Just back from WDW - quick review of OKW & Riviera under COVID

edmartin

Mouseketeer
Joined
Aug 18, 2003
My wife & I did a quick trip to WDW Saturday-Wednesday (Labor Day weekend). I thought people considering going might like a review on what it's like there right now...

When we booked the trip, we decided to "book-end" DVC - meaning we wanted to stay at the oldest (OKW) and newest (Riviera)... these were the only 2 DVC resorts we had never stayed at. We booked a 1BR in each resort.

ONLINE CHECK IN. Worked flawlessly. We drove to WDW from NC and just before 1:00 on Saturday we got notification that our room at OKW was ready. When we arrived at the gate at around 5:00, we gave them our name and drove directly to building 42. The app opened the door. And we were surprised to find that we had been upgraded to a 2BR! The room was impeccably clean. There was a sign in the room listing the enhanced cleaning procedures that were in effect.

POOLS & HOSPITALITY HOUSE. We went to the pool near building 42 on Saturday night. A few people there but not very busy. Masks are not required in the pool area and everyone just automatically spread themselves out. I can't speak to what it was like during the day, but at night, it was great. We went to the main building a couple of times. My wife had left her magic band at home so we went to the registration desk to get one. There were only 2 other people in the room and everything is well-marked with the obligatory "6 foot" lines. We dropped into the store to check it out. They monitor how many people are inside at any one time. We felt everything was done very well throughout the stay at OKW.

TRANSPORTATION. The bus system has been COVID-ized. There are plexiglass partitions and numbered sections. If the bus is "busy", the driver tells you which section to sit in. If it's empty, you get to pick. The volume of buses at OKW seemed more than enough to handle capacity and leave plenty of room for guest groups to spread out.

On Monday AM, we checked out of OKW as we were moving to Riviera. We decided to go to Disney Springs for a while and wait for our RR room to be ready. It ended up taking until almost 4:00 to get the message it was ready.

ONLINE CHECK IN. Not quite as flawless at RR. We got to the gate and the guard told us where to park. We were in the west side and he told us the closest door to the elevator and our room so we didn't need to go through the lobby. Great plan, except... When we got to the outside door, neither the app nor our magic bands would open it. I *think* the issue was that we had not yet entered our room (which would tigger the "check in") so our bands and app were no yet active. If that's the case, DVC needs to fix that if they are going to try to scoot people around the public areas like the lobby. The bands and card worked right away on our room door and they worked on the outside doors for the rest of our stay - so it was just that pre-arrival issue.

TRANSPORTATION. Obviously, a big draw for RR is that it is on the Skyliner line. So it's the 21st century version of the original hotels being on the monorail line. That's great, but... There is an insurmountable issue: weather. Particularly rain... and even more so, lightning. The rule is that if there is a thunderstorm within 10 miles, they shut Skyliner down and it remains shut down until no thunderstorms come within 10 miles for 30 minutes. Good rule from a safety perspective. We lived in central Fl for about 4 years - so we have some good experience in this area. But guess what tends to happen all the time in that area in the warm weather (so pretty much 9 months of the year)? Yup... thunderstorms. My wife and I tried to use Skyliner 3 times during our stay at Riviera (about 36 hours). It was unavailable because of weather 2 out of 3 times. But let's dig even deeper...

The 1 time we were able to use it was Tuesday morning. We had DHS reserved and wanted to be through the gate as early as possible to make sure we were poised to get a Rise of the Resistance boarding group. We were told by people at the resort that the best bet was to walk over to the Caribbean Skyliner station and go from there. You see, they don't start boarding the Skyliner until about 9:00 (at any station). The station in front of Riviera goes to Caribbean but you have to transfer lines. So, if you get on a Skyliner car at 9:00 at Riviera, you'll get to CBR at, let's say, 9:10. Then, you have to transfer - which puts you in another line... which merges with the long line already at CBR. But, if you walk to CBR and get on Skyliner there, you are on your way immediately to DHS at 9:00. So it's about 30 minutes faster to get to DHS in the morning if you make the short(ish) walk from RR to CBR.

And then there were the 2 times it was not available because of weather. The first time, we just grabbed an Uber from the hotel to get over to Boardwalk so we could go into Epcot through International Gateway. We didn't feel like waiting for a bus and we had already dealt with walking through the construction zone formerly known as Future World at the front of Epcot. Then on Tuesday, the skies opened as we were getting ready to leave DHS. Skyliner was closed so we went toward the bus area. Riviera was not listed anywhere on any signs. So, we walked back to the Skyliner station (it would have been easier in a jetski) and asked the CM's. They told us that when it rains, the bring in more buses to handle RR and it would be at stop #6. So we swam back to the bus area and waited.

