Help with hotel choice in L.A.

We are a party of three flying into L.A. for a Celebrity Pacific Coastal cruise in September. We will be flying in on Friday and the cruise leaves on Sunday. (from San Pedro)

Based on the reviews on this board we have decided to stay in a hotel in the Santa Monica area. On Friday night we can explore the Santa Monica area and grab dinner. On Saturday we were going to book a LA Grand Tour to see as many sights as possible in the one day.

We are looking for a reasonalby priced hotel which will provide two beds and a roll-a-way, (we would like to share 1 room to save money), preferably at or near one which will pick up for the tour on Saturday. We have been looking but are a little overwhelmed.

Any suggestions?

Reasonably priced and Santa Monica do not necessarily go together. If it's cheaper than the other hotels, look at reviews carefully. There are some truly dicey areas interspersed within good areas.

Somewhere are some good lists of hotels.

Found one

5 days post cruise in LA. Good reasonably priced hotel??

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2297434

>>>We are looking for a reasonalby priced hotel which will provide two beds and a roll-a-way<<<

Can you put a dollar amount to "reasonable"? The DoubleTree Suites is considered reasonable by Santa Monica standards. If it is more than you want to pay you might have to look elsewhere, perhaps Hollywood or Downtown LA.

For something not fancy or modern, but nice and in an excellent location, check this one out:

http://www.calmarhotel.com/

There's a guy who used to post regularly here who swears by it...

Right now, though our travel agent we have two rooms booked in Universal City's at 199 per room per night so $800 before taxes. Would like to keep that number between $700 before taxes and $800 before taxes. Obviously a little less is better. Based on reviews we decided that Universal City was out of the way of the things we were interested in doing.

We have looked at the best Western Gateway but they do not offer a third rollaway bed. I looked at the Cal Mar hotel also but the reviews are very hit or miss.

Right now, though our travel agent we have two rooms booked in Universal City's at 199 per room per night so $800 before taxes. Would like to keep that number between $700 before taxes and $800 before taxes. Obviously a little less is better. Based on reviews we decided that Universal City was out of the way of the things we were interested in doing.

 

We have looked at the best Western Gateway but they do not offer a third rollaway bed. I looked at the Cal Mar hotel also but the reviews are very hit or miss.

One reason I thought of the Calmar is they have two room suites--with a bedroom and a living room that might accommodate the third person--so you might get away with just one room.

Unfortunately for you, good hotels in good locations in the LA area less than $200 per night are hard to find. It is a fairly expensive hotel town. A lot of times, a cheap rate means either that the hotel is really poor or that it is in an undesirable location, either remote or bad neighborhood. What I like about Santa Monica is that it is a great neighborhood and incredibly convenient--especially for those without a rental car. Another area you might want to look at is Marina Del Rey--specifically, the following list: Hilton Garden Inn, Jamaica Bay Inn, Foghorn Harbor Inn, Marina Del Rey Marriott, Inn at Venice Beach. This is just south of Santa Monica, very near the Venice Beach Boardwalk. The HOHO bus now extends down to this area. You'd have to call, but I think other tour companies will pick up here as well. There is a public bus or it's a short Uber ride up to Santa Monica and it is very close to LAX. Prices here MAY be slightly lower than Santa Monica.

What is it you are interested in doing? Perhaps I can make other recommendations...

If you really want to see Santa Monica and stay outside the area i.e. Universal City could take public transportation.

Metro Red Line (transfer at 7th St) to the Expo Line. The Expo line ends a few blocks from the Santa Monica Pier, it goes thru nice areas, like Culver City. The Red Line continues onto Union Station from the 7th Street Station. Across the street is Olvera Street (birth place of LA and Chinatown).

Metro.net. $1.75/two hours or $7/day, plus $1 for the Tap Card. Senior Rates need a card that takes a few hoops to go thru, not worth it for the casual visitor.

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We were planning n exploring Santa Monica boulevard the first night and adjusting to the time difference as we are from the East Coast. On Saturday we we're looking at taking the grand tour of LA. We thought this would give us a quick taste of most of the highlights. Other than this we had no other plans.

Based on your recommendation we looked at the Calmar hotel again and find that most of the negative news and just about it looking date dated and tired. In exchange for a good location and a good price for a suite I think we're going to go ahead and book it. After wrong usually location is the most important factor.

Thanks for all the great advice

We were planning n exploring Santa Monica boulevard the first night and adjusting to the time difference as we are from the East Coast. On Saturday we we're looking at taking the grand tour of LA. We thought this would give us a quick taste of most of the highlights. Other than this we had no other plans.

