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[2018] MVC Pulse San Francisco open for reservations

Big Matt

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San Francisco yucky! Zero desire to stay there ever. It's a filthy dangerous place. Not my idea of a vacation spot. Drive over the Golden Gate Bridge and maybe spend a day seeing the sites but don't look too closely you might see more than you planned.

Yuck!
This is why almost nobody who works there lives there. My son and his girlfriend live in Oakland in Adams Point just north of Lake Merritt. Great location, no homeless, no overt drug use, safe to walk at night. The locals visit San Francisco on weekends like tourists. Girlfriend works at Gap corporate HQ and takes the BART every day.
 

vacationtime1

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This is why almost nobody who works there lives there. My son and his girlfriend live in Oakland in Adams Point just north of Lake Merritt. Great location, no homeless, no overt drug use, safe to walk at night. The locals visit San Francisco on weekends like tourists. Girlfriend works at Gap corporate HQ and takes the BART every day.

Not quite. The rents are so high ($2,500+ for a studio; $3,200+ for a one bedroom) because most of the well-paid techies who work here want to live here.

In fact, much of SF's new employment in social media is because Facebook, Google, etc. opened facilities here because many of their workers were already living here and commuting to Silicon Valley.
 

JIMinNC

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Not quite. The rents are so high ($2,500+ for a studio; $3,200+ for a one bedroom) because most of the well-paid techies who work here want to live here.

In fact, much of SF's new employment in social media is because Facebook, Google, etc. opened facilities here because many of their workers were already living here and commuting to Silicon Valley.

Bingo. If it's such a "yucky" place, why are the rents so high? They're high because a lot of people want to live there. Are there issues? Sure. Just like any urban area.

My son is a perfect example. Went to college in an urban environment at Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Got a software engineering job in Atlanta and moved to a suburban mixed use development out near the belt line. It's a great development with apartments built atop a pedestrian-based area with restaurants, bars, and shops on the ground floor, adjacent to and within about a two block walking distance of the Atlanta Braves baseball stadium. It's the kind of place I would have loved to live when I was 23. He misses the city, and doesn't really like suburbia, even though the place he lives has a very "uptown" feel. He's looking to relocate when the time/job is right, and is considering New York City as his first choice, but was also considering San Francisco before deciding to focus most of his energy on New York. He wants to live in Manhattan rather than commute. In San Francisco, he would have also lived downtown. Many young people love cities and are turned off by suburbia. I prefer suburbia, but enjoy visiting places like SFO and NYC. Different generations.
 

Steve Fatula

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Well, it's a subjective opinion of course. Objectively, rents are high because of demand of course. So, clearly a lot of people do want to live there. This does not mean everyone should want to though, I would agree with turkel though as far as his base opinion, I would never want to live or visit there again. Been there many times for business, not for me. But obviously that doesn't make my opinion the better one. We're just all different and look for different things. As it relate to the OP, I would think the Pulse property will get a lot of business.
 

Dean

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It's low supply and high demand plus those they have an oppressive rent control for a section of the housing meaning those people aren't likely to move. I saw a report that 46% of people in SF planned to move away up from 40% the previous survey, I'm guessing costs are a large % of the issue. It's a nice city to visit but not somewhere I'd personally want to live.
 
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Big Matt

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The cost of housing (rentals and purchase) in the Bay Area are highest in the United States. Rent in Oakland is almost as high as in San Francisco. A nice 3 BR house starts at 1.5 million and gets you no yard and may not be in the best areas. That's just how the market is priced. Demand doesn't drive the price of houses, it is supply. Opposite for rents.

There are really nice parts of San Francisco up near the Golden Gate Bridge, but there are some horrible and dangerous spots too. Unlike cities such as NYC and DC, San Francisco has continued to look the other way in terms of homeless and heroin abuse. If you haven't been there in a while some of it is shocking to be honest.
 

ljmiii

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This is why almost nobody who works there lives there. My son and his girlfriend live in Oakland in Adams Point just north of Lake Merritt. Great location, no homeless, no overt drug use, safe to walk at night. The locals visit San Francisco on weekends like tourists. Girlfriend works at Gap corporate HQ and takes the BART every day.
I can only wonder what city you are talking about. We have friends who live and work in the city. We have friends who live in the city and do the reverse commute down into the valley because living in SF in so much nicer. We have yet other sets of friends who became empty nesters, sold their homes in Marin (Tiberon and San Rafael), and moved into the city to live.

We visit SF every year and miss it dearly. Though some of what we miss is gone forever - like NY's Times Square many of SF's downtown areas have been 'cleaned up' beyond recognition. That I can now just walk through the Tenderloin never ceases to amaze me.
 

turkel

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I am a recent transplant from Southern California to East Bay. My husband has taken me over to San Francisco to see the sites. The view over the Golden Gate Bridge was spectacular, the sites interesting in a sad and shocking way.

