Holiday Inn Express West Los Angeles

They have the worst customer service. They don’t answer the phone when you call from your room to the front desk. Avoid this place!

I had stayed with my family and they were very friendly and accommodating. Though my only problem was that there was miscommunication about our room. But they fixed it right away. They were also able to give us a new room when our hot water wasn’t working in the shower.
Their breakfast is great! I love that you are able to take your breakfast to your room. They have varying breakfast items such as bacon, turkey sausage, omelette (though I wish they would have some plain scrambled eggs as well). They also have cereal, different types of bread, cinnamon buns, yogurt and oatmeal.
The parking has two levels. Though the spaces are very small. I also didn’t like how when we got out of the garage, we have to wait since every driver didn’t want to let us through. But it’s convenient since it’s close to the freeway.

They lie about their rates when you call the give you a price then when they transfer you to reservations they quote you much higher.

Stayed for two nights at the Holiday Inn West Los Angeles. I stayed in a one king sized bed single room. Finding the location was easy since it is right next to the 405.
Check-​in was very easy and the staff was helpful. They gave me all the information I needed; like how much parking would cost ($ 10), what the wifi password was, and what times the free breakfast is served. They even gave me a free water bottle for being a rewards member.
Upon entering my room, everything was nice and clean. It had all your standard stuff like iorning boards and iorn. Coffee machine, tea, soap bars, shampoo, conditioner, a TV with HBO and Showtime, mini fridge and office desk/​chair. I used none toiletries since I had my own.
WiFi was fast enough and easy to log in to. They use ehost. Although as a tech guy I wish the WiFi was WPA2 encrypted for security reasons (small gripe). Plenty of spare outlets through out the room to charge a phone or laptop.
The bed was not too firm or soft and the blankets were warm. The pillows were very confortable. I turned on the AC at night to get the room at a perfect temperature.
The TV was clear and easy to use. I loved how I won’t miss the Game of Thrones on HBO because they had HBO. Your cheaper hotels usually don’t have prenium channels. Loved it!
I was in room 420 on the top floor in the south west corner of the building. The view was unapealing but I could care less. The outside noise was minimal. You can barely hear people next door to you if at all. Overall I slept well for a light sleeper and never woke up to any sounds.
The shower had nice water pressure to it. The bathroom had plenty of clean towels. I wish the toilet paper holder was not so far back from the toilet. It was hard to reach.
The mini fridge kept my leftovers and drinks cool. You had access to a gym and laundry which I never used on level P1.
Parking was easy enough. I would recommend exiting out of the parking lot on to Beloit Ave. instead of Santa Monica Blvd.
The free breakfast was very good. They had a 1 minute pancake making machine which was interesting. Other choices were 4 choices of cereal, 4 flavors of quaker oats, begels, wheat bread, assortment of mini muffins, English muffin, jams, scrambled eggs, omelets, bacon, breakfast sausage, sausage patties, cinnamon buns, greek yogurt and plenty of drinks. I am forgetting some stuff but plenty of choice. I noticed every day the changed the selection of food to keep it different. Best free breakfast ever!
I chose this location because it was 10 minutes away from the Getty Center and 20 minutes from Hollywood. Overall a great experience for the money and I would come back again.
P. S. I agree with other Unilocalers. The elevator takes forever to get to you if you call it from the top floor which I stayed. I timed it once and it took 8 minutes. Unacceptable.
P. S.S. I learned the hard way that all of los Angeles has no parking unless you fork over $$. lol

