Hi,

We are visiting from the UK next month and currently have a 3 night reservation at Le Parc Suites, West Hollywood. Its the only reservation we have the we are not sure of.

Can anyone put my mind at rest, or give any good alternatives.

There are 6 of us coming, and we have three rooms reserved at $297 per night each room. That includes tax, parking and breakfast.

I have been to LA a few times, but always stayed in Anaheim. We wanted a change, and want to show our friends a different side of LA. We are all young, and want to be close to some nightlife.

Cheers.

You might consider either the Hilton or Shearton at Universal City. There is a Metro Station about 100 yards from the Hilton that will take you right into the city.

If you are young and want to be close to the nightlife, I would definitely stay in West Hollywood or Hollywood. Some good "hip" options (and probably cheaper than $297) are The Roosevelt, The Renaissance Hollywood, Hyatt on Sunset, The Standard on Sunset, etc. You might also want to consider staying by the beach. There is nightlife there as well and a lot less pretentious in a lot of places. "Hip" Hollywood clubs are hard to get into without paying lots of money, especially if you're not an attractive group of girls. Places in Santa Monica by the beach I would consider are Loew's, Viceroy, Fairmont, etc.

Thanks. Am also now looking at Best Western Sunset Plaza Hotel which looks a lot cheaper.

If cost is an issue, I would consider Ramada in West Hollywood as well (check reviews first, I haven't been inside). There is also a great little place called Chamberlain West Hollywood which most people don't know about.

I live in LA, and work and live in West Hollywood, so feel free to ask any questions.

Btw, are you renting a car? How are you planning to get around? Parking in West Hollywood is rough. And if you're taking cabs, traffic ON Sunset Blvd is a nightmare if you're going out in Hollywood rather than Sunset Strip.

Renaissance Hollywood has been rennovated about one year ago. Very stylish, and in a great area. Have to test rates for the specific days you are there.

We stayed at THE STANDARD a few years ago. We were very disappointed. We expected "FUNKY" rooms. All we got was orange Motel 6. It felt very dirty! A strange bunch of people around as well. Stay away The Standard.

You might want to check out the Magic Castle Motel in Hollywood. One advantage is it is close to a lot of the Hollywood sights.

The other main advantage is that if you stay there you get a pass to the Magic Castle which is next door to the hotel. The Castle is a private club, the only one of it's kind in the world, as it is a club for magicians. You have to audtion to become a member. There are three show rooms and magic acts going non-stop all night, with magicians in the bars and lounge areas.

Usually, you have to know a member to get in, but if you stay at the motel, you get a guest pass.

It is a unique place. Probably most of the top magicians in the world are members. Go into the local magic shop in any big city in the UK and ask about it. I stumbled across a magic store in Paris and they knew the Castle very well.

There are a number of current actors who are also magicians, and they are members and you might spot them. Former members include Cary Grant and Johnny Carson.

Warning: The Castie is the last place in LA with a strict dress code - jacket and ties for men, "evening wear" for women, so if you are just packing for normal LA casual, you might want to throw in a jacket and tie (and nice shirt),

Second warning: It is adults only, and they card anyone who looks like they might be under 21.

I think I commented on another of your posts. I'm not sure why no one here is encouraging your choice unless they simply know nothing about Le Parc, which is quite possible. It's been many years since we stayed there but we loved it then. It's a small apartment building type hotel in a GREAT, mainly residential location, close to the Beverly Center and the Pacific Design Center. The have a rooftop pool and private parking. I haven't been in it since a total renovation, but their website makes it look nice. I would not hesitate to stay there. We had "moved" for later stays to their partner, LeDufy, which later became Summerfield Suites and has since become the Chamberlain mentioned above. Yes, it's a great and very similar place, but when I last checked a lot more expensive. I personally do not care for the Ramada which is practically next door to the Chamberlain. If the Chamberlain IS the same price, I'd prefer it. It's more up on the hill and the views from their rooftop pool area are wonderful.
I see no reason not to stay at Le Parc.

Love the Sunset Plaza!

Your rate for Le Parc seems high.

Check both hotels for their "Entertainment Discount". They offer it on some dates, and you can easily buy an entertainment card membership online if it ends up saving you $75 per room per night.

Tracy, did you notice that rate quoted at LeParc INCLUDES taxes, parking, and breakfast. That's a big hunk of change right there -- probably the equivalent of about $200 or so before those things. For a suite with kitchen at Le Parc, that sounds pretty good to me.

If the Sunset Plaza Hotel comes in at about $100 a night cheaper (includes tax, parking,breakfast)...then your savings among 3 couples comes up to a thousand bucks...which will go a long way towards that nightlife that you mention.
Elan Hotel is another one worth mentioning.