We just went home for the holidays it's expensive in SoCal but not as bad as Northern Cal. The cleanliness and overall feel of SoCal to up here is a world away. So is the compensation. Incomes are high due to all the tech jobs but I don't walk the 7 miles a day I did in So Cal. My husband says it's not safe..
And it isn't.
We are here for a purpose...jobs. It's not a destination for a vacation.

Only my opinion but I would rather see Marriott expand by adding resorts purpose built from the ground up with accommodations we are used to enjoying 1,2 bed with a kitchen. We haven't stayed in any of the pulse properties but
Would like to go to Boston someday.
 

Big Matt

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I can only wonder what city you are talking about. We have friends who live and work in the city. We have friends who live in the city and do the reverse commute down into the valley because living in SF in so much nicer. We have yet other sets of friends who became empty nesters, sold their homes in Marin (Tiberon and San Rafael), and moved into the city to live.

We visit SF every year and miss it dearly. Though some of what we miss is gone forever - like NY's Times Square many of SF's downtown areas have been 'cleaned up' beyond recognition. That I can now just walk through the Tenderloin never ceases to amaze me.

I'm not trying to be a jerk. I have family who live there and I'm sharing their comments and those of their friends along with what I've seen for myself. Sure there are nice places in SF, but you can't ignore things like:

https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/27/health/drug-use-san-francisco-streets/index.html

or

http://thefederalist.com/2018/03/16...ring-from-the-excesses-of-its-own-liberalism/

or

https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2...y-ill-homeless-worries-north-beach-residents/

and

https://www.sfgate.com/local/article/is-san-francisco-dangerous-visit-sf-safe-crime-12995294.php
 

turkel

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I think it's a Northern California thing. Denying a problem exists.

Went to the grocery store at 5 pm last night. There was a homeless person standing by the entrance begging. No problem I just walked by and into the store. When I was loading my car the same guy started to walk towards me. Babbling nonsense. I am sorry but it was scary. He veered away from me after coming within a foot of me.

It's not illegal to be homeless but the last I checked loitering, trespassing, and deficating in a public place is and isn't a place I want to be.
 

gblotter

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We were visiting San Francisco earlier this week. If you restrict yourself to popular areas like Union Square and Fisherman's Warf, you are unlikely to encounter the worst of these homeless problems (drug use, defecating, etc). However, I have felt unsafe in other neighborhoods (Tenderloin, Mission District, Civic Center, etc) - it's a real problem. I will add that recreational marijuana is now legal in California, and the smell of pot was noticeable everywhere we went in San Francisco (even in the heart of Union Square). That smell was still on our clothes after returning home.
 

Fasttr

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Just returned from a great week in San Francisco. We were staying at the Ritz Club (great property... we are lucky to be able to book this using DC points), but while there, we happened to be walking near the new Pulse property in SF. It just happened to open as a MVC Pulse property the day we stopped in. Naturally, the sales presentation netting crew were casting a wide net, trying to load up the sales appointments, and offered us 35K Bonvoy points (among various other options) to attend. Being a sucker for an easy load of Bonvoy points, we booked the first meeting of the day for a couple days later. The pitch was very laid back, no pressure.... the usual.

The rooms are basically decent sized hotel type rooms, with the option to book what they call a Connected room (which is a King room with an adjoining door to a double Queen room...each with their own bathroom) which sort of makes it more "villa-sized", but still with no additional living room and no kitchen. Not a bad attempt at offering a bit of a larger option in the city. That said, if you need a 2br, the Ritz Club appears to be a better option, points wise, plus you get the kitchen and living room at the Ritz. The SF Pulse really makes you pay up from a points perspective for the Connected rooms. Here is the SF Pulse points chart for the rest of this year... https://www.marriottvacationsworldw...elpfulTools/resorts/fs/pdfDisplay/2019_fs.pdf

The location is good, very near Ghirardelli square, Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39. It sits across a side street from the Marriott Fisherman's Wharf hotel. The Marriott hotel looks very dated from the outside....but the Pulse looks fresh and inviting, both from the outside and the inside. Some pics below.

Nice to have another option in San Francisco, but if available, for my points, I'd take the Ritz Club because of the full villa with living room and full kitchen. That said, if you want to stay in the heart of the tourist area (the Ritz Club is in the Financial District) and are fine with a hotel sized room, the new Pulse looks like a nice option.



 
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mjm1

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Thanks for the update. Glad to hear you had a nice trip.

I had stopped by the resort in February when I was in the Bay Area and a staff person showed one of the units to me. I wasn’t impressed with it or the color or lighting scheme in that particular room. He said that wouldn’t be changing, but perhaps he was wrong. As you noted the location is pretty good.

