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Travel Guide: Los Angeles
Picking the Best Hotel Location
Including pros & cons of each neighborhood, with an emphasis on safety and convenience
This page helps you pick the best hotel location in the Los Angeles area. You'll find pros and cons of each LA neighborhood.
You'll also find very frank discussions of safety—the areas to avoid.
Location, location, location is the mantra of the southern
California real estate business, and location should also
be your top priority. More so than in most cities, choosing the right area to stay can
make the difference between a safe,
convenient, and enjoyable LA visit and one that is not.
Maps
For Los Angeles hotel area maps, click on
Then click on the "Name your own price" option for links to detailed maps.
Your hotel choices include—
- Downtown Los Angeles (mostly avoid, especially cheap hotels)
- Hollywood (generally avoid)
- West Hollywood, Beverly Hills & Century City
- Santa Monica & Marina del Rey
- Westwood Village, Bel Air & Brentwood
- LAX - Los Angeles International Airport (avoid cheap hotels here)
- Redondo & Manhattan Beaches
- Burbank, Universal City & Glendale
- Pasadena
- Long Beach Airport
- Long Beach
- Disneyland (Anaheim) & Orange County (another page)
1. Downtown Los Angeles
Unless you have specific business or a convention to attend in downtown Los Angeles, or are taking an early Amtrak train, you'll probably be better off staying elsewhere.
Unlike many cities, nearly all the popular places to visit are not in or adjacent to downtown. You'll find the beaches, amusement parks, stars on Hollywood Boulevard, the Sunset Strip, the Hollywood Bowl, Beverly Hills all elsewhere.
Think of downtown as a center of government and of the energy and banking businesses.
This is not to say that you'll go without anything to do in downtown Los Angeles. The vibrant Music Center, Staples Center, USC football, and Dodger Stadium are all in or near downtown, as well as a major convention center.
And, the atmosphere of the center city has improved in recent years.
For example, there has been a significant trend for more workers to live downtown, which brings more activity and more safety to streets at night. You'll find more restaurants staying open in the evening and more entertainment options.
On the other hand, a legion of homeless resides directly adjacent to the downtown core to the east within the largest skid row in the country. This is a depressing scene, which spills over into the business core.
Moreover, you'll reach another robust skid row by crossing the Harbor Freeway immediately to the west.
Picking a hotel downtown
Three and especially 4-star hotels are in the best areas. Far more so than in many cities.
The locations of most lower-cost hotels and motels, which ring downtown Los Angeles (especially to the west) in areas that are more residential, do not bring comfort.
Avoid booking lower quality hotels downtown, unless you have verified the suitability of their locations and, if you have a car, the safety of their parking.
Most travelers should book their rooms in other areas.
Adults and families with teenagers may have a far more
enjoyable stay choosing a hotel on the western side of Los Angeles in
one of the areas described below, such as Santa Monica.
Families with younger children may prefer to stay closer to Disneyland and Knotts Berry Farm.
Amtrak and Greyhound passengers also have alternatives to downtown LA.
2. Hollywood
Avoid staying in Hollywood, not to be confused with adjacent West Hollywood.
Other than immediately around the Hollywood & Highland entertainment complex (the new home of the Academy Awards), the Fairfax area, and several purely residential neighborhoods, much of Hollywood has sadly become rundown and crime ridden. For the most part, you are just not safe.
Many budget travelers choose to stay in Hollywood because of its famous name and array of low-cost accommodation. This is a mistake.
Remarkable deterioration mars much of Hollywood. Not as bad as the area around the Greyhound terminal downtown, Hollywood nevertheless offers a startling abundance of violent and nonviolent crime, hard drug abuse, homelessness, and prostitution.
If your purse permits, stay in adjacent West Hollywood or in the area immediately around the Hollywood & Highland complex or Fairfax district. Both Beverly Hills and West Hollywood are convenient to the tourist attractions of Hollywood.
