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The Belamar
Rating Details »
Neighborhood: Manhattan Beach
3501 N Sepulveda Boulevard
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
(310) 750-0300
3501 N Sepulveda Boulevard
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
(310) 750-0300
- Price Range:
-
$$$
32 reviews for The Belamar
We stayed in a 1st floor room, which made it particularly easy to tend to our 14-week old puppy. The staff was very friendly with our dog, and made sure that we had what we needed. The $75 non-refundable deposit wasn't exactly easy to swallow, but it was worth having our dog with us.
The boutique hotel facade worked for this location, especially because it's off Sepulveda and Rosecrans. The beach is a little far out from this location, but at least you can reach the Strand for a long walk if you are in the mood.
The rooms were fine, the beds were comfy, the bathroom was tiny, and the service was terrible.
I stayed here for a bachelorette party and we had 3 rooms. We weren't trying to pack people in and schtupp them, everyone had their own bed space.
The front desk lady who was on when I arrived finished a personal phone call before even smiling at me to welcome me to her hotel. We had problems all weekend with our room keys not working and they were none too pleased to accommodate us.
Although the price was right for the weekend I'd rather pay a bit more and be treated better.
I was here for an event, so I can't comment on the quality of the guest rooms. What I can comment on is the vibe, decor, and cleanliness.
It's a boutique hotel, designed with mid-century modern furniture, "retro-modern", with a sophisticated color palette. It's clean, bright, and well-maintained.
The outdoor patio patio/courtyard was clean and well maintained. The only complaint I had was that there was a weird sewer-like smell emanating from somewhere. Not sure what it was, but I hope they fix the problem!
The hotel is gorgeous and offers various amenities. The location is nice but the staff is horrible. The front desk women was incredibly rude and unhelpful with what I needed, and had me wait for 10 minutes while she used the phone. I would think customer service at a hotel would be the most important thing next to cleanliness and decor.
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There is a fine line between chic and cheesy. The Belamar tiptoed past chic and jumped into a giant pool of nachos. ( no trans fat, though)
I'm thinking swanky luxury beach hotel- the foyer with the classy furniture and fireplace is awesome. But once you enter the stairway, it's quite another experience. The ceilings are really low, makes me feel like Will Ferrell in "Elf". Also, there are creepy pictures of dolls in the hallway, which don't quite go with the decor. I know, I know, it's mod. But it's not that type of mod. It's more of a 'I dream of Jeanie" mod- not a 50's barbie house mod. (is that mod?) I like the attention to detail, but there isn't much else. Flowers in the hallway? Nice chandeliers, soft music floating around, soft lighting, or little decorative scones / tables in the hallway? Nada.
The pictures look really good, but truth is, I was very disappointed with the room. It looks very ikea-ish, and there's a little TV in the corner. The fridge underneath is a big plus, and I do like the complimentary bath robes in the closet. But for 350 bucks a pop, I'd rather check out a quaint bed and breakfast somewhere else.
The restaurant is decent. The food is good, although wraps and sandwiches make up 70% of the small menu. Not traditional at all. Not quite a date place either. They play really bad jazz music/soul, and the decor doesn't quite make up its mind about what it wants to be. Modern? Classic? Modern Classic? Not recommended for big parties- we had 20 people split up awkwardly into 3 surfboard shaped tables side by side. Weird.
The staff was really nice though.
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Nice boutique hotel with a lounge vibe, tastefully decorated rooms, stayed there for almost a week for work, primarily because they allow dogs and it was a good overall experience as long as you don't need anything from the front desk.
If you don't expect any actual service from the ding dong hotel staff things should go alright for you, but if like me you expect some type of service expect to be disappointed-although the restaurant staff is pretty well on top of it and they have excellent food.
I got a ridiculously good rate on a room on http://hotwire.com and stayed there for a Saturday night after attending a wedding. The room was clean, pretty and quiet. The hotel is right off Sepulveda and across from a big shopping center, so if you're not in the mood to order room service (or if your big oaf of a boyfriend hid the room service menu under his jacket), there are plenty of places nearby to choose from.