My point is this... if you are placing a premium value on Riviera because of the access to Skyliner, you should temper your expectations. There are going to be times when weather takes it offline. It is a gorgeous resort! It's Grand Floridian-class... without the monorail. And it's premium points. We loved everything about Riviera... except the Skyliner "upside". It's a fantastic resort on the bus line.


One other thing that struck us once we got to RR. Because OKW is set up as a series of small-ish buildings, it feels like a neighborhood. Riviera felt like a very nice big hotel. Depending on your sensitivity to COVID, a big hotel might not be exactly what you're looking for. Even using side doors and such at Riviera, it has a central core (lobby) and elevators just like most hotels. But OKW doesn't have any of that (or a very minimal version of it). So if you are looking to feel like you are staying away from people more these days, OKW was a great option.
 
We've owned at OKW since 1997 and have stayed there about 26 times. If it was the only place we could stay, we'd still be happy.
 
Thank you for taking the time to write this report. Lucky you live close enough to drive!
 
Nice! Thank you for your report. We are staying at OKW for the first time over Thanksgiving. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
 


Great report. Good point on CBR skyliner strategy. We took advantage of that because it was much faster to HS.
 


Thank you for posting the trip report. I especially appreciated the information on skyliner operation in inclement weather. :thumbsup2
 
Thanks for the update, we have 15nights booked at okw, last week of Jan first week of Feb, no parks. Hopefully things remain at least the same and don't get any worse.
 
Thanks for the report. DH and I are going in two weeks and staying at OKW so I think I will be happy with my choice.
 
Appreciate the info on the skyliner. We are wrapping an extended stay with a week at RR in March. Wanted to add it to our list of DVC Resorts we have stayed at.
 
that was a very good report. I hope one day to try RR but that will be up to the wife.
 
My wife & I did a quick trip to WDW Saturday-Wednesday (Labor Day weekend). I thought people considering going might like a review on what it's like there right now...

When we booked the trip, we decided to "book-end" DVC - meaning we wanted to stay at the oldest (OKW) and newest (Riviera)... these were the only 2 DVC resorts we had never stayed at. We booked a 1BR in each resort.

ONLINE CHECK IN. Worked flawlessly. We drove to WDW from NC and just before 1:00 on Saturday we got notification that our room at OKW was ready. When we arrived at the gate at around 5:00, we gave them our name and drove directly to building 42. The app opened the door. And we were surprised to find that we had been upgraded to a 2BR! The room was impeccably clean. There was a sign in the room listing the enhanced cleaning procedures that were in effect.

POOLS & HOSPITALITY HOUSE. We went to the pool near building 42 on Saturday night. A few people there but not very busy. Masks are not required in the pool area and everyone just automatically spread themselves out. I can't speak to what it was like during the day, but at night, it was great. We went to the main building a couple of times. My wife had left her magic band at home so we went to the registration desk to get one. There were only 2 other people in the room and everything is well-marked with the obligatory "6 foot" lines. We dropped into the store to check it out. They monitor how many people are inside at any one time. We felt everything was done very well throughout the stay at OKW.

TRANSPORTATION. The bus system has been COVID-ized. There are plexiglass partitions and numbered sections. If the bus is "busy", the driver tells you which section to sit in. If it's empty, you get to pick. The volume of buses at OKW seemed more than enough to handle capacity and leave plenty of room for guest groups to spread out.

On Monday AM, we checked out of OKW as we were moving to Riviera. We decided to go to Disney Springs for a while and wait for our RR room to be ready. It ended up taking until almost 4:00 to get the message it was ready.

ONLINE CHECK IN. Not quite as flawless at RR. We got to the gate and the guard told us where to park. We were in the west side and he told us the closest door to the elevator and our room so we didn't need to go through the lobby. Great plan, except... When we got to the outside door, neither the app nor our magic bands would open it. I *think* the issue was that we had not yet entered our room (which would tigger the "check in") so our bands and app were no yet active. If that's the case, DVC needs to fix that if they are going to try to scoot people around the public areas like the lobby. The bands and card worked right away on our room door and they worked on the outside doors for the rest of our stay - so it was just that pre-arrival issue.

TRANSPORTATION. Obviously, a big draw for RR is that it is on the Skyliner line. So it's the 21st century version of the original hotels being on the monorail line. That's great, but... There is an insurmountable issue: weather. Particularly rain... and even more so, lightning. The rule is that if there is a thunderstorm within 10 miles, they shut Skyliner down and it remains shut down until no thunderstorms come within 10 miles for 30 minutes. Good rule from a safety perspective. We lived in central Fl for about 4 years - so we have some good experience in this area. But guess what tends to happen all the time in that area in the warm weather (so pretty much 9 months of the year)? Yup... thunderstorms. My wife and I tried to use Skyliner 3 times during our stay at Riviera (about 36 hours). It was unavailable because of weather 2 out of 3 times. But let's dig even deeper...

