Riviera Beach and Spa

I have been an owner for years. This used to be a nice place. It is very disappointing to see how run down it has become. The couch in my room is worn and dirty. It looks like it belongs in a frat house.
I will give this time share away to any one who wants it.

Rooms are very run down. Sales staff try to trick you into buying here. Don’t do it the are high pressure lying sales group. Front desk and service people real nice. Place needs a major face lift. Inside and out.

Horrible treatment! Avoid buying! Outdated! Customer service is low. They don’t help. Treat you so rude! They can keep their cheap water bottles!

Could not be more disappointed in the horrendous customer service at this resort. The front desk «manager» as she called herself was rude with a ridiculous power trip who apparently thinks it’s funny to shuffle people around in there trip. Not only did it take my husband 35 minutes just to get checked into the hotel on a Monday night… But after 35 min they told us that we would have to change rooms in the morning for the remainder 2 nights of our stay. So less then 12 hours later we have to back up all of our families things AGAIN to move to another room which is far worse then the one we were originally staying in.
Now let me tell you about the concierge or the kid that the unprofessional manager sent me to when I ask where there was a coffee shop in walking distance… He said «well we have a Costco» I said I actually wanted a downtown with shops and a coffee shop… Possibly a bar, because now at this point I needed a stiff drink. He then says with a odd head tilt, «well there is a Costco» after 10 min of explaining that I was on vacation and I do not need a year supply of toilet paper he said «well I guess you can go to the harbor» then told me it was an hot and a half walk on pacific coast highway and I wouldn’t be able to walk… (It is actually 29 min walk and I avoided the freeway easily)
I would avoid this hotel. There are only 3 mediocre overpriced restaurants nearby and the beach access is NOT right across the street. The beds are not comfortable and I would pay twice as much at a worse hotel to avoid such horrible disregard for guests like this hotel has shown me.
I hope you make a better decision then I did… This place was a waste of my time

We had a very hard day of traveling with our infant son and called ahead around noon to see if we check in any earlier. Was told they would put our name down but no guarantees we would have a room before 4. We showed up at 3 and they let us check in, but was told they did not have a room yet. We ended up waiting until 5, an hour after the room was supposed to be ready. And that only happened because the wife had to have a heart to heart with management and they apologized stating they were short on housekeeping. Now on day 2 we have not had interactions with staff all day, even including any maid service. I walked around and only seen 1 maid for the whole resort and that one maid never made it to our room. This place has the potential to be a great resort, but the management needs to find other avenues of employment. I paid good money for nothing, we should of stayed elsewhere for less money and way better services. Needless to say we are done and will not be staying at diamond resorts again.

I had a invitation for a quick time-​share meeting here. The place is beautiful. It would be great to have a time-​share here. The rooms I looked at were great. They gave me a great deal but unfortunately I just cant afford it at this time. It would definitely be something to look forward to sometime in the future. Our representative was very down to earth and friendly. Not even pushy as some sales reps can be. He actually was quite understanding and I had a great conversation during the presentation …

3* Riviera Beach Resort
Dana Point
Part of the Interval International resort directory
Friendly reception
The rooms are dated
Next to railroad tracks; can be noisy
Across the highway from the beach; there is a bridge over the highway a quarter of the mile away
Good fitness center
Two small swimming pools

Like another reviewer, I came here to attend a time share sales presentation for Diamond International. While I did agree that the offer was moderately worth it if you do take a vacation annually, it didn’t make sense for me right now. It’s pretty much a low-​priced car payment and the interest rate was 15−17% over 10 years. Yeah, it was stupid unless you could pay cash. The hotel itself is under the process of being renovated. It looks like any old beach motel and in the sweltering heat of October (it was 100 degrees when I visited), at least they had A/​C. If this is the type of property that we were buying into, I’ll just pass. It wasn’t up to the standard of their sales presentations. But they did say that their properties were in various conditions. For my time and trouble, they gave me some parting gifts which I plan on collecting soon.

