Reviews of Starwood properties - Los Angeles area

[KeithMEL]

W Los Angeles-Westwood, post #2, #10
Sheraton Downtown Los Angeles, post #6

[KeithMEL]

W Los Angeles
930 Hilgard Ave, Westwood Village

Apologies in advanced for the far from comprehensive pics

It was nice to be back at a W after so long. Great decors... great lobby music... great crowds... Bliss Lemon and Sage amenities... I'd missed all of that! And so I was eagerly anticipating my stay at this one.

This W is located near UCLA, and in fact used to be the dorms of UCLA. That would explain why it's an all-suite property as the individual rooms would've been too small to be made into separate hotel rooms. Westwood Village is a predominantly residential area, with some nice coffee shops nearby for this avid inner city latte sipper. There was an ample supply of taxis in front of the hotel, and it was approximately a 15 minute, $13 taxi ride to get to the shopping, eating and clubbing areas in WeHo and Beverly Hills.

The reservation was made under Mum's name. As SPG Gold, this meant she got what she booked - a Spectacular Suite. The suite had a spacious living room which was most conducive for parties (when I'm staying alone that is), as well as an excellent stereo system. The bathroom was a bit cramped but had a pretty cute look to it. No plumbing issues as reported elsewhere, and in fact the showers were great.

I wasn't too enamoured with the decor of the suite. I much prefer the stark and dark schemes with black and/or dark coloured furniture. The hotel had undergone a makeover and had gone for a very light, creamy look ala W San Diego (except replace blue with creamy brown). It was extremely difficult to achieve the clubby feel which is standard of Ws, and we spent about 30 minutes trying to get the lights right to offset the lightening effect of the new colour scheme. It actually felt like they'd gone backwards in terms of design. The Wonderful Beds were comfy as usual, which was the saving grace about the room.











On the other hand I thought the W CD had some great tracks this time. The number of tracks were quite limited OTOH - I arrived at the hotel 3 hours after mum and dad and was told that they'd already listened to the same tracks 3-4 times in the duration that they'd had it on.

The Living Room didn't have much of a crowd, however this is most probably due to me being there on weekdays. Still, after reading reviews about the loud and hopping Living Room bar (Whiskey Blue), I couldn't help but feel disappointed with the quiet Living Room. The decor was extremely progressive unlike the suite, but I thought there shouldn't be a barrier separating Whiskey Blue from the rest of the Living Room as it ended up creating 2 distinct spaces and the rest of the Living Room felt rather disconnected from the bar and thus a lot less atmospheric, unlike a lot of other Ws.









The best bit about this W was its restaurant, Nine Thirty. We had meals there twice and for the quality we got the prices were fantastic value. The service was also very friendly, efficient and down-to-earth.

The service was truly top notch. With some assistance from taipeiflyer, HUGE AL and the awesome concierge, we mapped out a super itinerary of shopping and eating in LA - of course we didn't get around to them all due to certain events which I'd describe in my next installment. On the last day of my stay I'd rocked up to the W Cafe just as they were preparing to close for some milk to go along with my medication; not only did they have time to serve me but they prepared some milk and a plate of cookies free of charge!

One major negative we noted was the headboard mirrors not adequately cleaned. The service recovery was pretty decent. A complaint yielded some bonus Starpoints for Mum, a bottle of wine, an apologetic note, and the promise of a huge suite upgrade on her next visit.

It's LA and there's bound to be some celebrity-spotting. Dad managed to spot Eddie Murphy emerging from the hotel one night; he was also in the same lift as another actor whose name he can't remember.

Overall, the hotel in LA for this W fanboy - until the W on Sunset opens that is.

edited to add - There was also free wifi in the Living Room which I thought was a great touch!

[HUGE AL]

...some nice coffee shops nearby for this avid inner city latte sipper.

Which KeithMEL and I can confirm they open at 5:30am.

[jhm]

This W was one of the four (along with the Sheraton Moorea Lagoon, French Polynesia; the Westin Turnberry, Scotland; and the Hacienda San Jose, Mexico) featured in the 50PRG mailshot which I received in the post today:

Everyone has a draem.
Imagine W Hotels starring in yours.

