Staying in long beach for departure at sans pedro?

[latebuyer]

I have a marriott credit card and can stay for free at a marriott. Someone on the marriott forum suggested the marriott long beach and that the freeway between long beach and sans pedro wasn’t that busy. Is this feasible? I’m just wondering if by the time i pay for an uber from lax to long beach and long beach to sans pedro it will cost more then the hotel room. I travel solo so its expensive either way.

[latebuyer]

I’m also wondering is there any reason to not stay at an lax airport hotel and uber from there. It seems it only takes around 40 minutes.

[lx200gps]

We've done exactly that a few times in the past, stayed in LB because the two San Pedro hotels (the Crowne Plaza or the Doubletree) were too $$$ or not available. There's far more to do in LB, a much greater selection of hotels, restaurants etc, and the ride over the 710 to SP is easy and quick, especially if your trip starts on a weekend.

 

That being said, the last few times we've sailed out of SP, we've taken to staying half way between LAX and SP, in Torrance. It splits the taxi/Uber ride in half, there are also a lot of hotels, restaurants etc, in Torrance, and we also find that even when hotel pricing in LB and SP are very high, the hotel rates in Torrance are usually much more reasonable, as they don't seem to be subject to "surge" pricing. There's an excellent Marriott at the massive Del Amo mall (Torrance Marriott Redondo Beach).  Embarkation morning, we call up an Uber and the ride to SP is only maybe 20 minutes.  We are back in LA yet again in February, but this time, because we could only get a very late flight into LAX, we're going to bite the bullet and stay at one of the airport hotels on Century Blvd rather than drive south at 10PM. We'll have the long drive down to SP the next morning.

 

In your case, a lot depends on what time of day you arrive into LAX, what you need to do when you arrive etc. We prefer to stay in Torrance because of the local infrastructure, pre-cruise shopping etc, lots of good restaurants etc, which is completely lacking around LAX

[latebuyer]

Thanks for this tip, the problem i’m having is most of the marriotts are similar in the number of points and none seem cheaper. Its looking like residence inn long beach is the cheapest. However it seems to me the total trip time including lax to long beach and long beach to san pedro is longer then just going from lax to sans pedro. I’ll watch the price of the torrance hotel you gave too. I think part of the problem is march is expensive.

[KeepCalmBearOn]

There should not be a huge difference between an Uber from LAX to San Pedro vs the Long Beach Harbor, they are fairly close.

 

I would definitely choose the Torrance Marriott or a Marriott in Long Beach before staying at LAX, which is a miserable area.

 

The advantage of the Torrance Marriott is its proximity to the Del Amo mall, one of the largest malls in the U.S., for dining choices and last minute needed items.

[latebuyer]

Thanks the long beach marriott downtown seemed to be the one closest to 701 and its prices are quite reasonable. However i'll keep an eye out on the torrance marriott.

[latebuyer]

In looking at the long beach downtown hotel it seems like its not very convenient to shops and restaurants so the other one may be better in that respect but its more expensive.

[Bruin Steve]

13 minutes ago, latebuyer said:

In looking at the long beach downtown hotel it seems like its not very convenient to shops and restaurants so the other one may be better in that respect but its more expensive.

I am not sure which Marriott you are looking at in Long Beach.  The "Long Beach Marriott" is not in Downtown, but up by LGB Airport and in an area with nothing close by.  There is a COURTYARD by Marriott in the general Downtown/Convention Center area, but there are better choices there.  There is a Residence Inn by Marriott Downtown--which is actually across the bridge from Downtown, near the Queen Mary and the Carnival pier, but not near shopping or restaurants.  Easily the best Marriott brand choice in Long  Beach, IMHO, is the Renaissance--which is at the intersection of Ocean and Pine--very close to lots of restaurants, shopping and attractions.

Edited November 14, 2023 by Bruin Steve

[latebuyer]

Thanks. I was looking at the residence inn long beach downtown which seems more a reasonable number of points. I'd have to consider when my flight gets in and if i want to make that day more of an outing or if i'm just eating dinner and sleeping there it doesn't matter whats around it.

[Bruin Steve]

8 minutes ago, latebuyer said:

Thanks. I was looking at the residence inn long beach downtown which seems more a reasonable number of points. I'd have to consider when my flight gets in and if i want to make that day more of an outing or if i'm just eating dinner and sleeping there it doesn't matter whats around it.

If you stay at the Residence Inn Downtown Long Beach on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday, there is a FREE city bus called the "Passport" that will pick you up there and take you to several stops across the bridge in the Downtown area where you can find LOTS of restaurants of all types:

 

https://ridelbt.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Passport.pdf

 

 

[latebuyer]

Thanks for letting me know. This is great! Any restaurant recommendations, please pass along.

[KeepCalmBearOn]

39 minutes ago, latebuyer said:

Thanks for letting me know. This is great! Any restaurant recommendations, please pass along.

 

Restaurants where? Let us know where you book and we can come up with options.

[English Tim]

My wife and I are flying from UK to LAX in May, fortunately on a Friday, staying at Residence Inn, Long Beach Downtown, on points! Therefore, we’ll be able to use the free shuttle around Long Beach. 
 

We’ll take Uber from airport to the hotel and from hotel to cruise terminal.

 

Thanks for the local tips.