Tabernash , thank you so much. It looks very nice... But unfortunately out of my range ...
I'll have to rethink what I'll do. Perhaps I'll check airb'nb .

Apartment rentals for less than 30 days are now illegal in Santa Monica, so keep that in mind when looking at airbnb.

Note that if on a budget, staying in Santa Monica will mean a $25 -$30cab ride back and forth to the airport. You might check the rates of the Marina Del Rey hotels such as Foghorn Hotel, they include shuttle service and you'll be a few blocks to the Santa Monica bus stop. the Hop On bus comes by, too.

Good idea, clark. We have walked through the Foghorn a few times, when staying next door at the Jamaica Bay Inn. It looks ok, but I'll bet it's still not cheap.

Are there any hostels around there? What about any dorm-type housing on UCLA campus for visitors?

I appreciate the advice. i just checked out Foghorn and it's completely booked for my dates. I had no idea I should have been looking at this earlier.
Back to the drawing board .

What dates are you looking for? Maybe there's a big event then? Do you have flexibility on the dates?

https://reservations.venicebeachsuit...servation.aspx

They have a queen studio w/kitchenette (not ocean view) for $192 total. They also have a tour package that looked like your list.

Don't think I'm a stalker! I just know and like this part of LA. I forgot about this little place right on Venice Beach walk. It looks very cute and we walked into the lobby once or twice. It was clean, maybe a bit worn, but you cannot beat this location.

Hosteling International has one in Santa Monica, you can look for them on www.booking.com

Also try calling Sea Shore Motel

http://www.seashoremotel.com/Reservation.htm

I've got it...........Custom Hotel in Culver City. Decent neighborhood/restaurants around the corner. Free airport shuttle. Hop on Bus stops here. Metro bus and Santa Monica bus have stops nearby to get you to Santa Monica in 15 mins.
Hope you see this on time as there is a 48 hr sale at kayak, getAroom and Expedia right now and queen rooms are $99. Liberal cancellation policy so you can continue to look around but will have a great backup.

http://www.jdvhotels.com/hotels/cali...-and-amenities

Custom is not in a convenient location, not near anything. You'd do better to stay in Marina del Rey.

Not convenient to what? Kodi is considering the 48 hour Hop On Bus pass and is only in L.A. for 48 hours. Day 1 she arrives at 10pm. She could pay $150 more to stay in the Marina I suppose, and add cab fares to the airport, but why? To be 5 minutes closer to Santa Monica on the bus?

I think that would be a great place, clark, especially if the Hop On Hop Off stops there.

At the very least kodi can book it and not worry about finding something affordable. Still has several months to keep looking around but wont be panicked.

Are you sure the Custom is in Culver City? I know of a Custom Hotel that is on top of the hill above Loyola Marymount U. It was next door to our son's apartment building. It's a nice place, and usually very affordable. It's also a Joie de Vivre property, which is a good management company.

But it is not in Culver City. It is much closer to LAX and the beaches than Culver City. Maybe there's another Custom that I can't find on-line?

Clark, thank you for your help . I followed the link you provided, and as Tabernash says it's close to LAX .
I'm hoping not to stay by the airport

Tabernash, I don't think you are stalking me!!!!

The hostel's single rooms are booked. My dates are not flexible . I have my airline ticket already. I used air miles for the flight, so you can understand why I booked so far in advance .

Now I'm going to check the sale at Kayak .
I will be back !

You're right Tabernash, it's actually an L.A. 90045 address, about 3/4 of a mile outside of Culver City near Loyola. Actually closer to Marina del Rey than Culver City I guess.

The Custom is NOT in Culver City, but in Westchester (i.e., a neighborhood of LA just north of LAX). It's a nice business-oriented hotel, geared to people wanting the Joie de Vivre hotel chain flair while needing LAX access. It's right on Lincoln Blvd., so you do have Santa Monica and LA MTA bus lines just steps from the hotel itself. But the hotel's location is in a busy commercial part of Westchester, at an extremely busy intersection (Lincoln & Manchester). I drive by it every day and it looks like a reasonably cool place (better than the somewhat divey place it was before JdV took it over!).

The Sea Shore Motel is another one I drive by (it's up the street from a Starbucks I frequent on my way to work). The place looks as cheesy as its website suggests-- but the word on it is highly positive on all the travel websites. Clean, nice staff, convenient to Santa Monica sites, right in the middle of the cool stuff on Main Street in SM.... You're basically three blocks from the beach (walking up to Ocean Park, then head west till you hit sand). Again, bus lines are steps away. This seems to be a good budget choice. IF you can get a room. Why is anyone surprised that it's hard to find a room in Santa Monica in the summer?!?!?

Actually closer to Northside LAX as a few others have pointed out. I know that area quite well, having had to endure numerous community meetings at the Rec Center across the street.

OP, why not give us your dates, then we don't need to recommend places that aren't booked?

The other thing I would suggest if you want to be near Santa Monica is to at least look at map resulting from any hotel search (Expedia offers this). Like clarkgriswold, if you don't really know Los Angeles very well, you are likely to get a hotel that isn't anywhere near where you really want to be.

I hope you are not trying to find a cheap hotel for this weekend.

Sea Shore Motel sounds like a good idea. I think being near the water is the expensive factor, for the most part.

I booked the Inn at Venice Beach for early November. It pays to book far in advance. We haven't been there since they completely remodeled, and we like its location walkable to the Venice pier. Funky Venice doesn't scare us. haha

Yes, give us your dates and we can help more.