Hotel room was great, spacious, the ocean view is perfect. Pool is big and clean. Only complain is the bed, my back, shoulders and neck are sore. The bed is horrible! Also they don’t allow late check out they don’t accommodate! Check out is at 10 am ughhhhhh

When we checked in into our two bedroom suite we were devastated to find out a view of a WALL!!! This is a beach front resort! We drove for three hours for gorgeous view of white stucco! If you are staying here, make sure you get the room with an ocean view

I booked my 7 day stay here a the Riviera prior to reading the Unilocal reviews. Unilocal reviewers do not always get it right, however in this case they most certainly did… for the most part. This probably will not be my only review of this place, but this is my take on day 3 as i sit on my balcony staring at the breathtaking view… of a brick wall?
Staff= Nice and accommodating
Room= Huge and clean but very outdated. Staying in a two bedroom unit. Out of the two televisions provided, the one in the living room is modern and the one in the master bedroom is dated and small, and the second bedroom television does not exist. The furniture is worn and a little tattered. Kitchen is adequately stocked with matching appliances, although the bathroom has no blowdryer.
Because my room balcony faces the rear of the facility, I find myself having to go to the «sundeck» to have my morning coffee and to get a breath of fresh… however it’s often inundated with people taking timeshare tours in the early morning hours.
The beach is literally across the street… however you have to go down the street, up 30 steps, walk over a highway, and down 30 steps to get there. Once you get there and catch your breath, you realize this part of the beach has more rocks than sand.
Spa and Resort is a bit overstated as this establishment is a hotel that still has a lot more updates and additions to make in order for those two words to be incorporated into the title. If you book a one or two night stay here and are lucky enough to get an ocean view room, then you will probably enjoy your stay. If you own a timeshare and looking to spend a week at a resort with all the comforts and amenities that you’ve come to expect when traveling, then not so much.
Update upon checkout…
When reviewing this resort upon arrival, I made the mistake of comparing this resort to others I have visited rather than on its own merits. I had a wonderful vacation here at Riviera resorts. While upgrades are needed, the resort is definitely taking the necessary steps to do so. The location is close to any activities you would want to do, and the staff is über friendly and are available to assist with any issues that may arise. Most importantly, I always felt safe and comfortable.

Didn’t stay but was invited to attend a Time Share sales pitch here this past Saturday. As my wife and I are actively looking to buy into a vacation time share we agreed to attend even though we’d have to drive in from the San Fernando Valley, which is about 90 – 120 minutes away. As soon as we hit traffic, I called the number I received in my confirmation email and was told we had a 20 minute window from the 11:30am time slot we were given. Unfortunately, construction on the freeway, 3 miles from the exit, guaranteed we would miss that window. Upon arrival we parked in the wrong parking lot as no clear signs were posted. As we made our way to the lobby, we ran into two other couples who were in the same situation we were. When the six of us finally made it to the correct lobby to check in, we were told by the receptionist that there was a 30 minute window but that we were still late. Mind you, it was 12:05pm which is 5 minutes past the window she just told us we had. She told us that the doors had already been closed and it was too late to be late in. What could we have missed in that first 5 minutes? She gave us the option to return at 2pm for another presentation because for some reason, the 12pm one was reserved only for current guests. Despite the fact that there appeared to be plenty of room. I understand missing the window for the 11:30am presentation but why couldn’t we have been added to the 12pm presentation which had not yet begun? The receptionist took our names without a care for the fact that we all just drove from good distances away, persevered through horrendous traffic, just to attend a sales pitch we were very interested in hearing.
Needless to say, I was very disappointed and at the same time thankful. If Diamond Resorts treats prospective clients this way, I can only imagine how horrible their customer service is for people who’ve bought into their services. So, thank you for saving me the grief and headaches of potentially having been your client. I’ll take my business to Wyndham or Hilton or likely Disney. Other companies where your time is respected and your business is appreciated.