[ picture ]

W Los Angeles - Westwood, California

It's a star-studded location: the place to see and be seen. The W Los Angeles - Westwood welcomes you to one of its most glamorous locations, on a quiet, magnola-lined residential street at the foothills of Beverly Hills. Its spacious, Thom Filicia-designed rooms offer stylish surprises and panoramic views of vibrant Los Angeles and the Santa Monica Mountains. The divine W Los Angeles - Westwood. A dream fulfilled.

[KeithMEL]

Which KeithMEL and I can confirm they open at 5:30am.

I think we only saw Peet's though - so I'm not sure whether all of them open at 0530. I honestly thought Peet's was closing until I realised that they were actually opening for the day...

[HUGE AL]

Sheraton Downtown Los Angeles

During my mattress run last week, I stayed at this property. Hadn't done so since '95 back when it was a Hyatt Regency. Pretty beat up property, but not terrible. No flat panel TVs. Bed was new and comfortable. All in all, I think I would select it over the Westin Bonaventure.

[zander]

During my mattress run last week, I stayed at this property. Hadn't done so since '95 back when it was a Hyatt Regency. Pretty beat up property, but not terrible. No flat panel TVs. Bed was new and comfortable. All in all, I think I would select it over the Westin Bonaventure.

I agree with Huge AL, having stayed at the same property during the same period. The property looks a little worn and the suites look pretty ordinary(which Huge AL rejected his upgrade upon checkin because of the noise ). Probably so because the suites are all located next to the elevator, but I didn't hear a thing as it probably depends if u are a light sleeper or heavy sleeper.

[nursalimLPP]

Starwood needs a luxury brand in los angeles. They got SLS BUT it is garbage piece if crap cheesyyy tacckkkyyy hotel.

W is also bad hotel and so is downtown sheraton. We need like a st regis here or something. Build it in the heart of beverly hills. Would be fantastic.

[KeithMEL]

Starwood needs a luxury brand in los angeles. They got SLS BUT it is garbage piece if crap cheesyyy tacckkkyyy hotel.

Really? It's supposedly designed by Starck, and looks v edgy and minimalist from the pics. I'd have booked there for July, were it not for the W club scene on a weekend. But I can understand why you don't like it since you are into the St Regis.

Also considering the new Andaz WeHo if I can get a good rate but have some reservations after looking at the pics (despite some VERY enthusiastic reviews about the place ), looks like a more watered down PH than an actual fashion-forward design hotel. Location is MUCH better than Westwood however, all major hangover-inducing spots in the immediate vicinity.

[KeithMEL]

What

W Los Angeles-Westwood

Where

Situated in Westwood Village, this W is in a rather quiet residential area. It is quite a hike to get to the heart of the action in WeHo or Beverly Hills, or 45 mins to Santa Monica and Venice in the East. However the W now offers a free one way limo transfer on an Acura - a nifty joint marketing effort between the W and Acura. Unfortunately I didn't find out about this until the last day or 2 of my stay - have to pay more attention at check in next time.

WoW

The staff of this W are truly gems, and is probably the reason that makes this property worth coming back to.

Priscila the concierge remembered me from my last stay even though that was nearly 18 months ago, though I didn't get to put her skills and resources to the test this time as I was well looked after by friends in LA.

On the 2nd morning of my stay, Jenna from the Welcome Desk sent up a nice card welcoming me to LA, and a complimentary drinks card as they'd "heard" that I liked mojitos. Redeemed it for a ginger mojito at Whiskey Blue - tasty!

The Welcome Desk, Jenna in particular was also pretty good with recomendations and reservations if the concierge wasn't around, as the concierge seems to sign off at 6pm on Sundays. SPG upgrade readily honoured - I got a Fabulous Suite which had a study (which comes with a fold out bed for party guests to crash) in addition to living room and bedroom.















