Originally Posted by
carlosdca
There is no such a thing as "easy access to the city", unfortunately.
LA is huge and disconnected. Most people tend to stay in their respective bubbles.
If you don't want an airport hotel vibe and still be close enough to the airport (less than 20 minutes to the start of the airport loop) I would probably recommend a boutique hotel or airbnb in Manhattan Beach or Hermosa Beach close to the ocean.
Manhattan and Hermosa are really cool places and offer the almost stereotypical southern california beach lifestyle. You can uber to MB or Hermosa and then just walk around (no car needed)
Marina del Rey is blah, Miami-esque, just like a staying at an airport hotel and you will need a car or constant Uber or similar to get around.
Westside/Beverly Hills/Sunset/WestHollywood/Melrose have the coolest restaurants, bars and stereotypical LA scenes but it will be too far from the airport.
Traffic on weekday nights is not that bad. Traffic during the day and anytime on the weekends can be the worst.
TBH, it is easier if you just stay by the airport and then take an Uber to any specific spot in LA you want to check out.
Although MdR is not the most interesting place to stay in LA, it’s certainly walkable to Venice Beach (from the Marriott more so than the Ritz). Admittedly, Venice’s vibe may not be for everyone...
The Four Points Westside is literally less than three miles from the airport (closer than the MdR hotels). It’s certainly accessible to LAX without, in my opinion, feeling like an airport hotel—i.e., its location is better than the hotels on/around Century Blvd.
I find traffic at LAX can be bad at any time, especially with the construction going on. It can be especially bad at night (starting around 9pm) when a lot of the international flights are departing. The AA terminal is usually pretty empty around 9 or 10pm, but I have seen a lot of people running to catch flights around that time because it took them 45 minutes to get from Sepulveda to T4 because of traffic.