We did end up ordering breakfast the night before, and I have to say that it was pretty disappointing--the oatmeal was fine, but the little muffin platter was pretty lame. Not only were the muffins tiny (at $4 a pop, I was expecting a normal sized muffin, not bite sized), they had no flavor at all. Look at my picture of the blueberry muffin and see if you can tell me where the blueberries are! Also, the chocolate croissant was tiny, and rather than being filed with chocolate as the name would have implied, it was basically a small, stale croissant with a little bit of hershey's syrup drizzled on it. So, yeah, skip that.
A lot of people mentioned the weird pop art, but for some reason I didn't even notice it. I guess their theory was that they wanted "interesting" art to break up the monotony of the design? I don't know, prints on the walls rarely make or break a place for me. I probably wouldn't recommend this place to someone from out of town (given it's location), but if you're an angelino who doesn't want to wallow in the filth of your own apartment for a couple of nights, then yeah, 4 stars for the clean sheets/rooms/lobby.
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Where to begin.
Was in town interviewing for jobs. A friend offered to put me up at this hotel, since he didn't have room in his house for me. So, his assistant called in his credit card info and informed the hotel that he would paying for my hotel room.
I arrive to check in at about 11pm, and the guy at the desk can't seem to figure out what's going on. He's got my name on file, but he's showing that I've already checked in so he's kind of wondering why I am at the desk and I don't just go to my room. I inform him that a friend has reserved and paid for the room for me but that I'm the one staying in it and I've just arrived. He still seems to think that the friend who reserved the room is in it, and that he needs to call the room. I tell him that my friend is in fact at his home in his bed sleeping. Eventually, the guy gets on his walkie talkie phone and talks to someone who seems to understand the arrangement. Guy apologizes profusely and gives me a room key. Note: he was nice the whole time, just didn't figure out what was going on.
So I go to the room and the key doesn't work. Perfect. Back to the desk. Guy codes a new key, and walks me to the room. This time the key works and, lo and behold, there's already someone in this room. Guy asks me if this is my friend. I explain that no, my friend is still at his home less than a mile away, and he's still sleeping. I don't know who this person is in the room. I am asked to wait by the room while guy goes back to the desk to sort this out. Understandably, I hear the click of the deadbolt as I wait outside this poor guy's room.
It's also shit hot and humid in the hotel, but I don't blame them for that, it was a hot weekend.
Finally, the valet guy comes and gets me and takes me to a new room. However, I am informed that the hotel will have to run my credit card. Odd, I think, since the room is paid for already, but I figure it's just for incidentals. Nope, it's for the entire amount of the stay. OK, I'll just follow up with my buddy to make sure (foreshadowing) we don't both get charged for the room.
Luckily, there is no one in the new room. I set a wake-up call using the automated system on the phone and go to sleep, as the alarm clock is a bit tricky and I can't quite figure out how to change the time or the alarm time on it (and I'm technically inclined).
Fortunately I also set my cell phone alarm because the automated wake-up call never happened. Off to my interviews, and my friend informs me that his assistant has called the hotel and everything is straightened out - they're reversing the charge on my card, and they're charging his card.
Rest of the stay goes more or less as planned, except when I come back to the hotel on my last night I am intercepted by the guy at the desk and he informs me that they need to run my credit card again. To which I say (and I've been polite the whole time till now) "you've gotta be fucking kidding me. You've already charged my friend's card. We've been over this." Etc. So for some reason they charge me $147 and change. I don't know what that number is. It's not quite the nightly rate, I've incurred no incidentals. Maybe it was 3 nights deposit for incidentals? I have no clue but I have to get up early so I sign the thing and go to bed.
Mention to my friend that I was charged this amount, and his assistant follows up again to make sure we weren't double-charged. No, he's been charged the full room rate for all nights and we can't figure out what this new amount is, but his assistant calls and makes sure everything is charged to my friend's card.
So I checked my statement yesterday and Hotel Belamar has taken off the $147 charge, and added a charge for $525 and change (seems to be the cost of 3 nights, after tax). Checked with my friend again - no, he's still been charged the full amount as well. So we've been double-charged for a shitty customer service experience. Another call by the assistant and supposedly my charge has been reversed but it won't show up on my statement for another few days. I'll believe it when I see it.