Fabulous Suite - the morning after

The Whatever/Whenever service was prompt and efficient. Phone calls answered promptly, and requests fulfilled without much fuss - ranging from helping to break my lock apart (as it'd gone wonky and refused to open after my last flight) to simple things like champagne glasses. Though they were probably a bit overzealous when they sent security to my room to check if I was still alive and well when I forgot to cancel my wake up call (and was in the shower while they rang up). Still, the concern was appreciated lol.

Hotel had a lively crowd - LA has a v unfortunate 2am closing time, but simply stick around the Living Room and you'd soon be invited to a party or 3 up in one of the suites!

Woe

As previously stated, I don't think this W has done the best job with its refurb. The decor felt rather incomplete (plain ceilings for instance), and mellow - as if they're trying to appeal to everyone. The hallways were too bright which made them feel rather harsh and unwelcoming - it's like in a club when they turn on the lights and play Semisonic to kick you out during closing time. On the whole, I felt that the decor lacked that special 'zing', quirkiness and in-your-face quality that makes Ws W. They probably should've realised that Thom Felicia can't even dress a person properly, let alone design a hotel.

I attended a party at Whiskey and felt it totally overrated. They were totally short staffed, and so the bartenders were all stressed out - refusing to make the more complicated drinks. The acoustics were bad, DJing rather predictable and oh-so-2007. Plus a rather underdressed crowd - felt like a UCLA frat party on the whole.

Also a trivial point - but they could be a bit more creative about the music played in the hotel. It seemed like they played Wonderlust in the lifts over and over again.

so... on the Whole...

The truly amazing staff continue to fly the flag, but this W is let down by a generally uninspired decor and mundane ambience. But with the edgy SLS property and the new W Hollywood coming up - there's no shortage of new things to try in LA!

[HUGE AL]

It is quite a hike to get to the heart of the action in WeHo or Beverly Hills, or 45 mins to Santa Monica and Venice in the East.

Ummm...Santa Monica and Venice are to the WEST of the W. And Santa Monica is just a hop-skip-and-a-jump next door to Westwood. West Hollywood is MUCH further.

Redeemed it for a ginger mojito at Whiskey Blue - tasty!

I'm surprised you could taste that thing after all the drinks and Champagne we had.


As we both say, I think we stay at different hotels. The service you rave about is the thing that I think SUCKS ROYAL at this property. Although, I did like the bartender we had.

I too am curious about the W Hollywood as it was built from the ground up and not a refurbed UCLA dorm.

The SLS is charging way too much for what it is. The fact that I can't fit 3 people in my shower kind of is a deal breaker for me.

[zander]

The SLS is charging way too much for what it is. The fact that I can't fit 3 people in my shower kind of is a deal breaker for me.

I wonder what HUGE AL is up to during his hotel stays

[KeithMEL]

I'm surprised you could taste that thing after all the drinks and Champagne we had.

But we only had, what, 2-3 bottles? And that horrid cough syrup mixture I got.

And is it really further from W to WeHo/BH than Santa Monica? I remember paying only like $16 max for a cab to WeHo, and quite a bit more to Santa Monica/Marina Del Rey/Playa Del Rey etc.

[HUGE AL]

I wonder what HUGE AL is up to during his hotel stays

Sorry, zander. Only females allowed.

But we only had, what, 2-3 bottles? And that horrid cough syrup mixture I got.

And is it really further from W to WeHo/BH than Santa Monica? I remember paying only like $16 max for a cab to WeHo, and quite a bit more to Santa Monica/Marina Del Rey/Playa Del Rey etc.

Oh yeah! Did you finish that cough syrup YOU ORDERED?

Santa Monica, yes. PDR, no...but u didn't mention THAT above...

[Kyo]

I'm tossing up between W Hollywood and SLS, anyone got a current viewpoint about which one to go for? Would be for a one-night stay, and something with great nightlife or a famous bar (nearby/outside also given due consideration) would be awesome...

Also, any thoughts on the Westin LA Airport? Am thinking of maybe staying one night for convenience... unless there's something else nearby that's worth a mention from Hilton or SPG...