The kids were off to surf camp in Santa Monica. We were in need of a summer mini-holiday, so rather than doing the hour commute each morning from Pasadena we chose to get a hotel near the beach. We even figured we deserved to splurge and go all out. We did and got an ocean view room at the Viceroy in Santa Monica, at the whopping rate of $450 a night. I have to admit, for that rate, my expectations were up! When we drove up I thought the hotel looked like a Soviet built building in Eastern Europe. I was also surprised that it was not near the beach, but about two blocks away.
Check-in was less than hospitable. The hotel is pet friendly, but when they saw me with two dogs and two kids, the ulta-hip desk staff seem to go into convulsions or else they just were rejected on their last soap audition. Whatever the case, a smile and a friendly welcome was hard to find.
When we got up to our room, I was shocked what $450 buys. The room was small, but it was cozy and well decorated. The bathroom amenties were top of the line as was the audio system in the room. Yet there was only one bathrobe. Our ocean view looked over the top of several buildings across the street. The term ocean view was decieving at best.
To top things off, we gave the bellman our luggage, and it did not show up. When we called down, nobody seem to have any clue where our luggage was. About 45 minutes later our luggage finally arrived.
The hotel is far more style than substance. The pool is very small. Folks use it more to sit around and sip drinks, than to actually swim. The pool furniture is leather lounge furniture that you would find in a study. It was comfortable when you were dry, but had that stick-to-it feel when you were wet. Interesting, but not a good pool furniture choice!
The next morning, we went to swim at 7am before camp, and security told us it was too early to use the pool!
We talked it over and decided the Viceroy was not filling our needs and, quite frankly, we were starting to feel a bit ripped-off. I went to the Loews across the street and got us into a larger room on the ocean for $100 less a night! I told the front desk we were checking out early. I voiced my complaints, and the way-too-hip desk clerk just looked at me and said, "Yes, this probably isn't a good choice for kids."
The hotel is cool, hip, and trendy but not a great deal. We found the service level to be less than acceptable. It may be right for a rock star, but it sure isn't right for a family of four!