I agree that the Ritz would be a nicer option for those who have access and available points. That may be the only way I will get my DW to return to SF. Both of us grew up in the Bay Area and used to like visiting The City, but like others have become a bit disenchanted in recent years.

Best regards.

Mike
 

frank808

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Just returned from a great week in San Francisco. We were staying at the Ritz Club (great property... we are lucky to be able to book this using DC points), but while there, we happened to be walking near the new Pulse property in SF. It just happened to open as a MVC Pulse property the day we stopped in. Naturally, the sales presentation netting crew were casting a wide net, trying to load up the sales appointments, and offered us 35K Bonvoy points (among various other options) to attend. Being a sucker for an easy load of Bonvoy points, we booked the first meeting of the day for a couple days later. The pitch was very laid back, no pressure.... the usual.

The rooms are basically decent sized hotel type rooms, with the option to book what they call a Connected room (which is a King room with an adjoining door to a double Queen room...each with their own bathroom) which sort of makes it more "villa-sized", but still with no additional living room and no kitchen. Not a bad attempt at offering a bit of a larger option in the city. That said, if you need a 2br, the Ritz Club appears to be a better option, points wise, plus you get the kitchen and living room at the Ritz. The SF Pulse really makes you pay up from a points perspective for the Connected rooms. Here is the SF Pulse points chart for the rest of this year... https://www.marriottvacationsworldw...elpfulTools/resorts/fs/pdfDisplay/2019_fs.pdf

The location is good, very near Ghirardelli square, Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39. It sits across a side street from the Marriott Fisherman's Wharf hotel. The Marriott hotel looks very dated from the outside....but the Pulse looks fresh and inviting, both from the outside and the inside. Some pics below.

Nice to have another option in San Francisco, but if available, for my points, I'd take the Ritz Club because of the full villa with living room and full kitchen.



Glad to hear. Will be staying at the pulse at the end of July. If they are going to offer 35k mrp I will do the tour. If anyone has questions, PM me and I will get you the answers if possible.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
 

tahoe

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Just returned from a short trip to SF. The Marriott, the MVC Pulse, and a Courtyard are located within 2 blocks, with the Courtyard being closer to the coast/wharf. There is also a Sheraton further east. (Tip: You can prepay parking with the attendant at the Anchorage parking lot for $39 a night with in and out privilege and no added tax: https://www.anchoragesquare.com/park/).

I stopped by the lobby of the Pulse, which felt much livelier than the Courtyard. The sales office appeared to take up most of the first floor. I wasn’t able to compare rooms, though on paper I suspect it is similar to the Courtyard, though the Pulse will have newer stuff. (Both also lack free breakfasts.)

Before booking the Pulse, I would suggest comparing cash prices (+ tax) between the properties.

Regarding comparisons to the Ritz, note that they are also in different parts of town.
 

4Sunsets

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The Ritz Carlton Residences Destination Club in San Francisco is a much better use of points if you stay midweek. The location is central in the Union Square area and parking is free. Each residence has a fabulous kitchen. There is a 24 Concierge Lounge with free refreshments although no breakfast provided. Each evening there is a free wine tasting service in the lounge and freshly baked cookies available at the front desk. Computer service and printing is provided there as well. There are various sized residences. In the evening there is an in house car service to drive you to locations in close proximity to the residence.

RC SF is VERY nice. It's not exactly centrally located, as it's in the business district, just past the financial district. Gets very quiet on the weekend around there.

RC SF concierge services are very nice, they will help you find places in the city, good restaurants, everything. The upstairs lounge has good views and free cappuccino/espresso. In the evening there are wine tastings and other events, but not every evening.

If you are at RC SF, you need a metro pass every day and will need to get very good at transiting the city. From RC SF it's 1 mile to the ferry building, almost 2 miles to the wharf. You could/can walk this if you are in good health, but stay on the main street to avoid unpleasant surprises.

In contrast, the new pulse on right near the wharf--2 blocks. You can do a lot without every having to get on metro/transit, and you might not need a metro/transit pass every day. The location is very good. The rooms themselves are nicely appointed but nothing compared to RC SF.

I don't think there's much difference between the city/courtyard view. But the NO VIEW option is exactly what it says. NOTHING.

Someone mentioned the connected room option, which is basically 2 rooms put together for you via the hotel-style lock-off door. BUT it is 2X the points (because you are getting 2 rooms put together).

As far as SF being yucky/dirty??? I guess turk has never been to a big city before. Washington DC, New York, Boston, are pretty bad as far as big cities go. But comparatively? SF is more like Honolulu/Waikiki. Stay in the tourist areas. Watch yourself as you would in any big city.

The actual problem in SF are the TECH PEOPLE and the TECH companies. They've driven up the prices of everything from a cup of coffee to a meal and driven out so many local favorites because the small business owners can't afford rent/lease at 3-4-5 times what they were paying a few years ago.
 
