access all the restaurants, skyliner and bus without being in the rain.

This is the casitas pool at Coronado Springs. I've never swum in it, but it caught my eye in pics because I'm a lap swimmer too. Thanks for the info about Beau Soleil! That makes me happy!

Also, agree about the shorter walk in the rain or the heat/blinding sun at noon. Sometimes having a short walk instead of seated transportation to depend on is nice, and sometimes it is not.

Personally I think it would just be more people with pixie dust in their eyes. I think the restrictions have people looking a little more closely for issues. There are plenty on this board that said they wouldn't purchase there and then have. I think its better to start a skeptic and change your mind than just love it with no information (Reflections + DL DVC).

I would just add that it might not be 25 years though for Riviera. I had read a review on opening day and while the review was mostly positive one of the things they called out was the lobby and the choice of that chandelier which they thought wouldn't age well.

I wouldn't worry about personally (as you know I have said some negative things and some positive on RIV). If you love the theme right now you will in 25 years most likely. It sounds like the theming of the BWV/BCV is just not the speed of the OP. I would say this is reinforced through their apparent love of BLT.

Time will tell but for me a place like Wilderness, Animal Kingdom, and Boardwalk are all going to age better than a ultra luxury/modernist hotel as the former are characterizations of a picture in someones head while the later is too closely tied to "modern".

I would disagree this and this was brought up on the thread about someone posting "lets hear it for blue card owners". This is the purchasing subforum and one of the things I loved as I was looking at first purchasing DVC was people having different views and ideas on the same thing (as long as people are not stating something just false).

I do not see the same thing you do. While the Riviera has some modern elements, I do not see it as "modern" in style. The furniture will be replaced or recovered as the years pass, but the detailed moldings, column-and-arched-element architecture and white stone flooring will be more timeless, in the vein of these historic hotels (the Carlton and Negresco) from the French Riviera IMHO. I agree about the "chandelier" though, not my favorite.
BTW, I'm not implying the Riviera has the craftsmanship of historic hotels, just that the style is not modern. And, for those of us who have spent time in Paris, northern Italy or the French Riviera, I think it does follow that picture in our heads.

Also, so anyone who likes Riviera, without first being a skeptic, has pixie dust in their eyes? I'm all for presenting opposing opinions, just not implying people of one persuasion are blind.

 

[zavandor]

So, a RIV owner can make it work strategically over BWV or BCV. Will it be easy? Probably not. If RIV SV becomes as elusive as BWV SV, then sure, the discussion will change,,,which. Is what I stated.,,but when I bought BWV years ago it was for getting SV And now I have had trouble More often than not.

The percentage of SV at BWV and RIV is about the same, 25% vs 30%. And currently standard studios at RIV disappear quickly at 11 months. It's highly likely that a similar pattern of difficulty to book SV at RIV will develop. Even more so because the point chart is higher and the purchase price is much higher than how it was when BWV went on sale, so even more people might be looking at saving points as often as possible. Or maybe the Tower studios will take some pressure off studios, we don't really know. Until booking patterns are established, anedoctical evidence is not really worth much. You have not been able to book BWV SV for one trip, while I was able to get SV with a waitlist last September. If we look at my lucky experience and I compare the SV I got with a preferred studio at RIV, I could say RIV costs double, but it doesn't really mean much.
At the moment, it's better to compare SV vs SV or Preferred vs Preferred at the two resorts to assess the average difference in cost between the two resorts. If we do this, RIV isn't double the cost, but once we compare buy in cost, maintenance fees and point charts, RIV is on average considerably more than the other Epcot resorts.

Problem I have most of the time is when the statements are made that RIV is an absolute more expensive trip. Studios there offer more than studios at BWV/BCV as well, so that never seems to be considered when looking at why they may be more,

This is a good point. Skyliner, split bathroom, full size single bed under the TV, a real bed instead of a sofa can be really valuable to soe poeple, who might be happy to pay more to get better amenities. If you say: I'm happy to pay more for RIV because the amenities are better for me, then I cannot fault your reasoning. If you say that it can cost just about the same than owning BWV, then I can tell you that it can actually cost double (if you book RIV preferred vs BWV standard) and on average it costs around 1,5X.

Yes, I spent $8k to own Riv, but I got my kids qualified for direct points, and I got 28 years longer to book rooms. Not sure how you can tell me I am spending so much more for my stays when you don’t know what I am spending for each stay. See, it’s those statements that I take issue with.

