Originally Posted by
fredsxb
We will be staying 5 nights in LA at the beginning of a 20 day West coast trip next August and we'll be spending our last night in LA as well just before flying back to France.
We have decided where we will stay on our last night: The Huntley Hotel in Santa Monica (their penthouse restaurant/bar is a must-see/go!)
It's been some time since I've been to the Huntley, but it used to be a major hangout for me and a good friend -- we'd go up to the bar and spend the night drinking. I don't remember it being particularly nice, though there is a good view from up there.
As for our first 5 nights: At first, we wanted to stay in BH at any of the following hotels: Peninsula, Bel Air, BH Hotel or Raffles.
After checking these hotels websites and reviews on FT, we figured we did not really like their "old" style and felt more enclined to stay in a more contemporary hotel: W Hotel Westwood or Sofitel L.A. (which is supposed to be well located in BH from what I've read)
The Sofitel is nice, as are the old-style hotels you've listed. I would
not recommend the W Westwood for a number of reasons. It leases its bar to a separate concession and draws a lot of noisy B-list wannabes. You'll be hassled trying to get into the lobby and the hotel, itself, is not that nice. Management is indifferent and the location isn't great -- Westwood is home to the UCLA campus and caters specifically to them.
A friend of mine lives in Santa Monica and kinda convinced me it'd be nicer to stay there. We're looking at Shutters on the Beach or Casa Del Mar. We, however, do not really feel enthusiastic about these 2 hotels.
Shutters is right on the beach and, from what I understand, is a very nice hotel.
We're probably gonna go on studio tours and would like to go eat at night in nice restaurants.
If you're interested in studio tours, I'd suggest you contact either Paramount or Warner Brothers/Burbank Studio in advance and make reservations. These two tours will let you see how films are actually produced in Hollywood. The Universal Studios Tour has absolutely nothing to do with the film industry, except that part of it goes through a small section of the Universal back lot. It is strictly an amusement park/tourist attraction.
There are nice restaurants all over LA -- Beverly Hills, West Los Angeles and Santa Monica all have many good places to eat.
We would like to be able to walk from our hotel to wherever we're gonna eat in the evening (we will rent a car though but mostly plan on using it during the day).
Walk? In LA? Hmmm. Perhaps Shutters -- there are lots of restaurants at the beach area, some of the pretty good. LA and Santa Monica are not walking cities -- everyone drives, takes taxis or public transportation (and I do
not recommend public transportation).
My friend really discouraged me from staying at the W Hotel in Westwood...
Your friends are right. Listen to them.