The 1 time we were able to use it was Tuesday morning. We had DHS reserved and wanted to be through the gate as early as possible to make sure we were poised to get a Rise of the Resistance boarding group. We were told by people at the resort that the best bet was to walk over to the Caribbean Skyliner station and go from there. You see, they don't start boarding the Skyliner until about 9:00 (at any station). The station in front of Riviera goes to Caribbean but you have to transfer lines. So, if you get on a Skyliner car at 9:00 at Riviera, you'll get to CBR at, let's say, 9:10. Then, you have to transfer - which puts you in another line... which merges with the long line already at CBR. But, if you walk to CBR and get on Skyliner there, you are on your way immediately to DHS at 9:00. So it's about 30 minutes faster to get to DHS in the morning if you make the short(ish) walk from RR to CBR.

And then there were the 2 times it was not available because of weather. The first time, we just grabbed an Uber from the hotel to get over to Boardwalk so we could go into Epcot through International Gateway. We didn't feel like waiting for a bus and we had already dealt with walking through the construction zone formerly known as Future World at the front of Epcot. Then on Tuesday, the skies opened as we were getting ready to leave DHS. Skyliner was closed so we went toward the bus area. Riviera was not listed anywhere on any signs. So, we walked back to the Skyliner station (it would have been easier in a jetski) and asked the CM's. They told us that when it rains, the bring in more buses to handle RR and it would be at stop #6. So we swam back to the bus area and waited.

My point is this... if you are placing a premium value on Riviera because of the access to Skyliner, you should temper your expectations. There are going to be times when weather takes it offline. It is a gorgeous resort! It's Grand Floridian-class... without the monorail. And it's premium points. We loved everything about Riviera... except the Skyliner "upside". It's a fantastic resort on the bus line.


One other thing that struck us once we got to RR. Because OKW is set up as a series of small-ish buildings, it feels like a neighborhood. Riviera felt like a very nice big hotel. Depending on your sensitivity to COVID, a big hotel might not be exactly what you're looking for. Even using side doors and such at Riviera, it has a central core (lobby) and elevators just like most hotels. But OKW doesn't have any of that (or a very minimal version of it). So if you are looking to feel like you are staying away from people more these days, OKW was a great option.

Thanks for the great trip report. I never thought about lightning storms on the monorail but now I will... I do like the new Riviera! And the SkyLiner.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the review. DH and me will be at WDW in 6 weeks. We are doing a spilt stay SSR for 3 nights and RIV for 2 nights. Thanks for the heads up regarding the Skyliner.

Is there bus options if you do not want to take the Skyliner to Epcot or HS? I thinking what if you have a fear of heights etc.

How was DS? Crowds? We will be there Sunday- Friday, so we are avoiding the weekend crowds. Thanks again.👍🏻😎
 
My wife & I did a quick trip to WDW Saturday-Wednesday (Labor Day weekend). I thought people considering going might like a review on what it's like there right now...

When we booked the trip, we decided to "book-end" DVC - meaning we wanted to stay at the oldest (OKW) and newest (Riviera)... these were the only 2 DVC resorts we had never stayed at. We booked a 1BR in each resort.

ONLINE CHECK IN. Worked flawlessly. We drove to WDW from NC and just before 1:00 on Saturday we got notification that our room at OKW was ready. When we arrived at the gate at around 5:00, we gave them our name and drove directly to building 42. The app opened the door. And we were surprised to find that we had been upgraded to a 2BR! The room was impeccably clean. There was a sign in the room listing the enhanced cleaning procedures that were in effect.

POOLS & HOSPITALITY HOUSE. We went to the pool near building 42 on Saturday night. A few people there but not very busy. Masks are not required in the pool area and everyone just automatically spread themselves out. I can't speak to what it was like during the day, but at night, it was great. We went to the main building a couple of times. My wife had left her magic band at home so we went to the registration desk to get one. There were only 2 other people in the room and everything is well-marked with the obligatory "6 foot" lines. We dropped into the store to check it out. They monitor how many people are inside at any one time. We felt everything was done very well throughout the stay at OKW.

TRANSPORTATION. The bus system has been COVID-ized. There are plexiglass partitions and numbered sections. If the bus is "busy", the driver tells you which section to sit in. If it's empty, you get to pick. The volume of buses at OKW seemed more than enough to handle capacity and leave plenty of room for guest groups to spread out.

On Monday AM, we checked out of OKW as we were moving to Riviera. We decided to go to Disney Springs for a while and wait for our RR room to be ready. It ended up taking until almost 4:00 to get the message it was ready.

