Jewel City Inn Glendale — Hotel in Glendale

My general policy for these reviews when I’m torn about the star rating is to give the place the benefit of the doubt and “round up.” After some thought, I decided to do the same with the Glen Capri Inn and Suites, that’s why I went with the three stars.||||There is definitely some good about this motel, which is what it is, a motel. The room is clean and remodeled and looks very nice—clean is the most important. The amenities that are here are good, such as the microwave and refrigerator. They have a small bar of soap at the sink instead of the liquid (I don’t like the liquids), but there are just the liquid dispensers for soap, shampoo and conditioner in the shower. The Internet is good, reliable, and fast and the TV is very nice with a good cable selection. Housekeeping is fine and the man in the office is friendly. ||||That’s about it for the good. Here’s the not so good, the room is very small, but adequate—big enough for one person, and perhaps a couple. There is no dresser (no room for one) although there are a couple of small drawers in the nightstands and some shelves in the etagere that serves as a “closet” and rack for the fridge and microwave, but no place to really unpack. There are a couple of missing amenities that to me really aren’t amenities, they’re basics. There is no clock, no Kleenex, no ice bucket (because there is no ice machine), and get this, there’s not even a pen and paper. I’ve never, ever been to a hotel/motel—regardless of how cheap—that didn’t have a pen and paper in the room. The freezer section of the fridge has a small ice tray that you can fill that will make ten ice-cube-machine size ice cubes. There is no desk, just a small table and chairs that look like they came from IKEA. Despite the good Internet, this isn’t a good place for a business traveler. There is a bit of traffic noise, but not the worst I've ever experienced. Even though the drapes are opaque, there is a lot of light and you have to close the bathroom door to block light from the bathroom window. The room just doesn't get dark at night.||||Parking is free, but there isn’t much of it, possibly enough if the place is full, but I’m not sure. From what I can see, street parking is in short supply as well. There are some restaurants in the area, but mostly small hole-in-the-wall type places or fast food. The hole-in-the-walls might be good, but they just don’t look very appetizing and the reviews aren’t all that positive. If that's not what you want, then at mealtime, you’re going to have to drive.||||The Glen Capri Inn and Suites (not to be confused with the Glen Capri Motel which is a few blocks down the street) is satisfactory at best. The area is pretty industrial and there’s not much in walking distance, but there are services (grocery store, Target, etc.) not too far away (10-15 minute drive). ||||Since my usual reason for being in this part of Los Angeles is business, I probably won’t be back. My “average” ranking is the “benefit of the doubt rounding up” rating, and I was strongly considering only two stars. If you just want a crash pad for sleeping and showering, it will work, but if you want something more, you’ll want to...

Number of stars were decreasing as my stay prolonged! At first view, I thought it was a 3 star, but unfortunately a combination of bad service and unhappy inn keeper made me give it a one star. Location is not good, behind a car repair shop, some industrial area, very noisy. We were on the first floor, and through the night I woke up many times by the sound of someone walking upstairs, and I'm a sound sleeper! As we entered the room, the strong smell of Lysol and cleaners made my eyes teary. Room was ok but linens were very dirty. Hair all over the pillows and sheets, left over mascara on a couple of them. The owner lady sounded upset when I asked for clean sheets, she is not the most welcoming. Her husband is nice though. Hair dryer didn't work, night light was flickering! Water temperature is only set to be luke warm so a nice shower after a busy day is out of question. shampoo and conditioner very cheap. Would not recommend at all.

Update: I came back with a bunch of bite marks on my arms. At the first glance, my husband said they were bed bugs. But I didn't take it seriously. Same day I asked my co traveler who slept in the other bed to see if she had any bites like mine. And yes she did. Not as many as mine but the same pattern. Possiblity...

The Hotel had Good Reviews... Gave this place a try for 1 night stay. At my budget of $100 (tax incl). The Queen room is small. When we walked in yuck it smelled like smoke or stale cigarettes and there were cigarette stains everywhere on the carpet and bedding. The room was fairly clean and could tell it was semi remodel in furniture. It has a mini fridge and microwave. So besides the weird smoke smell and lysol cleaner I still wanted to look past it. No screen in the bathroom window. I left it open to air out, and kept the fan and a/c on throughout the night, eventhough it's January. I don't like to smell smoke indoors and my room didn't specify I had a non smoking room. Anyways... I was too tired to complain and just wanted to rest. I ordered pizza from the room. Pizza hut was less than 2 miles away. The Queen Bed was comfortable. Ok.... so what made this place good! And what I originally would have rated this 2 stars but I bumped it to a 4 star rating. The magnificent shower! The walk in shower was big and had excellent water pressure. I had a fantastic shower and I was so impressed that all the room smell stuff was minimal. I'd stay here again just for the shower and sleep for a night maybe 2 nights...