LA Accommodation

[meandmygirl]

I am looking for recommendations for accommodation in LA.

Something that is mid price range, 2 queen beds and (really knowing absolutely nothing about LA) central/walking distance to the major sightseeing things.

Thanks.

 

[Sugarglider]

Ummm.... LA is HUGE. You may wise to do a bit of research / reading and decide what you want to see and choose an area to stay that is convenient. I would not say that you can stay in one place that is central and certainly not within walking distance of many sightseeing areas. However many people decide they want to stay at Beverley Hills or out in Hollywood or near the beach - do some reading and decide what suits you and be prepared to travel to get to each sightseeing thing you want to do.
Tripadvisor can give you a good starting places on hotels to check out.
I can see by your ticker that you are going to Disneyland at Anaheim. Please be aware that Anaheim is not in LA it is south east (inland) in Orange County and you will want to find accommodation out there - but don't worry there is miles of it and more cheaply priced that a lot in LA.
Again Tripadvisor is a good starting point for Anaheim too

 

[meandmygirl]

Thanks sugarglider - told you I had absolutely no idea.

 

[Plaid Princess]

Ditto on LA being huge. Downtown Century City can be as much as 2 hours from Anaheim dependent on traffic, and until you Aussies, Americans have almost ZERO mass transit, so you're looking at renting a car or taking taxis.

If you're wanting to venture north I would go for Beverly Hills, as it's the cliche California Experience. Prices are quite high there though, but there's a fair amount within walking distance of Rodeo Drive.

If you're looking for a beach day, I would go for a spot in Balboa or Huntington Beach. (both fairly close to Disneyland) They're both cute little beach suburbs with all the fun beachy things to do (shops, restaurants and the like) plus a bit lower on the price points than some of the beaches closer to LA.

Whether or not you are planning on renting a car will have a big impact on where you end up. I'm from that area, so if you want any tips let me know!

 

[aussiegirls]

Hi

When we were in LA in November and we stayed at the Farmers Daughter hotel. It is the cutest little boutique hotel I have ever been to. We got a stay 4 nights get a 5th for free, so the price didn't end up being too bad. Every day they served free snacks and drinks in the lobby - homemade lemonade and chips during the day and spiced cider or hot chocolate and freshly baked cookies in the afternoon/evening.

http://www.farmersdaughterhotel.com

It is right across the road from the Farmers Market and The Grove, where you absolutely have to go. American Girl place is in The Grove and, no matter where you stay, you absolutely have to take J to American Girl Place. My girls would have happily moved in there

If you want to go to Hollywood Boulevard it is a short (I think about 10 mins or so) bus trip - just 1 bus, no changes. We also caught a cab to Westfield Century City but we didn't realise that there is a bus that goes there too. It is the most amazing Westfield I have ever been to, I highly recommend a trip there.

Happy planning

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

I'm not sure if you've already booked something all not but I would love to recommend The Renaissance right in the heart of Hollywood. Amazing amazing amazing location. Seriously, there is no better.

The hotel was modern and lovely, it is attached to the Kodak Theatre and next door to Grauman's Chinese Theatre. The Disney Soda Fountain is across the road. I could rave on and on. The price was pretty good, I think we paid just over $600 for 3 nights for a room with 2 beds, not sure whether queens of doubles but my DH and I each shared with a kid the whole trip so that wasn't such an issue.

Our room

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View from our room of Hollywood Sign

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Pool - amazing

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[meandmygirl]

Thanks ladies.

M, that place looks and sounds great. I should've remembered that hotel from your blog.

The plan is to stay in LA for 3-4 nights, then prob San Fran (Mum wants to go back there) then the rest in Anaheim. Will probably do a couple of day trips from Anaheim.

Haven't decided on whether we will get a car or not.

 

[Plaid Princess]

Well, not sure what you are planning budget wise, but the last time I was in San Francisco I stayed at the Touchstone Hotel. It's on the lower price point for things in the city itself. It is about a block from Union Square, which made it possible to leave the car in the parking structure (or not have one at all), because you can walk out and catch the cable car. It's definitely an older building (almost everything in Union is), and the rooms are on the small side, but the hotel was clean and the management was SUPER helpful. They upgraded us for free because they had a better room than the one we reserved, and they wanted us to have a good stay and return! It has a restaurant in the building, and breakfast is sometimes included in the rate depending on when you book. There's also lots of food on the same block as the hotel.

Also, make sure you check out the Disney Family Museum! It's in the Presidio, near the Bridge, and it's FANTASTIC! Personally, I thought the gift shop alone was worth the trip, but the museum is pretty amazing. Because it's run by Diane Disney Miller, there's a lot of the Disney family's personal artifacts there.

 

[lffam]

I'm not sure if you've already booked something all not but I would love to recommend The Renaissance right in the heart of Hollywood. Amazing amazing amazing location. Seriously, there is no better.

The hotel was modern and lovely, it is attached to the Kodak Theatre and next door to Grauman's Chinese Theatre. The Disney Soda Fountain is across the road. I could rave on and on. The price was pretty good, I think we paid just over $600 for 3 nights for a room with 2 beds, not sure whether queens of doubles but my DH and I each shared with a kid the whole trip so that wasn't such an issue.

I could not agree more with Ms Shuttergirl. We stayed at the Renaissance in September 2010. It is literally in the heart of Hollywood. The hotel was fantastic, breakfast in the restaurant (the Twist??) was great and the staff super nice . We were on the 18th floor and had a view of the Hollywood sign. We arrived from Brisbane at ~7am LA time. we had booked our room from the night before so when we arrive at at about 8:30am we could go straight into the room without having to wait or check in later in the day. Sure it we paid and extra night $$ but it was totally worth it. I wouldn't hesitate to stay here again or recommend it to anyone.

here is the review which I wrote on tripadvisor.com about it.http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g32655-d224168-r82811928-Renaissance_Hollywood_Hotel-Los_Angeles_California.html#CHECK_RATES_CONT

 

[Oz-kateer]

I also like The Renaissance but if your budget can't quite reach I'd also recommend The Holiday Inn Express in Hollywood. It's just a few doors up the road, literally.

Not quite as plush as The Renaissance but still polished, modern and stylish, extremely clean, and the nightly rate includes a seriously good breakfast. Large rooms, comfy queens or king beds, flat screen TV's, cable, free WiFi and new bathrooms. I also liked their driver service. Very reasonable rates, polite well dressed drivers, and very slick, clean vehicles.

I've stayed in both. For luxury it's probably Renaissance, for value it's definitely the Holiday Inn.

 

[marvel]

We had a car and loved the hilton next to universal studios. You walk to universal and its a 5 minute drive to hollywood etc. You can get it for under $200 depending on season and it had free breakfast included. We loved it.

 

[PrincessBelle39]

Cant recommend a particular hotel but we loved being in the Santa Monica area. It was a nice safe place to walk around at night with the shops being open. The kids loved dancing to the buskers in the street. We also like being close to the beach and found it to be a good location for getting around.

 

[meandmygirl]

Thanks for the information.

Might let Mum choose then the decision is out of my hands