Results tagged “hotel”

As the two hotels and condos prepare to open at L.A. Live (all in one building), Eric Richardson at blogdowntown sat down with the building's Director of Food and Beverage to get some details. What's known so far is enough to get foodies excited. There will be two "signature" restaurants with yet-to-be-named celebrity chefs. The ground floor will be home to L.A. Market while the other restaurant will live on the 24th floor. There will also be a cocktail room called the Mixing Room. And add to that a lobby lounge and poolside bar named Glance and Ion, respectively.

Now that officials have been forced to raise fees at state parks in order to save some of them, a thrifty blogger at the Orange County Register's OC Deals blog makes a good observation. Looking into beachfront family campsites with hookups at Bolsa Chica State Beach, Doheny and San Clemente is running $60 to $65. "I recently bought a new tent and cot to go back to nature, and save money on vacations by camping, instead of staying in hotels. But the world’s gone topsy-turvy, folks. You can rent a room this week in the fancy Wyndham hotel in New Orleans for $58 a night, but you can’t camp in a state campground on the beach for that! Incredible." Still, we rather camp.

Many local brides opt to have their weddings at any number of beautiful venues in the Los Angeles area, giving their special occasion a special setting. An oft-selected location is the Hotel Bel-Air because of its oasis-like setting and long history as a place to escape for celebrities since it began serving guests in 1946.

Developer New Century is not thrilled about today's announcement about their property being placed on the National Trust for Historic Preservation's annual America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places list. In fact, they've already sent two press releases, picked up by Curbed LA. The first one partially here: "We are disappointed to see the Century Plaza Hotel politicized in this way, particularly at a time when the City of Los Angeles is suffering from extreme economic hardship and is in dire need of new jobs. The naming of the hotel as an historic place is not supported by the facts. The building is less than 50 years old and does not qualify for consideration under stringent criteria for historic designation of a building of this recent age. [This fact is addressed in that LA Times story]."

If the new owners of the Century Plaza Hotel, currently operating as a Hyatt Regency, get their way, it will soon be razed for two 600-foot towers for commercial, hotel and residential occupation. But those dreams may have just been slashed. Today, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and Los Angeles Conservancy will name the landmark on their annual America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places list, which highlights important examples of the nation's architectural, cultural and natural heritage that are at risk of destruction or irreparable damage.

She made Tokyo's Park Hyatt into a character in "Lost in Translation" and now Sofia Coppola is set to film a movie based in Hollywood's Chateau Marmont.

Last year "staycation" was a buzzword for many, as people's budgets tightened and plans to travel were curtailed by gas prices and soaring airfares. As summer looms, many travel industry professionals believe this year it will be another year of folks opting to spend their vacations at home. Today's Daily News takes a look at the phenomenon, and finds that for the time being, "staycations" are here to stay.

The recent opening of the SLS Hotel on La Cienega added another super-trendy bar and restaurant to the scene in Los Angeles. Although the under-age Chris Brown hung out there until about 3 a.m. a week after the Rihanna incident, it hasn't turned into one of the celebrity charade bars (at least not yet). So, what is it like?

This is just so "out there" on so many levels. A city subcontracted anti-gang worker nicknamed "Bow Wow" was arrested Friday after a January 5th incident where a Bone Thugs-n-Harmony member was robbed and beaten in Universal City.

If you've ever driven past the Beverly Garland Holiday Inn in North Hollywood you may have wondered just who Beverly Garland was.

Eric Richardson from blogdowntown was lucky enough to win a little lottery that allowed him to travel the construction elevators up the 26th and 45th floors of LA Live's 56-story hotel and condo tower. Not bad, save for the parking lots below.

If live, work or are traveling today, here's a reason to plan ahead, or at least know why you'll be stuck in heavier traffic during the evening rush hour tonight. Westbound Century Blvd. will be closed from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. with drivers being diverted north to Aviation, then west on Arbor Vitae to Airport heading south and back on westbound Century. Eastbound lanes exiting LAX will not be affected. But why is this happening? After the "living wage" ordinance in 2007 that jacked up minimum wage for hotels near LAX, hotel management at the LAX Hilton sued the city. Therefore, Hilton workers will be protesting and pressing for their higher wages. Also: Saturday is looking to be a heavy traffic day with at least four large events, mostly sporting, around the city.

The beautiful Langham Huntington Hotel is hosting a Wine Dinner next month that will feature the best wines from New Zealand, specifically those from winemaker Craggy Range, paired with a sumptuous meal in the hotel's Dining Room. Showcasing its finest wines including Sauvignon Blanc, Reisling, Chardonnay, Sophia and Syrah, winemaker Steve Smith from Craggy Range will discuss the winemaking process, the distinctive traits of the varietals and the unique history of the winery.

   

If you noticed that a street or two were shut down near the Bonaventure Hotel this afternoon, that's because the President of Taiwan was arriving for his overnight stay. President Ma Ying-jeou is in Los Angeles tonight before he heads to South America. On his way back, he will stay in San Francisco. While he has no public appointments in the U.S., he may hold private meetings to improve ties between the U.S. and China.

