Beverly Wilshire a Four Seasons Hotel

Expensive BUT WORTH IT! Luxury at every turn Made to feel very special from the moment when we checked in and got shown to my room My son even got a haircut at the salon the director of guest experiences took extremely good care of us. Every single server and bar staff was kind and polite and friendly, and the doorman and valet also were amazing It was decorated for Christmas, which made it truly special. Read less

My wife and I recently stayed at the Beverly Wilshire for two nights during a long weekend trip to the LA area, and we really enjoyed our stay. This hotel is an iconic spot in Beverly Hills, with a long and storied history and a perfect location for seeing the area. We received a great upgrade to a suite, which made our stay even more special and comfortable, and our interactions with staff were great. There was a small billing hiccup after our stay that left a slightly negative taste, but it got resolved, so I would absolutely return to and recommend this hotel. Trip Planning: As we always do when booking a Four Seasons, we reserved through a Preferred Partner travel agent, which enabled us to get free perks (I highly recommend doing this). For no extra cost, our reservation included priority early check-in, a room upgrade based on availability, a one-time $100 hotel credit, and a breakfast credit each morning of $90, which could be used in the restaurant or for room service. The travel agent we worked with was even able to confirm a double room upgrade in advance of our arrival, which was a pleasant surprise, especially since upgrades are often not confirmed until check-in. I also appreciated that her contact at the hotel really seemed to want to make sure we got the best room possible for our needs. We had booked a Signature Balcony Room, so a double upgrade was to a Rodeo View Studio Suite. The hotel explained that the upgrade would take away our balcony, but we could keep the balcony and have more of a panoramic view of the Hollywood Hills (which they thought we might prefer), if we did a single upgrade to a BW Studio Suite instead. We agreed to that, and they assured us they would block us into one of their best rooms in that category. We ultimately got upgraded even further, but the room we had was spot-on for what was promised location and view-wise. Arrival: It can be slightly confusing to find the entrance when arriving for the first time. A lot of GPS apps will lead you to the recognizable hotel entrance on Wilshire Boulevard, which isn’t actually the main entrance for hotel guests when parking a car. There is a valet at the Wilshire entrance, and it’s a good spot to be dropped off in an Uber, but the main entrance for hotel parking is in a larger porte cochere between the two towers of the hotel, accessed off of a side street (El Camino Drive). Upon arrival at the correct spot, I was immediately greeted by Florian on the valet team, who was there during much of our stay and provided good service throughout. He welcomed me to the hotel and assisted with my luggage, assuring me that the luggage would be brought up to our room immediately if the room was ready, or as soon as possible later in the day when a room became available. I went to the front desk to check-in, and was assisted by a very friendly and professional front desk clerk. She provided a warm welcome and gave me the good news that our room was ready (before noon), and that it had been upgraded further to a one-bedroom suite, all of which was great to hear. She also provided an overview of the extra credits that were included in our room rate and how to use them. It was a great check-in experience, with the only thing missing being that there wasn’t any sort of welcome beverage offered, which is typically at least water, if not champagne, at Four Seasons hotels. After check-in, the hotel also did a great job of coordinating things to get me settled into my room. I found my way to my room and a very friendly bellman was at my room within 2 minutes after to deliver my luggage and assist with getting settled. I also appreciated that within 10 minutes after that, I received a phone call from the hotel’s Guest Experience Manager, welcoming me to the hotel and apologizing for not having been present at check-in to welcome me. It was nice to have the extra welcome and to know that there was someone I could reach out to if we had any problems. Room: In order to pick a room type at this hotel, it’s helpful to understand how it’s laid out, which isn’t intuitive before seeing it. The hotel consists of two separate buildings, the Wilshire Wing and the Beverly Wing. The Wilshire Wing is the historic 1920s building you see in all of the pictures of this hotel, which sits directly at the end of Rodeo Drive where it intersects with Wilshire Blvd. It’s the recognizable building featured in scenes in the movie Pretty Woman. The Wilshire Wing contains the main front desk, lobby, and hotel restaurants. The Beverly Wing is just behind the Wilshire Wing, accessible by walking outside across the hotel’s porte cochere, or via a covered walkway on the 2nd floor. The Beverly