Los Angeles, CA + Add a trip

If I had to stay in a hotel, I would like to stay at or near the beach in Santa Monica... Some favorites:

- Shutters on the Beach (very luxurious but understated "beach cottage" feel, suites with full frontal sea views especially sweet - http://www.shuttersonthebeach.com/)

- Oceana (nice cluster of suites around a pool, sea view rooms naturally desirable, Oceana is in near Montana, north of the SM Pier - http://www.hoteloceanasantamonica.com/)

- The Georgian (kind of old world and creaky but has a nice atmosphere especially if you pay extra for the sea views, the elevators are constantly broken and really slow even when working - http://www.georgianhotel.com/)

- Viceroy (only if you're into hip & trendy both in decor and party scene, they make it look like it's right at the beach but actually like 2 blocks from the beach behind shutters, it is a taller building so there are views from higher floors - http://www.viceroysantamonica.com/)

Farmers Daughter Hotel: Located across the street from Farmer's Market, The Grove and CBS, the Farmer's Daughter is a sexy little farm-themed boutique hotel. You can tell it was renovated from an old motel, but the decor is nice, the courtyard gets a lot of sun and the staff is very friendly. As a guest at the hotel, you can order room service from Tart restaurant which is right next door. I highly suggest this place, I've stayed here on 4-5 occasions and prefer it to the W Hotel in Westwood. Also nearby: Bank of America, CVS Pharmacy. http://www.farmersdaughterhotel.com/

Sustainability is so important these days; especially in with our world financial circumstances. So these days I let people know what cities I am traveling to and stay with people. I don't take advantage, but some form of bartering does occur. In LA, specifically it would vary between two other friends' places.

The Ambrose is a comfy boutique hotel in Santa Monica, great breakfast.

I can't recommend any hotels, as I had my own apartment. If you stay in LA for more then a month, then get yourself your own apartment, too. Maybe share a house with others. If your there to work, your company will pay less then for a hotel and (with a little luck) it comes with benefits like your very own pool, BBQ place, etc. (At least that's what I did as I wanted to be close to the office). So while I didn't want to spend hours on the freeway commuting everyday I looked at craigslist for suitable apartments. Seriously, you really don't want to spend more then 40 mins (equals 10-15 miles one-way distance) in your car every day. If you're close to the beaches, then you're a lucky bastard. Because that's where the party is.

Chateau Marmont gets the balance of being welcoming without being overly familiar just right. An excellent place to stay and highly recommended.

Downtown, The Standard is a really cool hotel. Big rooms, really well kept, cool atmosphere and a cool rooftop bar with pool. Definitely a top choice.

On the high end of the budget, I really like the London West Hollywood. Amazing rooms, amenities and great views of LA. In the same location but on a more affordable budget, I've stayed at the Chamberlain, which is a great boutique hotel hidden in the neighborhood of West Hollywood.

the grafton on sunset is not bad. right between mondrian and standard. and the resaurant is Boa so the steaks are awesome.

A little known secret that will make you feel like you own LA is Bamboo Retreats. These architecturally designed apartments rock. Everything is included Internet, Cable, Swimming pool, Jacuzzi and a fantastic atmosphere. This place is frequented by creative types doing interesting things. I can not recommend it highly enough.