Hilgard House Hotel & Suites

This is the most disgusting place I have ever stayed. And I have traveled to some pretty bad places for work. We were stuck here because my son was medivac’ed to UCLA and this was the only hotel with an opening in a 30mile radius.
Through out the reviews I kept seeing about the free parking… Well that is no longer the case. It’s only $ 10.00 a night, but that was their only redeeming quality.
We were charged almost $ 180 a night plus $ 10 for parking. Our TV doesn’t work well. You can either watch a channel that has good sound and lousy picture or ok picture and a loud static out of the speakers. The cabinet it sits in has doors that don’t open for tv watching so you have to sit in the center of the bed to see the screen. No easy with three people.
The shower is so dirty my husband and I both had to wear my flip flops while showering. The free wifi is great, as long as you don’t need it. The filthy shutters are broken when you open them but that’s ok, because you can not see through the film of dirt on the Windows. The furniture has stains. The wall has a hole behind the door and dirt on the once white walls gave it that home town prison feel. The only thing keeping my mind off the disgusting accommodations was focusing on my ill son.
When I called down to the front desk to let them know of all of these issues on top of the fact that housekeeping never showed up to clean our room and the smell of cigars coming from the room next door was overwhelming… I received a response of surprise. REALLY!!! You honestly don’t know what the conditions of these rooms are!!!
I was happy to not have to sleep in my car. This was only a tiny bit better.

Jose our bellman was amazing and very helpful. Remembered we were there attending a wedding and followed up after a few days to ask how it was.
Room was nice, cute, and didn’t smell of perfume at all like previous reviews stated. For what it was (a reasonably priced room near ucla with plenty of food and shopping in walking distance) it was great.

We just came back from a 13-​night stay in a two-​bedroom suite at Hilgard House while one of our daughters competed in the Special Olympics at the UCLA campus. We wanted more of an apartment as there would be several relatives coming a going, wanted a full kitchen, and needed to be within walking distance of UCLA. Hilgard House was the only place we could find that fit all those criteria short of a more expensive AirBnB rental. We paid $ 325/​night for rooms 404 A&B of the adjacent building.
There was some difficulty in securing the reservation. I called 5 months in advance and was told that the suites are generally rented monthly but thought he could get us in. To secure the suite I had to make a reservation for 2 regular rooms and then check a few weeks before to confirm the suite would be available. It was and we got it, but is was unsettling not knowing for sure what our accommodations would be.
The two-​bedroom suite a building next to the hotel with its own entrance. We were given keys to the outside door as well as the room. The building looks like it was built in the 1970s and has never been remodeled in any real way. We didn’t mind but if you are used to the chrome and glass of modern buildings you may be disappointed. It is on a quiet street that is in within easy walking distance of all the shops and restaurants of the southern UCLA campus.
The suite was also stuck in the 70s except for the widescreen (but no HD) TV and wireless internet. The space was large with a dining area and living room, kitchen, and large foyer. Plus a small balcony with some sad looking plants and decaying lattice work. The bedrooms were just big enough for the large beds and there was little room on either side of the bed. There is also a TV in each of the bedrooms. The bathrooms are very small but completely functional. One had a tub/​shower, the other was a large shower. The air conditioning came through a vent in the ceiling as was very loud every time it came on. It was a hot and humid week so we needed to keep the windows closed and the air on.
The kitchen has a gas stove and oven, refrigerator, microwave, coffee maker, and a dishwasher. Very little in the way of kitchen tools was provided. Only a few forks/​spoons/​knives, a few cutting knives, cooking spoons but no spatula, and some old and warped pans. $ 20 and trip to the Goodwill or Dollar store would sure have gone a long way to improve the kitchen. We bought sponges, paper towels, and napkins at Ralph’s Market. The Ralph’s is very close-​by which made shopping easy.
There is a single washer and two dryers in kind of a scary looking utility room next to the first floor elevator. Washes were 75c and drying 50c. The front desk gave us detergent pods. Bring your own quarters. The desk had a limited amount to sell me.
The rooms was quiet from outside noise but the air conditioner also drowned out noise. It took me a few nights to get used to it when it went on at night.
The hotel is directly across from the very different W Hotel. We had a great dinner at the outdoor Backyard restaurant.
The staff was very friendly. A shout out to Randall the desk clerk who was always cheerful and helped us secure the reservation. We had a couple of minor maintenance issues that were fixed promptly.
Parking is on two stories. More spaces were available below and it could be tricky for some larger cars getting in and out (large trucks and SUVs cannot fit down there). The free parking was particularly welcome in a neighborhood where parking is at a premium. We always were able to find a space.
The WiFi maxed out at 2Mps and sometimes did not work at all. It was acceptable most of the time. The WiFi for our suite showed as broadcasting but did not connect. Randall told me where the router was and how to restart it; that fixed the problem.
Other nice touches are the breakfast bar of fruit, prepackaged cereal, bagels, and muffins. Plus Starbucks coffee (no decaf, however).
I was concerned that the wired smoke detectors appear to be very old. They should be replaced every 10 years but these looked much older, but I did not open to see the date.
Some people have complained about the elevator. It is small and dark but its speed seemed find to me.
Overall, we enjoyed our stay at the Higard House suites and would definitely stay there again.