This is were I lose you. You say that the resale restrictions don't matter for you because you don't intend to sell. But you were able to buy RIV paying just 8k because you were able to sell a BWV contract for more than you paid it. The fact that the resort kept its value very well over the years granted you the possibility to switch home resort for a longer contract with minimal expense. In 25 years time, if all the doom and gloom scenarios turn to be true, your children might not be able to do the same. You more than anyone else should appreciate how valuable it is that DVC kept its value over time unlike other timeshares.
Of course, there are worst thing in life than being stuck at RIV (which I agree, has a lot or upsides) like I don't think you would have been upset being stuck with your BWV contract. But life happens and having an option is better than not having it.

 

[Bing Showei]

Then perhaps create an anti-Riviera thread and use it to discuss all of the reasons buyers would be foolish to purchase there.

Reasonable, differing perspectives exist around the Riviera conversation. Your reductive solution of an “anti-Riviera” thread is misplaced. If you view my assertion that the points I took issue with are flawed or worth examining more closely as anti-Riviera, you are grossly misunderstanding the points I’m making.

Every purchase thread doesn't need to morph into a list of points and counterpoints in the interest of allegedly saving others from making a similar "mistake" as the original poster.

You’re being ironic, right? That was exactly the expressed purpose of this very thread: to counter all the negative, misrepresented posts that the OP saw about the Riviera, or the prevailing pro-BWV/BCV sentiment (which I’ve never picked up on), that OP took issue with. When someone identifies a rationale/logic I view as flawed, I’ll call them out on it. Not because I’m looking to save anyone from buying anything, but because it defies what I view as sensible thinking. I would hope others will do the same when I veer into some anti-restriction bent for which I know I have a propensity.

I have never believed that people buying Riviera were making a mistake. I have never heard from a single owner who bought that I felt was making a mistake (save for the buyer’s remorse posts to which my response is always “Rescind and research. It’ll be there next week.”).

What I did do was challenge the notion that Riviera would be somehow spared of the primary drawbacks of BCV/BWV as outline by the OP.

Instead of seeing that, you just distilled it down to simply being “anti-Riviera” and suggested segregating that perspective to its own thread.

I’m not pro-Riviera. I’m not anti-Riviera. Hell, I don’t know Riviera. Truth be told, I’m hoping all the wonderful first-hand things I’m reading that kboo, pyotr, and others are writing about the resort are all lies because if they’re true, I may stop chasing windmills and end up buying in. And to me, that’s a more painful surrender than I would care to admit.

 

[Sandisw]

The percentage of SV at BWV and RIV is about the same, 25% vs 30%. And currently standard studios at RIV disappear quickly at 11 months. It's highly likely that a similar pattern of difficulty to book SV at RIV will develop. Even more so because the point chart is higher and the purchase price is much higher than how it was when BWV went on sale, so even more people might be looking at saving points as often as possible. Or maybe the Tower studios will take some pressure off studios, we don't really know. Until booking patterns are established, anedoctical evidence is not really worth much. You have not been able to book BWV SV for one trip, while I was able to get SV with a waitlist last September. If we look at my lucky experience and I compare the SV I got with a preferred studio at RIV, I could say RIV costs double, but it doesn't really mean much.
At the moment, it's better to compare SV vs SV or Preferred vs Preferred at the two resorts to assess the average difference in cost between the two resorts. If we do this, RIV isn't double the cost, but once we compare buy in cost, maintenance fees and point charts, RIV is on average considerably more than the other Epcot resorts.




This is a good point. Skyliner, split bathroom, full size single bed under the TV, a real bed instead of a sofa can be really valuable to soe poeple, who might be happy to pay more to get better amenities. If you say: I'm happy to pay more for RIV because the amenities are better for you, then I cannot fault your reasoning. If you say that it can cost just about the same than owning BWV, then I can tell you that it can actually cost double (if you book RIV preferred vs BWV standard) and on average it costs around 1,5X.



This is were I lose you. You say that the resale restrictions don't matter for you because you don't intend to sell. But you were able to buy RIV paying just 8k because you were able to sell a BWV contract for more than you paid it. The fact that the resort kept its value very well over the years granted you the possibility to switch home resort for a longer contract with minimal expense. In 25 years time, if all the doom and gloom scenarios turn to be true, your children might not be able to do the same. You more than anyone else should understand how valuable it is that DVC kept is value over time unlike other timeshares.
Of course, there are worst thing in life than being stuck at RIV (which I agree, has a lot or upsides) like I don't think you would have been upset being stuck with your BWV contract. But life happens and having an option is better than not having it.

I freely admitted that a robust resale market worked out in my favor I being able to buy RIV,,,No doubt about it, Had I had to sell for a lot less, it certainly could have played a role in what I did...most likely, though, I would have just bought 100 points, even though I was selling 150, becsuse again, getting my adult kids as members was the most important piece.