Wing contains the pool and spa and is newer, built in the 1970s. Most rooms in the newer Beverly Wing have a balcony, while almost no rooms in the older Wilshire Wing do. The interiors of the buildings have been made to look very cohesive, so neither really feels like the “old” or “new” building. I would choose a room based on its actual features rather than which building it is located in, since the property as a whole is compact. We were in the Beverly Wing and happy with it. We received a very nice upgrade to a one-bedroom Beverly Suite, and it was great. One thing we always appreciate at Four Seasons properties is that everything typically feels well-decorated and upscale, all while being impeccably maintained. This hotel was no exception, and the suite was a very comfortable and upscale space. I was impressed that the room had very high ceilings, and since we were given a room at the very end of the hallway, we had lots of natural light with windows on two sides. The light blue, gray, and tan color palette was also pleasant and relaxing, and the room was very quiet with no outside noise heard at any point. We loved our room and would loved to have been there longer. The living room of the suite wasn’t huge, but it was nicely furnished with a couch, two chairs and a small dining table. The adjacent bedroom had the wonderful Four Seasons bed, along with a chaise lounge. A very large balcony stretched across the entire thing. Both my wife and I commented that something about the balcony felt a little scary, largely since the railing wasn’t all that high and there were wide gaps in it. It was a nice space with multiple chairs, but something about it felt surprisingly precarious, maybe since we were right on the end of the hotel in a corner where it was all very open. From the balcony, we had views of the Hollywood Hills and Hollywood sign in the distance, along with a view of the Downtown LA skyline in another direction. At night, seeing all of the lights in the hills was enjoyable as well. It was certainly a nice view, but not quite as exciting as you might think, since all of the best things to see were distant, and it was mostly a view of nearby buildings in the foreground, which are nondescript, dull office buildings. I recognize that we probably had one of the best possible views in the hotel, since we were on a high floor. Just a few floors lower and we would have been looking at the wall of the other wing of the hotel, which is the view many rooms have. I just think it’s helpful to note that you shouldn’t really stay here counting on a great view. It’s a hotel in a city setting, and the rooms have views commensurate with that setting. The bathroom was nicely appointed in black and white marble, with thick towels and robes, and nice bath products from Frederic Malle. The only negative was that the bathroom was surprisingly small, which was especially unusual in a suite. There was only one sink, and not very much storage around it. It contained both a separate tub and shower, but both were quite small, so I would have preferred just a larger shower and to eliminate the tub. It was definitely a nice enough bathroom, just a small one that wasn’t as functional as I’d prefer. A couple other minor things: -It would have been nice if the room had real desk. I had to do a little bit of work and realized that the only area resembling a desk was comically narrow (it couldn’t even fit a laptop), with a low stool. -Although the hotel felt very well maintained as a whole, some paint in hallways in particular needs some attention. The moldings and room doors were all a dark gray, and in several places in our hallway (the 10th floor of the Beverly Wing), it was peeling or just scratched and dinged on the molding and guestroom doors. Some fresh paint could go a long way. Housekeeping did a good job throughout our stay, and the room was impeccably clean at all times. There was a button to illuminate in the hallway to indicate when we wanted housekeeping, and they always came when we were out and had indicated it was a good time. Turndown was always done nicely as well, with waters and slippers left by the bed. I appreciated that the hotel provided a welcome amenity in our room on behalf of our travel agent, which was delivered shortly after check-in. It was on the more basic side of what we’ve received as a welcome at Four Seasons properties, consisting of just two cookies and two glass bottles of the same water that was provided for free in the room. We were celebrating a special occasion that had been noted on the reservation, so it was a little surprising that the note didn’t mention the occasion, and it was not mentioned at all during our stay. I thought that was a bit of a surprising misstep, since recognizing occasions is something Four Seasons hotels are usually really great about. Dining & Bars: This hotel has two restaurants, The Blvd (the main hotel restaurant open for all meals) and Cut (Wolfgang Puck’s steakhouse open for dinner). Both restaurants are in the older Wilshire Building, with The Blvd being right in the front of the hotel overlooking Rodeo Drive, and Cut further