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I wrote a blog this summer about the stay my husband and I had in 2 resorts in Aruba. Our first stay was in a 1 bedroom villa with a full kitchen. The second stay was in a 1 bedroom suite. Vacationing in 2 resorts wasn’t planned. We could not find one place to stay for the length of the time we needed. The result ended up being a pleasant experience as each resort offered something the other did not. For our San Francisco vacation, we did the same thing. It felt like 2 vacations in one. My recommendation, if your stay allows, stay in at least 2 locations. Yes, it is a pain to move once you get comfortable, but in my opinion, the benefits outweigh the inconvenience.
We planned our San Francisco vacation for the last week in September and stayed for 6 nights. We spent 3 nights in a Marriott Vacation Club Pulse in North Beach. The last 3 nights were at the Ritz Carlton Club and Residences located in the Financial District.
Our First San Francisco Vacation – Marriott Vacation Club Pulse
The Marriott Vacation Club recently opened one of the Pulse properties in San Francisco. The Pulse properties offer hotel rooms (not villas) that are in the heart of major cities. The location of this property was ideal. It was within walking distance to Fisherman’s Wharf, excellent dining, and quick eateries (including Krispy Kreme), and attractions.
If you visit San Francisco, check out the Marriott Vacation Club Pulse property. You do not need to be a Marriott Vacation Club owner to stay there.
The Amenities
The lobby of the Pulse has some of the same amenities as other Marriott Vacation Clubs. These include:
– daily activities
-a fitness center
-a place to lounge with family and friends
-a Marketplace with snacks, convenience foods, and sundries and a microwave!
Better The Second Time
Our first afternoon in San Francisco we dined at a restaurant where our eyes and noses were much larger than our stomachs. We order 2 personal pizzas after having a large appetizer and it was just too much to consume at one time. Since it was pizza, we knew we could refrigerate it back in the room and eat it cold later. But even better…. we were able to use the microwave in the lobby and have a hot lunch the following day. Not only was the pizza just as good, but we also saved money by not going out to buy lunch! San Francisco dining is good but expensive.
The Room
Our room was larger than rooms in other Pulse properties we visited. We were fortunate to have a corner room which gave us more space. The room was decorated to match the theme of the Fisherman’s Wharf. I thought it was cute how the closet mimicked a shipping container and had 2 robes for our use.
The room had a king-sized bed, a nice sized sofa, and a desk to work on my blogs. 🙂
We Were A Little Spoiled…..
Dennis and I love both sweet and salty snacks. It was always a treat to see what the lobby was going to offer during the day. (Ok… you know we took at least 2-3 each). Some afternoons there were a variety of cookies. Other days there was a candy station along with flavored water and pink lemonade. In the mornings there were donuts🍩, muffins, coffee, and tea.
The Pulse also had a huge rooftop deck with many comfortable lounge chairs (some near fire pits and others by heaters) and blankets. There were games like cornhole and ping pong.
Staff Is Awesome!
The concierge service was extremely helpful providing great dining and activity options. One of the nights we did not venture out for dinner because it was Sunday night football. The concierge provided a great recommendation of hot subs and wings that delivered to the hotel.
This property also housed a nice sized sales presentation office where we had a presentation by Tiffani Trinh. Tiffani was able to answer all of my questions. She let us know what was new with Marriott that would benefit us as vacation club owners.
The day we checked out of the Pulse, was also the day we had a late afternoon tour of Alcatraz. We were fortunate for our requested late checkout. It gave us the opportunity to keep our luggage with the front desk/bell services until we returned from our tour.
Our Second Vacation – Ritz Carlton Club and Residences
The experience at the Ritz Carlton Club and Residences was different than the Pulse. Prior to our arrival, the concierge reached out to see if we wanted our kitchen stocked or assistance with dinner reservations. Upon check-in, you are seated instead of standing behind a desk. We were offered water and treated to freshly baked cookies that are held in a lovely glass case box. (We only took one each this time but each time we passed the lobby we took one.) Check-in was pretty quick. Within a few minutes, we were escorted to the elevator and informed our luggage would arrive shortly.
We walked into our unit and fell in love 💗.
We reserved a 2 bedroom 2.5 bath residence (that was all that was available for the dates we needed). Each of the full bathrooms is tiled with marble, has large soaking tubs, separate showers, double sinks and of course, plush robes. The half bathroom was just off the entryway next to a nice sized coat closet. There was a full kitchen, including a dishwasher and wine cooler. Inside the refrigerator was a bottle of champagne as our welcome gift. Each bedroom had king-sized poster beds and large walk-in closets. After exploring the unit, we sat down on the cozy sectional to see what was on the smart tv.
The Accommodations Were Exceptional
Shortly after getting settled the doorbell rang (yes a doorbell) and a gentleman brought in our luggage. The service was impeccable. During our 3 night stay at the Ritz Carlton, we spent more time in the unit than we did in our room at the Pulse.
We had the amenities that exceeded our comforts of home. This includes twice-daily housekeeping service and turndown service with dark Ghirardelli chocolate.
I was grateful for the in-unit stackable washer and dryer. The weather was chillier than expected, therefore I needed to wash some of the warmer clothes I already wore.
The bathroom is almost as large as the bedroom. To my surprise I found a bath bomb packed in my toiletry bag. One evening, I took advantage of the bath bomb and a large soaking tub. The tub is so deep I think I floated a couple of times.
As mentioned earlier, dining in San Francisco can be expensive. With a full kitchen at the Ritz Carlton, we were able to stock the refrigerator with items from Amazon Go, (It was a block away). With the money, we saved we were able to spend more on souvenirs.
More than the standard amenities
The Ritz Carlton offers other amenities that we did not use. There is a 2 story fitness room, free parking per stay and car service to use, on a first come first serve basis. Delivered each evening is a newsletter that lists upcoming activities in and outside the property.
1 city, 2 different properties, 2 neighborhoods, and 2 experiences.
Consider finding a way to turn your next trip into 2 different experiences. Staying in different properties will provide you more options than just different parts of the city. Dennis and I have been timeshare owners for over 9 years. We enjoy our timeshares and the opportunities it has allowed us. Feel free to ask me any questions about our experiences.
Mai
Wow! Thank you for your insights. Very informative!
Lora Winchell
Hi Melody! Thank you for a really informative post. The photos are great and I am really interested by the concept of splitting your vacation into two resorts. We will have to give it a try!
Deanna
Sounds like you guys had a great trip in San Francisco. It is incredible how you can have such different experiences in the same city. BTW love packing cubes too!