Suggest hotel in Los Angeles

I'm going to be in Los Angeles in late May and I'd like to find someplace to stay that's pretending to be Tiki and tropical. The Hanalei Hotel in San Diego is my benchmark after attending Tiki Oasis. Big pool, lush grounds, etc. Any suggestions?

Beverly Hilton has Trader Vics.

"W" Westwood has an incredible bar, hot pool action and a stunning garden.

Other selections:

Biltmore Downtown.
Standard Downtown.
Huntington Pasadena.

And of course, Casa Del Mar in Santa Monica.

On 2008-03-31 23:28, christiki295 wrote:
Beverly Hilton has Trader Vics.

"W" Westwood has an incredible bar, hot pool action and a stunning garden.

Other selections:

Biltmore Downtown.
Standard Downtown.
Huntington Pasadena.

And of course, Casa Del Mar in Santa Monica.

Anything in the more buget friendly category for a poor Tikihead?

motel 6 of hollywood is where i throw down....cheap, clean and right in the heart of hollywood....steps from the chinese theatre, dive bar boardners, micellis italian, and a short cab ride to the wacko soap plant, the good luck club, tiki ti's, the frolic room (old bukowski hangout) and jumbo's clown room, my favorite low rent strip club/divebar....

the downtowner motel is good too from what i hear...it has a killer atomic vintage retro sign out front....it's a total throwback to the 50's....rooms are reasonable too and you are that much closer to tiki ti.....

i just googled it -the hollywood down towner inn is $45 a night as opposed to the motel 6 which is $70.....double check but if you google the downtowner, a link appears for the motel 6 as well so you can research both at one time.....motel 6 may have cleaned up their act alittle and raised the rates since i was there last...good luck!!

"operation chaos is in effect!! RUSH the vote 2008!!"

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2008-04-01 09:55 ]

Kona Motel , Anaheim, Brookhurst st. south of the 5 Freeway.
prob. 60 bucks a night.

The Hotel Figueroa is my favorite place in L.A. because it's so old Hollywood and has a great secret outdoor bar (Rick's Place) that isn't too crowded. The place is moody and mysterious. It used to be cheap, but now it's gone more pricey. Check out their website.

Hotel Figueroa
939 S Figueroa St
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 627-8971

Why not book a room at some place and have a look around yourself, there are TONS of cool cheapo mid-century hotels that are never booked....

Where!? Are there any left in LA? Well actually...the SAGA on Colorado Blvd in Pasadena. But the Figueroa is nice, it is fake vintage, but really well done. The Standard is too expensive I guess... and modernist, not Tiki....How about the SAFARI INN on Olive in Burbank? That should be affordable.

On 2008-04-01 10:37, Cammo wrote:
The Hotel Figueroa is my favorite place in L.A. because it's so old Hollywood and has a great secret outdoor bar (Rick's Place) that isn't too crowded. The place is moody and mysterious. It used to be cheap, but now it's gone more pricey. Check out their website.

Hotel Figueroa is approx $130 per night.
Their website is spectacular:

http://www.figueroahotel.com

The pool are is totally the tropical vibe which you seek.
I frequently go there for cocktails during the summer.

Not tiki, but the Standard is very shagadelic. Whenever I'm not staying with my inlaws, I stay there.

On 2008-04-01 21:00, christiki295 wrote:

On 2008-04-01 10:37, Cammo wrote:
The Hotel Figueroa is my favorite place in L.A. because it's so old Hollywood and has a great secret outdoor bar (Rick's Place) that isn't too crowded. The place is moody and mysterious. It used to be cheap, but now it's gone more pricey. Check out their website.

Hotel Figueroa is approx $130 per night.
Their website is spectacular:

http://www.figueroahotel.com

The pool are is totally the tropical vibe which you seek.
I frequently go there for cocktails during the summer.

..what part of $130 a night is budget friendly? - like the original poster of this thread was looking for????

Every-time family visits I find myself in a similar quandary. Santa Monica is nice but expensive. The best place that feels like a 50's motel with the kidney shaped pool is the Calmar Hotel:

http://www.calmarhotel.com

It's cool and the location is killer. Tucked in the middle of a nice and save neighborhood, two blocks from the third street promenade, 3 blocks from the Pacific, and 10 minutes walking to the pier. I put my parents there because it's save, quiet, reasonable, and you can walk to many things. It's not fancy but very comfortable and as reasonable as it gets for that part of town. Call the hotel personally for the best rate - NOT online!

Another cool motel is a new-retro motel called Farmers Daughter:

http://www.farmersdaughterhotel.com

It's in the heart of the Wilshire Miracle Mile / Hollywood area across the street from the famous Farmers Market and a new outdoor shopping mall called The Grove (think Disney does a mall). Meaning you can actually walk from the hotel to cool places including a funky little strip of stores on Fairfax which has the weird 24 hour diner Canters and a weekly flea market on Sundays at Fairfax and Melrose (yes I've found cool Tiki stuff there) . You're also 10 minutes driving to the LA County Museum as well as around the corner from the Melrose area of shops and pretty close to the Hollywood Blvd. area. Again, it's as reasonable as it gets for that part of town without being in a shit hole in the middle of nowhere.