Note: Wifi is now free and other improvements have been made. Also, timeshares don’t clean the rooms everyday unless you request it and pay extra for it. They clean before and after your visit and once a week midweek. The trade-​off is you get a larger room with a kitchen.
We really enjoy this place. We have always had an ocean view unit. I’m not sure I’d like the place if I didn’t have an ocean view when I stayed there. We love seeing the waves every morning, looking at the birds and boats, and grilling veggie burgers on the balcony at sunset. We have even seen dolphins jumping out of the water while we were sitting on our balcony.
We enjoy the pool area. The water temperature is always nice in our experience. During the weekends they have the snack bar so you can have a drink or chips by the pool. We always have a great time at the Riviera pool.
Recent improvements: new art in the hallway, better activities schedule, snack bar reopened, the arcade room by the family lounge has been turned into an elegant billiards room, there is better pool furniture and towels. I anticipate more improvements as time goes by. According to city plans, the pedestrian bridge is scheduled for an upgrade to be made ADA accessible. This will be a huge improvement, but it hasn’t happened yet.
As I’m sure you’ve already noted in other reviews, there’s a highway and train tracks between the resort and Doheny beach. The noise is bothersome to some people but we slept right through it. And our little one loves watching the trains.
Also, of note, each room only gets one parking space. Additional cars must park on the street. This is really only an issue during July and August as they don’t seem to enforce that rule when there is plenty of parking.
If you go to the beach, I highly suggest going to the larger, nicer section of Doheny that is north of the creek. It’s much nicer and safer. Also, visit the state beach visitor center/​museum to find out about activities.
During our week, the docents at Doheny State Beach hosted a free night about the grunion run. They did a presentation about grunions first with some snacks and some displays of local animal bones. Then they let us help them hatch grunion eggs. IT WAS AMAZING! They scooped sand into small jars, then scooped in some grunion eggs they’d collected from the last grunion run (you need a permit to do this so don’t do it on your own), then filled the jar with sea water and shut the lid. They gave out dozens of these jars to kids and adults alike and told us to shake them gently to mimic the waves. Within just a few seconds baby grunions hatched and swam around the jar, their tiny shiny bodies resembling iridescent «snow» in a snow globe. It was a truly fantastic and unforgettable experience that can ONLY be had in Southern and Baja California (because that’s the only place grunions live). After that, we headed to the beach to see the grunion run. (Google «grunion run» if you don’t know what this is).
Another great nature activity: visit the tide pools nearby. The tide pools at the north end of Aliso Beach (in Laguna Beach) are teaming with life. There you’ll get a chance to see many of the rare tide pool animals AND there are docents who can answer questions. I also suggest a visit to the Pacific Marine Mammal Center at 20 612 Laguna Canyon Rd, Laguna Beach, CA 92 651. They rescue and rehabilitate seals and sea lions. Visitors get an up-​close look at these animals in a respectful manner.
As far as beach-​going goes, the nicest beach nearest the Riviera is probably Salt Creek. But be warned that the currents are particularly strong here. Listen to the lifeguards!
For very young children, there’s a Children’s Beach in Dana Point at the north end of the harbor where the water is very calm and it’s roped off for children. There’s also a lifeguard there during Summer. The Pacific Ocean is chilly no matter the season so little ones might want to wear wetsuits.
Regarding timeshare sales: just say no. It’s really that simple. If you want to buy a timeshare, buy resale on eBay, RedWeek, or TUG. Do not engage with the sales staff. Just politely decline and be on your merry way. Do your own research and don’t be a sucker.
The resort is older and isn’t perfect, but overall it suits our family’s needs. We’ve never had a dirty room or any serious issues. We love the fully equipped kitchen and the pool area. We absolutely adore the ocean view. Location, location, location. We love this place!

The worst experience ever,
The management are very rude and unfriendly and they don’t cooperate with you.
I don’t recommend that place for anyone. They give priority for timeshare owners.

EDIT: Just found numerous mouse droppings ON my bed. Called the front desk to tell them about it. They said they’d call us back and never did! Completely unacceptable. Never staying here again.
I’m giving this hotel 3 starts because it’s currently being remodeled. They have some remodeled rooms available, and they are stunning. Truly beautiful and CLEAN. However, we are in an old room and it’s been a struggle for me as I only like to stay in clean hotel rooms. I’ve found 3 spiders, they’ve sprayed twice in two days for ants, and there’s mold in the bathtub. I absolutely recommend this hotel… JUST REQUEST A RECENTLY RENOVATED ROOM. The staff has been accommodating enough, and you can’t beat the view. There’s a billiards room and a ping ping table. The pools are not «resort» standard, but the beach is literally across the street.

