Westside Rentals Santa Monica Hotel

My quest for an occasional place to lay my head in Santa Monica turns up yet another odd experience. Here’s the deal — I live in San Diego and my son lives in Santa Monica, so it’s nice to drive up on a Saturday to visit and come home on Sunday without spending a bunch of money. You may have seen my prior review of the Pacific Sands Motel… but read on…
Sometimes one is just going for the most economical option — but it does lead to some interesting experiences.
Take this one — listed on Orbitz as a 2 star believe it or not! In the 500 block of Colorado Blvd — 5 blocks from the Santa Monica pier and 2 blocks from the 3^rd St Promenade sounds good, right?
Well — the amenities include wireless internet and a free parking space off street. What they fail to mention is that the bathrooms are down the hall. If you are OK with that, then maybe you will be fine, but a 2 star it is not!
There are 8 rooms on the first floor, all the rooms are small, but I do have to say, they are clean. The room we were shown to was the same as posted on Orbitz. It claimed to be no smoking, but we smelled smoke and asked for a different room. We got one that smelled clean — though painted very bright blue by a less than professional painter! There is a microwave and small fridge in every room. There are 2 bathrooms on the first floor — shower and toilet and one washstand in the hall — all clean. You only get one towel per person — no washcloth. There are no hangers in the closet, or nightstands or bedside lights. There is a ceiling light and fan however. The windows open and some of them have screens.
To tell you the truth, I spent so little time in the room, I didn’t even test the internet — it is not a place to hang out –merely to go to bed, though there is a small desk in the room.
The offstreet parking is legit.
In spite of the weirdness and riff-​raffishness of the place, it was clean, and there weren’t a bunch of weird people staying here. The other guests were quiet and the only other cars in the lot were 2 late model Hondas, a BMW and a PT Cruiser, so they appear to be trying to be a semi-​respectable establishment, or at least sucking in people like me for at least one visit!
My advice — Know what you are getting into — if a minimalist and clean place to sleep is it for you — then this is economical and near the beach. If you want regular hotel amenities — look elsewhere!