The Best Hotels in Hollywood, California

Starting at its 30ft (9m) mahogany door entrance, the Mondrian envelopes guests in stylish, surrealist design. Check in at the mushroom-inspired front desk before heading to your virtually Space Age room. The service is equally stellar; allow Mondrian’s luxury Lincoln house car to escort you on your city escapades. Return to the rooftop Skybar, where views stretch over Hollywood and bartenders ensure your glass is always full.

Once upon a time, Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra and Elizabeth Taylor all rested their heads at Sunset Tower. Now, under the ownership of renowned hotelier Jeff Klein, this cherished Hollywood landmark on Sunset Boulevard brings the Golden Age to the 21st century. To get the full A-list experience, enjoy an old fashioned in the walnut-paneled Tower Bar, where you can enjoy sweeping city views under the lull of jazz pianists.

While Hollywood may be famous for its film heritage, the Sunset Marquis is rock’n’roll royalty. Alongside the modern suites (with TVs firmly attached to the wall), you’ll find the NightBird Recording Studios, where U2, Aerosmith, the Killers and more have recorded. Once you’re done exploring, head to the hotel’s Bar 1200 – the Doors, the Kinks and others have all partied here. Alternatively, mingle over music and drinks in the Retreat, a private lounge with a pool table and guitars.

On the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Hollywood Roosevelt draws you in with 1920s grandeur and 2020s luxury. Each of its rooms and suites comes in muted tones offset by leather furnishings. Swim in the Tropicana pool, which features a multi-million dollar mural by artist David Hockney at the bottom, and wake up to buttermilk pancakes enjoyed poolside before scouring the event calendar. There might be yoga on the rooftop or perhaps The Magic Show by Franco Pascali in the hotel’s hidden theater.

Brilliantly bohemian in every sense of the word, West Hollywood’s Petit Ermitage takes you out of LA and into a fairytale (an often adult one). Part antique gallery, part art show, this boutique hotel is a curiosity at every turn. If the many trinkets and oddities are not enough to make tongues wag, its activities will get you mingling. It hosts yoga every day and regular movie screenings. Much of the fun centers around the rooftop saltwater pool. As they say, “Tops are optional.”

Straddling West Hollywood and Beverly Hills, this luxury hotel from the Marriott is surrounded by LA’s most glamorous residents. Unsurprisingly, the West Hollywood Edition is glitzy Tinseltown at its most stylish. Mingle and enjoy drinks at Sunset, a cocktail bar that draws inspiration from the clubs that were on the Sunset Strip in the ’60s and ’70s. Afterward, head to Ardor, the hotel’s “vegetable-forward” restaurant, before returning to a minimalist 21st-century suite with floor-to-ceiling views of Downtown LA (DTLA).

At the foot of the Hollywood Hills, 1 Hotel West Hollywood combines Earth-inspired interiors, green spaces and farm-to-table dining to help you reconnect with nature (and yourself). Frolic through the Canyon garden, abundant with native greenery, to reach the Skyline Deck for a meditation session enhanced by views over DTLA. If you’d prefer, a personal trainer will whip you into shape at the Field House gym. Follow that with an immunity-boosting smoothie and sustainably sourced kale salad from 1 Kitchen.

The Standard is by no means standard. From the shag-pile lobby to the cobalt AstroTurf pool deck and wicker-furnished Cactus Lounge, the hotel embraces its ’60s spirit. Speaking of which, enjoy glam Hollywood parties as the lobby’s nightly DJ lures you into the boutique’s top-secret club, Mmhmmm, for a boogie. Afterward, grab a sunrise snack from the 24/7 restaurant Croft Alley.

Curated by the renowned designer Thierry Gaugain, Mama Shelter – a short stroll from the Hollywood Walk of Fame – is an independent boutique for cool cats and the unconventional. Think chalkboard ceilings, foosball tables, gumball machines and a store selling anything absurd (including a Michael Jackson doll). From the menus to the exclusive Mama Skin by Absolution products, the hotel is all about organic. So, lather yourself up with the Mama Says It’s Totally Natural body bar before joining the city’s hippest hipsters at the award-winning rooftop bar for signature cocktails.