Lisa

I will be visiting LA and wanted advice on the best area to reserve a hotel. Distance to attractions or beaches is not an issue. I was just interested in a hotel in a relatively "safe" area. How is the Hermosa Beach area?

karen

Having lived in Hermosa beach i'm particularly nostalgic about that area. I tend to like it as it's beaches are not as touristy as Santa Monica yet it has some great restaurants and a nice strand to walk along (beware the bikers and roller bladers though). If distance to attractions is not an issue, Hermosa is a great idea (although it's not all that far from anything...Disney, Universal, Santa Monica, Long Beach are all within an hour's drive). Hope this is helpful.

Jim

I've traveled a lot to LA on business & found the area near the Del Amo Mall to have good hotels (Marriott Courtyard, Residence Inn, Holiday Inn) in the city of Torrance. It's near the intersection of Hawthorne Blvd & Sepulveda). Good access to beaches (Hermosa & Manhattan are both good) & it's close to the I-405 to get you north or south of the city.

star

I'm laughing at Karen's comment "within about an hour's drive." I've bee to LA four times on business, and every time I was there and asked someone for driving time, they always said "about an hour" whether the distance was a mile or 20 miles. I think LAers are trained from birth to say "oh, about an hour" when asked the question. Sort of like Canadians saying "eh" at the end of each sentence.

kam

Distances matter little in LA--it's the traffic patterns that are important. Angelinos will tell you something is "within half an hour", "within an hour" or "about 2 hours". Outside of that, it's a long drive! You'll never hear them refering to how many miles it is--no bearing at all.

Christina

I used to live in Santa Monica and regard that as a relatively safe area, but I do like both Hermosa and Manhattan beaches, also. Away from beaches (which you said you didn't care about), I like Pasadena a lot and it's safe (and has a lot of things to do and see right there and would be closer to downtown and some other things, in case you had some business there). I don't think you could get to Universal from Hermosa beach in an hour, but you could the other things mentioned. YOu probably have some preferences for part of town or reason which would affect location, but Hermosa is fine.

joe

Have stayed at the Quality Inn in Hermosa Beach and found it to be just fine.

My heartiest recommendations go out to the Holiday Inn Brentwood Bel Air, which is just off the 405 freeway on Sunset Boulevard. It is in a very safe area near Beverly Hills and is very close to UCLA. Nice rooms, nice view, decent rooftop restaurant. Very low rates for the area if you have an "entertainment card" and hit it on a date when the discount is available.

Alisa

Forget the Brentwood Holiday Inn if you want to be within walking distance to anything. It is not. It overlooks the freeway. There are better choices.

Santa Monica is safe. Hermosa is great.

What kinds of things do you want to do while you are here?