[2022] Pulse Waikiki

[dioxide45]

I just posted elsewhere that the Japanese yen is at a 30 year low vs US$. Imagine trying to buy into that with yen.
Can anyone roughly say what that means in nightly US$ rate for a studio & a 1 bdrm, using whatever "points cost" most people here have?

Ignoring the holiday weeks, based on the 2024 maintenance fees for trust points for a Sun-Thur it would be $255 or $295 for a studio. Fri-Sat would be $355 or $413 for a studio. 1-bedroom would be $354 or $413 to $511 or $590. I don't know "going rates for off beach hotels in Waikiki to compare. Also, it would seem that those with enrolled weeks could have a different maintenance fee based on what they own. So it could cost them more or less than these numbers based on trust point fees.

 

[kozykritter]

Ignoring the holiday weeks, based on the 2024 maintenance fees for trust points for a Sun-Thur it would be $255 or $295 for a studio. Fri-Sat would be $355 or $413 for a studio. 1-bedroom would be $354 or $413 to $511 or $590. I don't know "going rates for off beach hotels in Waikiki to compare. Also, it would seem that those with enrolled weeks could have a different maintenance fee based on what they own. So it could cost them more or less than these numbers based on trust point fees.

Even though it is off the beach, some of the higher units on the front of the building will likely have a beach/waterline view across Fort DeRussy Park as Google maps satellite view doesn't show any tall structures blocking the way in theory.

Decades ago when I was going to school in SF, a flight attendant friend would drag me to the airport whenever we both had time off and we'd jet over for free and camp out at a cheap (with his discount) hotel right on the park for as long as we could before they called him back to work...I liked how low key the area/beach was compared to further into the Waikiki fray. Oh, and Eggs and Things....yuuuum.

 

[WaikikiFirst]

Thanks. seems mostly similar to off beach hotel, maybe slightly high but the bigger difference is the weekday vs weekend pricing, a TS factor that hotels do to a far less degree as far as I have seen.
Quick Comp: the Embassy Suites (better location imo, still "off beach" but much closer) takes 70,000 Hilton Honors pts for (I guess that is a studio?). If you value those at $0.005/pt, that = $350/night. so if it is for a week, making the kitchen key, Pulse seems like very fair price. Depends on priorities, like all of this

I guess HGVC's Hokulani would be the better comp. That 1 bdrm costs about $160-$185/weeknight for people with points from better HI deeds, less using pts from LV. and it costs 2x that 3 nights/wk, so $230/night for a wk, 25-30% less using pts from LV. Then add $70 exchange fee. Hokulani is a much better location and a head-to-head TS.

 

[Jerrygomi]

The Marriott has a pretty upscale neighbor across the street: the ritz Carlton residences. I stayed there a few years ago with bonvoy points and the view of ocean was great

 

[Jerrygomi]

Does anyone understand what this language from the Marriott email means?

“ Marriott Vacation Club, Waikiki is not a registered timeshare project and is not a part of the Marriott Vacation Club Destinations timeshare program. Occupancy at Marriott Vacation Club, Waikiki through the Abound by Marriott Vacations exchange program is expected to begin Fall of 2024.”

 

[dioxide45]

Does anyone understand what this language from the Marriott email means?

“ Marriott Vacation Club, Waikiki is not a registered timeshare project and is not a part of the Marriott Vacation Club Destinations timeshare program. Occupancy at Marriott Vacation Club, Waikiki through the Abound by Marriott Vacations exchange program is expected to begin Fall of 2024.”

It seems that for now, the property isn't in the Abound Trust. So the only way to book it is through the MVC Exchange Company. NYC Pulse works the same. There are no units or actual inventory conveyed to the trust. They rent rooms out for cash or make them available for exchange. When made available for exchange then MVC can make reservations at a different resort that they can rent for cash.

 

[Jerrygomi]

I did manage to book a couple nights at Waikiki using abound points for January 2025.

 

[Eric B]

NYC Pulse

Apparently it's Marriott Vacation Club, New York now rather than Pulse. The Pulse name has been removed from all of the City Collection properties on the website.

 

[alwysonvac]

Thanks for the heads up

https://www.marriottvacationclubs.com/s/location/1314x000000QfpkAAC/marriott-vacation-club-waikiki#accommodations

 

[daviator]

Does anyone know whether parking is included? The amenities state “valet parking” but no idea if it’s paid or free. I’m guessing the former, unfortunately.

 

[Werner Weiss]

Does anyone know whether parking is included? The amenities state “valet parking” but no idea if it’s paid or free. I’m guessing the former, unfortunately.

