The Georgian Santa Monica: Hotel Review

I’ve been dreaming of visiting Los Angeles for years. Living in the Midwest my whole life means I’m used to a flat landscape and long winters. That makes LA my dream city. Rolling hills, frequent sunshine and most importantly, beaches that are usable for more than 2 months out of the year. That’s why I chose to stay at The Georgian in Santa Monica so that I could wake up by the water every morning. The following blog post is all about my stay at The Georgian Hotel in Santa Monica, California.

THE GEORGIAN SANTA MONICA

The Georgian Santa Monica is a historic, beach-front hotel that’s been around since 1933. You can’t miss it as you’re cruising down Ocean Drive (the street that runs parallel to the ocean) with it’s baby blue and bright yellow exterior. There’s a red LED sign that lights up the rooftop with “THE GEORGIAN” that you can spot from blocks away.

This iconic Santa Monica hotel has 84 guest rooms, 14 ocean-facing suites and a charming restaurant on their front patio called The Veranda Santa Monica (more on their restaurant later in this post.) It’s also less than 2 blocks north of Colorado street, where you access the Santa Monica Pier, so you can walk to the beach in under 10 minutes.

With its central location on Ocean Drive, you’re right in the heart of the Santa Monica action. There are restaurants, coffee shops & retail stores surrounding the hotel which is great if you’re looking for fun things to do in Santa Monica other than sit at the beach.

THE GEORGIAN SANTA MONICA ROOMS

There are several different room and bed sizes offered at The Georgian including accessible rooms. The room we stayed in, and that you see pictured in this blog post, was the Ocean View Suite. It had a separate living space from the bedroom with double French doors between the two. The living space had a pull-out love seat, separate chaise lounge chair, and a side table with chairs if you need to get any work done or want to eat any meals in your room.

My favorite part of this hotel room was the ocean facing window. The view is incredible to wake up to. Water as far as the eye can see and palm trees swaying in the wind. Such a dream! You can also watch the sun set over the ocean if you’re not feeling up for watching it outside.

Other amenities inside the room were a TV, mini-fridge and a lockbox safe. The bathroom had a full tub & shower with glass doors, his and hers sink and the comfiest robes for lounging in. The room also comes with free Wi-Fi.

Anytime I travel, I look for a hotel that gives me that “still at home” comfort feeling. The Georgian Hotel Santa Monica met all these expectations.

ON-SITE RESTAURANT: THE VERANDA

I mentioned earlier that there is an adorable restaurant on the front patio of the hotel called The Veranda. They offer indoor seating as well as two outdoor options including an enclosed patio and an uncovered patio. You can take in views of sunset right from your table.

Their outdoor patio has yellow umbrellas that contrast nicely against the blue and white stripped awnings. It makes this space super photo-worthy! Which, of course, is only secondary to the delicious food.

We dined here three times during our stay – once for drinks, once for brunch and once again for dinner. Everything I tried on the menu was great and there is nothing that I would not recommend. Below are my favs though!

JEN’S RECOMMENDATIONS:

Happy Hour – The Mai Tai (you’re dining next to the beach so this one just feels right)

Caffeination – Oat Milk Latte (they offer other non-dairy options as well)

Brunch – Fried Chicken & Waffles with a Spicy Bloody Mary (come hungry for this one)

Dinner – Cheeseburger with Fries (because calories don’t count on vacation)

Appetizer – The Jumbo Asparagus (trust me on this one)

You can charge your dining bill to your room for your convenience. The also offer the same menu for room service if you don’t feel like dining downstairs. Book your reservation for The Veranda on Open Table here.

ENTERTAINMENT & HOSPITALITY

THE NEIGHBORHOOD

I mentioned before that The Georgian is in a central location which makes it easy to get around and see other places to visit in Santa Monica. Other spots I enjoyed dining at throughout the weekend, which were walking distance from The Georgian, were The Independence for brunch (I had the Avocado Toast, don’t let the broccolini scare you away, it was great!); Shangri-La Hotel for dinner at their restaurant called Onyx; and lastly Cabo Cantina for late night drinks & guac.

RENTAL BICYLCES

Like many hotels in Santa Monica, The Georgian has bicycles you can rent by the day free of charge. They are first-come, first-serve so I recommend asking the front desk for availability earlier in the day to ensure you get one. There was no hourly time limit which was great, but you will be expected to sign a waiver to ensure you bring them back.

We rode our bikes down to Venice one morning which is 3 miles down the boardwalk or a 20-minute ride. You really get a chance to take in the whole beach-town vibe during this ride. Venice is a whole different vibe from Santa Monica and it was great getting to experience both areas. I highly recommend taking advantage of these!

SANTA MONICA PIER & BEACH

The Santa Monica Pier is only a 10-minute walk away and could be seen from our west-facing hotel window. A visit to the Santa Monica Pier is a must when you’re in town. Right now the pier is open from 6am-10pm with limited capacity and access due to health and safety protocols. At the time of my visit in March 2021, face masks were still required on the pier. Please respect all local guidance’s when you visit.

There is food & drink available on the pier and the restaurants are slowly opening back up post-pandemic. There is also an amusement park but it is still closed at this time.

You can easily access the beach from stairs on either side of the pier. I watched sunset from the beach every night that I stayed in Santa Monica which was so dreamy. You can’t miss this experience!

THE HOTEL STAFF

The last thing I’ll mention about The Georgian is the incredible staff. I imagine majority of the staff and the entire hotel/travel industry has had a tough past year with the pandemic and the slow down of travel. It was apparent that each staff member truly loves their job in the travel industry, and everyone went out of their way to make our stay special.

This can be said for the incredibly kind front desk service, the bartender & restaurant manager who spent time chatting with us while we dined & the valet attendants who always provided prompt delivery of our car out front throughout the weekend.

We also had the chance to meet the hotel owner who was dining next to our table at The Veranda during the first night. He started talking to us after seeing me taking photos of the place with my camera. He kindly welcomed us to Santa Monica and told us about exciting future renovation plans for The Georgian Hotel.

We absolutely loved our stay The Georgian Hotel Santa Monica. I can’t wait to come back and visit again in the future! Book your stay at The Georgian by clicking on this link.

RELATED: If you’re visiting Los Angeles be sure to check out my blog post on the most Instagrammable Places in LA here.

THE GEORGIAN HOTEL SANTA MONICA:
Location: 1415 Ocean Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90401
Distance From Nearest Airport: 12 miles from LAX
Price: $$

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*DISCLAIMER: I wrote this in partnership with The Georgian Hotel Santa Monica. All opinions are my own.

Summary

Article Name

The Georgian Santa Monica | Hotel Review

Description

This blog post is a review of the historic hotel The Georgian Santa Monica. As always, all opinions are my own.

Author

Jennifer Connarn