) but I wanted to comment on the design...
The architecture of the France Pavilion and Paris is notable for being in the Second Empire style as a result of Baron Haussmann’s renovation of the city. The Belle Époche is not an architectural style and traditionally starts with the end of the Second Empire and the start of the Third Republic. During both eras in the second half of the 19th century is when the Riviera developed into the resort destination it is still known as today, a period of time when Western architecture was dominated by the École des Beaux-Arts and well over half of a millennium after Romanesque was the fashionable style in France which was even further from the fall of the Western Empire. Romanesque Revival is one of the many styles that flourished during this era but it was never big in France. The Beaux-Arts was very much an influence on the major works in the area, with icons of Paris and the Riviera, the Paris Opera and Monte Carlo Casino both being the work of Charles Garnier. Similar Neoclassical styles viewed through the lens of the École differ between places due to the climatic differences more clearly expressed in the local vernaculars, the Beaux-Arts of the Riviera is far more Italianate with more delicate massing and larger windows than one would find in Paris.I don’t really care about the resort itself (though I hope you have a good time visiting!
The France Pavilion is based on the architecture of Paris, which draws mainly from the Belle Époque and Art Noveau eras general building wise (they run fairly parallel, though Art Noveau was shorter) in terms of general building style. It’s got a hodge podge of Gothic and Renaissance in there cause hey, Paris is olllllllllllddddd.
The Riviera is many hundreds of miles from Paris in Southern France. Southern France has an interesting history in that it has heavy roots dating to the Roman Empire. Therefore, much of its architecture is what is called Romanesque (unlike Paris, which has very little). Along with a smattering of other styles. But Art Nouveau has much less influence in the South than the North.
All that makes me sound like a major nerd (which I am) whose favorite country to visit is France (very true), I know, but the point is that much like in the US, architecture varies from place to place based on history and climate. The architecture of Disney’s Riviera is relatively in keeping with the French southern style. It’s just that less people are familiar with it.
I'll restate something I wrote earlier, with the caveat that I've only seen the Riviera resort in pictures. Having visited the actual French Riviera with it's Beaux Arts architecture, and having lived in Germany where the related Jungenstil architecture is very common, the only thing that seems to remotely resemble the supposed inspiration of this hotel are the cupolas. Everything else looks like a modern business class hotel. Which is fine for most places, but I stay at Disney resorts for their timeless creative whimsy, not because they closely resemble the modern industry standard.
To each their own I suppose.
Well, yeah, those factors apply too. But any well-run hotel will have helpful staff.
Bigger rooms? All the rooms I've seen in videos/pics at Riviera have been tiny for the number of people they're supposed to sleep. Even my husband (who isn't typically up on what's trendy) asked if they were following the "tiny house" trend.
Please. Let’s not let actual numbers and facts ruin a perfectly good bunch of complaints by people who watched YouTube videos.