Considering the location and fantastic price I’m sad to be leaving only 2 stars due to the condition of the two rooms I had in my 2 night stay.
After checking in I found my first room with it’s door wide open and a heater/​fan drying the carpet where housekeeping dropped an entire bottle of chemical fragrance. My eyes burned just walking in the room. I checking into another room which too had a strong odor of chemical fragrance.
The beds at this hotel are comfortable and for the location it’s super affordable but clean it is not!

I recently had the pleasure of staying on the 3^rd floor of the Hilgard House and found it to be absolutely delightful. The staff was wonderful from the beginning of my stay until the end. The location is fantastic and the room was incredibly charming. I will be back again and highly recommend the Hilgard House!

Terrific hotel. Good people, great service, nice room, great location, fair price. Highly recommend it.

I have stayed here several times at various times of the year (summer, fall and spring, 2014 and 2015). Yes, the hotel is an older property but that is part of its charm. There is a modern hotel across the street for double the price. Several pluses for this place: I fee safe traveling alone, the short 10 – 15 minute walk to UCLA campus, proximity to Westwood, parking has never been a problem, even when the hotel is sold out, free WIFI (not slow at all), nice flat screen TV. Some rooms have jacuzzi tubs, patios and small libraries. Randall at the front desk has always gone out of his way to be accommodating as have all the front desk staff. There are several places to stay near UCLA but this is my «go-​to» hotel.

Convenient walk to everything location. Friendly front desk staff and spacious, if dated room. No pretensions. Windows can be opened so you can avoid the AC if the weather is cooperative. Two sinks are nice.
We had driven 7 hours so happy to park and walk to dinner and the theatre.
Price is right.

It’s definitely a good deal for the location. However, my only complaint is that the rooms are not clean.
1. Used match stick on floor in non smoking room (despite having the room cleaned the next day)
2. Hair in bathroom
3. Some sort of insect on bathroom
The above were the visible flaws. Again, the price for that location is great but I don’t think I’ll be back.

My husband and I were faced with a sudden evacuation when toxic mold was discovered in our apartment. We had to quickly find a place to stay for a week.
After much internet research we decided to try Hilgard House Hotel.
We were fortunate to nab the last room available.
We had a wonderful, relaxing stay. What started out as a stressful experience turned into a nice little vacation in Westwood.
This place is a real hidden gem and I look forward to returning in the future.