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taxare

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Fasttr, thanks for sharing this information. We have stayed at the RC at least 10 times and Love it. However, unless one is lucky or plan well in advance they have very limited availability. Looking at the Pulse midweek DC points when we need to go in December there is no way we would find a decent hotel room for close to the value they are offering. As most of you know, if you are in SF during a large convention week, good luck in finding a hotel room for less than $500/night (including all of the crazy taxes they add in SF).
 

Big Matt

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RC SF is VERY nice. It's not exactly centrally located, as it's in the business district, just past the financial district. Gets very quiet on the weekend around there.

RC SF concierge services are very nice, they will help you find places in the city, good restaurants, everything. The upstairs lounge has good views and free cappuccino/espresso. In the evening there are wine tastings and other events, but not every evening.

If you are at RC SF, you need a metro pass every day and will need to get very good at transiting the city. From RC SF it's 1 mile to the ferry building, almost 2 miles to the wharf. You could/can walk this if you are in good health, but stay on the main street to avoid unpleasant surprises.

In contrast, the new pulse on right near the wharf--2 blocks. You can do a lot without every having to get on metro/transit, and you might not need a metro/transit pass every day. The location is very good. The rooms themselves are nicely appointed but nothing compared to RC SF.

I don't think there's much difference between the city/courtyard view. But the NO VIEW option is exactly what it says. NOTHING.

Someone mentioned the connected room option, which is basically 2 rooms put together for you via the hotel-style lock-off door. BUT it is 2X the points (because you are getting 2 rooms put together).

As far as SF being yucky/dirty??? I guess turk has never been to a big city before. Washington DC, New York, Boston, are pretty bad as far as big cities go. But comparatively? SF is more like Honolulu/Waikiki. Stay in the tourist areas. Watch yourself as you would in any big city.

The actual problem in SF are the TECH PEOPLE and the TECH companies. They've driven up the prices of everything from a cup of coffee to a meal and driven out so many local favorites because the small business owners can't afford rent/lease at 3-4-5 times what they were paying a few years ago.

I really don't consider DC to be yucky or dirty. It certainly was 25 years ago, but most of the yuck and dirt has been pushed into PG county. Other sections have been razed and replaced.
 

4Sunsets

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I really don't consider DC to be yucky or dirty. It certainly was 25 years ago, but most of the yuck and dirt has been pushed into PG county. Other sections have been razed and replaced.

DC tourist areas is where I'd recommend staying within that area.
 

Carlsbadguy

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I noticed this morning there was an August week on II at the SF pulse that went very quickly.
 

BocaBoy

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When they gutted the unique benefits of Chairman's Club / Premier Plus formerly, and gave the same benefits to Presidential which is 50% less in ownership.......
This is an extremely misleading statement. Many Presidential level owners have only slightly fewer points than needed to qualify for Chairman's Club. We were Chairman's Club and sold a week, which dropped us a couple hundred points below the cutoff and we are certainly not unique. I do agree, however, that they should add some additional benefits to the Chairman's Club level.
 

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Just returned from a SF stay at the Pulse. Wow!! In a bad way! The room decor is Industrial Grunge...wallpaper mimicking rough concrete, Edison bulbs everywhere. In place of a closet or armoire, there is a cheap metal locker with 2 small drawers. Looks like a 60's youth hostel. On the plus side, the staff was fine and the location, great...but the decor was a HUGE turn-off.

Contrast that with a stay at the Pulse at the Mayflower Hotel in DC just 2 weeks previous...what a world of difference, elegant decor, closets, more refined light fixtures, etc.

Overall, based on these 2 visits, I would say that the Pulse Brand is struggling, trying to find an identity. Or at least it should establish an identity. Walk into any Courtyard and you generally get the same feel, amenities, etc..you know what to expect.

The Pulse brand is all over the map.
 

Big Matt

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Just returned from a SF stay at the Pulse. Wow!! In a bad way! The room decor is Industrial Grunge...wallpaper mimicking rough concrete, Edison bulbs everywhere. In place of a closet or armoire, there is a cheap metal locker with 2 small drawers. Looks like a 60's youth hostel. On the plus side, the staff was fine and the location, great...but the decor was a HUGE turn-off.

Contrast that with a stay at the Pulse at the Mayflower Hotel in DC just 2 weeks previous...what a world of difference, elegant decor, closets, more refined light fixtures, etc.

Overall, based on these 2 visits, I would say that the Pulse Brand is struggling, trying to find an identity. Or at least it should establish an identity. Walk into any Courtyard and you generally get the same feel, amenities, etc..you know what to expect.

The Pulse brand is all over the map.

New York brand is also nothing better than the Spring Hill Suites next door. Custom House in Boston is awesome.
 
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