A good, solid, basic HI Express hotel right in the heart of Hollywood. I grew up in LA, but now live in a neighboring county. Had to get a room for a wedding in Hollywood and this property was available in what I knew was a relatively safe location and was at a reasonable price (direct from HI website).

Location: First off, Hollywood itself isn't a real nice place to stay - it's sketchy in several areas and not necessarily what many out-of-towners might picture. This hotel is on a main street, walking distance to Hollywood Blvd and in a safer part of Hollywood than many other hotels.

Room: Very clean, still had a 'newly built' smell and feel to it, which was nice. Bathroom was well-sized, lots of hot water and great pressure. Yes, the air conditioning unit is noticeably noisy - I got used to the sound and didn't hear it within minutes, but if you get bothered by this sort of thing it's something to note.

Breakfast: Nice, sunny room with plenty of well-stocked items. The service lady who managed the area did a great job of keeping it clean and prepped. We were able to find seating without issue.

Staff: Yeah, the check-in person was aloof (a young guy, obviously not viewing this as a big career break or anything), but every single other person we encountered was polite, helpful and smiling. (I especially want to note the cleaning crew, who took the time to acknowledge us with a pleasant and sincere 'hello' or 'good morning' each time we passed.)

Parking: $20 for in-out space, with $2 city tax = $22. I don't see the point in this. I think guests should get to park for free. But, it is LA and free parking isn't typical. Though, that'd be a nice touch.

Pluses: There's a little market across the street that was well-stocked, lots of wine, chips, etc. Very convenient. Hotel is near freeways, so central to getting around. Walkable to Hollywood Blvd, if that's important to you.

Minuses: Parking fee. But that's really about it.

One last note: If street noise will bother you, be sure to ask for a room toward the back. We didn't ask for it, but got #442 which was tucked in the back with a nice view of Hollywood Blvd's buildings. We couldn't hear the traffic. But the street the hotel is on is a *main* street, constantly busy - so consider this when checking in.

All in all, I'd stay here again easily and can recommend it to families with kids, tourists of any age or anyone looking for a place to stay when coming up for an event at the Bowl (which is literally walking distance from the hotel).

I spent 2 nights at this hotel with my wife and son during our USA holiday. From what I know most people stay in Hollywood, Santa Monica, or Anaheim area, and initially I had wanted to stay at the Holiday Inn next to Santa Monica Pier, but read from many reviews that it's noisy because it's next to a freeway. I got this hotel recommendation from answers.yahoo.com.

The best thing that this hotel is that it's refurnished/opened only around middle of this year, so everything is new. The reception is not big, but has a contemporary look. The front desk folks are helpful and friendly. I asked for a high-floor room, and got the 8th floor (the highest). The room is surprisingly big and has got a plasma TV. Breakfast is complimentary and is substantial - cereal, fresh milk, cinnamon rolls, toast, jam, butter, banana, coffee, team, juice, scrambled eggs, etc...great for preparing for an onslaught of LA in the morning ! Interent in room is both wireless (signal weak) and wired (sufficient bandwidth).

The hotel is located very centrally, taking about 10 min to walk to Hollywood Boulevard where all the action is. For about USD 150 per night, this is good value. Note that many US hotels charge separately for parking, and this is no different - I had to fork out $20 per night.

There's also a good grocery store, pizza place, and Subway just across the street. Further down towards Hollywood Boulevard is the high-class Renaissance Hotel, which costs probably twice as much.

On the downside....the pillows too small and flabby for my liking. Ironically the less flabby ones have the word "Firm" imprinted on them, while the more flabby ones show the word "Soft". Definitely not the best pillows I've experienced. Also, to reach the 8th floor, ones has to take an elevator to the 5th floor first, then change to another elevator. A slight hassle but no big deal.

All in all, a very nice hotel that is centrally located and reasonably priced. Will recommend to friends.

We had such a great stay at this hotel. From check in, the staff was great ( Especially Anthony -front desk and marieta-dining room). Very friendly staff,courteous and helpful.Its a VERY clean hotel with beautiful rooms, nice and quiet too. They have a great pool, internet access, a gym, and free breakfast...the selection was actually pretty good..coffee,tea,juice,bacon,,cinnamon buns,biscuits,yogurt,eggs,toast,bagels,cereals,etc.It was a perfect start to the day. The hotel is central to everything..buses,subway,restaurants,shopping. Its in a very safe area of the city too. I highly recommend this hotel

My husband and I stayed at this hotel in July and found it to be an ideal location for exploring Hollywood and Los Angeles. I have just read a review about unhelpful staff and wish to say that our experience was just the opposite. We too found ourselves in a room facing the wall of the swimming pool. I could not sleep and felt very uncomfortable in this room . On the second morning we asked to be moved. The staff could not have been more understanding and helpful. We were able to move immediately. Having said this I could not have stayed another night in this basement room. It should be made clear when booking that the rooms are inferior but the staff are not to blame. By the sound of it this is probably common occurance! Breakfast was a plaesant experience with the food continually being freshly topped up by a lovely lady who seamed to be running it on her own. All in all out stay here was very good and we would definately return just making sure we dont have a pool wall view!!!!