Worst experience ever. We are here for a wedding and all the wedding guests are staying here as well. One guest had a broken air conditioner and was over 80 in there room and they had two small kids and their fix was to send up a dirty old stand up fan. Then the ice machines are broken with a sign stating if you need ice call room service. I called the front desk to get ice and was told by their extremely rude director of operations Ernest charlotin that they don’t have room service and that I have to get it from the machine. When I told him what the sign said I was told that he accommodated my group enough. Save yourself money and don’t stay here

Definitely not worth $ 263.06/per night on a Friday
Not above the average and service close to poor; I would not come back or recommend to a friend. Card for the door only worked one time we tried and the waiting for help was ridiculously long. Rooms look old and not remarkable at all. The pool is ok, even though pool service started at 10:30 am on a sunday; and its close to goods restaurants.
Be aware of the resort charge of $ 28,00, plus 8 for «self-​parking»

MICE! MICE! MICE!
Forget the nice view, forget the location, forget it all! There were MICE in my mother in law’s suite. All they did were set up traps under the sink, and the guy said «This should take care of them.» Oh really?
I don’t understand how an establishment can be so careless. There’s VERMIN in your establishment! To make things worse, they didn’t even comp my MIL for anything! Nothing! She stayed here for a week, and she discovered the mice 5 days into it!
STAY AWAY!

My experience at this resort was disappointing. I made my reservation for Friday, Saturday and Sunday, checking out Monday morning. Because I’ve owned with Pacific Monarch for so long (seven years), it’s under my maiden name. I never used it because there’s never availability and the reason we went to Riviera Beach was because my husband, step-​son and I really needed to just get out of the house.
I told them that my name had changed when I got there, but instead of making a note of my married name, they continued to call me by my maiden name (they even called my husband by my maiden name). They made an appointment for me to go to a preview on Saturday, where I figured would be a good place to update my information. Instead, I found out that Pacific Monarch (which I’m currently an owner with) went belly up. I never knew about it and apparently, my current ownership is no good with Diamond. It was like hearing I’d lost my house, a second time.
Instead of my current points rolling over to Diamond, which my family and have invested thousands of dollars in, I had to buy yet another plan, for another several thousand dollars. Considering, I still owe money on my old one (which was supposed to be good for life, but I guess not), they still tried to sell me a new one. They took away nearly two hours of my day, and the sales guys (and girl) badgered me to the point I was in tears. When they found out I didn’t want to buy anything, they practically shoved my out the door.
By Sunday, I get a call saying it’s time to check out. When I let them know I reserved the room until Monday, they said I only had it until Sunday, and I couldn’t have a late check out. Then when we got to our truck and tried to go back in to get ice to save our food (since we were rushed out), our keys no longer worked. So I went to the lobby and spoke to the manager, stating not only was I rushed out and badgered on Saturday, I couldn’t even get ice to save our food and they still didn’t know my name. He had nothing to say other than «sorry.»
I told them it was the worst experience I’ve ever had with them and I’ll never go to that resort again. I even gave back the $ 75 gift card (my free gift they offered in turn for my badgering session). I don’t need their free money. And frankly, I wish I’d never bought in with Monarch only to be treated so carelessly by Diamond.

Before coming here, I read Unilocal reviews and wasn’t too psyched about the place but, left corrected and with full intentions of staying here next time I’m in the area or going to Disneyland.
PROS —
The View — We got a view of the beach and it was beautiful. Right above the pool so the rents could check up on the kiddos.
Rooms — Lots and lots of room. 4 adults and 2 kids shared this one bedroom timeshare easily and spaciously. Bedroom had a Queen size bed and living room had a pull out sofa. Full kitchen with dishwasher, cleaning supplies, full kitchen supplies. Best thing about the room tho is the ridiculously large Jacuzzi tub in the bathroom AND a sink in the bedroom; which helps when someone’s already in the bathroom.
BEST thing about the room was that the balcony came with a decent BBQ. My family made burgers, grilled veggies, and such for dinner our 1^st night.
Amenities — Not only do they have a pool (with supposedly 86 degree water); they have a game room, fitness center, vending machines (with decent sodas and snacks), and roof deck. None of which I parlayed in, except the vending machines… mmmmm, cherry 7-​up lol
Parking — Lots of it. Downstairs in their parking structure AND on the street/​PCH.
Location — Right off the freeway, on the PCH, and right across Capistrano Beach (I think.) No more than ¹⁰⁄₁₅ min drive or walk to the beach access. Capistrano Beach even has a basketball court, which my nephew loved more than the beach.
BEST BEST BEST BESTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT thing about the location is that it’s 20 minutes away from Disneyland =)=)=) —- This is without traffic, mind you.
Only real negative about the place for me, which is kinda not really a big deal, was that the furniture is outdated. Felt like I was in an episode of «Golden Girls.»