Arrived late due to cancelled flight connection in Chicago but no problems with check-in at hotel. Good location if coming from LAX & not used to crazy highway system; as only 25 minute drive, mostly down Lincoln, if you want to avoid highways. Room met our needs (family of 4 with 2 teenagers) & free parking in multi-storey attached; a huge bonus. Easy 20 minute walk down Santa Monica Boulevard to Ocean front - we caught number 1 bus back, no hassle at $1 per person. Hotel only has very basic facilities: a couple of computers in reception & small seating area. IHOP next door is excellent for breakfast - we bought the $25 gift card, which gives you $5 off your next visit - useful if staying more than one night. We also used the 20% discount card from Reception towards an evening meal - very good value. Easy access from hotel to highways for visiting Universal Studios - 25 minute drive away. Overall, our 3 night stay over Christmas was very good & we all fell in love with Santa Monica - so much so that we returned there at the end of our 1500 mile road trip for one last paddle!

Regular guest at this hotel, just returned from another good stay. The hotel is still nice and clean with great bedding and easy access,but at 149$ per night is getting a bit more expensive for what you get. Will stay again only if I'll get a better rate.

This hotel was a great base location for our trip to LA. It is a mile from Santa Monica beach and all it has to offer. The rooms were good size, very clean and the beds were very comfortable. IHOP was convenient and offered many options.

The staff at the hotel were extremely attentive. While checking in we were given a map of the area, restaurant suggestions (on a print-out, made by hotel staff) and a 20% off IHOP card for lunch/dinner. They were more than willing to check our luggage and there were no issues at all with the during our stay.
Our fourth floor room was clean and well kept. Noise from outside was very minimal despite being on Santa Monica Blvd and near a hospital. However, the walls are not the most sound proof so neighbouring guests may create some noise. For instance, the taps on the sink are creaky (a metal on metal noise) whenever the knob is turned and there is obviously a design defect in them because we could hear the creak from our neighbours taps every time they used the sink. The bed was fine; it wasn't the same quality you receive in a four star resort but was comfortable. Our room also came with a flat screen TV and bar fridge. The fourth floor also has a sundeck with tables/chairs for guests to enjoy.
WiFi was free, however it was slow in the evenings. Make sure to get the current username/password from the front desk as they change it on occasion.
Parking was free, you just need to grab a pass from the front desk to put on your rearview mirror.
The shuttle was available to take you to the 3rd Street area and the beach however we did not use it. They advertise that it only runs at certain times (I believe it will only leave the hotel on the hour and only pick you up at 15 after the hour) so it's not always convenient. It took 20-30 minutes to walk to 3rd Street from our hotel.
The location of the hotel is not necessarily ideal for most travelers. While it is perfect for those needing access to the hospital across the street, we found the location to be quite a distance from most of the things we wanted to do. While everything is a trade-off and the price of the hotel room reflects this it cannot be overlooked that you will most likely find little around your actual hotel to occupy your time. If you like to be "in the thick" of things in a tourist area this hotel definitely isn't for you.
The service at the IHOP was good, we never had to wait for a table and the food was consistent. Not amazing, but consistent. We found a local bakery called "DK's Donuts" around 16th/17th street and Santa Monica Blvd that we went to for a quick breakfast - they had breakfast sandwiches (served all day) and fresh donuts. Definitely worth the 3-5 minute walk and they are open 24/7.
A taxi from the airport was about $48 (plus tip) from the airport with minimal traffic. With that in mind, I would recommend taking the shuttle for small groups. For 2 people it was $28 (plus tip).