Hollywood Hotel Review: Comfort Close to the Movie Magic

Last Updated:

*FYI - this post may contain affiliate links, which means we earn a commission at no extra cost to you if you purchase from them. Also, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Check out our Privacy Policy and Disclosure. for more info.

A huge thanks to the Hollywood Hotel for hosting me during my stay. As always, opinions are my own! 

Once upon a time, a young Christina desperately wanted to become a movie star.

And that’s a very embarrassing thing to admit, especially given my uselessness in front of a camera and remarkable lack of acting ability.

Still, to silly 8 yr old me, there was something very romantic about the idea of moving to LA to live among the stars, a dream drilled in me with every blockbuster released, every awards show watched (aka all of them) and every glossy magazine read.

After all, I grew up binging on Hollywood greatness, and even though these days, I’ve embraced onesies in lieu of red carpet gowns, my early childhood delusions should explain why any trip to LA, even now, will still leave me feeling starry-eyed, wonderful and slightly delirious.

My most recent winter weekend getaway however was a little different than my previous trips… this time, I was showing the sights to someone else – the leading man in the oddball romcom that is my life.

Given that we hadn’t seen in each other in months (*long distance high five*), I wanted everything to be perfect for his first visit to Los Angeles.

With the sheer size of the city, picking a proper home base is probably one of the most important decisions you’ll make all trip (that, and how often you’ll eat at In N’ Out Burger).

So, to ensure that we covered ample ground, we spread our nights across a few different LA neighbourhoods, dedicating night two to the glitz and glam of Hollywood, where we were welcomed with open arms by the centrally-located Hollywood Hotel.

Here’s a review of our experience, and some helpful info if you’re looking for a home base in LA!

PS: If you’re currently planning an LA trip, be sure to read my Los Angeles fun facts and California fun facts before you go!

Save this post for later on Pinterest:

The Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles is a comfortable, tranquil hotel located close to all the major sights in Hollywood! Read on for a detailed review of what to expect.

Hollywood Hotel: A good base for Tinseltown Sightseeing

Hollywood Hotel, 1160 N Vermont Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90029, USA

Located on Vermont Ave in Central Hollywood, the history of the Hollywood Hotel dates all the way back to the early 1900s, when its original location was established on Hollywood Blvd. Home to many starlets back in the day, this hotel seemed like an ideal place to act out my childhood dreams, even for one night.

The Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles is a comfortable, tranquil hotel located close to all the major sights in Hollywood! Read on for a detailed review of what to expect.

Location-wise, most main sights in Hollywood are within 5-10 minutes by car, which makes the hotel a good base for all your cheesy exploits in sightseeing. Alternatively, you can hop on the metro (only a few minutes walk from the hotel), which will take you to most tourist hotspots in ten minutes or less!

The Hollywood Hotel scores major points in my books for convenience, but I should note that the hotel’s neighbourhood itself doesn’t have much to see or do (apart from a few food places and shops). First time visitors to Hollywood should also be warned that the area at first glance might not be the most welcoming. Like much of Hollywood, the area surrounding the hotel has a bit of a run-down vibe (which is a lot different from the movies!) Still, we never felt unsafe at all.

Because we spent our whole day being children at Universal Studios, the hotel’s location was perfect for us. An easy ten minute commute zipped us straight to the land of churros and movie magic… and you can bet this movie fangirl was well pleased.

Hollywood Hotel review in Los Angeles! A great hotel for those seeking a central location in Hollywood with comfortable rooms and pleasant staff.

Chic updates in progress!

During our stay, the Hollywood Hotel was still undergoing renovations as part of its overall hotel refresh, which aims to create a comfortable ambiance that’s both contemporary and chic, while still maintaining callbacks to the hotel’s roots in Hollywood glam. Much of the hotel was still being worked on during our November stay, so I can’t fairly comment on common spaces like the lobby, but because we were given a fully renovated room, we did enjoy a sneak peek at the final product.

And oooh boy was it nice.

Hollywood Hotel review in Los Angeles! A great hotel for those seeking a central location in Hollywood with comfortable rooms and pleasant staff.

The room design was right up my alley: bright, airy and simple, with a nice balcony to spy on people enjoy the view over the hotel’s courtyard. After a long day ride-hopping at Universal, this bed was a sight for sore eyes (and feet!):

In addition to that of course, the room had all the amenities we needed, including a coffee machine (with plenty of coffee/tea provided), a big TV, desk, and helpful touches like a digital safe. Decor-wise, as with the rest of the hotel, there were subtle nods to the property’s Hollywood location, without being overtly tacky and overbearing. In other words, no giant movie posters or plastic Oscars in sight! A welcome change from the kitschy madness you’ll see along Hollywood Boulevard.

Hollywood Hotel review in Los Angeles! A great hotel for those seeking a central location in Hollywood with comfortable rooms and pleasant staff.
Hollywood Hotel review in Los Angeles! A great hotel for those seeking a central location in Hollywood with comfortable rooms and pleasant staff.
Hollywood Hotel review in Los Angeles! A great hotel for those seeking a central location in Hollywood with comfortable rooms and pleasant staff.

Nice service and amenities

In terms of service, the reception staff at the Hollywood Hotel were always pleasant. We were able to leave our bags there both before and after check-out without a problem, plus there was a wide range of extra services and amenities as well (e.g. concierge, fitness centre, pool, bar/lounge and of course, a buffet breakfast!)