Owner needs ANGER MANAGEMENT!
For the first time in my life, I was kicked out of a hotel! The owner, Mr. William P. Edwards, behaved in ways unkind, unprofessional, threatening and illegal. I only wish that I had the presence of mind to video his rant and call 911 for the harassment and aggressive behavior that was inappropriately hurled my way. Beware to never park in this jerks’ parking space. (Why he doesn’t have a simple ‘Reserved’ or ‘Owners’sign rather than the verbose and confusing signage all over his parking lot, I don’t know!)
I arrived at the Hilgard House Hotel and parked in the lot while I checked in. I noticed the ‘no-​parking’, ‘tow-​away immediately’ sign, but figured that since there were signs all over the garage (all about the same size with red lettering), this was signage to fend off UCLA parking moochers. I immediately asked at the front desk when I walked in whether I could park in the lot while I checked in and the fellow said yes. After check in, I asked again about parking and was told «You can park in any open spot, just put this ticket on your dashboard.» Which I did.
Up in my room about 10 minutes later I received an urgent call from the font desk asking me to come to the garage immediately or have my car towed for $ 324. I came right down there and opened the door to Mr. Edwards standing by his BMW aggressively pointing at me and saying angrily and loudly that I was «inconsiderate,» «a jerk,» «stupid,» «selfish,» «arrogant,» «illiterate,» and several other choice words for parking in his parking spot. I was shocked.
I immediately and repeatedly apologized and, feeling threatened by his aggressive, in-​my-​face behavior, asked him to identify himself. He said that «I am the owner and you can have your money back right now and leave.» I repeatedly said that it was an honest mistake but he would have none of this. I told him that I was told by the front desk that I could park in ‘any open spot’ and he just got angrier. (This entire interaction was witnessed by another gentleman in the lot who worked at the hotel who remained silent.) I again tried explaining my mistake and said that I was in LA for my elderly fathers’ life-​threatening procedure at UCLA hospital and his answer was «I don’t give a damn. You’re a rude jerk. Get out of my hotel.»
I moved my car and came back in the lobby where he continued to vent. He told me to leave his hotel, pointed at the front desk fellow and verified that I had indeed been told that I could park in any open spot. He pointed at him and said «You better not do that again or you will be out of here too.» He repeated that I was to leave the hotel and stormed off.
The silent fellow started calling a few hotels for me but there was no hotel availability nearby. I became furious as I telephoned my sister. At that point, I used some 4 letter words into the phone describing the situation to her. She and her husband immediately came downstairs. I took my bags across the street to the W Hotel to check on availability, but there were no rooms. I came back to Hilgard House and went to my sisters’ room to consider options. I realized that I still had a valid contract for staying at Hilgard House and did nothing to violate that contract. I called the desk to ask a question and was told that the lock to my room was ‘already changed’ and I was ‘not welcome’ to stay at the hotel. I said «that is illegal-​I never checked out nor did I indicate that I was breaking our contract.» He was going to check with the owner to see whether I could stay at the hotel. He never called me back.
At that point, I realized that this was a toxic situation and that I needed to refocus to help my father for his pre-​op. I left the hotel. (FYI my father is now recovering well. And I found another hotel.)
Interestingly, my sister told me that she and her husband had also temporarily parked in Mr. Edwards coveted parking spot while they checked in to Hilgard House! Again, she found the garage signage confusing. He has a cage for his car and some threatening signs, but if you are unfamiliar with this lot, it is confusing.
Mr. Edwards acted in a demeaning, unprofessional, harassing and unkind way. Online he touts his business successes and gifts to the UCLA visitor community but his actions revealed what a petty, immature and arrogant man that he really is. What a bully! Get this guy some ANGER MANAGEMENT!!!
Read other reviews, this isn’t the only time this jerk became aggressive to guests! Wish I had read this before. WORST HOTEL EXPERIENCE EVER.

It was an okay place for a short stay. I am big on Cleanliness and there were a few stains and such on walls, furniture and etc.

The photos are really not that accurate to reality. Photoshop work was fantastic though!
Hotel is very old and beds hard. Luckily a switch on the fridge allowed me to shut off the hum. Parking is a major issue here. If the garage is full, you’re out of luck.
and You have to park in an expensive lot up the street and you aren’t going to get reimbursed. There are not enough spaces for guests so if you are meeting friends or coming with others you will be «allowed» one car. I’d go over to the other side of the 405
to find good value, real parking, nice service and decent beds.

Not for those who want a good night’s rest. The plumbing is noisy and the doors slam and bang shut. I can hear the toilets flush and people showering. The only reason why I didn’t give it one star is that they do offer free parking. I don’t think I’ll ever stay here again. For this price, I expect a quieter atmosphere.

