Hotel Erwin, A Joie de Vivre Boutique Hotel

Overpriced

The hotel was nice but it was too pricey. It just didn't thave that WOW factor. None of the rooms in the entire hotel have bathtubs. The don't provide room service for breakfast. The rooftop hangout spot with the nice view doesn't allow children so we had to eat in the tiny restaurant downstairs. Worst of all the parking was $25!!! That was infuriating.

What a nightmare.. Bed bugs, no joke.

I'll start with the good for what it's worth. The staff was very friendly and the bar on the roof is a bit pricey but has a great view. Hash also made a great breakfast. As for the bad and the horror. There were a number of little irritating things about the hotel (key cards didn't work for the first three attempts, there was wiring and brackets for a flat screen, no flat screens even though it was advertised, poignant fresh paint smell) but none of this can touch the nightmare that stemmed from this stay. I was sitting on the fold out couch (in a one-bedroom suite) and noticed a bug crawling on me. I was grossed out, but I thought it was a sand fly that must have traveled in from the beach on someone. Once the bug was taken care of I was still leery to sleep on the fold-out so I wore long pajamas. Everything seemed fine but fast forward a few days, when all of a sudden hundreds of red itching bumps started appearing all over my hands, my feet, my neck, and all over my face. I went to the doctor and he confirmed it was bed bugs. In doing research, I now know that the bug I saw was a bed bug (I recognized it immediately) and the fact that I saw it in broad daylight was a clear sign that the room was badly infested. Additionally, the person that stayed in the room with me is also going through this, but they didn't get bites on their face. My life has been overtaken by this horror. I'm a professional and with all of these bites I look like a homeless person. So, besides the terrible irritation and pain I'm in, I look like a disaster, have had to try to clean my home from corner to corner. I still don't know if there is any infestation in my house and can barely sleep at night checking out any and every twinge on my skin. I'm hoping this is where the nightmare ends, but it can easily grow exponentially (cost of an exterminator and pain) if the infestation did in fact follow me home. Honestly, I'd hate for anyone else to go through this hell. I'd pay good money to

Under construction, not ready for a comfortable stay.

First, we did not get the one bedroom suite that I booked. We got a studio instead. The manager, "Vee" was very nice and gave us that night free and did move us to a one bedroom suite for the remainder of the stay. Part of the hotel was still being renovated and some minor things missing or not ready. The staff was very nice and accommodating, but it seemed a bit frantic for that weekend of the opening of the roof top restuarant. Great location for Venice Beach, one block away. Parking was expensive.

Do yourself a favor - Do not stay here!

Problems, problems, problems, dirty room, we'll move you. Another slightly less dirty room, maintenance problems, miscommunication, dirty, noisy, sloppy, chaotic. More problems, I'll send somebody up, head scratching, shrugging shoulders, no english, "not my department", more problems. 10 visits from "houseman", not my department, more shrugging, we'll move you to a suite, sorry there's no DVD player, no newspapers, the lights on the balcony don't work, the door of your room doesn't lock, more shrugging, no follow up, new room's not ready but you must vacate NOW because we need your room! No thanks, noisy housekeepers @ 7am, dirty room again, sloppy cleaning, more noise, debris and dirt everywhere, no communication, more visits from "houseman", more incompetance, no resolution to maintenance issues, chaos, incompetance and failure to provide basic service. If you value your serenity, go elsewhere. Great location. Not worth the drama to stay in this overpriced hostel.

Just O.K.

There was only one tiny garbage can in the room and when you have a toddler you need a little more than just one small garbage can. They didn't supply us w/any toilet paper and we were always asking for it. They missed our room one day and did not clean it. And when I checked in the person had a little bit of an attitude. Other than that, the location is great, right on the beach. Definatley a hotel for a younger crowd. Not so much for families.

rip off

hotel is badly located.still with constructionsworks. definetely not a boutique beach hotel! too LOUD!!! technichal problems w phone/net. reception is a chaos.

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Maybe it was just me

Hotel Erwin is located one block off the boardwalk on Venice Beach. In trying to to sound "uppity" I will say there is a wide variety of people and lifestyle. Next door to one another you can find and almost shack coupled with a million dollar townhouse. Probably anywhere U.S.A. downtown has a variety of what you might see. The hotel is older but trying to update. The front desk told me I was lucky to have an upgrade to a suite. This meant a large living room/dining room/kitchen area which I never used. The room I did use was the bedroom which was completely filled with the bed. This is a place you will either love or hate. If I had to stay there again I would but I would not ask to go back. Another thing I found lacking was access to restaurants which I saw to be nill. The staff was wonderful and that counts right?

Under Construction

The hotel is under major construction. There are so many contractors running around, ladders, exposed wiring, paint/stain fumes and noise. Construction staff exclusively uses the elevator in the lobby and you have to trek through the underground garage to get a single, long delay elevator to your room. No bar, cafe or room service of any kind. Nice big balconies with no furniture. Old showers and tubs with leaky plumbing and hot water faucet gets so hot you burn yourself on it when turning off. Registration staff is very slow, had to wait 15 minutes to check-in. They hound you to upgrade and pay additional charges. If you're a smoker, forget it. They don't say non smoking hotel on website but tell you when you check-in. Wait until they are done and check back to see if they got their act and the property together.

Addtional charges

The rooms were adequate and the beds pretty comfortable, a big plus. The ocean front view isn't really ocean front. You can see it, but it's not like you walk out of your room and there's the sand. It cost 16.00 to park, which I think should be disclosed at time of booking or included in the hotel room cost. Their is only valet parking and pretty major construction going on throughout the hotel. The deco is mediocre I can't say I was pleased with my stay. The neighborhood/atmosphere is very poor. All the garages are under lock and key.

OK. Great service, right off Venice Beach, not that clean/nice.

It was acceptable in most ways. I got a good deal on my room at the last minute -- though I wouldn't stay there again! -- but if I had paid anywhere close to what they cite as their normal rate, I would have been very upset. (I was unhappily surprised by the valet parking rate.) The staff was very attentive and friendly and helpful -- really great! -- but it was almost like they were preserving the facade of an actual nice hotel. The room was OK: spacious with normal bed and necessities. But when you start looking closer... the faucets don't turn the normal ways, there's dust and trash under the furniture, the BR is tiny, there's construction down the hall, and... something caused little red dots to appear the next day on my shoulders and chest. I'm not 100% it was the hotel, but I sure don't get anything like that ever usually... and the room wasn't very clean. Again, great service, but I walked away not convinced that the location was worth it... and thinking the hostel around the corner might've been as good... and a helluva lot cheaper.

Not the usual "Joie De Vivre Hotel" Quality

I like to stay and recommend hotels in the California based Joie De Vivre corp. because of their consistent quality and unique properties. This hotel,one of the newest under Joie De Vivre management, fell far short of my expectations. While the room was renovated, the bathroom was not. I was unable to take a bath because of the peeling abrasive traction take on the bottom of the tub. The only towel rack was a flimsy wire contraption directly over the toilet - which is where I found the waterlogged fresh towels that housekeeping had not secured in the rack. My north side room was noisy all night from the bar just behind the hotel. Location was great for a walk along the beach or a quick walk to Abbot-Kinny street for window shopping or a meal. Staff was friendly and helpful (particularly the parking valets - they know where everything in town is.)

dirty rooms

The couches and pillows had "love stains" all over them and the so called ocean view was a dirty alley that u could catch a tiny glimpse of the waves. I was extremely unsatisfied by the experience. The TV was the nicest part.

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