I believe that no City Collection (formerly Pulse) properties have free parking. Parking on Waikiki tends to be expensive, so I would expect expensive paid parking here too.

The good news is that it would be easy to spend several days on Waikiki without a car, relying on walking, buses, and rideshares.

 

[dioxide45]

Does anyone know whether parking is included? The amenities state “valet parking” but no idea if it’s paid or free. I’m guessing the former, unfortunately.

Marriott.com indicates "Valet parking for a fee."

 

[jwalk03]

I just noticed on the website they published a weeks calendar for the new Waikiki City Collection Resort. So are they selling weeks there instead of just depositing all of the inventory into the trust as they have done with other domestic resorts that have added inventory since the Points Trust was formed??

https://content.marriottvacationclub.com/helpful-tools/weeks-calendars/waikiki.pdf

 

[PHWiest]

How does this impact points owners and reservations because weeks were not for sale a year ago.

 

[rthib]

I just noticed on the website they published a weeks calendar for the new Waikiki City Collection Resort. So are they selling weeks there instead of just depositing all of the inventory into the trust as they have done with other domestic resorts that have added inventory since the Points Trust was formed??

https://content.marriottvacationclub.com/helpful-tools/weeks-calendars/waikiki.pdf

Since Hawaii is a much more international destination wonder if that is why?

The language indicated Platinum Plus so I wonder?
"The Platinum Plus-New Year’s Use Period shall be that Time Period including or ending on the New Year’s Day holiday (January 1), which is typically, but not always, Time Period 52. In years in which there is a Time Period 53, the actual period of occupancy for Owners of Platinum Plus-New Year’s Use Periods shall be Time Period 53, so that the period of occupancy in such years includes or ends on New Year’s Day (January 1). Developer, Marriott Ownership Resorts, Inc., has the right to use and occupy each Unit during Time Period 52 of each Use Year in which there is a Time Period 53, as more fully described in the Program Documents for the Waikīkī Kalākaua Vacation Ownership Program."

 

[dioxide45]

Yeah, looks like they are just selling week 52 (New Year’s) as a fixed week. All the rest are points.

 

[jwalk03]

Yeah, looks like they are just selling week 52 (New Year’s) as a fixed week. All the rest are points.

I don’t think that note means that is the only week they are selling. A similar note appears on most every resort calendar with platinum plus weeks.

 

[pspercy]

I suppose I should know but what is a Platinum Plus week?
Thanks.

 

[PHWiest]

Has anybody seen any other reviews of MVC Waikiki...or knows plans for the ground floor retail on Kalakaua?

 

[jwalk03]

I suppose I should know but what is a Platinum Plus week?
Thanks.

It’s a week that was sold as a fixed week. (But still floating checkin day within the week) Typically very high demand holiday weeks. Many resorts sold week 51 and/or week 52 as platinum plus. Plus some of the ski resorts sold presidents week as platinum plus. And there are a few others- like Spring Break at Aruba Surf, July 4th week at Oceanwatch, etc. You can only book those weeks if you own that specific week- not as a regular platinum floating week.

 

[ljmiii]

Has anybody seen any other reviews of MVC Waikiki...

Pretty much uniformly positive (except for a surprising lack of sound insulation). I suppose someone expecting Ko Olina or Hilton Hawaiian Village would be disappointed...but in no way does the MVC City Collection Waikiki purport to be that kind of resort.

 

[dioxide45]

I don’t think that note means that is the only week they are selling. A similar note appears on most every resort calendar with platinum plus weeks.

But the rest of the weeks don’t have a season name associated with them. The season name is just blank. Thus why I don’t think they are selling those as weeks (1-51),

 

[jwalk03]

But the rest of the weeks don’t have a season name associated with them. The season name is just blank. Thus why I don’t think they are selling those as weeks (1-51),

I didn’t even notice that! Hmm. Maybe you are right.

 

[daviator]

Has anybody seen any other reviews of MVC Waikiki...or knows plans for the ground floor retail on Kalakaua?

I wrote a short review and posted it here last week. They are trying to lease the retail space.

 

[daviator]

They are heavily marketing this property to visitors from Japan. All the staff speaks Japanese and 80% of the guests I saw touring the property were Japanese. I declined the presentation so don’t know if they are offering direct purchases in this property vs. just points. Does anyone know if the property was mapped and recorded (with the county) as fractional ownerships? I’m guessing they did not do that which would prevent them from selling deeded weeks. But maybe they did.