The front desk staff were a nightmare to deal with. I stayed here about 4 years ago when I was moving into my place at UCLA. They took two hours (not kidding) to process a payment from my parents in NYC for my room. This should have been all taken care of already. They seriously made me sit in a chair in the lobby and forced my parents to wire money over– they would not accept my money because my mom’s name was listed on the room. The thing is my mom had set all this up ahead of time and payed for the room. I was brand new to LA and had just gotten off a 7 hour flight. It was a nightmare and the worst hotel experience I’ve ever had. It cost $ 200 for a tiny room with super early check out! Never again, HORRIBLE!

My husband and I spent Thanksgiving weekend here because he got tired of sleeping on a futon at my parents’ house every year.
The staff is incredibly friendly, there is free parking (a major deal in Westwood where all street parking is time limited or restricted. The continental breakfast is bagels and fruit and drinks. Cursory, but adequate; you take it up to your room or out with you wherever you’re headed (no dining area).
The rooms are good size, the bed quite comfy, with free wifi and 41″ t.v. with premium channels if you care. Some noise from the neighbor’s water pipes around midnight, but I was up on my computer, otherwise wouldn’t have heard it. My husband slept right through it.
Very reasonably priced for the location and the value. Will stay again next year.

I suppose this is an excellent lesson in «you get what you pay for.» We didn’t have a horrible experience, but it was far from great. The only good thing about this place was that it was very affordable, considering the location.
Well, I guess we could also say that the staff was very friendly. They had that going for them. That’s about it, though.
The place is old, so some things are to be expected. The parking garage was definitely nice, but it was also very tiny and difficult to navigate. It also got very full even though there really weren’t that many guests, or so it seemed to us anyway.
The continental breakfast was okay, also. The nicest part of it was that tea and coffee was still served throughout the entire day on each floor of the hotel by the elevators.
There was free wi-​fi, and it wasn’t overly slow.
Everything was okay at first, even though our room was a bit stinky. Again, to be expected considering the age of the place. We didn’t spend much time in the room at first since we had to get going after checking in, but by the next morning we began to notice a few things. During our first night, we discovered a few bugs. I caught a few ants around the bathroom, and we also discovered an unidentifiable insect by the bed. We could deal with that, though.
We had several perishable items that we had tossed into the mini fridge when we first got there. Unfortunately, we didn’t realize until the next day that the fridge was broken. Everything was ruined by then, so it was too late to save anything. Someone came up and fixed it, but again… too late.
Our shower was also very uncomfortable. The shower head was extremely low, but I’ve traveled all over Europe and that made sense (this is a European-​style hotel, I believe.) The bad part about it was that it was difficult to find a comfortable temperature. Once we did, we began to shower ourselves up and the water would change from normal temperature to EXTREMELY hot. It nearly burned my scalp the first time it happened! It would then turn freezing cold, and then back to normal. This kept happening, but we were prepared after that first incident. They came to look at it, but then the guy accidentally knocked the entire shower door off somehow. Nasty gunk went everywhere, and we have no idea how the door was concealing so much nastiness. He apologized, went down and talked to the front desk for us. They moved us to a room with a little patio.
In that room, the fridge kind of worked. I assume the shower worked too, but we actually never ended up taking another shower (gross, I know… but we were traumatized!) The new shower was also very dirty-​looking, but we had already moved rooms and didn’t feel like complaining again… We never like to complain like this at all, so I guess we just aren’t really that experienced with situations like this.
Oh, one final gripe with this place: the light switches were extremely confusing in both of the rooms we were in. They just weren’t set up logically, in my opinion.
Overall, we just weren’t pleased with this place at all. We were excited because of the price and the fantastic Unilocal reviews. Perhaps we just had bad luck? The awesome employees do make up for some, but the rest just drags our rating down. We both agreed that if we had paid the regular rate of $ 199.99 a night, we would’ve been extremely upset.

