Disney’s moderate resorts have been going through a rethinking in the past few years, with both Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort and Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort receiving fancy new tower additions in 2019. Unlike Gran Destino Tower, which opened at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort this summer as an upscale extension aimed at convention guests, the new addition at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort is actually an entirely separate DVC Resort property. Disney’s Rivieria Resort joins the portfolio as the 31st on-property Resort at Walt Disney World, and it is fully focused on the Disney Vacation Club (DVC) timeshare market.
Gran Destino Tower Opens at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort
Unsurprisingly, this resort is simply beautiful. Disney has taken all of their new resort design ideas from Gran Destino Tower and applied them in a way that will appeal to DVC Members, creating warm, inviting, and upscale public spaces and blending them with tasteful, attractive, and functional guest rooms. The resort has the equivalent of 300 vacation homes (Saratoga Springs has nearly triple that, for context), but unlike all of the other standalone DVC Resorts at Walt Disney World that have a campus-style layout with rooms spread across multiple buildings (again, excluding Kidani Village here), all of Riviera Resort is under a single roof, which creates a grand feeling from the moment you walk up to the entrance.
Lobby
Upon entering the hotel you find yourself on the second floor in an oval, modern-looking lobby, with a comfortable sitting area and cool circular lighting fixtures in the center. The back window overlooks a large lake and Disney’s Skyliner. To the left is La Boutique, the Resort’s retail shop and Le Petit Cafe, which serves coffee by day and wines by night. Behind Le Petit Cafe is Voyageurs’ Lounge, where you can relax in a warm, home library setting and enjoy some of the beverages purchased next door. To the right is a small front desk (with relatively few rooms and the advent of online check-in there isn’t much need for the large space here) and a cool kids area with an interactive table and custom games. Straight back and down the stairs you’ll find a space designed for different events at the resort. This is where they’ll hold a daily story time, as well as the classes that DVC puts on regularly (like a wine and painting class), usually for a fee. One notable change from other DVC Resorts is the lack of a “community hall” space, which is common area for relaxing, games, and events – the combination of Voyageurs Lounge and the event space somewhat fill these roles, but some DVC members may be surprised by the omission.
Amenities
Ground level is where most of the excitement at this Resort lies, as in the back of the resort you’ll find the quick service restaurant Primo Piatto, the open-air, covered bar Bar Riva, the large feature pool, water play area S’il Vous Play, a second “quiet” pool, fitness center and a large green space with assorted lawn games including bocce, foot pool (an oversized, foot-powered version of billiards), and an extra-large chess set. Beyond the quiet pool you’ll find the entrance to the Disney Skyliner by way of a beautifully appointed covered walkway, which is enhanced by murals and fountains. At the vertical opposite of the Resort, the 10th floor houses Topolino’s Terrace – Flavors of the Riviera. Feeling a lot like Toledo, the new tower-top restaurant in Gran Destino Tower, Topolino’s features a large, open dining room surrounded by windows that provide great views of fireworks from Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The back of the restaurant has a gorgeous open-air patio, perfect for relaxing with a beverage while enjoying the pyrotechnics. The restaurant serves both breakfast and dinner, but dinner is likely to be the draw, featuring antipasto, hand-made pasta, meats and seafood. The menu is just over moderately priced by Disney standards, with entrees ranging from $30 for the Bucatini hand made pasta to $54 for the filet mignon.
Guest Rooms
The hotel also happens to have rooms for people to sleep in, and as you’d expect at a Vacation Club property, they are beautifully designed and spacious. The standard studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom grand villas are all here in their normal layouts, and if you’ve seen them before, there’s not much new to report. They’ve got the new-standard DVC bathtubs with the bubblers built into the base, the interactive TVs that made their debut with Gran Destino Tower, and an overall upscale feel. What is new here is a brand new DVC room category, the Tower Suite, which is aimed at couples or singles who are willing to give up some space to keep a few more points in the bank. These rooms feel like Disney’s version of an IKEA display apartment where you walk into a small but comfortable living room with an attached full bathroom and a small balcony. The magical transformation happens at night, when you push away the ottomans, pull off the couch cushions and pull down a handle to reveal a comfortable looking Murphy bed for two. If you’re always looking to maximize your value or just don’t need a bunch of extra space for just two people (the next size up Studio sleeps five), the Tower rooms look great and may be the perfect option for you.
Freaky Thoughts: Disney’s Riviera Resort
Overall, Disney’s Riviera Resort is a stunningly beautiful property with great dining, well-designed public spaces, fun recreation options, nicely appointed rooms and convenient transportation options thanks to the on-property Skyliner station. For many guests this is sure to be the new favorite resort, but others will hold their breath for at least a year until the next resort opens at Walt Disney World, the much anticipated Galactic Starcruiser, the Star Wars hotel opening near Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 2021. Whether your accommodation preference is “the grandeur of Europe” or “a galaxy far, far away”, Disney certainly appears to keep looking for new ways to enhance their on-property hotel experiences.
