Comfort Inn Santa Monica - West Los Angeles — Hotel in Santa Monica

I've stayed at this hotel many times before, though not since the beginning of 2022. Despite it being a rather mediocre hotel, its location has been convenient to other things in Santa Monica and L.A., and its price has been (relatively) reasonable for the area. In the past, it has also offered free parking. So, I've returned again and again—probably more than 10 times. This time, however, things had changed. Yes, the hotel has undergone a (partial) renovation, and the improvements in things like the bedding and newly painted exterior doors (perhaps actually new doors) are nice, though our room still had the same crummy interior doors with poor paint jobs, old doorknobs, etc. Still, not a problem—the sheets in particular were very nice. What I didn't like this time around, though, was first that the prices seem to have gone up, which I guess is par for the course these days. Next, after paying online and providing all my information, I was prompted to complete a "pre-arrival check-in" with a third party, Canary Technologies, which I'd never heard of before. Given the prevalence of internet fraud, I decided to research this company before providing all the personal information it was requiring, including a photo of my driver's license. The company seemed to be legit, but I wasn't happy about this new, time-consuming step after already paying for my room. To make matters worse, when we arrived, the (unfriendly) desk clerk began asking me many of the same questions I'd already answered during the pre-arrival check-in process, which was annoying, to say the least. In addition, the hotel is now charging $10 to park in the same crummy, unsecured outdoor lot that used to be free. Unfortunately, because street parking is so restricted, you basically have no choice unless you want to park blocks away. And this area of Santa Monica, like so many, is no treat, what with its share of vagrants. Our partially renovated room itself was fine, and the breakfast was pretty much the same basic breakfast I remembered from previous stays. The internet speed was good. When we went out to leave the next morning, though, we found a rather nasty note from the management: "To the owner of this vehicle: Due to limit [sic] parking availability, the Comfort Inn Hotel is only able to provide one parking spot per room. As a courtesy to your fellow guests, please park carefully between the lines in order to avoid taking up more than one parking space. Thank You." On the surface, nothing wrong with this note (other than its "limit" instead of "limited")—I get it. Problem is, even though our right wheels did extend a few inches out of the right line of the marked space, there was no real parking space next to it! Instead, the area had been painted with diagonal lines to indicate that cars shouldn't park in that "space." And our car was at least a foot away from those diagonal lines. I took a picture to prove it and almost went in to complain, but the check-in person (an older man) had been so unwelcoming the day before that I decided to just leave. I guess if you can deal with the jacked-up price for a so-so hotel, the unsecured parking they're actually charging for now, the less than desirable neighborhood (though not as bad as it could be, to be fair—it's just sketchy at times, and you'll hear quite a few sirens), and the unwelcoming staff, it might be worth it. Not for me anymore, though—I'll find...

I would have no issue staying here again. The stay overall met my expectations. It's a middle of the road hotel. The room was "good." Considering it's in LA County, I'd say that good is a refreshing change at this price point. I liked that it had plenty of power outlets. The check in process was smooth and the front desk employee was pleasant. I felt like the price for parking, while not free (I didn't expect it to be in this area), was quite reasonable. There's limited space in the covered parking area, reserved for Gold and higher Choice members which I thought was nice. Other parking was in an uncovered lot behind the building which looked fine. The breakfast was the pretty typical hot hotel breakfast, coffee, eggs, sliced ham (not sausage), yogurt (nonfat), cereals, oatmeal, waffles, toast, packaged muffins. Though- one morning was the first time I'd seen a hotel provide actual donuts, though I don't think that's an every day thing. The women working in the breakfast room seemed stressed and a bit snappy if asked for anything, but they were working hard and keeping up with the crowded breakfast rush so I'm not holding it against them. (It's the little things sometimes...) I really appreciated that they have a mirror installed while exiting the parking area into the back alley because visibility otherwise would be 0 and risky. The property felt secure, requiring key card access for the elevator and to get into the interior courtyard where the rooms were, and the area of the city that the hotel is in felt safe in general. The courtyard and pool areas were nice. I didn't spend time there personally, but I saw that many people were. The pillows were lumpy and I'm glad that I brought my own. Pillows should be a big deal in hospitality. If your business is to make sure people get a good nights sleep, excellent pillows should be a priority. I would not have enjoyed sleeping on the ones that were provided. The hotel was noisy. It didn't bother me all that much but it's worth noting. I think the design of the building just causes everything to echo. People coming in and out of rooms, closing doors, hotel staff rolling carts (which they seem to do all day long)- the room did very little to nothing to soundproof these things out. Also, the instant loud aggressiveness with which the toilet flushed startled me every single time. The instant I touched the handle it's like a fire hose just got shot off. You know the type. I didn't like getting the room (Room 236) that overhangs the pool area without anything beneath it. I didn't know it beforehand, but I could feel immediately that there was nothing beneath us and that the room was relatively unsupported the moment I walked in. I'm pretty sensitive to movement. I don't know what's up to code and what isn't, so I'm just kinda trusting and hoping that it was fine. It didn't bother me enough to request a different room- though I did...

A 5/5 for incredible value, accommodating front desk folks, cleanliness, pillow variety (seriously important), safety/security, and overall accommodations. This has been my go-to since 2007, and will continue to be my go-to Santa Monica accommodations.

I just had a long stay there. I appreciated that the staff put us in a quiet room away from the street, as I had requested in the online reservation form. I've never been disappointed when I have what I believe is a reasonable request. I consider this something of a home away from home. Grateful for this great value that I can continue to trust to be clean.

Other great aspects: excellent sink/bath drainage, plenty of very hot water (never took a cold shower), roomy mini fridge, microwave, some rooms have keurig coffee makers, comfy beds, excellent air conditioner, safety (gotta have a valid room key to get into ANY door and to make elevator work), a quiet neighborhood (unless perhaps you're in a room along SM Blvd, but there aren't many of those), AMPLE parking. Covered parking avail on first come first served.

Pool area is now much more inviting since a local artist painted beautiful geometric designs in different shades of calming blue on the wall surrounding the pool. Pool is excellently maintained!

Thank you, Comfort Inn!

Last thing, I am a Choice Privileges Reward member. Free to sign up. This is a bonus that keeps me coming back....