Well past its prime

We reserved three rooms over the Internet (from the UK) months in advance, for ourselves and our 4 children for a 2 weeks stay. When we arrived around 9pm, we discovered that they did not have three rooms, and we were offered two rooms (one a suite with 2 bedrooms) or nothing. We had no choice but to accept. We were not offered any reduction for our inconvenience, and were charged a higher (normal) rate for the suite. Shortly after we arrived, a couple with 2 children turned up and were told there were no rooms and were sent away - the mother was in tears.

The rooms were a bit grubby and had not been decorated in many years. The kitchens had damaged shelves inside battered refrigerators, cookers with some hubs that did not work and pilot lights that had gone out and caused a gas smell in the rooms. The air conditioning was noisy and smelly (I note someone else's comment that they changed the air filters themselves!) The beds were a bit lumpy, and maid service was very patchy. I would challenge anyone to sleep on the foldout beds offered, as they were so uncomfortable.

The grounds and buildings had also had little attention to them, but the pool was fine when we stayed there.

The hotel said it had Internet access in all rooms - in fact all it had was dial-up access at hotel rates. There was however an Internet Kiosk in reception, where "continental breakfast" of Danish pastries and coffee was available each morning.

We had trouble on some evenings with noise. A large apartment above decided to have a party on one Saturday evening, and the hotel staff would do nothing when we could not sleep at 2am with the noise.

The hotel is *very* close to all of Hollywood's attractions - only a few minutes from Mann's Theatre, for instance. It also has free parking underneath, and is not expensive. If the management would invest in this hotel, even raising the charges a bit, this could be a wonderful hotel. As it is, its most memorable aspect is that it is where Janis Joplin topped herself

Great Hotel

Great location. Cozy feel and frienly staff. rooms were great!

Good value, nice place

A wonderfull hotel with a lot of Hollywood history for the price. Rooms are large and some have been recently updated. great location, walking distance to everything and friendly staff.... This is an older hotel with a very warm 50's feel. If thats what you like than you'll love it, but if you prefer a newer hotel at a higher price then your better off at another property.

Nasty, Dirty Hotel

This hotel is beyond horrible. We stayed one miserable night. The hotel is dirty. We found blood stains on sheets, lumpy bed, dirty carpet, homeless people out in front of hotel. Parking is under hotel where they also keep unwanted furniture and old cars that look like they have been there for years. Also found blood stains on steps leading to the rooms. They not only rent rooms out for a night, but it looks like people rent them as apartments. Pool was dirty, landscape was awful, jungle like atmosphere. The desk clerk had to look in a big drawer full of keys to find the key to the room we were staying in. They say they offer a continental breakfast, what a joke. Day old coffee and a stiff danish. Even though this hotel is very close to Highland Drive, I would not recommend this hotel to anyone. Sufice to say my husband did not even take his shoes off when he went to bed or sleep under the blankets. It was just nasty.

Last resort

I want to like this place. the staff was great. The place is not very clean. but the rooms are hugh with a full kitchen. Worth the money, but one sacrifices a lot in comfort. The floors are thin so stay on the second (top) floor, not the first floor. Very central location, but also very hard to get to and from due to the traffic because it is such a tourist spot.

Great value

Half the hotel has been remodeled the other half needs work but overall a greatr experience for the money...great location...friendly staff...recently under new management...ask for a room that has been updated...

Amenities stretched

"Superior tourist class" "modern decor" ?? Must have been plucked from their ad in the '50's. We had the kitchenette. It was equiped with fridge, stove and not much else. Had to borrow iron and hair dryer. Internet access is a booth in the lobby. Data port is reg. phone line in room. No clock, drapes don't block light. Shower nearly bruised my kidneys. Don't be there in the noisy summer, or be sure to bring ear plugs. Continental breakfast is as you'd expect. Yuban and icky doughnuts. Starbucks is a couple blocks away. I liked the pool, the garden. Plant life was struggling a bit but lots of it. Our room faced the garden and was quiet. Owners only doing the minimum. A bit of paint, and a customer friendly aditude would help alot. Great location, for getting anywhere.

A DUMP!!

I arrived at the hotel at 3 p.m., was sent to my room and found it had not yet been cleaned. The beds were stripped, no towels, old food in the little fridge, etc. How does a hotel not make sure a room is ready at check-in time?? After we brought it to the manager's attention, we went back to the room. We opened the screen door to the "garden area" (a little plot of dirt with weeds), whereupon the screen door fell off the track and I noticed the army of ants crawling up the side and into the room. When we complained to the manager, she said she'd send someone in with a can of Raid!! My partner had to point out that we did not care to breathe in bug spray for the next 5 days.

She told me to go look at one of the "suites" on the second floor. I did and said it was much better. She said, "Yes, it's very beautiful." HA! It was definitely better--large bedroom, a living room, a kitchen with fridge and oven, and kitchen table--but far from beautiful. It was old and needed updating. We had to clean the a.c. filter ourselves! The bathroom service was inconsistent (only 2 bath towels and soap one day, then suddenly they decided to give us hand towels, and we finally got another bar of soap on the last day).

The pool was DISGUSTING. It looked like it hadn't been cleaned in weeks. There was a ring of rust/dirt around the water line (ewww!) and dirt and leaves on the bottom, which stayed there for the entire 5 days we were there.

But what galls me the most was that she told me she would only charge me an extra $20/night for the suite just to make me happy! Any other hotel would have upgraded me for free after that. AND she charged me a $50 deposit, even though the room had been pre-paid in full (except for the extra $20). I've never heard of such a thing and I was apalled with this place.

The sad thing is that it has a lot of potential. It IS nestled in the Hollywood hills and is 2 blocks from Hollywood BLVD. It could really be a nice place, but the owners are too cheap to renovate and don't know how to treat their guests. Never again.

Excellent value

Clean, good amenities, friendly staff, great value, excellent location.

My favorite place to spend a local weekend when I want to get out of the house.

Clean and great location

Great location, clean, free parking, helpful staff. Overall an exccellent value.