back in the hotel with no view. We did not have a chance to try Cut, but we did have breakfast one morning at The Blvd. We chose to eat outside on the nice patio area so we could enjoy the view, and the meal was nice, with very attentive service. My wife enjoyed the French toast, while I had the specialty $24 pumpkin spice croissant, which was definitely more of an artistic pastry piece than a normal croissant (and very good). They also had great cappuccino and fresh-squeezed juice, fulfilling what I’d hope for from a high-end hotel breakfast. The only thing we didn’t love was that when we visited on a Saturday, they were only offering the brunch menu, despite the fact that we were there around 8:00 am. At that time of day, no one is interested in the added brunch items like raw bar selections or a burger, so we ended up with a less useful and more limited menu than expected, even as compared to in-room dining, which usually has fewer selections. I would recommend that the hotel offer a normal breakfast menu seven days a week when guests are visiting during clear breakfast hours. Also, although it was unsurprising for a high-end hotel, breakfast for two was quite pricey, and we still somehow spent about $50 in addition to our $90 breakfast credit on what seemed like a pretty basic breakfast for two. We also tried in-room dining for breakfast another morning. We just got basic continental breakfast, but were happy with both the speed in which it arrived, and the service to set it up for us. We also both agreed that the cinnamon roll we got through in-room dining was one of the best we’ve ever had. Other Amenities: We didn’t have a chance to spend time at the hotel pool or spa, but we did take a quick look to see the pool. It’s located on the second floor of the Beverly Wing and is pretty compact, with both the pool itself and pool deck around it not all that large. There is also a small pool bar and outdoor dining area. The pool doesn’t have any view to speak of, as it’s in a sort of enclosed raised courtyard area. I agree with others’ comments that the pool isn’t particularly impressive, but it’s a hotel in an urban environment, so I also wouldn’t expect a much larger pool either. I liked that there was a small exhibit in the Wilshire Wing to go over the history and development of the hotel over the years. Beyond knowing about Pretty Woman, it was interesting to learn about historically significant events at the hotel and notable guests throughout the years. It only takes five minutes to look at all of it, but I enjoyed stopping to read those items. Location: The location of this hotel is great for exploring Beverly Hills and the nearby area. You’re right at the base of Rodeo Drive and all of the best shopping in the area if that is of interest. It doesn’t interest us, but just walking down Rodeo Drive and looking at stores’ window displays was interesting. After walking down Rodeo Drive from the hotel, we were able to continue our walk to see the Beverly Hills sign and then walk through the Flats to admire the real estate in the area. We ended up walking all the way to the Beverly Hills Hotel for lunch, which was about a mile away in total, but it was a pleasant and easy walk on a nice day. The Beverly Wilshire is also very close to many of the most notable restaurants in Beverly Hills, so being able to walk to dinners was excellent. We also found it to be a great jumping off point for other places nearby that we wanted to see. It was an easy drive west to the Getty, for example, or also an easy drive east to see the Sunset Strip and West Hollywood. Service/Overall: Overall, we found service during our stay to be at a very high standard. It’s always a bit harder to feel a strong sense of service at a more urban hotel than at a resort-style hotel, since you aren’t spending large blocks of time at hotel facilities receiving ongoing direct service like you might at a beach resort. However, I thought this hotel did a great job. For one, the valet staff was excellent. We took our car out several times over the course of our stay, and in the couple minutes between calling for the car and coming downstairs each time, it had virtually always been brought up already. The valet staff was efficient and helpful, and almost always offered us waters to take with us when driving. The hotel had some events during our stay that brought in large numbers of outside visitors at one time, needing to park simultaneously and then leave in droves. We got caught in these events twice, which was a bit annoying, but even with a backlog of cars coming into the hotel or leaving, we didn’t have any major delays. The valet staff was clearly hustling and prioritized getting hotel guests’ cars, which we appreciated. I also thought the doormen were very good at their job. This hotel does become a bit of a tourist attraction, since a lot of non-hotel guests tend to walk through the famous property to see it. It would be very easy for doormen to not really differentiate the hotel guests from the visitors. However, on multiple occasions we received the little touches that make us feel remembered and valued