Hotel Carmel

Great location and nice staff, but this hotel needs serious renovations! As I’m writing this review I’m wrapped up in a cheap polyester blanket, freezing because the heater doesn’t work. This is the second room we’ve been moved to. Moldy bath tubs, toilets don’t flush, blow dryer not included, broken drawers, lights don’t work, poorly insulated so you hear all the traffic outside, filthy windows so you can’t see the pretty day outside, and very uncomfortable beds!

Check-​in was quick, friendly and the guy answered all my questions. The room was comfortable, cool, and had ceiling fans. Yes, it was a bit noisy, but that’s to be expected because it’s on a busy street. It’s only a block away from the beach and pier and half block from the Promenade. Loves the room & definitely will be back! Great value for the price.

Me and my wife reserved 5 rooms 5 months ago for our wedding. My in laws recommended this place because they stay here every year and it’s a great location. How ever when one of our guest tried to check in they could not find their room? After showing them the confirmation number they accommodated them with another room. When we arrived the day of the wedding they had given my wife’s mother our room so when we showed up we did not have one. That’s not something you want to deal with on your wedding day. While trying to figure this out the hotel manager Mario was disgustingly rude. We had our confirmation number and they accommodated us as well. When we got all settled in we were very upset to see all our guest rooms were on different floors when we reserved a block 5 months prior. The day before we checked out we asked the front staff if they knew why this happened they were very polite and told us to speak with Mario the next day, and in the meantime they would comp the parking fee for the complications on our wedding day. Come the next day upon checking out I asked Mario the hotel manager what had happen? And if there was a reason why all the rooms got messed up he became very defensive and had a nasty attitude. Telling us room blocks are not guaranteed even with a contract ??? Speaking to us like we were in the wrong and told us they were not going to comp the parking fee. He then stated «what for, we accommodated you »? At that point my wife feeling very disrespected just said forget it let’s just pay and not argue with this guy. We never asked them to comp anything just wanted to know what happened, just a simple question. The manager needs to brush up on hospitality and customer service. Me, my wife, and my in laws will never stay here again. Thank you to the staff in front and Leo for still comping the parking fee. They were amazing, but Mario’s combative attitude ruined our stay.

Love the Carmel! My friends and I meet in Santa Monica every year and we always stay here. Sure the rooms are very simple, non fussy but they are clean, convenient and a great value.

An overall unimpressed experience. Rooms were small and outdated, customer service was bland and uninformed. Price was way too high for the hotel and amenities… you’re paying for the location, which was great. I’d recommend spending a couple extra bucks elsewhere.

Exceptional customer service, staff was beyond helpful and pleasant. That’s about all that’s good. Price was expensive, it smelled horrible and the bed was like a rock. The hotel guide book claimed laundry service and when we called the front desk to ask they said use the laundry mat in town.
said a lot of things this hotel didn’t have which I know isn’t their fault but other than the close proximity to the pier I see no reason to stay again.

I was searching for a hotel (without breaking the bank) with a great location to have easy access to the pier and the promenade. I wanted to ensure my out of town guest had a great experience. I came across Hotel Carmel and was shocked at the great price and location. I got on Unilocal.and I was a bit hesitant to give this place a try. However, I was willing to take a chance because of the great location.
I am honestly glad that we booked this hotel. Initially, I had my guard up when the front desk staff was unable to find the reservation that I booked directly on their website. I simply showed him the reservation and he assured me that there was not a problem. We get to our room and it actually was a nice size room and we had a great view of the busy street activities in Santa Monica. My guest was worried about the possible noise and being woke up in the morning by all this on the second floor. I was hesitant to contact the front desk about a room change because I didn’t want to be one of «those» people. However, we went down and explained the situation and Jermaine was more than helpful! He even upgraded us to a wonderful suite on a higher floor. I was really appreciative of the wonderful front desk staff and valet.
This hotel is prime location and the rooms were clean and you cannot beat the reasonable price. The elevator is a bit old, but it really was not that big of a deal or noticeable since it is fully functional. I didn’t notice a lot of the things people are unhappy about with their stay. No, this hotel is not the most modern or even a luxury hotel. BUT. I must say that I would certainly book again.