Belamar seems to be a pseudo-Spanish word meaning "Beautiful Sea". It sure doesn't mean "We have our shit together and offer good customer service" or "We are able to grasp the concept of one person paying for another person's hotel room."
Oh yeah - hotel was okay. Wi-fi worked. Walls were a little thin. Didn't try the restaurant.
Instant karma strikes again.
3 am the night before, we were walking to the room.
We yanked all the "do not disturb" signs off all the doors that had them.
8 am, completely hung over and dead to the world, I am awakened by a maid in my room just like in that scene from the movie "Tommy Boy."
Apparently my "do not disturb" sign was replaced by a "please make up room" sign.
Nice move night watchman, nice move indeed.
Cool hotel with a cool outdoor lounge. I like this place because I have friends from Santa Monica all the way down to Torrance so this is a great central location.
Bleach.
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A very cute, pet friendly, newly renovated, boutique hotel located in beautiful Manhattan Beach, The Belamar gets 4.5 stars from me. The inside decor in both the lobby and rooms is modern and classy with the exception of the weird doll pictures located through out each floor. The staff is much less creepy than the dolls and are actually very friendly and helpful. They have a very nice bar called 'Second Story" which is surprisingly located on the second floor.
Even though parking can be tough in Manhattan Beach, there is plenty of free valet parking on sight and free street parking if you don't like the whole valet thing.
Overall, great place, great location. The pool would be the major weak spot as it is semi inside and semi outside and looks as though a tornado came tumbling through. Also, their restaurant which also the bar really does not feel like a restaurant. Great place to get a drink but isn't quite the atmosphere that would feel right for breakfast.
One final note, please read some of the older reviews with caution. Since renovations at this hotel have been completed, some of the older gripes people had may have gone away as the hotel has been upgraded.
This looks like an amazing and fun place on the website. We got a great deal and when I booked I was super excited. We walk in all exhausted from the beach and wait in line for fifteen minutes to be helped. Front desk staff "night manager" was the rudest, meanest, coldest person I have ever encountered. He must have bags and bags of lumps of coal from Santa.
The room was loud and when we complained, it was our fault. Please avoid this hotel that tries way too hard to be cool. It's across from a mall and miles from the beach. EEKK!
Two words: Dog friendly.
That's huge! I didn't realize that the hotel was dog-friendly until I arrived, so Sancho wasn't with me, but the simple fact that I could have brought him was huge. The Belamar in Manhattan Beach is a small boutique hotel - well it's not that small, probably has close to 70-80 rooms. Other boutique hotels I have been to have less than 30. The decor is retro modern, very colorful with kitchy doll portraits on the walls in the hallways and pictures of small dogs in the rooms. I recently stayed there in one of their suites and I have to say that it had all the comforts of home and was lovely through and through. This is a green hotel, meaning all their bath products are green and the small gift shop in the lobby sells green/sustainable products. So cool!
The hotel staff is amazing, and when I thought I left my cell phone in my room after I had already checked out they were so accommodating. The maintenance guy even helped me search the room up and down until my man found my phone in my car outside.
The hotel has a great courtyard area that surrounds the pool/jacuzzi area. They also have a few conference rooms for private parties and the Second Story restaurant is one of the best I've ever seen in a hotel. The food, bar and staff are all wonderful. I live in LA but I would stay at the Belamar again in a heartbeat.
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Really, it's about a 3.5 but I just can't give them four stars because there were a couple of issues but mainly the third floor smells moldy and our rooms really smelled when we first checked in. The front desk person explained it was because they were still renovating. Hmm.
Also, I understand it's a boutique hotel but why is there only one ice machine and it's on the first floor? And pretty far out of the way.
The pool closed at 10 p.m. Damn. But the courtyard was still open and it was nice by the two fireplaces.
They don't sell contact solution (but have a number of other items if you did forget to pack them). Fortunately, there's a CVS across the street about two lights down. It is not, however, a "5-minute walk" as they claimed. More like 15 in heels.
At least the beds are comfy, they have Lather bath products and I dug the swanky decor. The huge posters of the 50s dolls though were very disturbing but I forgave them because I know it's part of their mod decor and I generally am appreciative of it.
