The only thing good about this hotel was that the checkout was fast -- I could get out of this place as fast as possible.

Rooms: Ocean Tower rooms are ruddy with chipped paint, extremely thin walls, and a 15+ year old 20" Zenith CRT TV. A small flat panel TV would cost < $300 per room, but they have not made the upgrade. Cleaning staff was good.

Service: indifferent front desk and incompetent servers in the banquet hall. Took 50 minutes to get a vegetarian entree despite having given advance notice. Everyone was finished with dessert when those with special meal requests could eat.

Front Desk: Indifferent, rude, and entitled. No appreciation for high status President's Club members. Continued to mispronounce my name -- don't try to say my name if you can't read.

Either spend less money to stay elsewhere and know you didn't get ripped off or spend a little more and stay at the Huntley across the street.

This is the worst Fairmont ever and my organization will be moving our annual meeting away from this hotel. They just lost $150,000.

Thoroughly enjoyed four nights at the Fairmont in August, as part of a tour of the West Coast. We stayed in one of the Garden Rooms, which was large, pleasant and clean. Of particular interest to my teenage daughter was the complementary laptop and internet access. She now had a chance to contact her friends back in the UK.

The room came supplied with a coffee machine, TV and mini-bar. The bathroom was large and clean. Only problem was that we couldn't get the over bath shower to work. However, as it was a double bath, we were entirely happy to just use that. Note that, to be fair to the hotel, we didn't make them aware of any problem, so they never got a chance to fix it (or indeed give me instruction on how to use it).

The pool area was pleasant, although not overly large, and the grounds were very well maintained. There was a restaurant, pool side bar during the day and separate dining area near to a pond. We dined in the restaurant and dining area, and the meals were very good. Only suggestion I would make is that the waiting staff needed a bit of instruction on the finer points. For example they put side plates down on the wrong side of the settings. Sounds petty I know, but it's those small details that turn an OK experience into a great one. The breakfasts were also good.

All in all, not overly cheap, but it was by far the best hotel we stayed at in our tour. I would recommend to anyone.

We went on our family vacation to California. It was the best vacation ever, except at the Miramar. It was not child friendly at all. The front desk was not helpful at all however housekeeping were more informative and helpful. Apparently the hotel is near the beach. If you consider walking on a highway ramp and a fifteen minute walk ...............!!!!!!!! This is not fun nor safe with kids. For the price they charge, they do not even offer shuttles or beach towels.!!!!!!!!!! We will come back to California but never stay here again.

The Fairmont has three buildings -- bungalows on the grounds (which looked nice) and then two buildings -- an older building (Palisades) and newer (Ocean Tower). The positive of this hotel is that the grounds are attractive and pleasant -- sitting by the pool surrounded by palm trees is lovely. That said, it is a very expensive hotel that doesn't match up to Fairmonts in other places. They are clearly trading on the Fairmont name (and charging Fairmont prices) but the overall experience is not as positive. The staff are not very helpful - I booked an oceanfront suite and got a room with six windows, one of which faced the ocean. I raised this with the front desk and was told they'd speak with the manager and get back to me. They never did. When I checked in, another guest was expressing concern about a "bait and switch" with her room. So, bottom line, I'd stay at a cheaper place in Santa Monica -- this Fairmont is not worth the money.