Where to stay/not stay in L.A.?

Question

Me and a friend are planning a trip to L.A. and want to stay at a nice hotel that is fairly cheap (around $100 per night or so) that is also in a nice, safe area. Are there any suburbs/areas around L.A. to avoid? Any nice, inexpensive areas? Any suggestions? Thanks for the help!

Also, searching through hotels Ive noticed Little Tokyo has cheaper hotels with, what seems like, nice rooms. Is Little Tokyo a place to avoid?

Answer 1

anything in Burbank, Pasadena, Sherman Oaks, near the airport is good. Stay away from south and east of downtown. Try and stay north and west for safety.

Answer 2

Little Tokyo isn't convenient to anything which is why it so inexpensive. It's practically in downtown L.A. which is not a comfortable place to be after business hours. Hollywood can get freaky at night which is why you'll want to visit but not to live there. Get on the Web and check out accommodations in the Santa Monica area, it may be a few bucks more but it's worth it. The air is cleaner, the streets are cleaner and it's interesting to hang around at night. It within walking to the Venice Boardwalk and the famous Santa Monica Pier. I hope you have a car because the lifestyle is based on the automobile in L.A. If you don't then public transportation on the West side (that includes S.M.) is simple to negotiate. You can easily travel from S.M. to Westwood Village or Hollywood. You'll need to change buses or take the underground to reach Tokyo, Olvira St., or the Coliseum. Do NOT use public transportation when people are going or coming from work! For less stress please buy a map or two, or print something out from your PC.

Answer 3

I'd personally suggest you stay in Hollywood, which is convenient to get to either by car or train and has lots of national chain hotels in your price range or less. It's not a beautiful neighborhood, but it is rapidly gentrifying and is generally safe.

Most national chains have at least one Hollywood location, usually quite close to the red line subway. I stayed at a Comfort Inn that was just steps from the Vermont/Beverly subway station and also very convenient to the freeway. The neighborhood wasn't the greatest, but it wasn't unsafe, and the hotel was pleasant and couldn't have been more convenient. There are similar hotels near Vermont/Santa Monica, Vermont/Sunset, and Hollywood/Western. Further west (near Hollywood/Highland) the neighborhood gets nicer, and the hotel prices are higher.

As for suburbs, there are strips of motels absolutely EVERYWHERE around L.A. Probably the nicest nearby suburb with a lot of motels is Pasadena. Those further south or east tend to be a bit seedier. You might also consider Anaheim (or nearby areas in Orange County), which caters to the Disneyland crowd.

Answer 4

Avoid Hollywood.

http://www.seeing-stars.com/Live/BeverlyHills.shtml

Tourists arriving in Southern California often confuse Hollywood with Beverly Hills.

Many visitors come to Hollywood expecting to find a gleaming city filled with movie stars, posh restaurants, grand mansions and expensive shopping areas. They are, of course, very disappointed; the actual suburb of Hollywood is far from glamorous. The real "Hollywood" is a state of mind, not a place; it's not so much a city as it is shorthand for the general movie and entertainment industry.





Anywhere on the Westside (Beverly Hills, Bel-Air, Brentwood, Malibu, etc.) or The Valley (Sherman Oaks, Burbank) is good.

Stay away from the urban neighborhoods or South (like Compton) or East L.A. And downtown L.A. That's about it.

Answer 5

You might want to try some of the hostels around Hollywood! If you just need a neat places to crash, (where you'll meet a lot of different travelers), hostels are VERY affordable.

The area of Hollywood is a lot of fun. There are lots of bars and clubs to go to. Some are pretty pricey. The people watching is great ... and you can see the "Hollywood" sign from Hollywood & Highland. Try the "Cahuenga Crawl" - its an area full of bars and partiers at night.

From there, you can also catch the RED LINE metro to downtown or Universal City. If you have a car, you can drive to the beach (abour 30-45 min west) from there. The gamous "Sunset Strip" in close too ... there you should visit the Rainbow. Its an old "glam rock" hangout with great food ... and more people watching!!

Answer 6

Little Tokyo is not so bad but it is near Skid Row. Its not really all that dangerous just don't look like a tourist and try not to go out late late at night.
DON't Go to: Compton, Pomona, East Los Angeles, Lynwood, Inglewood, Watts
For 100$ a night.....I don't think that will get you to the Ritz-Carlton in Pasadena because it is aroudn $400. You can try a Travel Lodge in Pasadena. That is Fairly Safe.
Try to stay away from the Motel 8 or Motel 6's

Answer 7

Anywhere in Hollywood, Beverly Hills area is fine. Avoid, South Central, Watts, Englewood, especially during the hours of 8 to 6 in the morning

Answer 8

little tokyo is japanese town area, lots of japanese ppl and restaurants there, and it's located at downtown area. actually downtown LA is not safe, but not the little tokyo. little tokyo is safer, but still.. it's still in downtown area. you might wanna stay in santa monica area, maybe at best western. cheap price and its nice enough to stay. in santa monica u'll have more place to go, coz all the fun is there. hollywood and beverly hills are near by.

Answer 9

ugh. friend the best advice I can give is stay the hell away from LA. I dont want to hurt anyones feelings, but LA should be avoided at all costs. Try going a little farther north because California has so much more to offer than that hell hole called LA.