For my budget conscious friends I have offered up The Hollywood Downtowner - also mentioned earlier:

http://www.hollywooddowntowner.com

It's fine but not really luxurious - a friend of mine stayed there and found a used fake mustache in a dresser if that's any indication. Centrally located but there's nothing around since you're in the middle of an area called Thai town which is more or less between the Hollywood area and the Silverlake area. You really have to drive to places. Driving though, you're 10 minutes from the Tiki Ti, 10 minutes from Wacko. 10 minutes from Hollywood and Highland, 10 minutes from Griffith Park, and a few blocks from the 101 freeway which makes it very convenient.

You can also look at the Best Western Hollywood Hills Hotel on Franklin:

http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/productInfo.do?propertyCode=05204

A decent place that's located near the Downtowner but just a hair nicer. On ground level there's the 101 cafe which is a really cool retro diner that was featured in the movie Swingers (go here for breakfast even if you're staying at the Downtowner). You're just a bit closer to the Hollywood area and also blocks from a cool strip of stores on Franklin.

Hope this helps!

When Im in Burbank, I always am digging the Safari Inn.

A lot of people think its a dump... but its a classic Hollywood movie location.
You can stay in this room (it's the corner room) on the second balcony.
from True Romance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bXNNBSVX-o&feature=related
also featured in Apollo 13

Safari Inn
1911 W Olive Ave,
Burbank, Los Angeles, California,

Savation Army Downtown...pretty cheap ...but no 'hot pool action'

On 2008-05-02 08:39, TikiLaLe wrote:
Savation Army Downtown...pretty cheap ...but no 'hot pool action'

..once again, another helpful suggestion....thanks.

On 2008-04-29 11:28, jpmartdog wrote:
When Im in Burbank, I always am digging the Safari Inn.

A lot of people think its a dump... but its a classic Hollywood movie location.
You can stay in this room (it's the corner room) on the second balcony.
from True Romance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bXNNBSVX-o&feature=related
also featured in Apollo 13

Safari Inn
1911 W Olive Ave,
Burbank, Los Angeles, California,

for a nice picture of what the sign looked like before it was repainted check out the inner sleeve of the wallflowers second album from (1999 ?)....there's a picture of them in the parking lot...the sign looked more vintage in color scheme from what i recall.....

..what part of $130 a night is budget friendly? - like the original poster of this thread was looking for????

Tipsy:

Unfortunately, for LA proper, $130/nt IS Budget.

There are TRUE cheap motels here, but few of them have any character beyond the crack dealer in the parking lot.

p.s. I think I saw a card of yours in the Hala Kahiki for your designs.

On 2008-06-10 13:33, spycygrl wrote:

..what part of $130 a night is budget friendly? - like the original poster of this thread was looking for????

Tipsy:

Unfortunately, for LA proper, $130/nt IS Budget.

There are TRUE cheap motels here, but few of them have any character beyond the crack dealer in the parking lot.

p.s. I think I saw a card of yours in the Hala Kahiki for your designs.

Otherwise, there is the NuTel Motel, located on 1906 W Third St, Los Angeles, CA.
Cost: Approx $250 week.

We were just in San Diego and checked out Humprhey's Inn. We did not stay there (already booked at the Solamar by the company and not a budget or tiki hotel) but I was blown away. It had a huge arched roof, with a giant light, tropical landscaping and lit tiki torches all around. There were lava rock walls and I think there were tikis (I was so overwhelmed at this point, I am not sure if I am remembering correctly). Super pool. Walking distance to the Bali Hai and Trader Mort's Liquor! Shelter Island was super tiki!!

On 2008-06-14 08:24, sparklegem wrote:
We were just in San Diego and checked out Humprhey's Inn. We did not stay there (already booked at the Solamar by the company and not a budget or tiki hotel) but I was blown away. It had a huge arched roof, with a giant light, tropical landscaping and lit tiki torches all around. There were lava rock walls and I think there were tikis (I was so overwhelmed at this point, I am not sure if I am remembering correctly). Super pool. Walking distance to the Bali Hai and Trader Mort's Liquor! Shelter Island was super tiki!!

We just got back from Oasis 8 and stayed at Humphrey's. You DID remember it correctly - tiki's along the walk ways. The place is great. We've stayed there twice this year and do plan on returning. LOVED the place, and the concierge is super friendly. I do suggest making reservations at their restaurant next door. It's incredible!

the hollywood motel 6 is clean and cheaper than $130 a night......or at least it used to be....you also have to sacrafice character if you want the better deals, otherwise, yeah, they can be pricey...