Had a GREAT time in SoCal!

[lookingforward]

Just wanted to thank you all for the tips and advice. We had a great time in Los Angeles and Santa Monica.

The Beverly Hills Hotel was above and beyond my expectations. It was truly a five star hotel with service to match. Well worth the price. We especially loved the house car (limo) that took you around for free (tip the driver). The room (we had the lowest priced) was absolutely perfect, well set up, and very comfortable.

Shutters on the Beach was the exact same price as the Beverly Hills HOtel and a bit of a dissapointment. The room was really lovely, but the service was sketchy. I had a fedex delivered. I called the front desk TWICE to let them know I was expecting it (cancer prevention meds) and it arrived at 7 a.m. They never called and did not deliver it to me until 10. No excuse. The beach was beautiful, but the pier was overcrowded and had gangs roaming around (the weekend...). Lobster was great for food.

The Ivy was fun and Spagos was the best. Warner brothers tour was fun too. THANKS!

 

[lookingforward]

I forgot....

The Palomar Hotel in Westwood (we stayed there one night) was 1/3 the price of the other hotels and really, really nice. Great service, nice room. The only downer was the loud airconditioner (although you didn't "hear" it after a while! ).

Pinks was so much fun for hot dogs. We waited about 30 minutes, but it was worth it. Lots of cheap fun there!

 

[khmbug]

So cool you were able to stay at the Beverly Hills hotel!
Tell us more about Shutters. What else did you do in LA?
Did you venture up to Malibu?
Thanks

 

[heatherleigh]

How fun! I've heard of all those places, but have never been. Did you spot any celebrities?

 

[lookingforward]

We loved the Beverly HIlls hotel. The service there is not to be believed, really. Its expensive but at least you get what you pay for. The nicest part was the room, it was perfect (and we had the least expensive). The hotel also provides a "free" limo within 3 miles of the hotel, and that covered a lot of LA territory (Spagos, Ivy, etc). You simply tip the driver who is a really great source of information.

The Ivy was fun. We sat outside for lunch and although overpriced, the food was good. We saw absolutely no celebrities there, just a lot of people like us LOOKING for them. HA! The service was nice, not snotty like other people reported.

Spagos was our favorite. Great food, great atmosphere, nice people. The short ribs were not to be believed. Delicious. The tuna appetizer was some of the best sashimi I have had (and I lived in Japan! ).

We skipped the Bel-Air hotel for brunch because, quite frankly, we were so tired of eating rich meals, etc. We decided to have breakfast at the Fountain soda shop at the Beverly Hills Hotel. It only seats about ten, but the breakfasts were quick and good. They seem to have regulars there and the servers were much nicer to them (and their dogs) then to everyone else, but whatever!

PInks was awesome for hot dogs if you could avoid the wait. The line is LONG. The Santa Monica pier was a huge dissapointment for me. I grew up in New England and pictured something cape cod like. HA! It was gang central (but we went on the weekend). LOTS of homeless people at the beach and in front of the hotels. For a social worker like me, well, I kept thinking that the city of Santa Monica could do a better job of helping them out. It was really, really sad. Lots of mentally ill people too.

The Shutters Hotel was just okay. It is a beachy type feel, small lobby, small front desk, etc. The room was perfectly fine, but the price ($515) was too much for the level of service. And that was for a no-view room. We wound up getting a side view of the ocean, which was nice. If I had it to do over again I would have stayed an extra night at the Beverly Hills Hotel. That was total bliss.

As I think I reported before, Shutters dropped the ball on a package delivery I had coming. But other than that it was not bad. The hotel dining room (the casual one) had a overpriced and not so great breakfast.

 

[Eaglefan9727]

I hope you enjoyed your stay at "Hotel California" aka Beverly Hills Hotel. Like the saying goes to the song.

"You can check-out any time you like, But you can never leave".


Not the right angle for the album cover as the angle they took in the 70's doesnt look like it did in the 70's as there are more palm trees from that angle. This was taken in April of this year when I was on vacation.