Disney's Riviera Resort Announcement

And I am not disagreeing with that possibility, although it seems strange that DVD would allow an existing member, who is not a Riviera owner, to begin reserving before any owners (such as add-ons). In the past, DVD provided a starting time for making reservations by those who add on at the new resort that was shortly before other members could reserve. Also, it would seem having special undeclared inventory to do that would not really add anything special since when the Resort opens to members there will already be a unit or units declared into the resort and thus ample availability for those reserving early.

The announcement seemed even more vague/subject to interpretation than most recent ones.

Optimistically, thought crossed my mind they might offer existing DVC/non-Riviera members a chance to book on cash/perhaps point conversions of some sort pre general pubic. File it under a sales tool of sorts for add-ons, akin to the traditional TS method of visiting via a heavily discounted stay but with no need to sit thru a hard sell. Why, yes, I do live in Fantasyland.:bitelip:
 
I have been a member since 2012 and do not remember a central reservations period preceding the sale of new contracts. If I had intended to purchase points at DRR, then I would be disappointed with cash paying guests having the ability to book prior to a potential buyer.

This. I have never seen a DVC resort start with an announcement that you can reserve cash rooms, and prior to any DVC reservation. Everyone knows you can book rooms cash, but they have never blatantly announced it and have it take precedence BEFORE DVC reservations. Not sure why people try to explain it away as business as usual. It isn’t. It makes me feel squirrelly about this resort (in addition to the rumored resale policy).
 


Very interesting to read the foot notes at the bottom...
 

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So for each new resort, resale owners are stuck at that resort.

Resale Riviera won’t be able to stay at Reflections and vice versa.

That’s gonna make the L14 resorts a gold mine: location, location, location, flexibility, flexibility, flexibility.

DVC may not realize it yet, but they just made this a two-tier system where the L14 resorts (resale) are much more valuable than new direct points.

It’s not that they’re going to kill the resale market, just the resale market for the points that they’re trying to sell new. Buy the shiny new points with no residual value, or buy resale and stay on the monorail or Epcot’s back door. Not a hard decision.

My guess is that this is a bigger mistake than miscalculating Aulani MFs.
 
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DVC may not realize it yet, but they just made this a two-tier system where the L14 resorts (resale) are much more valuable than new direct points.
How convinced were we all that TOTWL could not be taken away from the broader membership as it was paid for by ADs?

If there’s a move Disney’s made that makes them less competitive against resale, they’ll correct it. But I’m skeptical that they didn’t foresee how the new restrictions would make L14 resale more valuable.

I wouldn’t put it past DVD/DVCMC to have a longer term plan to further erode the value of L14 contracts that go into resale. The 2019 restriction is the first change with real bite. I trust it’s also just the first salvo.
 
I feel sorry for anyone who buys points at Riviera. But maybe Disney doesn’t care if people buy there or not since they are working so hard to build up cash reservations. All the new resorts will be pitched to cash.
 
Here’s the thing, either resales are hurting direct sales or not.

If not, then this whole deal is garbage.

If so, then that means enough people are becoming informed about and choosing resale that DVC feels compelled to fight it head on.

Take a look at this forum or any DVC forum. It won’t take you long to find the advice to “buy where you want to stay”.

How long before these forums are filled with the advice that buying direct at the new resorts will kill your resale value? It’s already all over these threads.

DVC can’t have it both ways. Or rather, social media is a double edged sword. To the extent they have to address the message that’s out there now, they are going to change that social media message in ways that hurts them just as much or more.

The generation starting to become their prime buyers have had internet access their whole lives and know how to google - and do for things big and small.

Buy where you want to stay?

Not quite.

Buy where you want to stay in the L14.
 
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Here’s the thing, either resales are hurting direct sales or not.

If not, then this whole deal is garbage.

If so, then that means enough people are becoming informed that DVC feels compelled to fight it head on.

Take a look at this forum or any DVC forum. It won’t take you long to find the advice to “buy where you want to stay”.

How long before these forums are filled with the advice that buying direct at the new resorts will kill your resale value? It’s already all over these threads.

DVC can’t have it both ways. Or rather, social media is a double edged sword. To the extent they have to address the message that’s out there now, they are going to change that social media message in ways that hurts them just as much or more.

The generation starting to become their prime buyers have had internet access their whole lives and know how to google - and do for things big and small.

Buy where you want to stay?

Not quite.

Buy where you want to stay in the L14.
Just loving my legacy VGF and CCV resorts!! :cloud9:
 
I definitely think it is a big mistake for Disney. And I still completely think this is "new" management's attempt to make their mark. The entire concept is ludicrous. Some buyers can stay at some places. Other buyers at other places. Other buyers at one place. Some buyers can go to this lounge. Others no where. And on and on. But all buyers must pay hefty member fees. After a while it is just going to annoy reasonable people and they will only get people to buy who are die hard disney fans. There will be less casual buyers. Their reputation is on the decline as is. They underestimate the public. People are not stupid. At least not enough people.
 
The undetermined issue is will the new restriction actually hurt new sales of Riviera. My sense is it could impact on add-ons because many current members will be more aware of the issue and more concerned with the resale restriction, but new purchasers may not be concerned or consider the full impact. Moreover, we already know the spin the salesmen will be presenting in that the restriction exists because existing members who previously purchased from DVD, complained that resale purchasers who paid a lot less were making it too hard to get reservations. It will probably take a few years to know whether Disney's decision is really hurting its sales.

As DVD looks at it, if it succeeds with this it will slowly eliminate the resale market that exists (the existing resorts will eventually expire and then sold new again under the new restriction) and purchasers of resorts with the home resort limitation will find reselling to be a significant problem at a decent price and DVD will be able to buy back almost of those resale points with ROFR at very low prices and make huge profits selling them new again.

Mentioned above is that the chart shows resale purchasers cannot use TOWL. I assume that is not the current rule. If so, I am not sure the chart is correct, including because DVC has not added any notification to the members on the DVC site. That actually may be a mistake and the chart was supposed to say the Epcot lounge.

Also, even if in the future DVD realizes it sales are being significantly impacted by the resale provision, it is not likely to go back to the original resort sharing rule for Riviera resale purchasers. More likely what it would first do is a create a modification such as that any resale purchaser of Riviera can recover all rights to reserve at other resorts if that purchaser acquires from DVD an additional 50% of the points the purchaser got resale, or just buys 100 points from DVD to make all points the resale purchaser has exchangeable among the DVC Resorts.
 
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So, just to be clear in giving my cliff notes update to the mr, as L-14 owners (direct & resale’s grandfathered in years ago)...

Will we have the ability to book on points at 7 months window, the new resorts (riviera and whatever the FT Wilderness one will be called)?
 
So, just to be clear in giving my cliff notes update to the mr, as L-14 owners (direct & resale’s grandfathered in years ago)...

Will we have the ability to book on points at 7 months window, the new resorts (riviera and whatever the FT Wilderness one will be called)?
Yes, even resales that have entered ROFR prior to 1/19/19.
 

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