DVC Direct Riviera or Copper Creek

[Kerrie T]

Help...I am exploring either Riviera or Copper Creek and need some advice from my expert community. I am not currently a DVC member but I am a perfect candidate. My sons and I are visiting the parks roughly 2-3 times a year (4 times this year). We are in New England and Plat. AP's. Looking to have the benefits of a direct purchase. I cannot say how much I love these 2 resorts (it is a near tie) so I don't think there is a bad choice to make. We frequent HS, EPCOT, and MK about equally. But I am all over the place in feeling confident about the Riviera resale restrictions. Also, I am confused about Use Year. With that, here are my questions:

1. Should I truly be concerned about the Riviera resale restrictions (your money goes a bit further here and if I wanted to add CCV later, I could do so at resale for a better price). However, I will likely not be around ot see the end of the 2070 contract and do I saddle my kids with a potentially hard to sell investment in RIV?
2. We travel at all different times of the year but are looking to single out January or February as our must have times of the year. December Use Year make sense here?

Any other opinions or comments would be helpful. I know you all are the experts! Thank you in advance!

 

[E2ME2]

Kerrie T;
I am liking your enthusiasm! Neither of those 2 resorts hit my buttons, but as empty-nesters the EPCOT/DHS parks would win out over MK. We've stayed at BWV and at the "SWOLPHIN" complex, and it was very convenient during the EPCOT Arts Festival. I am cautious of the RIV restrictions, not knowing where that will lead DVC long-term.
We do almost all of our travel in January/February, and a June Use Year has been working well for us. Our HOME is SSR, but that time of year we are usually able to find many other options available. You will get a lot of mixed opinions on these boards. I, for example, have been told so many times that using SSR as Sleep Around Points is a gamble and that I should consider myself lucky when we can get stays at other "higher-valued" resorts. I look at it differently. Staying anywhere on property works for us, especially since we know we are repeat customers and don't have to cram a lifetime of activity into a 7-Night stay. Buying at SSR (Direct & Resale) has allowed us more points for our money, and when we are able to use those points at a higher-price-per-point resort we see that as a bonus. If I approached it the other way, and bought more points at a higher price elsewhere, then when we chose to visit a lower-price-per-point resort I might feel like we were over-paying.
I wish you well in your exploration; these are the opinions of but one humble DVC owner. I hope we can all Welcome You Home shortly !
ET

 

[_auroraborealis_]

How many are in your family when you say sons? It is critically important to know a few things about these resorts:

• Copper Creek requires a 2BR to sleep 5 guests. Riviera can accommodate 5 in the studio and 1BR.
• Copper Creek studios can be difficult to book year round even in home resort. There are a limited number. This includes January-February, this isn't a resort that really opens up in late winter like some others.
• Riviera Standard Studios are expected to be more challenging to book. Again, it seems there are fewer of them than the Preferred.
• As the Riviera restrictions kick in, booking some units may become more challenging because people who know they have to book Riviera or get nothing are likely to book early year round.

 

[EYL]

1. Should I truly be concerned about the Riviera resale restrictions (your money goes a bit further here and if I wanted to add CCV later, I could do so at resale for a better price). However, I will likely not be around ot see the end of the 2070 contract and do I saddle my kids with a potentially hard to sell investment in RIV?

You will get a lot of opinions here about the resale restrictions. Mine is not solely about the value when (not "if") I have to sell the points. After all, once you drive a car off the lot, the resale value starts to go down and different cars go down differently. My worry is 15 years down the line, when there are X% of Riviera resale purchasers who can only make reservations at Riviera, how will that affect me as an owner of my availability to stay at Riviera? No one can predict that, and only time will tell. We're studio dwellers. Instead of fighting 10 other people who want studios, I may be fighting 30 more people who can't reserve somewhere else because of the restrictions and that is a bit scary...

 

[Sandisw]

My own opinion is that the Resale value should be much farther down the list when making the decision,

I think that be aware that studios at CCV are proving to be difficult to get at the 11 month window for many times in the year, At RIV, you at least have two views to choose from,

Sounds like direct and the benefit of APs will be a big factor for you and makes starting that way make sense,

We know that buying CCV direct will cost you around $40/point more.,,depending on how many you buy. We also know that the resale value is about $70/pt if you had to get out sooner rather than later,

We don’t know about RIV yet, but even so, given the restriction, it wouldn’t be less of a hit tHan that,

In 2042, when those resorts expire, and then most likely become new DVC, I’d bet they have those restrictions too so it will eventually be the norm.

Now, the RiV charts are higher than CCV so when you stay at a ur home resort, it will cost more. But, if you decide to trade elsewhere at 7 months, then it won’t matter.

 

[Matty B13]

Also, the Platinum AP's doesn't have the blackout dates that the DVC Gold AP has, so if you go during Christmas & Easter, the discount on AP's won't be a great.

Pass Type	All Ages	DVC Member All Ages
Platinum Plus Annual Pass Renewal	$957.44	$813.66
Gold Annual Pass DVC and FL Residents only	$765.74	$744.44
Gold Annual Pass Renewal DVC and FL Residents only	$632.61	$632.61

 

[TandemShoehorns]

Help...I am exploring either Riviera or Copper Creek and need some advice from my expert community. I am not currently a DVC member but I am a perfect candidate. My sons and I are visiting the parks roughly 2-3 times a year (4 times this year). We are in New England and Plat. AP's. Looking to have the benefits of a direct purchase. I cannot say how much I love these 2 resorts (it is a near tie) so I don't think there is a bad choice to make. We frequent HS, EPCOT, and MK about equally. But I am all over the place in feeling confident about the Riviera resale restrictions. Also, I am confused about Use Year. With that, here are my questions:

1. Should I truly be concerned about the Riviera resale restrictions (your money goes a bit further here and if I wanted to add CCV later, I could do so at resale for a better price). However, I will likely not be around ot see the end of the 2070 contract and do I saddle my kids with a potentially hard to sell investment in RIV?
2. We travel at all different times of the year but are looking to single out January or February as our must have times of the year. December Use Year make sense here?

