My husband and I did a 8 night stay in Southern California (started off at another "Starwood" brand hotel in San Diego- the 'US Grant'- also a top pick of mine) The W Westwood is awesome! Very sheek hotel, great location between Beverly Hills and Bel Air...also right across from UCLA so there are tons of restaurants, bar, and shopping in walking distance 2 blocks up from the hotel. Great location if you planned on going to Universal, Warner Brothers, Redeo Drive, The Getty, Kodak Theater, Santa Monica Pier, etc…just a great central location. The W upgraded us to a 800 sq ft suite and it was BEAUTIFUL! It has everything you need- plus more- like a DVD player, I-pod station, top of the line 'Bliss' amenities (I checked- a set of travel sized goes for $25 each at Sephora!) The pool is beyond amazing...the only down side is the fancy cabañas you need to rent out for $200 a day (I was told people have private parties in them- they have flat screen tv's couches, etc in them. The rest of the pool area and outdoor dining was just so beautiful. Parking is $31 a day with in and out privilege....but there IS local street parking- you just need to be careful about the times and the meter hours!
I would defiantly classify myself as a high maintenance snob....and this hotel was fine by me! Hope this helped!

We stayed at the W for 3 nights over a weekend as the first stop in our 8 night Cali Anniversary adventure.

I travel quite often but this was my first W experience. I must say overall, great spot. A few drawbacks but hey, it's hard to find perfect lodging every time.

We chose the W because it had a good reputation for being cool and because the location served the areas we were going to hit. It didn't hurt that we got two nights for free from STARWOOD points.

My wife knew someone at another Starwood property that got us upgraded to a Fabulous Suite. This was the second best type of suite and featured 2 big flat screens, an office, living room and bedroom. Measured about 800 sq ft and was a corner so views were "off the hook," as the kids say nowadays.

Know before you come that the bar in the hotel is currently one of the most popular nightlife spots in LA, right now. We saw Reggie Miller the first night and we were told by a poolside waitress that Samantha Ronson (Lindsay Lohan's gf) was djing the night before we arrived and her and Lindsay were hanging out. I think it was a good thing that we missed that.

The outdoor pool area becomes a little lounge / restaurant and is draws a nice crowd. On Sunday evenings they show an old movie on this huge projector and people just lounge out with drinks. Speaking of the pool, don't expect to do laps. We're talking tiny; about the size of the plastic bath tub your mother used to bath you in when you were 1. There are cabanas avail. for rent for for about $200 a day, plus drinks. As for drinks, stay away from the double specialty mojito's as they'll set you back $28 each.

Considering we were planning on going to West Hollywood, Santa Monica and Hollywood, the location was pretty good. About 10-15 min to Santa Monica, 10 min to Rodeo Drive and about 15-20 min to the Sunset Strip. I was concerned about cab prices and getting cabs in LA for nightlife but it worked out fine. In fact, there is a cab stand literally, in front of the hotel.

The town of Westwood is pretty great to have right there too. A few bars, some good restaurants, and IN and OUT BURGER. For those of you from out east who cant get it, please try it when staying there. Animal Fries for life.

They tried to make some W hotels with an old building. Actually, you get old noisy AC, despite the fact you get suites, bedrooms are small. The swimming pool is tiny and there is no shower around!!!
It takes a while to get your order at the restaurant for your breakfast and to summarize; you feel that the management is poor in this location.

My wife and i are big fans of W hotels. we've stayed in about 6 different ones. My wife was 9 months pregnant so i decided to treat her to a last weekend in a suite at the W in los angeles (needed to stay in la in case she went into labor). We got the "spectaular" suite and were so disappointed. the suite is divided into two rooms, making them both pretty small instead of one big suite. It was also very dark. Lastly, the artwork and accesories around the room seemed cheap (many cb2 vases and such). Definitley not up to W quality. It turns out that this W is actually a conversion of an old hotel which is probably a big reason for this W's problems. The service was very good, but the restaurants were very average and VERY expensive. we ate there the first night and spent $140 despite only having one drink. we were pissed as there are lots of restaurants in la we would have love to go to for less than that. It seemed like everything there was more expensive than other W's but maybe i'm wrong. The spa is great and was the highlight for us. expensive, but a great experience. The pool wasn't that great which was a big bummer for my wife. the lounges weren't comfortable and the cabanas were a joke. Lastly, for those of you who don't know westwood, it is pretty lame. not too many good restaurants. This location would not be good if you want to walk to good restaurants, bars, shopping. the bars in the hotel are ok, but the crowd is not. Not hip, just cheesy.

If you are visiting LA, do not stay here. lots of other better, cheaper, better located hotels.