Truly disappointed. Staff was completely incompetent about what to do around the hotel whether it be restaurants … Biking… Activities. Etc.
Room is fine to be honest. Elevator smells like a dirty diaper.
Great location but would appreciate kinder staff to bump this to a 3.5
1:30am they deactivated elevator for breakfast? It wasn’t normal and they were not polite whatsoever for a 250 a night situation.

Clean façade but inside is a bit rundown. Room was small and floors were really squeaky. Window view of alley. At all hours of day there was excessive amounts of noise from the alley (service personnel emptying trash, street cleaners, metal banging, ect). Got no sleep. Shower had good pressure but bathroom was really small. Valet parking only. Excellent location to night life but noisy. No privacy from surrounding rooms. Good price but came with a cost.

I personally did not like this place. It was very very noisy and it didn’t smell to great, I just didn’t feel clean walking out of there. Would definitely not recommend this place not even for a last minute thing.

Upon arrival to Hotel Carmel the front desk staff member acknowledged that we had requested a wheelchair accessible room for my wife. Upon entering the room we noticed the doorway to the bathroom was too narrow for a wheelchair, there were no safety grab bars on the wall around the toilet or in the shower, no shower chair, and no handheld shower head. The bed stuck out into the walkway so the wheelchair could not even fit between the bed and the wall. So basically the first 8 feet of the room was wheelchair accessible, not the bathroom or even the beds.
After bringing this to the attention of the front desk I was told, and I quote, «We aren’t really a hotel for the handicapped». I’m fairly certain that is not a choice a hotel can make. The staff then recommend I try and find a new hotel. After being unsuccessful in finding another room that night in Santa Monica, we made the best of it and settled in.
I asked the staff if they had a shower chair so that my wife was able to take a shower as we were there for 2 nights and I was told «we had one at one time but I don’t know where it is». I suggested they find it or go purchase a new one because this probably wouldn’t be the last time one would be requested. After him telling me they couldn’t find it twice, they finally came up with one a few hours later.
The next morning I went back to the desk and told them that the room was absolutely horrible for her and asked again if there was anything more accommodating for a wheelchair. We were moved into a bigger room that had a wider bathroom door. Still very very far from what anyone would consider «wheelchair accessible», but it was an improvement. It was also the absolute furthest room from the elevator.
My wife needed a lot of help in and out of the shower as there were no grab bars, and basically had to sit underneath the stream of water, as they did not have a hand held shower head.
The only thing the hotel Carmel has to accommodate someone in a wheelchair is an elevator, which is quite small and still was not easy for my wife to enter and exit on her own. The valet did not have a ramp up the curb, the beds were 3. 5 feet off the floor, the list goes on.
I made our reservation a month in advance. One phone call to me telling me they weren’t set up for a wheelchair and I could have made other arrangements, but that did not happen.
Upon checkout I informed the manager about the entire nightmare that their hotel was for us. I received several apologies and one of our 2 nights free. I still feel that we were charged at all absolutely ridiculous.
The hotel is overpriced, and needs an update in every way. For what we were charged for one night they could spend to make one room ADA compliant handicap accessible.
This hotel is listed on trip advisor as «handicap accessible» and it could not be more opposite of that. This is hands down the worst experience I’ve ever had at any hotel ever.

This hotel is a good price, great location but not the best hotel. For one night it was fine for us since we didn’t spend much time in the room.
Pros:
quick walk to the beach and to the Promenade
$ 17 valet parking is good price for this location
reasonable price
Cons:
Room had no AC! so hot all day!
tiny bathroom with no counter space
no room service, kitchen or even a drink machine
bad lighting
old furniture, carpet and overall look

Let me start by saying they have valet parking only which is $ 17 per day. Now the price that the rooms cost i would think they would come with 50 inch plasma Tvs + all other kind of stuff. Well the room came with 2 maybe 22 inch tvs, small freezer and no microwave, the sealing looks like it starts dripping when rain comes down or they had a leak upstairs, anyways in my opinion this hotel is not worth it at all. The only good thing is the person at the front desk, he was bery friendly, and helpful.