Still, it's wonderful they have complimentary valet.
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I was going for a 3.5, but what the hell -- I'm feeling generous enough for a 4. Chalk it up the crazy Valley of the Dolls.
Belamar-don't-call-it-Braemar-by-accident is an interesting place. ...Nestled in what looks like a condo or apartment complex from the outside, it's off of Sepulveda just before the road turns into PCH. I found this to be inconvenient, as I had booked my hotel (blindly) through Priceline, and had specifically stated I was looking for something in the Redondo Beach neighborhood, i.e. by the Pier (where we were attending a wedding at the expensive Portofino hotel). But it's not Belamar's fault that they're 4 miles up the road, so that point is neither here nor there points wise, but still worth mentioning.
As far as price for what you get... Hmm. I purchased our one-night stay via Priceline, and it's assumed that I got a cherry discount. So for what *I* paid, this was a worthy hotel. But would I have paid more for it? No way. For the prices they normally charge, I could've easily stayed at the Crowne Plaza right on the water, or something comparable.
I didn't experience any of the hotel's amenities, except for the continental breakfast in the "lounge" (aka random room at the end of the 2nd floor maze-y hallway). And as far as that went, it was ok. Just ok. Slim pickings included toast, 4 types of cereal, muffins, juice, and coffee. *But,* I give major bonus points for offering soy milk as an option instead of dairy for the cereal and coffee. Score! Plus, they say the exclusively (and proudly) brew only Starbucks coffee, so you get to carry around a Bookie's cup w/o ever really leaving.
And lastly, a nod to my original point -- the dolls. Everywhere you look in this hotel, there are these poster-sized framed portraits of dolls. Like the crazy, vintage pseudo-Barbie types who genuinely look like they should encompass the title of the book, Valley of the Dolls. It was a weeeeee weird. And semi-creepy. But if vintage dolls (who look like they're staring at you) is your thang, then who am I to butt in to a beautiful relationship. With you and the dolls, that is. Not me. Never me. Stay far far away from me if you're one of those crazy doll-devotees. You're right up there with the fans-of-clowns, in my book.
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The Belamar is a larger sized boutique hotel with a delightful modern decor, friendly and helpful staff as well as free valet. Even though they are remodeling their lounge and restaurant, there is room service available and a free continental breakfast. Also, they provide a small bar and cozy, upscale seating area thats filled with candles and plays chill loungy music.
There is also a nice sized patio perfect for relaxing, and a cute little pool too!
The room was great! Pretty colors, stylish, neat and clean. The bed was perfect and had yummy soft sheets and pillows. They provided robes and Lather products in the bathroom.
There are lots of restaurants within walking distance and the beach is a little over a mile away.
For the price, its a sweet deal.
I truly enjoyed my stay there and cant wait to check out the Vibe lounge and restaurant the next time I come out.
http://www.thebelamar.com
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The hotel was cool, had a boutique, funky vibe to it. In the afternoon, they had fresh baked, warm chocolate and also oatmeal raison cookies at the front desk. They also make cool fresh fruit flavored water. The beds were really comfy. The only issues were having to walk all the way to the 1st floor to get ice and when I asked for a hard boiled egg twice from room service, I was given a fried egg. :-(
I didn't eat at the place, aside from room service. The pool looked nice, but didn't have time. The valet is very easy to use.
Nice enough, comfy bed and a good rate for the location. Attention to detail was lacking...my room had a used bar of soap in the soap dish and open shampoo, etc in the shower...um...can I get a fresh one?
Mini-fridge seems out of place, just sitting on the floor with a towel under it...um...dare i open it?
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Considering the other options in these parts, the Belamar is hard to beat. It's a great place for all types of travelers (biz or for fun). I've stayed there for the past few weeks on business and found it to be pretty good.
The rooms are comfortable--the beds are bomb. The bathrooms kinda annoyed me though--bad lighting, awkward door/toilet maneuvering and heinous smelling products (if you want to smell like a man, which I didn't, then they might be good for you). Although they don't have simple things in the room like a coffee maker, you can request one and they'll send one up free of charge. Same with getting a fridge. These are the things that a business traveler like me requires at my disposal.
