We'll stay in Santa Monica in the course of July and are actually looking for a suitable hotel for 2 children (age 15 and 10) and the two of us.
We think about staying at the Holiday Inn Santa Monica Beach at the Pier 120 Colorado And Ocean Blvd Santa Monica, 90401 CA.
From what I've been reading on the Web, it has a great location and has a three diamonds AAA rating and the staff is very accommodating and friendly.
The snag is that some reviewers were very unhappy because the hotel is quite noisy at night due to its being near the freeway.
An other sensitive topic: the hotel is located on a busy corner, across from a McDonalds and a large homeless population gathers there day and night.
Last question : does this hotel apply a Family Plan (children under 18 stay for free when sharing room with their parents)?

I'm not sure what your questions are (except for the last one)- are you asking for comments on what you have heard? If so, yes it is true that there is a large homeless population at that McDonald's, day and night. They won't hurt you most likely, and actually my son (who was 12 at the time) struck up a conversation w/a homeless man who had become homeless and lost it all when silicon valley went bust, and he moved to Santa Monica because the city is very tolerant of the homeless. And he is right, the city is very tolerant of the homeless, you will notice that right away. This conversation was a real eye opener for my son, he still talks about it.
If the reviews say there is freeway noise, I would believe them and street noise bothered me I'd stay somewhere else. I avoid the hotels close to Hwy 10 in SM because of that, but then I am sensitive to street noise.

I work up the street from that Holiday Inn. The location is "great" in that it's a half-block from the Santa Monica Pier. But other than that, I'd take a pass. It's catty-corner from a busy shopping mall, it's just west of a very busy intersection (Colorado and Main), it's just east of an even busier intersection (Ocean and Colorado), just northwest of the Santa Monica Courthouse, its south side view is of the Santa Monica Freeway (I-10), and its north view is of that lovely McDonald's.

Santa Monica is an expensive city, but some good deals do exist. The Georgian is right on Ocean, and it's a lovingly-maintained hotel from the Hollywood Art Déco era, a block and a half north of the Pier. Much nicer place. The Loews on Ocean isn't ridiculously expensive and, although a bit anonymous for my tastes (like all Loews hotels), it's quite nice. The Radisson Huntley puts you a tiny bit north and inland, but if you're on a budget, you can do far worse (this is one of the nicest Radisson properties). Price no object? Fairmont Miramar, Casa del Mar, Shutters.

Thanks to all for the advices they gave us.
But, in the first place, I did not want to hurt the feelings of anybody concerning the homeless people. My question was just a question, neither was it derogatory nor disparaging.Most of the hl deserve respect, particularly the war vets and nobody is safe from the fate of becoming homeless. Talking with them and listening to their stories can be enlightening. But, coming back to the point, we were looking for a good priced family friendly place from which we can walk safely to restaurants in the evening. The Georgian seems to be a fair deal and they have Family Plan.

I thought I'd give you a heads-up about one thing in Santa Monica. As an earlier poster mentioned, there is an obvious homeless population. The city is very caring in providing services. You will notice when you arrive that in various places there are sculpures of dolphins. These are for donations for the homeless. If your children are moved by what they see, they may want to drop in a few coins and know in their own way they a helping a fellow human being. Look for the dolphins at the promenede as well as the park area at the top of the bluff. There may be more, but those are the ones that we saw.
When we were there in December the Georgian looked pristine from the street and the lobby looked very pleasant (we could see in from the street) and the location is right across the street from the beach (remember that you are above beach level, tho, on the bluff). Ocean Ave has a good bit of traffic, so it may be a bit noisy during the day, but traffic falls off alot at night.