This happened awhile ago (February?) but I just happened to be going through old reviews and thought ah! New stories. So, the Hilgard management, very graciously apologized for the issue that happened in my previous review and offered us a free night — which again was very kind and I appreciate the gesture — in fact I’m even going to add a star on for that because they read my initial Unilocal review and really do care.
I swear — fate does not want me to stay at this place or… does not want me to experience air conditioning because — I truly believe this was another fluke — but — nevertheless — it happened.
Sooo… my boyfriend and I get down to LA and check in to HH again… I’m feeling pretty confident. We put our things in the room, turn on the A/​C leave — paint the town red — come back around 11 (okay, so, maybe not *that* red) and… boyfriend is in the bathroom and I’m fiddling around the bed and I see *bug*… *bug*… *bug*… on the bed… hmm. that’s odd– HOLY GEEZUS OMG! A. I kid you not… a SWARM (100+) of winged termites… *cries* *dramatic pause* on the FLOOR. We’re guessing — probably… the A/​C upset them and pushed them out into our room — eek I feel itchy just thinking about it. I mean — can you imagine had we not initially turned the air conditioning on and instead turned it on when we went to bed like we did during our previous stay and woke up in a bug-​infested bed? I would be forever traumatized! Anyway — so, I grab my stuff and bolt out of the room like the crazy lady I am and my boyfriend calls the front desk and they offer to move us into another room. And… so we get in the other room but… it’s like once you’ve seen a ghost in a house or the walls start oozing blood and what not (I’m sure you’ve all experienced this) it’s that uneasy — but what if it happens again — feeling and… I saw more bugs in the new room — granted they had probably hitched a ride on our stuff from the first room and I knew that then, even in my hysteria, but… I just couldn’t bring myself to stay. Sooo… boyfriend and I — both being incredibly hardheaded when it comes to places to stay at (I honestly don’t know what that boy has against the Motel 6 in Inglewood, yes, there may be some potential prostitutes and dealers hanging around the parking lot but y’know — the rooms are pretty clean and it’s cheap) we… drove back up I-​5… in the middle of the night… neither one of us were very pleased with the situation. Ahh Hilgard House… why must you test our relationship?

This place was a wonderful surprise. Hotels in the better areas of LA are very expensive and this place is a bargain, comparatively speaking. We paid $ 150. for a nicely furnished, third floor, street side room, with two very comfortable queen beds. The furniture and décor looks like it’s from the 1930 – 40 era. The ceiling fan was quiet and useful, and the windows actually open. The bathroom had a deep soaking tub and good shower water pressure. There was a mini fridge, small microwave, and an in-​room safe (you set your own digital code) large enough to hold a laptop and purse or other smallish valuables. There was also a window seat, desk, and high-​speed WiFi service in the room. Pictures at the hotel website do not do this place justice. Our room was much nicer than those shown.
My only complaint was the poor lighting in the bathroom. It’s adequate for washing up and shaving, but if you wear makeup, go lightly or you’ll look like a clown when you get outside. Fortunately, I brought a hand mirror with me, so I opened the curtains and sat on the window seat to apply makeup in natural light.
Even though we had a third floor, street side room, we heard no street noise. Yet, when we walked outside, we were barely a block away from all that Westwood Village has to offer. It is conveniently located near theaters, shops, restaurants, museums and the UCLA campus, and the 405 freeway is about a 5 minute drive away.
Be forewarned that the garage cannot accommodate oversized vehicles. Small vans/​trucks will fit, but large SUV’s will not. Speaking of parking, the front desk person let us keep our car parked in the garage for a few hours after we checked out. Sweet!
I will stay here again if I visit this part of LA in the future.

Here’s a comparison for you…
You can get a 200 sq ft room at the Sofitel for around $ 350 – 400 a night. You get posh decorations with all the modern upgrades in the busy part of Beverly Hills. For a hefty price, all you get is a tiny bedroom and a tiny bathroom.
Or…
You can drive about four miles, and stay at the Hilgard where you can get a freakin 900 sq ft CONDO for $ 200. Right near UCLA’s campus, the neighborhood is pretty quiet…
No joke… you get a condo that comes with:
A kitchen fully-​equipped with a dishwasher, stove, sink, fridge…
A livingroom.
A dining room.
A huge bathroom.
A bedroom.
&
A cute balcony overlooking the quaint neighborhood.
Sure — the place doesn’t make you go «OOhhh LA LA», and it may not be the most modern, but I guess this is known for QUANTITY vs. QUALITY.
You get the standard hotel goodies (towels, shampoo, etc. etc.) and they can even extend your checkout. Pretty chill.
FYI — They make you sign a waiver saying you won’t throw a party. That idea didn’t even run through my mind until that very moment.
I shall return.
This time…
I will throw a party.