 

Based on your recommendation we looked at the Calmar hotel again and find that most of the negative news and just about it looking date dated and tired. In exchange for a good location and a good price for a suite I think we're going to go ahead and book it. After wrong usually location is the most important factor.

Hopefully, you meant exploring "Santa Monica" NOT "Santa Monica Boulevard". Santa Monica Boulevard is a long street that traverses most of the city from Hollywood to the Pacific Ocean, but not the street with that much to see on it.

Now, if you stay at the Calmar, you are right at the northern end of the Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica's outstanding pedestrian only promenade...Lots of street performers and trendy shops...Two short blocks west is Ocean Avenue...Cross Ocean Avenue and you are in Palisades Park--a long narrow park that runs along the cliffs hanging over the beach with tremendous views of the Pacific Ocean...and a great place from which to watch the sunset if you time it right. About three blocks south is the Santa Monica Pier--with its rides and other amusements. Lit up at night, it makes for great photos. One town south of there is Venice Beach--with its fun Boardwalk. This is where you'll see street performers, street merchants, weightlifters on the beach, pick-up Volleyball and Basketball games and girls in bikinis on roller skates--especially if the weather is warm and sunny

Yes, the Calmar looks as though it's frozen in about 1962. It was once a "garden" apartment building and was converted to a hotel. It looks like a lot of other apartment buildings in the area...but, trust me, those apartments all go for some pretty steep rents...

Yes I did. Thank you for the great information I'll print it out and take it with me on the trip

My friends and I have just returned from our California Coastal cruise. We did end up staying at the Cal Mar hotel. It was a perfect choice for us. The price for the two nights came in under $600. with all taxes and fees. The bedroom had two double beds and the living room had a sofa bed. there was plenty of room to spread out and it was nice to have a little kitchen. It was a short walk to everything we wanted to do and we found some great restaurants in the area.

Our room was very clean, and had just received a fresh coat of paint. Everyone who worked there was super friendly. It was very dated in terms of furnishings and decor but it met all our needs. We all agreed we would stay there again if we were in the area.

The ony potential drawback would be that there was no air conditioning in the hotel. While we were there the nights were cool and we were comfortable with opening windows.

My friends and I have just returned from our California Coastal cruise. We did end up staying at the Cal Mar hotel. It was a perfect choice for us. The price for the two nights came in under $600. with all taxes and fees. The bedroom had two double beds and the living room had a sofa bed. there was plenty of room to spread out and it was nice to have a little kitchen. It was a short walk to everything we wanted to do and we found some great restaurants in the area.

 

Our room was very clean, and had just received a fresh coat of paint. Everyone who worked there was super friendly. It was very dated in terms of furnishings and decor but it met all our needs. We all agreed we would stay there again if we were in the area.

 

The ony potential drawback would be that there was no air conditioning in the hotel. While we were there the nights were cool and we were comfortable with opening windows.

I am glad you enjoyed staying at the CalMar. The interesting thing about the "no air conditioning" is that you have to understand a little about the Southern California climate. Although many areas of Greater Los Angeles can have extremely hot temperatures in the summer months, that's not true everywhere in the region. As Los Angeles covers an area with several mountain ranges, inland valleys, high and low deserts and a wide coastal basin, it includes several very different climates--ranging from some extreme desert areas to a very wide range of temperatures in the inland valleys. The areas along the coast have VERY temperate climates with little variation in temperature from high to low--never getting too hot or too cold. The Pacific Ocean works as a moderating force. Due to the large body of water and the almost constant breeze coming off the Pacific, Santa Monica very rarely has hot temperatures--even when a lot of the rest of the city is sweltering in extremely hot weather. I grew up in the area--my parents lived there for 45 years--in a multi-million dollar house that, believe it or not, NEVER had air conditioning! In 45 years, it was never an issue...

Another note on Santa Monica hotels:

Just in the last few months, due to the extension of the Metro into Santa Monica, two new hotels have opened in the area which may offer some lower prices than the luxury hotels on the beach but still in an excellent location--at Colorado Avenue and 5th Street--a Hampton Inn by Hilton and a Marriott Courtyard:

http://hamptoninn3.hilton.com/en/hotels/california/hampton-inn-and-suites-los-angeles-santa-monica-SMOCAHX/index.html

http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/laxmo-courtyard-santa-monica/?scid=bb1a189a-fec3-4d19-a255-54ba596febe2

Both, obviously, a lot more modern than the CalMar...Still only a very short walk to the Third Street Promenade and Santa Monica Pier...