This is not a 4 star hotel, but it is a great hotel for the price. It’s all about location and price. Our two room suit was a bit out dated and odd but the rooms were clean. Beds were fine. Staff was helpful. Other hotels near by are nicer but twice the price.

This was not a luxury hotel by any means but we chose it for the price/​location. Like one previous reviewer stated the rooms were a bit musty and the furniture is older. I think if they updated the bedding and tried to give the rooms a more modern look it would be a more pleasant place to stay. I think we’ll just choose the Marriott next time.

It depends on what you are looking for in a hotel. If you are just looking for the stuff you need, shower, beds and tv it’s perfect because the location is fantastic. There is no fridge no microwave and no pool but you got the ocean a block away! Valet may take awhile when there’s multiply people waiting and some of the clerks were a little mean and unwelcoming but it’s a great price for it’s location. It was $ 1421 including valet for a whole week.

You may save money staying here but it’d be worth it to shell out for a nicer place. This was the most uncomfortable hotel ever. If you are looking for comfort go elsewhere. The rooms are old and musky. The heating/A.C sucks so it’s never a comfortable temperature and always stuffy. The hotel is creaky and a total tear down. The staff are apathetic and rude. All they got goin on for them is location, location, location.

Pour cet hôtel, j’ai particulièrement été déçu. Chambres bruyantes (mauvaise isolation des fenêtres) équipement correcte, mais vétuste. Wi-​Fi payante et très mauvais débit. Petit déjeuner gratuit, mais restreint (enfin correcte tout de même) viennoiseries, café et jus d’orange locaux!

I booked this hotel because it was the cheapest one I could find that was within walking distance of everything in downtown Santa Monica. I got the room for ~$ 130, with tax and parking it ended up being 160 (stayed for one night). The only parking available is valet for $ 14. They said we could leave and come back all we wanted.
The lobby area is really old, definitely needs some renovations. There’s one tiny elevator that fits up to four people. The rooms in person definitely do not look as good as they do in the pictures on their website. It felt like I was staying in a guest bedroom at a 100 year old house. The shower didn’t drain properly so after a few minutes the tub would fill up. There was hair left in the tub as well, which makes you wonder how well they really cleaned the place. There was also no hair dryer. Our room was right by an alley which was really noisy. Not enough to keep me from sleeping, but annoying when I was relaxing. As I was checking out, there was a couple who was complaining about their room, saying that it was too noisy and asking for a new room. The front desk seemed to be understanding and gave them a new room.
I’d say the only reason why this hotel is ideal is because of the location. It’s within walking distance of everything in Santa Monica which was nice. Other than that, it’s a pretty cheap, crappy place. It was kinda weird because it was more like staying at an old house instead of a hotel. I would only recommend staying here if you are REALLY trying to save money. Otherwise, a hotel that’s maybe 15 minutes away might be cheaper (although you’d have to pay for parking in santa monica)

Great cheap find! My boyfriend and I took a trip to Santa Monica and wanted to be walking distance to 3^rd street promenade. Well, guess what? We live just a street behind 3^rd street promenade at Hotel Carmel.
Pros: Great location (unbeatable location for the price), big size room, friendly staff, cheap overnight/​guest parking ($ 12), reasonable pricing, right across from pier and street behind from promenande and mall.
Cons: only 1 elevator, funky smell in the hallway

«Looks can be deceiving» has never rang more true than for Hotel Carmel the façade and Hotel Carmel the inside…
Situated just a block from Ocean Avenue and a block from Third Street Promenade as well as the newly built Santa Monica Place, it’s the perfect… PERFECT location if you want a night out on the town in that general area…
But the inside of the hotel is decorated with furniture older than my grandma, the floors creak, the elevator doesn’t work occasionally because of a «power outtage» so we had to walk up three flights of stairs with our luggage, the service at the front desk was unfriendly and they charged me twice for the overnight valet…
Overall, this place is a little slice of hell but the location is pretty amazing if you’re planning on spending most of your time bar hopping and OUTSIDE the hotel!