Seaview Hotel — Hotel in Santa Monica

I'm honestly confused by the many bad reviews that I've read about this property. I stayed here overnight on my way from San Jose to PHX, and had a great stay. DO NOT let the bad reviews scare you away (as they almost did for me.)||||The hotel is right on Ocean Ave, about 1/4 mile of so from the Santa Monica pier, so totally walkable to the rides, shops, restaurants, etc.... I arrived later than I had anticipated, and from the reviews, was worried I wouldn't get parking, but I had no problems. Check in was perfect - the staff was helpful and kind, no issues at all with any staff that I interacted with at check in or check out. My room was on the second floor - king bed, TV, bathroom and bonus kitchenette (which I didn't need, but nice to have!) I walked to the pier, had a nice dinner and relaxed in my room for the rest of the night.||||Some additional info for other guests - this is one of those 'shore travel motels' that were popular in the '50s and '60s. Having grown up in the '70s, I'm accustom to this style of room, as I was raised on the east coast, and there are still places like this down the shore in Jersey to this day. This was a travelers hotel, and I enjoyed the fact that some of those touches still remain.||||There were some items that perhaps could use an upgrade - the mattress was thin, and there were only a few towels (I had brought my own, as other reviews mentioned this item, but I didn't need to use mine, as there were enough for my overnight needs. No hand towels though, so if you like those, bring some of your own.) The lock wasn't the best, and they still use room keys. No air is also a concern - I'd have opened the window all night, however the window opened on the door lock, which as a single women traveler was not super safe. Thankfully it was cool outside, and with the front and back windows open and the fan, I was able to get a nice cool down in the room prior to closing the front window for sleeping. There was traffic noise from Ocean Ave, but after closing the bathroom and kitchenette doors, that went away. Otherwise, my stay was great, and I'd consider staying again for a longer beach visit.||||If you're sensitive to an 'older-style' hotel, then your best bet would be to stay at Le Meridian next door for three times the price. If you are looking for a nice place for an overnight or a few nights at the beach with no frills but basic services, near the action with free parking and is safe and walkable, then this...

We chose Seaview because of it's location, plus we were in a tight budget, also we're not from California so we didn't know about other affordable hotels that were very good & near Santa Monica beach. We stayed for 3 nights & it wasn't pleasant. I did like that the rooms were not visible like right on the main street; however this hotel is in major need of repairs. Our room's heater was not working and it was pretty cold -about upper 30's -40 degrees (nightime) when we visited. We had to let the water run for a good 20 min. so that we could finally get some hot water and while taking a shower the water would not level out to warm. So it was either too hot or cold. Tub is very old/small. Everything outside our door, on top of our room and wall to wall can be heard in the room. The room did have a sink, microwave, refrigerator, tv and an extension cord. Beds were below average-and there were stains on bedding sheets; even though the bedding smelled washed. For the price we paid for the 3 nights- we expected better since we did pay a whole lot more than $88/night. The room had a window sliding door to let you walk out into your small private outdoor area with table & chair; which was nice BUT at nighttime it felt unsafe since we could not lock it and there was also a small window in the bathroom that could not be locked either. I feel that the hotel needs to make the necessary repairs/ renovations & safety measures to accommodate guests better. Starting with the heating & plumbing. I could not & wouldn't want to imagine being in this hotel during the summer without any A.C. The pro's is that everyday the room was cleaned and they did leave behind soaps & toilet paper. Also the rooftop was nice -although it could be better. The hotel is very close to muscle beach & Santa Monica beach/pier. On my next visit to Santa Monica, I I will definitely pay the same or a tad bit more to stay elsewhere -given that now I know of other good, safe affordable hotels nearby. I chose this hotel over others based on the good reviews, and I made a mistake in doing so. I must say that our room did not look like the pictures. Next time I'll do major research! Overall, this hotel is in dire need of necessary repairs/ renovations &...

I read all of the reviews before booking this hotel and the reviews were great. I must say I feel bamboozled as I feel this is not worth the cheap $ you pay for the room. This hotel has firmly put in my mind I must stay with Big chains. The front desk is messy and the people are rude. The parking is terrible. The rooms are very dirty. I had to bring in the cleaning person to show her the poop stains from whom ever stayed before us. I want people to know you can hear everything in the next room. I mean everything. It is very loud. The bathroom is very small. My husband is 5'10' and the shower head is about 5 '5 ". This place needs a total guy redo job but is seems the owners are too cheap. There are so many plants I felt overwhelmed and it looked just too messy. The balcony is completely not safe for kids. I am supervised this hotel is not made to redo the railings as any child can easily slip and fall through them. I can tell you I will never stay here again. I think you get what you pay for. You can hear the reception phone ring in your room. No it is not clean I picked up the lamp to move it cause i had a humidifier and i cannot tell you the dust and dirt i found under there. I was there with children and no this is not kid friendly. The faucets are rusted, the towels have holes in them and are old. There were no washclothes. This is the bare minimum. The comforter on the inside of the bed was yellow ( not white like it should have been). Even the toilet paper is cheap. I do not recommend and am writing this review for future families. Stay in the LOEWS a block down. I just want to add, the bathroom is not a full size bathtub and even if it was it is so rusted and stained you do not want your child sitting on it. The rack where the dishes were located was rusted. They seemed to have done some remodel but not everything. Just the bare minimum. Also we did not have a closet...