Thanks for all the replies!

We now have reservations at Best Western Susnet Plaza and I think I am going to cancel Le Parc. Mainly down to cost.

Le Parc will work out at $2511 for the three rooms, tax, breakfast and parking and the Sunset Plaza will be about $1790. So quite a saving. Heard some great reviews about Sunset Plaza and apparently just finished a refurb.

smartcookie - would be interested to know where to visit during the nighttime in the area close by. Daytime, we will be venturing around the other LA areas and sights.

In terms of nightlife, I would need a few more details. How old are people in your group? What is the girl/guy ratio? What types of places do you normally like..."hip" clubs, lounges, bars, dive bars, etc. Do you mind a tourist crowd? Do you have the funds to pay covers? What kind of music? Do you want dancing? It's a good idea to check out www.yelp.com for reviews. If you decide you're actually interested in any of the clubs, I can provide you with some details on how to get on the lists, though you might still have to pay cover if you have a lot of guys, you get there past 10:30pm, etc.

In general, LA tends to have several types of places: overhyped Hollywood clubs with covers that are hard to get in and somewhat pretentious once inside with younger crowd (21-25), Sunset Plaza bars with some tourists (22-30 crowd), laid back lounges with no dancing (25-35), bars and dive bars.

Hi smartcookie

We are all between 24 and 28. There are 6 of us, three couples - so three boys and three girls.

We like a real mix of stuff really. The lads are into "rock" and "punk" music, and we would like to visit Whisky a Go Go (although you migh advise against it?). Also, one of the group has it in his head we must go to the viper room although I hear its not too great. The girls love dancing, especially to cheesy tunes.

Us guys dont paricularly like dressing up too much, but are happy to make an effort and we arent tramps

As I guess I guess we would really like a good mix, but would really like to try a real celebrity haunt if possible. Even if just for a few drinks.

We are also visiting Vegas a few days earlier, so also plan on visiting some similar places there too.

Does that help?

Thanks so much for the help!

As a lark you should try to get into the Sky Bar at the Mondrian hotel. It can be difficult for large groups like yours but this approach should help: pick the date you want to go and fire off an email to "[email protected]" requesting a spot on the guest list for you and your five "clients". Make it sound business-like, so they will assume that you have an expense account burning a hole in your pocket. A "[email protected]" email address will work much better than a "[email protected]" address if you know what I mean. If you don't hear back within a week have a woman leave a voicemail request at 323-848-6025. The English accent should help a lot. Ask that they confirm by your email address. For obvious reasons, don't give them your phone number at the Best Western.

If none of those choices work you can always show up before the doorman arrives at 8pm. That early in the evening it is more of a pool bar than a nightclub, but at least you will have a nice spot to watch the sun set.

Hi,

That gives a better idea. I think as a first timer to LA, I would go to the Viper Room if I were you. I would skip the Whiskey, it's not that special anymore and you should really pick one of those as technically it's a similar experience. Check out the shows a the Viper Room website and see what you'd like to see. You can always see one or two bands and go somewhere else.

Sky Bar is a good recommendation. Arriving early and looking good always helps for places like this. However, in terms of celebrity sightings, I wouldn't expect to see them at the bars/clubs, especially on major nights. You have a bigger chance of running into them at stores like Fred Segal and other designer boutiques along Melrose Ave (between Crescent Heights and La Cienega) and on Robertson Blvd between Beverly Blvd and 3rd St, and expensive restaurants like Nobu sushi, Koi, The Ivy for breakfast/lunch etc.

I don't think you'll like the super Hollywood clubs and there are no celebs there, just lots of wannabe 21yr olds and tough bouncers. Les Deux is a popular celeb club, but you wouldn't be able to get in there unless you all look really good, get there early, and pay for table service (at least $500-$1K probably).

Another place that's popular is the Roosevelt Hotel where you can go to the Tropicana Bar outside during the day and Teddy's club there at night (same story as Les Deux for Teddy's). Other spot includes the Standard rooftop bar in Downtown LA, though it's not very close to Hollywood if you don't have a car.

For just regular fun, I've heard good things about Little Temple in Silver Lake. You can also explore the new Busby's in Hollywood, the Village Idiot on Melrose, Bungalow Club on Melrose, and all the bars along Sunset where you will be staying (SaddleRanch, Cabo Cantina, the Standard etc - though they're all somewhat touristy). I recommend checking reviews on www.yelp.com for the above places I mentioned and see if any of them sound fun.

These guys all run guestlists for Hollywood clubs. You can email them to get on the email list with clubs they promote each week and then get on their guestlist for whichever one you want the week you're here:

[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]