I stayed at this Holiday Inn Express for business at nearby UCLA. I did not have a choice because the hotel was picked for me, so my preparations for staying here was looking up the reviews on Unilocal and TripAdvisor.
First off, I would definitely categorize this as a motel. Calling it a hotel is a little bit of a stretch because even for a Holiday Inn Express, this was really small.
Service was very good. The front desk was friendly and helpful. The lady making the continental breakfast (to be discussed in a bit) was nice and sweet. They have a security guard at night who does his job right. I did not encounter an employee I didn’t find wondering why they work here.
Rooms were fairly smaller than your average Holiday Inn Express, but it was enough. It had the proper hotel/​motel-​room smell. The bathrooms actually looked really nice. New tiles and plenty of hot water.
The fitness center is available 24 hours. According to their website and the sign before the entrance, it says otherwise. Don’t follow that. I had to do my workout on a morning at 4 AM, and they said I could use the gym anytime of the day. The gym is located on the first floor of the underground parking. It’s got three cardio machines, one set of free weights, a bench, and four or five gym mats. It’s very basic, and at least they don’t use «state-​of-​the-​ark» when describing their fitness centers. Some places make that mistake. That aside, the equipment was operational and was enough for me. If you need to do laundry, you enter through the fitness center.
The continental breakfast was the highlight of my stay here. The eggs and gravy were excellent! I added raisins to it and that made for a very satisfying meal. They put well-​ripped bananas. For those that enjoy pancakes, you’re going to love their self-​serve pancake machine. The breakfast also has cereal, bacon, sausages, juice, milk, coffee, tea, and the rest of the basics.
My hotel room had a great view of the 405/​Santa Monica Blvd interchange. I’m being sarcastic when I say «great,» because that meant there was traffic day-​in and night-​out. If the price was cheaper than it was, that wouldn’t be much of a problem. And even though I did not pay for this particular stay myself, I would be upset knowing how much I paid for the room and had to deal with the fact that every single hotel room faced some sort of traffic. Earplugs were a must to get some sleep.
I did not have a car for this trip, but I agree that they shouldn’t charge $ 10 a night to use. I understand they have expenses to, but with the price one is paying to stay at the hotel, $ 10 seems slightly ridiculous.
I decided to give this Holiday Inn Express 3 stars even though I believe it’s 3.5 (and we still can’t do the half stars on Unilocal). It met my expectations for my stay but there was nothing that stood out as something that would make me want to choose the hotel in the event that I come back to stay in the area. If the price was even $ 20−30/night cheaper, then I would have considered rounding up instead of down. While I thoroughly enjoyed the continental breakfast, everything else met that «A-​Ok» line that goes alongside the 3 star rating.
This isn’t a place that families should stay for vacation. I have the feeling it is designed for people like me who not here for pleasure but for business and/​or short-​term stay.

Ashlie Lowe is awesome! Great customer service. She helped us with our wedding block for 11÷15÷14. She even followed through with updates every week until after the wedding. She’s so easy to work with. I personally haven’t stayed there, but all of my guests did and feedback were excellent with parking, location, continental breakfast and the cleanliness of the rooms.

THE GOOD: This location is perfect for getting just about anywhere in the city or down to the beach at Santa Monica. The Customer Service is actually outstanding as well (even though day manager Christopher does have kind of an attitude). In general the building is clean and surprisingly quiet for how close it is to the freeways and all the traffic wanting to use them. The breakfast has a lot of variety and tastes good, and the coffee is actually quite tasty too. In the lobby there is a huge vat dispensing orange peel water that is very refreshing, and they usually have fresh cookies out for guests as well. Two channels of both HBO and Showtime mean you don’t miss any episodes of your favorite series. The wifi is decent and one password is good for all your devices. The staff are all courteous and accommodating and very friendly.
THE BAD: The main thing that prevents me from rating HIEWLA higher is that, in the almost week that I was there, they couldn’t manage to get someone out to fix the elevator. Needless to say, it is a major inconvenience (especially if you’re hauling large pieces of luggage) to have to trek up and down several flights of stairs for every little thing. Obviously things happen, but the managers didn’t seem particularly concerned with getting the elevator working again. Every day I heard «They’re supposed to come fix it today» but I never saw anyone actually working on it. The building and facilities are quite a bit more run down than they are in the photos on the web site, and there is the lingering smell of cigarette smoke and whatever they use to clean. I could never find the «guide» on the television that tells you what time and what shows are on; so I would have to say that, unless you’re coming in at the very beginning or watch a lot of tv and know all the shows, you would never have any idea what you were looking at. Finally, I also think the rate was kind of high considering that parking was not included — though due to the elevator situation, they were kind enough to comp my parking for the week.

Great customer service, clean hotel, great breakfast.
Other than that, whats up with the handicap shower? I dont think its suitable to put non-​handicap customers in rooms with showers like that. Our floor was soaked with water. Please fix your elevator soon. I could have taken the stairs and still beat the elevator. Confusing entrance. $ 10 bucks for parking even after paying $ 200 for one night? Yikes!
Im still giving you 4 stars just because the customer service was great!

I’ll never forget those dreadful words, «You’re apartment is flooded. »
Needless to say, we needed to find a place to stay during the restoration process. Our landlord suggested this location to stay close to our home.
I had a few concerns based on reviews, but I’m really glad we stayed here.
Location — easy 405 fwy access or Santa Monica Blvd takes you to the beach or Hollywood. 7 – 11, donut shop, Subway, and sushi right across the street.
Parking garage — for $ 10/​nt, you get covered parking and you avoid dealing with street metered parking
Rooms — clean, decent size (two queen beds), refrigerator came in handy, and I loved how they provided soft and firm pillows. As far as noise, I didn’t experience anything that shouldn’t have been expected. It’s a hotel on the corner of a busy LA boulevard, and the 405 freeway — I repeat, a freeway. May not be the place for you if you live in a vacuum.
Continental breakfast — a very pleasant surprise! A nice variety offered. They have a pancake and a Belgium waffle maker. I felt like a little kid playing with an easy bake oven for the first time. Cute little patio with a TV to watch while you eat.
Staff — A really great, friendly staff. Jaime helped us check-​in the first part of our stay. The process was simple, and quick. The second part of our stay, I made an error during booking, and he helped sort it all out. Poor thing, he even let me vent to him after a long day at work. Such great customer service, and I’m so grateful!

