In this hotel review of the Residence Inn Manhattan Beach I cover the good and bad of this interesting and surprisingly nice property located in sunny Southern California.
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I will be the first to admit that I am a Hilton guy and have been for years. But, during a recent job interview the firm I was interviewing with put me up at the Residence Inn in Manhattan Beach California. Personally, I’d have preferred a Hilton property, but hey, I wasn’t paying so I couldn’t be too picky. Turns out it was a pretty nice property! Here’s my review.
Residence Inn Manhattan Beach – a hotel review
I arrived after midnight to check in to the hotel having had a flight delay on my way in. Since I don’t have status with Marriott properties like I do w/ Hilton I called ahead and let them know I would be checking in late and to hold my room. I probably didn’t have to do that, but wanted to be safe!
Lobby Exterior – Residence Inn Manhattan Beach (Courtesy of Marriott)
The hotel property was easy to locate but upon arrival my immediate impression based solely on the exterior was that it was not going to be a great experience. In fairness, it was dark, but somewhere in the recesses of my mind I assumed that it was going to be an older property.
I was pleasantly surprised, however, after entering the modern lobby and later my large, well-appointed suite. It may look a little old on the outside (at night anyway) but it has been through a major remodel inside. And the next day, in the light of day, the exterior actually was quite nice!
The clerk working the night shift was pleasant and friendly and quickly checked me in – no issues. And I scored a nice queen suite.
The property is spread out quite a bit with 4 room pods scattered across the property (2 on the bottom and 2 on the top), but my room was close – I didn’t even have to move my car (and I was expecting to have to drive around and find parking, etc).
The room was a large open suite with the bedroom and living room being separated by a large flat screen TV (that swiveled) attached to a credenza. Personally, when I am staying in Suites I like to have a physical wall and door separating them, but this was pretty well done.
Picture of Room (Courtesy of Marriott)
The bed was quite comfortable (as is the case with most Marriott Properties) and since I was still wide awake I used the microwave (from the full kitchen!) to pop me some corn before I drifted off.
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The next morning I enjoyed a complimentary breakfast in a very crowded lobby full of almost exclusively families on vacation. Nary a business traveler in sight! The food was good enough for hotel food and I checked out 30 minutes later.
The only negative thing to say about the place was that it has an external entrances to the room (Casita style) which is not ideal, but it still felt fairly safe and the darn batteries in the remote were on the fritz and I was too tired to go deal with it (and then realized I couldn’t find the buttons the TV itself..ugh! #FirstWorldProblems). I went to sleep instead. LOL
Overall, the experience turned out to be quite pleasant all around! Well done, Marriott.
Should I stay at the Residence Inn Manhattan Beach?
The Residence Inn Manhattan Beach is not really targeting business travelers, per se – more families and I could see my family enjoying itself nicely at the property. It was a l little pricey (230/night) but still great value. I still didn’t get my Hilton points, but I did enjoy this property and I enthusiastically recommend it!
Address: 1700 North Sepulveda Boulevard, Manhattan Beach, California 90266
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1 comment
We have stayed at many Residence Inns and they generally were great.The lowest and least costly rooms are as yours was, the next level up would be a suite instead of a studio.