The food there is pretty good--but if you want to get anything other than aps, salads or sammys, they run you pretty high. Entrees for around $30, then if you get room service it ends up being $45 for a stupid steak. But, one thing that I loved: they bake warm cookies every night and have them at the front desk and in the bar for anyone to enjoy--thought that was a nice touch. And they have live jazz sometimes, too.
The pool is pretty pimp--with fireplaces and all to make the outdoor pool more accessable in the "cold" winter months. However, my biggest beef with the Belamar is the gym. It's ridiculously inadequate. It's about half of a room in terms of size (they decided to use the other half to house the hotel's only guest-accessible ice machine) and has a piddly set of free weights (starting at 15 lbs) a row/lat machine, 1 bench and 3 cardio machines (a bike, a treadmill and a weird gazelle thing). Working out is part of my daily routine and pretty important, especially when I'm somewhere different and forced to eat out all the time. If they worked on the gym, I think I'd give em' a better rating.
The staff is always really nice, although you need to follow up with them if you ask anything "out of the ordinary" beyond the normal wake up calls or room service requests. The internet was down for an entire night without any real explanation until about 5 hours and 6 phones calls later. I also asked them to make me a dinner reservation a few times and they "forgot."
I don't want to hate on the Belamar too much though, because, really it's a nice place to stay. I'm just particular when I'm forced to do doc review in Torrance for weeks on end!
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This well appointed and clean hotel has been recently renovated to be very stylish and more than a little trendy. The oversized photo-paintings of Barbie-like dolls from a bygone era watch from the walls of every hallway. The furniture is clean, cool, and if you decide that you like it enough to take home with you, the prices for each piece are included on the same bedstand list that allows you to purchase home linens and bathrobes.
The hotel caters to couples and singles, with a restaurant and lounge bar which hosts frequent live music performances. Unfortunately I chose it for a family stay, which meant that the 4 person max-capacity was actually a bit too small for our needs. Despite having a very limited number of rooms, we were immediately re-booked in one of the swanky junior suites at a very reaonable rate, and the room was refitted with mini-fridge, microwave oven, and an additional rollaway bed. The manager on staff truly made every effort to keep us comfortable and happy.
The hotel is directly across from the Manhattan Village Mall, which has department stores, movie theaters, a Fry's Electronics, several additional eateries of good to very good quality, as well as a 24 hour supermarket (Ralph's).
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5 stars, yep! Man, I loved this place. I randomly chose to stay at the Belamar because of it's proximity to the Home Depot Center (Soccer tournament). On the website, it looked like a cute, boutique hotel - not overly Hollywood though.
I drive in and to my surprise, the valet and overnight parking is FREE! How nice in LA. I checkin and the staff asks if I need anything, pulling out toothbrushes, toothpaste, etc. Because the restaurant and bar are getting revamped, there were folks at the makeshift bar in the lobby laughing and drinking. It was actually pretty welcoming because everybody just looked happy and content.
Walking through the hallways, you have a sense this could have been a pretty popular Cali motel in the 70's, but the new decor is swanky and calming. FREE wireless! The bed was awesome, super-comfy and soft linens. Although the bathroom was awkward (i slammed my finger in between the door and the counter), that's the only minor issue I had. Actually, a mini-bar would be nice to have also.
FREE breakfast in the morning! Great tasting flavored-water in the lobby. Starbucks coffee. Good-sized gym (it has one of every cardio machine and a healthy set of weights - that's all you really need). All of this for a really good rate (less than $150), and a smiling staff. Sold!
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I have not a single complaint about my 9 night business stay at this stylish boutique hotel. I must dispell the negative reviews below that complain about service/attention to detail -- those reviewers would be surprised to find a whole new scene here: management has hired new staff and renovated the entire hotel.
The bed was divinely soft and draped in white 300-thread pure white sheets and a down comforter. I felt like I was floating on a cloud. The room was immaculate and tastefully decorated with a modern aesthetic (ahem, no flower-themed sheets like old Marriotts and Holiday Inns...my pet peeve! no more flowery sheets in this lifetime for me, please.).