3. West Hollywood, Beverly Hills & Century City
Beverly Hills, Century City, and West Hollywood offer a convenient and reasonably safe base for visitors to the Los Angeles area.Do not let the name Beverly Hills mislead you. You CAN find moderate-cost hotels and even some bargain ones in this area. If you bid on accommodation, you may even get a great deal on one of the best hotels there.
This district offers proximity to the Getty Museum, the Los Angeles Museum of Art, and the entertainment of West Hollywood and its Sunset Strip. Moreover, you easily access fine shopping, top restaurants, and some of the finest hotels in the United States.
Century City is a large shopping, entertainment, and hotel complex adjacent to Beverly Hills. Here you find the ABC television network and the Fox film and television studios.
4. Santa Monica - Venice - Marina Del Rey
We highly recommend Santa Monica in the western part of Los Angeles, not far from Los Angeles International Airport.
The closest thing Los Angeles County has to a traditional resort town is Santa Monica, and it is a nice one. Nearby Malibu also offers a resort atmosphere, but has nearly no hotels.
The first large groups of American citizens to winter in Southern California did not stay near the ocean. Mostly from the flat Midwest or Texas, they wanted to be near the mountains in Pasadena. Consequently, this region never developed the great resort cities along its shores that you'll find in Florida.
In contrast to Florida, Angelenos preserved their coastline. Except in Malibu, nearly all beaches are easily assessable to the public and not blocked by private development.
In Santa Monica, you do not have to stay in a more expensive hotel to access the beach easily. Everyone has equal access. In fact, just two hotels in Santa Monica—Loews and Shutters—actually adjoin the beach.
Santa Monica offers great restaurants (in all price ranges) and shopping, a variety of reasonably priced and first-class accommodations, and the most convenient public transportation in southern California. Overall, you are in a safe and uplifting area.
You are a hop away from Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Malibu, the Getty Museum, the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation area, and all of western Los Angeles. Outside of rush hour, reaching downtown Los Angeles takes about 25 minutes by car and Universal Studios perhaps 30. LAX is a few minutes away by Big Blue Bus or airport van.
Venice, near Santa Monica, can be dangerous at night. It offers little accommodation other than hostels.
Between Venice and LAX, just a few minutes from Santa Monica or LAX, Marina del Rey has a large yacht harbor (which you've seen in countless films) surrounded by upscale hotels, apartments, condominiums, and restaurants.
If you want to marry an airline pilot or other well-to-do professional or corporate leader, base your stay in Marina del Rey, which is a very "in spot" for singles and divorcees.
5. Bel Air, Brentwood & Westwood Village
Just south of Beverly Hills, UCLA and other students crowd into Westwood Village for dining and entertainment. This is a lively and fun area.
Located between Westwood Village and Santa Monica, largely residential and quieter Brentwood offers few hotels and motels and one less famous resident since OJ Simpson moved to Florida.
Adjacent Bel Air, the former home of President Ronald Reagan and current home of Nancy Reagan, has just two hotels, including the beautiful Bel Air Hotel. This may be the wealthiest neighborhood in the U.S. Bel Air's lush gardens certainly make it one of the prettiest. Its homes and gardens are frequently used in film and television.
If you can find suitable accommodation, Bel Air, Brentwood and Westwood Village offer a convenient and uplifting base for your southern California visit. You are just a few minutes from the beach.
6. Los Angeles International Airport - LAX
The LAX area offers the best hotel values in Southern California. You'll likely get the most quality for the least price by far.
On the other hand, the LAX area presents significant safety concerns. Especially if staying more than one night, avoid hotels there, especially budget or moderate-cost ones or hostels. Nearly all of these less expensive ones are located in unsafe and even gang-ridden neighborhoods.
Deluxe hotels cluster just outside the Century Boulevard entrance to the airport in an area that is safer. Even there, walk only among other travelers along the busiest streets day or night.
Conditions deteriorate markedly as you move eastward along Century Boulevard toward and beyond the Interstate 405 Freeway (the San Diego Freeway). A few less expensive airport hotels are found south of the airport in El Segundo, and these make better choices.