It pains me to leave such a sorry review for this hotel, but the bottom line is it deserves it. I stay at Holiday Inns across the country and this one by far was the worse. The prices are ridiculous and the fact that you have to pay to park your car there as well is just plain greedy.
But what really hurt this hotel is simply its age and construction. It’s built like a gothic fortress with absolutely no views whatsoever. The dining area is in the center of the hotel so every morning you have to listen to everyone chatting and eating if you are staying on the second floor. I had a great view of the dumpster. The rooms are dark, dingy, and drabby to say the least and need serious updating. Depressing is the best word to describe this hotel from the instant you walk in. Hotels are supposed to leave you happy, but I couldn’t wait to get out of there.
However, I will say this; The location is fantastic because it sits right on Santa Monica Blvd., which is in the center of everything going east to west, so you never have to get on that godforsaken freeway. You can also walk down Sawtelle for a meal as the street is just loaded with fantastic restaurants.
I also have to give the staff there credit for their hospitality. They really went out of their way to help us and make us feel comfortable, but realistically, they cannot do anything about the structure. Only stay here for the location. Otherwise, head west to the beach area and downtown Santa Monica.

Unbelievable and ridiculous. I’m not a difficult reviewer, but my one night was a nightmare at this hotel. For starters, the room was costly but I felt like it would be worth it. The staff was rude, and cherry on top was looking in my bank account and seeing a 400 dollar charge. I called them and they accused me of smoking in my room when I’m not even a smoker and they didn’t have proof. the rest of the money they charged me was for «inconvenience fees» they didn’t have an explanation for. I asked to talk to the manager and the man I spoke to told me two different things as to when he would be there, then changing it to «he’ll be back in a few weeks”-what! They will do anything to take every penny they can from you. My bank told me they aren’t even allowed to charge debit cards for those things and that they’re supposed to bill you. Beware.

Would have been 3 ½ stars except for one thing … Cockroach!
I stayed there this weekend and while parts of the rooms are old, most of the bathroom has been refurbished and the shower was great (plenty of water pressure). It was a little pricey but I did book less than a week before our trip. We were furthest away from the freeway so did not experience any noise (other than the people next door exercising the mattress that I could have lived without!).
However, on the second day, as I was moving things on the table a good size young cockroach made a beeline for the gap between the table and the wall. Thank goodness the wife didn’t see it! That was enough for me… we won’t be back again.

Absolutely worst place, close to freeway? Yes, right outside the window 405 ALL NIGHT LONG!
Maintenance was responsive, lights in bathroom out!
To get out of parking ($ 10.00 per night) you have only a right turn to make. Traffic merging onto and off of 405.
I would have to say NO! Never book here!

Excellent location and a fair price. Very clean rooms and allowed early check in. Every staff member from the front desk, house cleaning, and security were overly friendly.
Super morning breakfast 630 – 930. There is a charge for parking, 10.00. Fair given the limited spots available. Every room has small shampoo, lotion and soap. There are a number of good restaurants within walking distance. Subway, Japanese across the street. Mexican, Italian, and Greek around the corner. I will definitely stay here again.

The hotel is nice and close to UCLA. The uneven floors and the food product they call breakfast was gross, that’s why I gave it a three. Very limited TV channels made the evening a little boring. The beds were new and comfortable and that’s why we stayed. Great location and friendly staff.

Do you enjoy credit card theft, dishonest staff, and filthy rooms? Well if you answered yes to any of this than THIS hotel is for you.
I had a two day stay this week. The room I was assigned was filthy upon arrival and had a foul smell. I found food ROTTING behind one of the «remodeled» benches.
When I checked out I found over 950 dollars in charges on my debit card. Some charges were doubles of the charges the staff put on my card. Including a «smoking charge» even though I never smoked in the room. Apparently smoking anywhere near the property will get you this fee.
When I contacted the staff that spoke VERY little English I got the run around and refusal to remove the charges. When I got my card company involved they flat out admitted that would not correct the errors and refused to research the false authorizations.
Also to add insult to injury. The adult movie I purchased didn’t play and they gave me an ethical lesson because there was «to much beer» in the fridge.
The «management company» DKN Hotels is actually a vapor company. Go ahead and look at their website. That’s a TEMPLATE. They claim to be in business for 25 years yet the Secretary of State shows a business license that’s much less than that. And the corporate staff aren’t American.
I’ve ready contacted IHC hotels that owns the Holiday Inn name, the Secretary of State, homeland security and a lawyer. This company and hotel are frauds, liars and thieves. If you’ve also had an experience like mine please feel free to reach out to me so we can take these people to court and shut them down.