They have an "anything, anytime" hotline for guests, and the front desk even offers fresh baked cookies and apples on a daily basis. Staff is SUPER helpful and sweet and always greeted me with a smile. The pool and hot tub are lined in blue mosaic tile (read: gorgeous!!!) heated, and surrounded by candles, fireplaces, and plush, padded & toweled chairs for laying out. There is also an uber-cute poolside bar and patio area. I would definitely stay here again!
FYI, VALET PARKING IS NOW FREE (it was previously $18)
Nice design, stylish beautiful room. Hotel is newly renovated.
We have a free internet access and complimentary valet parking.
The restaurant inside of the hotel is pricey. But dinner was really delicious!
The bed was great, instead of very poor sheets (some worn spots were so unattractive!).
We think the Belamar hotel is a pretty good choice!
Stayed here last week and overall was underwhelmed by the Belamar. Following are the things that made an impression on me:
1) $18 a day for valet parking is too high for the location and quality level of this hotel.
2) The area around the elevators on the lobby level had a distinct (and bad) smell of diesel fuel (or something like it) all three times I used the elevator.
3) The standard rooms are average size, bathrooms are small. The carpet in my room was not worn, but had some damage. In the middle of the room it looked like someone had set the iron on the floor and burned the carpet. Also, the door didn't fit into the door jam (the top half of the door stuck into the room by about an inch). It looked like at one point it had to be broken into, which was a little creepy -- made me wonder what might have happened in the room I was about to go to sleep in.
3) Ordered room service for dinner; an appetizer, dessert and a soft drink. Cost before tip was $38. Again, this is high for the location and quality of the hotel. Worse, the appetizer, Chicken Satay, was easily the worst I ever had -- the chicken was repulsive (very fatty).
4) Bed was very comfortable -- they got that right.
The management of the Belamar tries to portray it as an upscale boutique hotel and the website certainly tries to reinforce that image. My stay here indicates that it is not -- it's more of a dressed up airport hotel.
But, at $149 a night before tax, it really isn't that bad of a deal. If I had to stay the night somewhere near LAX (LAX is a few miles north) I still might stay here due to its proximity to downtown Manhattan Beach, but I definitely would not pay more than $150/night.
So, when I go to places that provide me with an experience, (positive or negative), I feel compelled to yelp, yelp, yelp. Several times during my stay at the Belamar, I was pleasantly surprised by the effort the entire staff made. Here's a not-so-quick laundry list:
Valet parking - super friendly staff, hard working, very helpful in terms of directions, etc.
Cute rooms - love the soothing, fresh feel of the baby blue/cocoa/silver combos throughout the hotel. I appreciate the consistency of the design and the modern feel. (The oversized retro doll and chihuahua photos were fun).
Front desk staff - very friendly - always greeted us (leaving or returning) with a warm smile - allowed a late check-out, gave us some tips on late-night eats after the hotel's kitchen had closed and offered access to the lobby computer; check-in/out seamless, easy and hassle-free.
Housekeeping - I can't remember the last time I stayed at a hotel where the housekeeping staff always greeted us with a smile, a hello, or a pleasant acknowledgment.
Beach access - there is actually a very pleasant walkway leading to the beach from the hotel. If you don't mind a leisurely walk (throw a towel in your beach bag and go), it's nice and relaxing - very quiet - and less frustrating than driving your car down to MB and dealing with garages, meters, hilly parallel parking, and amidst it all, the potential for parking tickets. I didn't mind the exercise at all! (1.5 - 2 miles depending on how close to the pier you want to be). In fact, the neighborhood that you'll walk through has an eclectic variety of beautiful homes - very nice walk if you ask me!
****Cookies in the lobby are SPLENDID!! Don't pass em up. Delicious, soft, chocolate chip cookies. Icing on the cake!
I love the simple modern design of the hotel. It has very soothing colors. The rooms are very spacious.
Internet access is free!!
There's complimentary service to and from the airport.
Valet is $18 a day. Even though there's a sign saying don't park in the neighborhood, i don't see why you can't.
I just wished it was closer to the beach.