But, that doesn’t change that I bought RIV, and all my contracts with an expectation that it would be worth 0. So having one with restrictions was not an issue, especially since I have one BWV contract, and two SSR contracts that could always be sold first if MFs became an issue..and even then, I have enough family and friends that selling isn’t necessary

You are absolutely right that in 25 years my kids my have to give it away if they don’t want it. But since they will have paid nothing for it, they have not lost a thing and would have gotten 25 years worth of free vacations. But BWV would also be done at that point so again, no loss to them at all.

My advice to any buyer is to assume a resale value of 0 and decide if you can or are willing to take that loss if an emergency happened down the road before you saw savings. That is how I went in to every DVC purchase.

Now that I have seen the resort, and love what I see, I am going to venture to say I’d gamble and buy at full price and hope for the best.

 

[sethschroeder]

I do not see the same thing you do. While the Riviera has some modern elements, I do not see it as "modern" in style. The furniture will be replaced or recovered as the years pass, but the detailed moldings, column-and-arched-element architecture and white stone flooring will be more timeless, in the vein of these historic hotels (the Carlton and Negresco) from the French Riviera IMHO. I agree about the "chandelier" though, not my favorite.
BTW, I'm not implying the Riviera has the craftsmanship of historic hotels, just that the style is not modern. And, for those of us who have spent time in Paris, northern Italy or the French Riviera, I think it does follow that picture in our heads.

Also, so anyone who likes Riviera, without first being a skeptic, has pixie dust in their eyes? I'm all for presenting opposing opinions, just not implying people of one persuasion are blind.

Disney even describes it as modern so not sure what to tell you. Its inspired by France/Italy but is built with a modernist approach unless Disney is just making that statement up? I am not an architect/designer so I can't speak to that.

Also for "those of us who have spent time in Paris..Italy...Riviera". Those are NOT the people I am talking about because 90%+ of your guests will never have been any of those locations. When I say a "picture in your head" that is different than "what you remember". You could make an exact replica and it might not seem to follow the theme for that 90%+ of guests.

To clarify I didn't say everyone who isn't a skeptic at first has pixie dust I said "I think it would just be more people with pixie dust in their eyes." There are three basic groups of people: like RIV, dislike RIV, Pixie Dust. With having the resale restrictions you took a large portion of those people who would have been in the Pixie Dust group and moved them to the area of being able to actually decide if they like or dislike Riviera.

Edit to add: Can't you notice the difference between the first picture with the short ceiling with thick columns to room size vs the other two hotels with massive rooms, light, airy, and very open feeling. I don't think I could pick two better contrasting pictures of the same idea as the 1st and 2nd pictures.

 

[summerw]

Disney even describes it as modern so not sure what to tell you. Its inspired by France/Italy but is built with a modernist approach unless Disney is just making that statement up? I am not an architect/designer so I can't speak to that.

Also for "those of us who have spent time in Paris..Italy...Riviera". Those are NOT the people I am talking about because 90%+ of your guests will never have been any of those locations. When I say a "picture in your head" that is different than "what you remember". You could make an exact replica and it might not seem to follow the theme for that 90%+ of guests.

To clarify I didn't say everyone who isn't a skeptic at first has pixie dust I said "I think it would just be more people with pixie dust in their eyes." There are three basic groups of people: like RIV, dislike RIV, Pixie Dust. With having the resale restrictions you took a large portion of those people who would have been in the Pixie Dust group and moved them to the area of being able to actually decide if they like or dislike Riviera.

Edit to add: Can't you notice the difference between the first picture with the short ceiling with thick columns to room size vs the other two hotels with massive rooms, light, airy, and very open feeling. I don't think I could pick two better contrasting pictures of the same idea as the 1st and 2nd pictures.

Are you talking about the verbiage in this pic? Yeah, we don’t interpret that the same way. To me, “modern masterpiece” means the modern addition of the Skyliner or that it will have all the newer conveniences like USB ports, mobile ordering, the new couch Murphy beds, all the things Walt would not have found in his travels.

Or the “mix of modern and 20th century furnishings”? A lot of the furniture has the simple leg design and shape of mid-century modern furniture—which has also withstood the test of time due to its simple lines. Neither of those uses of the word “modern” mean the design is Modern.

So do you have examples of what the Riviera looks like to people who have never been there? I don’t understand what you mean... are you just saying most people haven’t been to the French or Italian Riviera so they shouldn’t base a hotel’s theme on it?

I guess I object to the whole “pixie dust in the eyes” method of discounting someone’s opinion.

of course I see the difference in the height of the ceilings. It’s a DVC resort, not a hotel, and the lobby has a lot of influence from the Paris metro stations as well. It may not be to your taste and I’m not saying it’s Disney’s best lobby or even close but I find it elegant and inviting and reminds me of exploring France and Italy. To each their own.