Westin Los Angeles Airport
The Westin Los Angeles airport is a twelve story building shaped like an L and close to Los Angeles International Airport. The building is not very nice and looks like an average hotel building with its glass façade being typical for the 80iers.
The hotel has a driveway where one can park the car to unload the luggage and check in.
The lobby is spacious and huge with the check in desk opposite the entrance and a dedicated area for SPG Platinum and Gold customers. Due to the big glass windows the lobby is bright and gets a lot of natural light, which is very nice though the lobby has not really a modern appearance.
The hotel offers a Starbucks, the Daily Grill restaurant and the lobby lounge. Beverages are served in the lobby. The “Daily Grill Restaurant” is open from 06:00 to 22:00 Sunday to Thursday and till 23:00 on Friday and Saturday. The prices are average; not that expensive, but you will find cheaper restaurants in the proximity of the hotel, though not always in walkable distance and not always better. I find the number of food outlets a bit weak, the competitors like e.g. the Hilton offers more restaurants and I am also missing a real bar at the Westin.
On the third floor of the hotel is the Westin Workout Gym which is big but nevertheless could become quite busy in the peak time. There are a number of treadmills, steppers, cardiovascular machines, bikes and machines for body building available for an extensive workout. I have never been alone in the gym but on the other hand also had no problems to use the machines I wanted to use. A small sauna with a locker room is part of the gym. Personally I rate the sauna as rather small and not very nice but being European means I have a slightly different approach to a sauna. There is no area to relax. One can of course use the sun chairs, which are standing around the pool. The outdoor pool is adjacent to the gym; a Jacuzzi is available as well. The pool is located in the backyard of the hotel, therefore it does not get much sun and the planes approaching LAX fly over it, so it is a very noisy place.
While the gym is opened 24/7, the pool closes at 22:00. Towels and water are provided at gym and pool.
The hotel offers a business center with printers, telefax, Xerox machines and additional services for a fee. It is open 24/7.
visited on Escape to French Polynesia
Stays January 09, 2010
Arrival Date: January 09th, 2010
Departure Date: January 10th, 2010
Room type booked: Traditional Room with two single beds
Rate Plan: Advanced Purchase Rate
Room Number: 1211
Room Rate: 95.00 USD
Status of Guest Program: Platinum
We arrived at the hotels around 18:00 using the free shuttle from LAX. The shuttle dropped us in front of the hotel and we proceeded to the check in counters. The dedicated desk for SPG Gold and Platinum customers was not staffed at this time which means we had to queue at the regular desks. But the lines were not very long and soon it was out turn.
We were addressed by name and the features of the hotel were explained and since the lounge was closed during our visit, vouchers were offered for breakfast. The agent was friendly and explained what he was doing.
The room has the standard layout of a hotel room. After accessing the room there was a small hallway leading to the main room. In the hallway were the closet and the entrance to the bathroom.
The bathroom was of average size and features a sink, toilet and bath. The bath had the Westin heavenly shower head, which was like the shower curtain in good condition. Bathroom amenities were the Westin brand with the soap shaped like a tree leaf. Towels were provided for three guests. Water pressure could have been a bit stronger though. A hairdryer was available as well.
The room had two double beds on the left wide with a bedside table between the beds with a lamp and alarm clock. An armchair was place in front of the tinted window. Opposite the bed was a long sideboard / desk combination. A TV set was placed there, another part was used a as working desk and while the left part was more designed like a sideboard with drawers. On this part were tea and coffee facilities located.
The Westin Heavenly Bed was very comfortable and I had a good sleep during the night. The air condition was nearly free of drought, but the outside temperature was not that high.
Internet is free for guests with elite status or booking a room on the club floor, otherwise the fee is approximately 11.95 USD / 24 hours.
In the evening a few teenagers had a party at the pool and in the morning there were a lot of empty bottles and empty glasses and the pool as well as the Jacuzzi was not really clean. Not very nice and therefore I had to skip my morning swim. I do not blame the hotel for the behavior of their guests, but at least security could have stepped in as the pool area is monitored by surveillance cameras and I doubt the security staff did not notice it.
Breakfast was not in the restaurant but outside and consists of a buffet with packed cereals, muffins and coffee. Nothing fancy, but at this time it was free of charge and okay. There are a few chairs and tables but nothing really special. It is not worth to skip the 500 SPG points if this is the breakfast amenity, as at least one Starbuck is close by. The staff in the restaurant was not very friendly.
Check out was fast and it was not a problem that I used the room for three more hours while the main guest had already checked out in the early morning.