ONLINE CHECK IN. Not quite as flawless at RR. We got to the gate and the guard told us where to park. We were in the west side and he told us the closest door to the elevator and our room so we didn't need to go through the lobby. Great plan, except... When we got to the outside door, neither the app nor our magic bands would open it. I *think* the issue was that we had not yet entered our room (which would tigger the "check in") so our bands and app were no yet active. If that's the case, DVC needs to fix that if they are going to try to scoot people around the public areas like the lobby. The bands and card worked right away on our room door and they worked on the outside doors for the rest of our stay - so it was just that pre-arrival issue.

TRANSPORTATION. Obviously, a big draw for RR is that it is on the Skyliner line. So it's the 21st century version of the original hotels being on the monorail line. That's great, but... There is an insurmountable issue: weather. Particularly rain... and even more so, lightning. The rule is that if there is a thunderstorm within 10 miles, they shut Skyliner down and it remains shut down until no thunderstorms come within 10 miles for 30 minutes. Good rule from a safety perspective. We lived in central Fl for about 4 years - so we have some good experience in this area. But guess what tends to happen all the time in that area in the warm weather (so pretty much 9 months of the year)? Yup... thunderstorms. My wife and I tried to use Skyliner 3 times during our stay at Riviera (about 36 hours). It was unavailable because of weather 2 out of 3 times. But let's dig even deeper...

The 1 time we were able to use it was Tuesday morning. We had DHS reserved and wanted to be through the gate as early as possible to make sure we were poised to get a Rise of the Resistance boarding group. We were told by people at the resort that the best bet was to walk over to the Caribbean Skyliner station and go from there. You see, they don't start boarding the Skyliner until about 9:00 (at any station). The station in front of Riviera goes to Caribbean but you have to transfer lines. So, if you get on a Skyliner car at 9:00 at Riviera, you'll get to CBR at, let's say, 9:10. Then, you have to transfer - which puts you in another line... which merges with the long line already at CBR. But, if you walk to CBR and get on Skyliner there, you are on your way immediately to DHS at 9:00. So it's about 30 minutes faster to get to DHS in the morning if you make the short(ish) walk from RR to CBR.

And then there were the 2 times it was not available because of weather. The first time, we just grabbed an Uber from the hotel to get over to Boardwalk so we could go into Epcot through International Gateway. We didn't feel like waiting for a bus and we had already dealt with walking through the construction zone formerly known as Future World at the front of Epcot. Then on Tuesday, the skies opened as we were getting ready to leave DHS. Skyliner was closed so we went toward the bus area. Riviera was not listed anywhere on any signs. So, we walked back to the Skyliner station (it would have been easier in a jetski) and asked the CM's. They told us that when it rains, the bring in more buses to handle RR and it would be at stop #6. So we swam back to the bus area and waited.

My point is this... if you are placing a premium value on Riviera because of the access to Skyliner, you should temper your expectations. There are going to be times when weather takes it offline. It is a gorgeous resort! It's Grand Floridian-class... without the monorail. And it's premium points. We loved everything about Riviera... except the Skyliner "upside". It's a fantastic resort on the bus line.


One other thing that struck us once we got to RR. Because OKW is set up as a series of small-ish buildings, it feels like a neighborhood. Riviera felt like a very nice big hotel. Depending on your sensitivity to COVID, a big hotel might not be exactly what you're looking for. Even using side doors and such at Riviera, it has a central core (lobby) and elevators just like most hotels. But OKW doesn't have any of that (or a very minimal version of it). So if you are looking to feel like you are staying away from people more these days, OKW was a great option.
Thank you for sharing. I know this took a bit of time for you to put together. Your effort is much appreciated and helps me a great deal for our planning in the future!
 
Thanks for sharing the tips about the skyliner option from CBR! I will keep that in mind when visiting next year. I was considering staying at the Riviera next year when we have a cruise plan for August but you have a good point about the feel of a hotel. We normally stay at the Villas of the Grand Floridian and there are many options to get into your room and avoiding elevators. Good to know!
 
I have stayed at RR several times for a total of 14 days and never experienced any weather related shutdowns. Guess we were lucky. Thanks for the tip regarding walking to Caribbean Beach Skyliner station in the AM on the way to DHS. Mornings to DHS is the only times we encountered lines on the Skyliner, and having to switch at Caribbean Beach adds to the wait. Caribbean Beach is a quick walk and will help get a jump on morning. GREAT TIP.
 
Thank you so much for this report. We are staying at the Riviera for two weeks in August. I was wondering about the Skyliner to DHS. Most questions are now answered! Can anyone advise... how early do people start lining up for the Skyliner in the mornings? We will be going to Epcot often, and it is my understanding that the Skyliner operates a half hour before park opening. Suggested time to get in line? We will definitely take the advice to walk over to CBR for access to the DHS line. I understand that this one starts running an hour before park opening. Suggested time to get in line here? I appreciate any further advice, and hopefully, some normalcy returns by August!
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!













Top