Airport vans offer frequent service to Santa Monica, Marina del Rey, and other safer areas. Seriously consider using one of these or a rental car (staying on busy streets) to reach a more comfortable area to stay. You'll also likely end up closer to what you want to visit.
Priceline.com Hotels (For maps: Fill in the LA button and then click "next")
7. Redondo & Manhattan Beaches
Somewhat isolated from the main tourist areas, non-pretentious Redondo Beach, Manhattan Beach, and Hermosa Beach serve up a sun-oriented California lifestyle. Fronting miles of fine public beaches, this area attracts flight crews based at nearby LAX.We like this area, but you should have a car if you stay here.
8. Burbank, Universal City (Universal Studios) & Glendale
Jay Leno works here. Bob Hope and Audrey Hepburn did. So did Walt Disney and Marilyn Monroe, whose World War II job was at a munitions factory in Burbank. Ditto Elizabeth Taylor and Cary Grant.
This surprisingly non-chic area is home to Walt Disney, Sony Pictures (Columbia Pictures), Universal Studios, and Warner Brothers, as well as NBC Television City. Most offer tours.
Based in Burbank, Universal City or Glendale, you are just a few minutes away from the heart of Hollywood (but much safer), downtown, and the original Forest Lawn (a combination cemetery and theme park in Glendale that could only be found in southern California).
You can choose from a wide range of accommodations, but happily Alfred Hitchcock's Bates Motel at Universal Studios go longer takes in guests.
Other than at Universal City Walk, there's not much nightlife in this area.
Burbank Airport makes for a less hectic arrival point than LAX, especially if you wish to rent a car.
9. Pasadena
Located at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains, Southern California's first resort town is best known for its New Year's Day activities. In this city of roses, you'll find some of the finest residential architecture in the United States, including many turn-of-the-century craftsman-style homes such as the Gamble House (as in—you guessed it—Proctor & Gamble).Convenient to downtown and Burbank, the Norton Simon Museum, Cal Tech, and the Huntington Library and Gardens, Pasadena makes a less conventional, but good base for a visit to Los Angeles.
You should have a car in this area. You won't be convenient to beaches.
10. Long Beach Airport
¡Bienvenitos JetBlue passengers!If you are departing very early or arriving late, reserve a hotel here for just one night. Otherwise, staying in this area will isolate you from most LA area tourist attractions.
By California standards, you are not terribly far from Disneyland, but why not stay closer to what you want to see and do?
11. Long Beach
If you plan to board a cruise ship at Los Angeles or Long Beach harbor, stay in Long Beach one or two nights.Basing a longer stay in Long Beach means spending too much time commuting to southern California attractions. Long Beach does offer a fun day cruise to Santa Catalina Island—"twenty-six miles across the sea . . .."
The sheltered shore of Long Beach offers neither great ocean swimming nor a resort atmosphere. Stay in nearby Huntington Beach in Orange County if you want these.
12. Disneyland (Anaheim) & Orange County
For help selecting an ideal area to stay, check out "How to get a Disneyland area hotel discount: Picking the best location."Other districts
Most other areas in or near Los Angeles are of interest mostly to those who have business or family near them.However, Studio City offers many of the same advantages as Burbank and Universal City. Also, Van Nuys makes a convenient overnight stop for those driving through Los Angeles, as it has many chain motels easily reached from Interstate 405.
A word about Priceline.com
You CAN stay in the best neighborhoods in quality hotels. There is an easy way to reduce the cost of good accommodation and that is Priceline.com.
Currently, your savings average more than 40 percent off what you would pay using Expedia or Hotels.com.
At Priceline, you bid on a star-quality range in a neighborhood. This feature works well since most people want particular amenities, price, and neighborhood, rather than a specific hotel.
Click here if you would like to learn more about placing a bid.
Or, go directly to
You'll see specials on specific hotels, as well as have a chance to bid for even more savings.
Have a great time in Los Angeles and Southern California!
