Document and Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 30, 2012 Class A Voting	Mar. 30, 2012 Class B Non-Voting
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2011
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2011
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Entity Registrant Name	RIVIERA HOLDINGS CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000899647
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Filer Category	Smaller Reporting Company
Entity Public Float		$ 0
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding			10	9,039,035