Property
Recently renovated hotel located on seven acres in North Hollywood, California just minutes away from Universal Studios Hollywood. A slight cut above your usual Holiday Inn, with beautiful Spanish-influenced architecture and spacious grounds that include two tennis courts and a kid’s playground. The hotel features Holiday Inn’s new KidSuites which are standard two-bed rooms that have been partitioned to provide separate sleeping quarters for parents and kids. The new pool and jacuzzi area features a majestic outdoor fireplace and is adjacent to their state-of-the-art fitness center. Their restaurant, Tula’s, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner – their breakfast buffet is one of the most reasonably priced ones around. Also on the premises is Decoy Lounge, a bar that features an outdoor patio. And two of my favorite features – free wireless internet throughout the hotel and a coffee bar that serves Seattle’s Best coffee. Perfect for writing late night hotel reviews!

Location
Only thirty to forty minutes from Los Angeles International Airport and fifteen from Burbank International Airport. Five minutes or less to Universal Studios Hollywood and the restaurants and stores of CityWalk (free tram provided.) Ten minutes from Hollywood and the famous Hollywood & Highland Center which houses the Kodak Theater, home to the Academy Awards. Only blocks away from NoHo, the burgeoning theater and arts district. Of note to Hannah Montana fans – the hotel is a block away from City Wok restaurant, which Miley Cyrus has been known to frequent.

Sleeps
2-4.

Highlights
Bunk beds for the kids, in their own partitioned area. Heated outdoor pool and jacuzzi next to a huge, beautiful fireplace (was not lit during our stay.) Microwave and refrigerator in room. Free WiFi throughout the hotel. Restaurant, Tula’s, on premises that has an excellent, reasonably priced breakfast buffet; for dinner I had an amazing pot roast. There is a small playground, and also tennis courts – during our stay my husband and daughter spotted American Idol’s Randy Jackson getting private tennis lessons!

Good to Know
The hotel is located right next to the 101 Freeway which our room was facing, but there were double sliding doors to the balcony that blocked out virtually all of the traffic sounds. If you’re extra sensitive to noise, however, you might want to request a room away from the freeway. Maybe a room looking down on the tennis courts in case any American Idol judges just happen to be having a tennis lesson.

Contact
www.beverlygarland.com

July 28th, 2009 | by Marsha Takeda-Morrison