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Good hotel. The service was tight; people were cool; casual atmosphere. I am not an expert on hotels, but I found the rooms to be nice and spacious. The hotel is fairly inexpensive and It is close to the highway which made it convenient to other parts of the City. The only downside is the bar/lounge, which was barren on my visit. However, the bartender, Justin, was cool. Also, the bar/lounge waitstaff was excellent!
I'm staying here while I move to Manhattan Beach and they are Fabulous. My dog is 50 lbs. and is welcomed here. I know lots of people are nervous around bigger dogs... She looks about 75 with all of her hair. They do not distrub my room and I can stop at the front desk to request maid serivce. Usually in my room and gone within an hour. That's service. Valet and front desk greet me by name. I travel alot and I truly feel this is a great place for business or pleasure.
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I work in a customer service related field...therefore, I try to be really nice and polite to the people that I encounter in other related fields.
However, from the first moment I arrived at the Belamar, despite all tries at being super friendly and nice, I was treated with rudeness at the Belamar front desk. Yeah, the place has free valet and decent rates, but the location is rather sub-par and so is the food. The hottub and pool close at 10pm--which is also not good.
I came here with my then boyfriend, and it just was not a pleasant experience--even for a city like LA. Their continental breakfast is served in the hallway between the front desk and guest rooms. There are two small tables. The rooms themselves were great, but thats about it. I would feel much more comfortable giving this place three stars if the front desk was alot more receptive, they actually had a place to sit down and eat breakfast, and the pool didn't close so early.
All in all, its a pretty hotel that looks good on paper, if you don't mind bearing with bad guest service and a front desk that never picks up the phone.
Also...the room service that is allegedly "24 hours" closes at 10pm as well. Heads up.
Nice hotel. Very clean, good bar and a pool. The beach and the restaurants/bars are just barely close enough to walk to. Taking a cab might be a better option than hiking down the trail that they tell you about at the front desk. Dog friendly but not dog smelly. Very nice place.
the hotel is a real cute, swanky, chill, retro spot. i love that they offer fresh fruit infused water to their guests in the lobby. also great, complimentary valet service. nice!! the restaurant is a hole in the wall but it is also adorable. one thing that i really liked was their decor. i loved the pictures along the walls near the rear entrance to the foyer/courtyard area. their sinks were pretty awesome in the restrooms as well. i noticed a lot of the little things. i was really impressed. from the outside this place looks somewhat like a lil brown paper bag covered shoe box. on the inside, it's definitely NOT what you'd expect. i'd love to stay here sometime. that would befun.
Kind of an upscale motel feel, which I like, especially while in LA. It gives me a sort of nostalgic hollywood feel. The place is modern with a focus on the courtyard. I had a patio room that faced the couryard and I felt very safe with the door open for fresh air during the afternoon. There is a pool off to the side, it is small but good for a dip and small laps. The upstairs rooftop bar area is pretty cool and their live music was a pleasant surprise on my recent biz trip to LA. The gym is tiny but serves it's purpose. The hotel staff was accomodating. I especially enjoyed the guy at the front desk as he was so welcoming. But then, later, while at the computer checking my e-mail, I overheard him getting "reprimended" by the hotel manager for something really minor - I forget what it was. I really hate it when managers - at restaurants, hotels, etc. publicly scold an employee. It is completely unprofessional and looks really bad to guests. Besides this - I enjoyed my stay here.
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ok so it's pretty cute and it WAS great before... but this past weekend it was HORRIBLE!
we asked for new towels 4 times and they never came.
the shuttle service...well that doesn't exsist.
this was the best...
about 11pm..
me to front desk "excuse me, what time is the pool open until?"
jerk @ front desk "it's closed"
me "umm...so what time does it close?"
jerk "10pm"
me "what time does it open?"
jerk "in the morning."
me "ummm...what time in the morning?"
jerk "10"
me "so it's open from 10am to 10pm?"
jerk "yes"
me "is there a jaccuzzi?"
jerk " i don't think so"
me " are you serious?..wow, ok i'm gonna go ummm thanks"
ARE YOU SERIOUS???????
ya'll need to restaff that joint. we are sooo never coming back.
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