Stayed here for a wedding. It exceeded my expectations for an express hotel. It was clean, affordable, and there was complimentary breakfast (which I missed because I overslept — but still, definitely bonus points.)
Overall a good experience.

I had an overall good stay. I guess it had something to do that I was not really expecting much from this hotel.
Service: I am very thankful for the reviewers who pointed out that this hotel is really really close to the freeway. Because of that, I was able to request a room far from it to be able to get a restful sleep. The staff was very obliging with my request and overall, they were pleasant and friendly.
Room: The room smelled foul, not because it was not clean, but mostly because of use. That is understandable because this hotel seems old. The room, however, is upgraded with relatively modern features (at least it has flat screen tv and not a dinosaur tube one). Besides the smell, one other thing bothered me and that is the bed’s headboard. It did not look very clean to me and I was so grossed out that I moved my pillow a few inches away from it because I did not want my hair/​head to be touching it.
The thing that I liked the best about this hotel was that the towels were much thicker than other hotels. It didn’t feel like I was using kitchen towels.
I agree that the room was smaller than the other Holiday In Expresses that I’ve been too but I didn’t feel cramped in.
Breakfast: It’s a regular Holiday Inn Express breakfast, with eggs, sausages, bisquit and gravy. There were cinnamon rolls, pastries, some oatmeal and cereal. My complaint about this one is that they only have one type of cream: French vanilla. Not a fan.
General Comments:
If you park first before you check in and get a room key, you will have to carry you bags up the stairs because when you park, you will need a room key to get back upstairs. I’m not sure if there was a check-​in only parking space, but so many cars were already parked near the lobby that we parked first.
Be wary of parking in the handicapped parking space only in the second lower level because the handicapped parking space sign is just as big as your palm. I wonder if there is a regulation that if it is a handicapped parking space that the sign size should be standard. Just a thought.
Why are the cookies in the lobby wrapped? It looked really ghetto. Also, unlike other Holiday Inn Express where you can tell the cookies are freshly baked, this place wraps the cookies in cling wrap. Ewwww.
Yay for free wifi though.
Also, I just want to point out that this is a Holiday Inn Express.

Definitely towards the bottom of Holiday Inn Expresses I’ve been to. I am a Platinum member from all of my traveling for work and I decided to use a rewards night (free) as I usually do when I travel for personal reasons. First off the location here is just off of the 405 so you can expect there to be plenty of noise from your room. I didn’t find it to be to intrusive but when someone honks their horn it definitely woke me up.
My room was VERY small. Smallest I’ve stayed in at any Holiday Inn Express. It also needed a good scrubbing. I found a few hairs in the bathroom and dirt on the floor but nothing bad enough to complain about. They also advertise that these rooms have a separate seating area. Turns out the separate seating area is a bench by the window (mine had no padding or pillows with it so it was basically unusable). The parking however is convenient. It is underground attached to the hotel itself and I didn’t have any problems getting a good spot. It is $ 10 to park however (pretty reasonable for LA).
Overall it is a good location on Santa Monica Blvd next to Little Tokyo. I wouldn’t waste my money or points staying here again though. Stay at the one off of Hollywood Blvd. It’s a bit out of the way from this location but it is way nicer and basically the same price. It has valet parking too.

Several months ago, I happened to stay here even though I reside in LA due to friends coming into town and I’ve always passed by this place, although never stayed.
From the outside, one might think it’s not that great – it’s by the freeway and be too noisy, traffic congestion due to its location – on Santa Monica Blvd by the 405 fwy, and the looks isn’t so elegant.
Surprisingly, when I went in, it’s pretty nice. I paid $ 109 for the night which isn’t cheap but not bad, considering it was a weekend and last minute booking. The staff was very helpful and friendly, and the room isn’t fancy but meets all its needs.
With that said, there are a few down sides that I found, that could be improved.
The access to the parking is a bit tedious and the spaces are a bit too tight. I also found the elevators to be a bit slow.
Overall, it was a nice experience. For a little over a $ 100, it’s a bargain. The location is perfect – easy access to the freeway.
I would recommend anyone that’s on a search for a budget-​friendly hotel. 4 starts for sure!