Any other opinions or comments would be helpful. I know you all are the experts! Thank you in advance!

I don't expect that we will make it to the end of any of our contracts. I am considering them for the benefit of our kids to use and enjoy after we are gone (or no longer travel). I don't see this as sticking them with something that must be sold. They can always rent the points (as long as there are rental companies) to cover the maintenance and maybe get a little cash flow. Between RIV and CC, I would buy whatever is cheaper. Consider maintenance as well. Our contracts are at Saratoga, Polynesian, and (soon to be) Beach Club, so we have good access to 3 parks and Disney Springs, if people think of close access as being important. Also, I think January or February Use Years would be fine for you.

 

[Kerrie T]

How many are in your family when you say sons? It is critically important to know a few things about these resorts:

• Copper Creek requires a 2BR to sleep 5 guests. Riviera can accommodate 5 in the studio and 1BR.
• Copper Creek studios can be difficult to book year round even in home resort. There are a limited number. This includes January-February, this isn't a resort that really opens up in late winter like some others.
• Riviera Standard Studios are expected to be more challenging to book. Again, it seems there are fewer of them than the Preferred.
• As the Riviera restrictions kick in, booking some units may become more challenging because people who know they have to book Riviera or get nothing are likely to book early year round.

2 sons. 11 and 7. And while I do have a husband, he generally doesn't come to Disney with us (outside of 3-4 days a year)

 

[crvetter]

Also, the Platinum AP's doesn't have the blackout dates that the DVC Gold AP has, so if you go during Christmas & Easter, the discount on AP's won't be a great.

Pass Type	All Ages	DVC Member All Ages
Platinum Plus Annual Pass Renewal	$957.44	$813.66
Gold Annual Pass DVC and FL Residents only	$765.74	$744.44
Gold Annual Pass Renewal DVC and FL Residents only	$632.61	$632.61

Even with a Platinum Pass it is still a large discount, currently. Though I admit I'm a bit confused on your table above (I don't think you have the most recent round of price increases, February 2020, built in). But here is the current table (pre-tax which is 6.5%) of prices

Walt Disney World Pass Options	Guest Price	Member Price	Savings
Disney Gold Pass – New Purchase	N/A	$719 plus tax	N/A
Disney Gold Pass – Renewal	N/A	$611 plus tax	N/A
Disney Platinum Pass – New Purchase	$1,195 plus tax	$899 plus tax	$296
Disney Platinum Pass – Renewal	$1,015 plus tax	$764 plus tax	$251
Disney Platinum Plus Pass – New Purchase	$1,295 plus tax	$999 plus tax	$296
Disney Platinum Plus Pass – Renewal	$1,100 plus tax	$849 plus tax	$251

So For a Renewal you save $251 and New Purchase $296, plus tax on the Platinum and Platinum Plus. This is quite different than what your table would suggest (only a $150 savings including tax, so the savings are nearly twice as much). Now I agree this isn't as good as the Gold Pass savings of $476 on a new purchase and $404, plus tax, compared to the Platinum Pass.

 

[Kerrie T]

Even with a Platinum Pass it is still a large discount, currently. Though I admit I'm a bit confused on your table above (I don't think you have the most recent round of price increases, February 2020, built in). But here is the current table (pre-tax which is 6.5%) of prices

Walt Disney World Pass Options	Guest Price	Member Price	Savings
Disney Gold Pass – New Purchase	N/A	$719 plus tax	N/A
Disney Gold Pass – Renewal	N/A	$611 plus tax	N/A
Disney Platinum Pass – New Purchase	$1,195 plus tax	$899 plus tax	$296
Disney Platinum Pass – Renewal	$1,015 plus tax	$764 plus tax	$251
Disney Platinum Plus Pass – New Purchase	$1,295 plus tax	$999 plus tax	$296
Disney Platinum Plus Pass – Renewal	$1,100 plus tax	$849 plus tax	$251

So For a Renewal you save $251 and New Purchase $296, plus tax on the Platinum and Platinum Plus. This is quite different than what your table would suggest (only a $150 savings including tax, so the savings are nearly twice as much). Now I agree this isn't as good as the Gold Pass savings of $476 on a new purchase and $404, plus tax, compared to the Platinum Pass.

Thank you! I would be looking for access to the Gold pass. I realize there are blackout dates but I anticipate that if I do go to the parks over Christmas or Easter at any point, I will plan for that. I don't mind the idea of the blackout dates, given the savings times the 3 of us for passes!

 

[CarolynFH]

We travel at all different times of the year but are looking to single out January or February as our must have times of the year. December Use Year make sense here?

Yes, a December UY would make sense for January and February travel, because if you had to cancel a trip you'd have until Nov. 30 (of the year the original trip was in) to use the points, or if you canceled far enough in advance you'd be able to bank them to the following UY. The main consideration for UY is as a sort of "insurance" to give you more flexibility when needing to cancel and rebook. This thread will help: https://www.disboards.com/threads/understanding-use-year-updated-march-10-2019.1942668/

I have nothing to add regarding choice of home resort. When we bought in, the choice was between OKW and BWV, so much simpler. I just want to say that I hope DVC brings your family as much joy as it has brought ours!