I was unbelievably excited about breakfast for obvious reasons, but especially so because many reviews online praise it for being one of the hotel’s best perks. As a ’10 waffles in the morning’ kinda girl, I was stoked to hear that they had a fresh-made waffle and eggs station (which is supposedly a dream). Because of missed alarms and incurable sleepiness however, we made the bad mistake of arriving near the end of breakfast service. By the time that we arrived (with only 15 minutes to spare), there wasn’t much food left, and it seemed like the staff were eager to clean up.

Having worked in service before, I know the pain of customers waltzing in at closing time (I’m a former barista who made pleeenty of 9:59pm frappucinos), so we decided to keep things no fuss and just make use of the range of cereals and ready-prepped hot goods like tater tots. Overall, it was a fine breakfast, but remember to arrive early to take full advantage of it!

I’ll know that for next time (and will be sure to enjoy double the waffles to compensate).

There are two things that you should understand about Los Angeles: first - it's huge, so picking the right home base is pretty essential. Second - real life Hollywood is a tad different from what you see on the big screen. 

An additional hotel perk is when the pressures of sightseeing and constant celebrity stalking spotting get to you, you can unwind at the pool or courtyard. We spent most of our time running around the city like headless chickens, so we didn’t get to enjoy these spaces much, but I think the photos speak for themselves! Other perks include comedy shows on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, some of which are open mic if any of you are looking to break into show biz đŸ˜‰

There are two things that you should understand about Los Angeles: first - it's huge, so picking the right home base is pretty essential. Second - real life Hollywood is a tad different from what you see on the big screen. 

And last but not least, the hotel is pet friendly, with a glamorous ‘Pamper Your Pet’ package that includes a pet bed, toys, treats and special bowls. So, if you’re one of those crazies who treat their dogs better than humans (I know I sure am), the option is there for Poochie to feel like an A-List celebrity.

The Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles is a comfortable, tranquil hotel located close to all the major sights in Hollywood! Read on for a detailed review of what to expect.

The Final Word

The Hollywood Hotel is a comfortable hotel for a nice stay in Hollywood. It’s a lovely property with all the amenities you need, plus pleasant and attentive staff available at all hours of the day. It wins big points for its proximity to Hollywood’s attractions, but keep in mind it does have the typical ‘Hollywood grittiness’ which many new visitors to LA might be surprised by. If you keep your expectations in check though, you’ll be perfectly equipped to enjoy a comfy stay!

The Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles is a comfortable, tranquil hotel located close to all the major sights in Hollywood! Read on for a detailed review of what to expect.

A huge thanks to the Hollywood Hotel for hosting me during my stay. As always, opinions are my own! 

My Go-To Travel Favourites:

🧳 Eagle Creek: My favourite packing cubes

💳 Wise: For FREE travel friendly credit cards

🍯 Airalo: My go-to eSIM

🏨 Booking.com: For searching hotels

📷 Sony A7IV: My (amazing) camera

✈️ Google Flights: For finding flight deals

🌎 WorldNomads: For travel insurance

🎉 GetYourGuide: For booking activities

21 thoughts on “Hollywood Hotel Review: Comfort Close to the Movie Magic”

    • Yeah it was an easy 10 minute commute to/from the studios, so super convenient! Have you been there before, Charmaine? đŸ™‚

      Reply
  1. Wow, now that is a slice of luxury and I totally understand what you mean about trying to have everything perfect when your significant other comes to visit, it can be stressful. As someone who has never been to Hollywood, I was surprised that you mention that everything is within convenient reach, not something I would have envisaged but great to know. Certainly, I will keep in mind the Hollywood Hotel for when I do finally make it there

    Reply
    • Most of the touristy bits of Hollywood are close together, but the rest of LA – that’s a different story haha. The city itself is huuge and traffic can get quite messy, so it’s important to pick a good homebase depending on what sights you want to see! đŸ™‚

      Reply
  2. This looks like such a charming place to stay! It looks so great! Did you have much success celebrity spotting? Sounds like the perfect location, but I’m gutted you missed out on the morning waffles! The curse of being a night owl. Never fun having to drag yourself early out of bed while on holiday just so you can eat!

    Reply
    • Hahah I didn’t see any celebrities while walking around LA, but an actress from one of my favourite TV shows (Arrow) happened to be on my plane back home!! Such a crazy coincidence. đŸ˜€

      Reply
  3. The hotel is indeed beautiful..on a side note, I don’t think you should be embarrassed of that confession . As young and innocent we all dream uninhibited for ourselves..and that’s the beauty of that age đŸ™‚

    Reply
    • Oh definitely! The hotel’s not right in the crazy bustle of Hollywood Blvd (aka tourist central), which I liked đŸ™‚ plus with the courtyard/pool, there are plenty of chances to unwind after a loong day of hopping around the city.

      Reply
  4. This hotel seems like it has everything! I’m hoping to travel to LA soon, so I’ll have to keep this in mind. Was happy to hear that it’s pet friendly too!

    Reply
  5. So nice that you wrote an excellent review about a hotel that is not one of the most expensive in Hollywood.

    Also, so good of you to warn about the neighborhood. (I attended university fairly nearby and it’s been declining for years.) The location would bother some, but not most of those I believe used to big cities.

    Just over a block from the hotel you find a stop on the Red Line subway that takes you to Universal Studios (no parking hassles!), Hollywood & Vine (no parking hassles!), and downtown Los Angeles (ditto) for Lakers games, conventions, etc. To find a hotel location in Los Angeles where you don’t always have to drive is something precious.

    Reply
  6. Oh wow what an experience! So glad you got to experience some awesome Hollywood glamor. Must have been so fun to get to pretend to be an A-lister for a while! Looks like an awesome hotel.

    Reply

Leave a Comment