Former Democratic Presidential candidate contender John Edwards is now admitting that he had an extra-marital affair with Rielle Hunter, but denies that he is the father of her child. Edwards initially denied the reports of the affair, as first broken by the National Enquirer, which claimed he had a rendezvous with the divorced model Hunter at a Los Angeles-area hotel that involved him seeing what they called their "love child." The Senator has been on some speculators' short lists for potential running mates for Barack Obama, but Edwards' involvement in Obama's candidacy and the upcoming DNC in Denver are most likely questionable following this admission. Edwards discusses the affair on an ABC newscast tonight during an interview with Bob Woodruff.

The National Enquirer is at it again. After last year's "love child" scandal (aided by Huffington Post) that eventually died down, today, the Enquirer leads with this, claiming that "Vice Presidential candidate Sen. John Edwards was caught visiting his mistress and secret love child at 2:40 this morning in a Los Angeles hotel." They say that their reporters waited around until they saw Edwards leaving, approached him, but Edwards wouldn't talk and ran into the bathroom for 15 minutes until security ousted the writer and photographer. The story was so huge today, that a link from Drudge apparently crashed the National Enquirer's website.

Here's one way to put the pressure on. If you donate money to the campaign to pass Proposition 8, the state measure that proposes changing the California constitution to make marriage only between a man and a woman, the No on Prop 8 people are going to make it very public. And now Hyatt may feel that in their pocket down in San Diego.

An Anaheim police officer responding to an 8 a.m. indecent exposure report at the Best Western Raffles Inn wound up shot in the leg on the scene. According to reports, the two officers who arrived at the hotel parking lot saw the suspect near his vehicle, and the shots were fired, although it is not clear if it was the suspect doing the shooting. The suspect fled following the incident and has not been found.

       

Starting last month, the Beverly Hills City Council voted to approve a series of amendments to city ordinances and laws, including the General Plan -- the bible of city planning. The changes were set to help pave the way for the Waldorf-Astoria hotel and condos, which will replace the current Beverly Hilton with a 170-room, 12-story hotel and an additional 110 condos that are said to be each sold for an average of $5.6 million (Trader Vics is opening a downtown location). Many residents of Beverly Hills, already sick of traffic and congestion, are opposed to the dense project, which is slated for the city's most congested intersection. So yesterday, after a 20-day petition drive, LAist Photographer Tom Andrews followed as they marched to city hall and delivered around 3200 signatures to place the issue on the November ballot. If enough signatures are verified, the fate of the project will be left up to Beverly Hills voters.

A man leaped to his death from a 14th-floor balcony at the Disneyland Hotel this morning. "He went out on the balcony and intentionally leapt,'' said Anaheim police Sgt. Rick Martinez, all but confirming the apparent suicide of a businessman in his 30's or 40's, around 11 a.m. outside the the Disneyland Hotel's Wonder Tower. ( -- OC Register).

Waking up at 5:30 a.m. and being rushed out of your downtown Wilshire Grand hotel room is not the ideal experience for your Los Angeles stay. However, better safe than sorry when the 10th floor of at least 80 people was evacuated due to pepper spray being released. In an e-mail alert, Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Ron Meyers said 20-30 people were evaluated with none needing treatment or transport to a local area hospital. People complained of eye and throat irritation.

Sen. Hillary Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, have spent the past couple days traipsing around the Golden State uncomfortably responding to allegations that their campaign is connected to a lawsuit brought last week by the Nevada teacher's union that would prevent casino workers from caucusing on the job.

We can see it now, a new bestseller hitting the shelves just before Christmas: "If I Did It: Confessions of a Sports Memorabilia Armed Robber." Ohhhh, OJ Simpson, you and a cadre of other celebrities just like to entertain the masses in a different way. A special way. The "criminal" way!Las Vegas police arrested former football star O.J. Simpson on Sunday in connection with a hotel room break-in, CNN said. A source with the...

Well, at least that is what Fodor's Travel Wire says: It's hard to believe you're in the L.A. Basin at the Hotel Bel-Air [direct link]. Tucked into a wooded canyon, it's surrounded by incredibly lush gardens complete with a lake. The hotel has private, quiet bungalows, some with wood-burning fireplaces, and there's always a lovely tea basket waiting for you on arrival. You can arrange for special in-room massages, or nibble chilled fruit by the...

A list of some of the current critics' choices around town. Click on the show title for a review. Click on the theater name for info on tickets. Hotel C'est Lamour (The Blank Theater Company) References to Salvador Dali Make me Hot (Theater Planners at Art/Works Theater) Side Show (La Habra Depot) Tale of 2Cities: An American Joyride on Multiple Tracks (Freud Playhouse) Rocks in my Salsa (Highways Performance Space) The Beastly Bombing (Steve...

LAPD and union organizers joined forces to script a protest march during Thursday afternoon rush hour near LAX. Hundreds of people were arrested according to plan. The arrestees, who were registered with LAPD and took a class in preparation for the event, even got t-shirts and a gift package that included a meal (put together by union organizers, not their cellmate). I’ve worried that unions have embarrassed themselves in recent years, becoming top-heavy machines...