as hotel guests like hearing “welcome back” after coming back from dinner, or “nice to see you again” after encountering the same doorman multiple times. Those little details differentiate a great luxury hotel. On top of that, every other staff member we encountered provided a positive experience. This extended from friendly housekeepers in the hallway, to a helpful front desk, to the extra call to check on us after arriving. When I asked about different pillow types in the app, the response was immediate, and the different pillows I requested were at the room within ten minutes. The hotel operates like a well-oiled machine and treats guests well. Because of this positive experience, I was really surprised when we had some issues after check-out that were surprisingly frustrating to remedy. On the morning of our departure day, our folio had not been emailed to me, so I sent a message in the Four Seasons app to ask for a copy. It wasn’t until later that day, after we had left, that I realized that the folio was never sent. This was unusual, since all previous requests I made in the app had been handled promptly throughout our stay. It wasn’t a big deal, so I followed up that evening in the app. That time, I had the folio within about 30 minutes. After reviewing the bill, I realized that one of the charges for a $90 in-room dining lunch didn’t seem correct, since we never had lunch at the hotel. I sent a reply message on the app to let them know it was an erroneous charge. The response I received was to tell me to send an email to the accounting department about my concern, which I thought was poor service. An incorrect minor charge is something any front desk clerk can handle, so I wasn’t sure why I had to make the extra effort of emailing a back-office accounting department. However, I did so, and it took several days to get a response. The response wasn’t professional, as their response was a blank email attaching a copy of an itemized receipt for the incorrect charges, and didn’t actually respond to my questions or resolve anything. It turned out that the charge was for three items from the mini-bar, which we had never consumed. I followed up both via email and phone call to the accounting department to explain that this charge was incorrect, and never got a response to my email. The phone call resulted in being told that an “investigation” would have to occur with in-room dining before they could decide whether they would remove the charge. Three more days passed with no follow-up on the “investigation”, so I called the accounting department again. I was told they had not heard back from in-room dining. Rather than taking the initiative to figure it out (or just removing this relatively small charge due to all of the inconvenience), I was told that if I wanted to expedite things, I could call in-room dining myself. When I tried to do that, the hotel operator refused to connect me with that department since I wasn’t calling from an in-house phone. Finally, I spoke with someone at the front desk who agreed to speak with in-room dining on my behalf, but again wasn’t willing or able to fix anything directly. I finally got a call from an in-room dining manager about an hour later, with an apology and an offer to remove the charge. I had also sent an email to the hotel’s general manager in this process, to see if he could help with the ongoing confusion. His response came after, and was apologetic and made it clear that he would address this with the relevant departments. Although the billing issue was minor, and it was eventually fixed as I had requested, it was disappointing to have no one at the hotel just take ownership of the issue and fix it from the start. I was tossed around between departments as if I’m an internal staff member, not a guest, and I didn’t appreciate the fact that the hotel wouldn’t initially take my word for it that the charge was incorrect. Having to wait for an “investigation” into a $90 charge that was a small percentage of our overall bill felt a bit demeaning. The final resolution was apologetic, and the manager took ownership that there were service failures making that should have been simple and smooth overly complicated, which I appreciated. That experience wouldn’t make me avoid the hotel or not recommend it, but it ended things with a surprisingly sour note after a really great stay. Despite that, our stay at the Beverly Wilshire was exceedingly positive, and I would definitely return to this hotel. It’s a historic, iconic property in Beverly Hills with a perfect central location for exploring the area. Staying there was an experience I was happy to have had, made even better by a lovely upgraded room and good service throughout our stay. Our one hiccup post-departure was annoying, but minor in the overall scheme of things, so I would certainly still come back. This is a luxury hotel that does luxury well. 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The BLVD Bar is chic, cool and sophisticated. A real gem in Beverly Hills. The service was amazing and the front of house team superb as gave us a front row outside table, which drew envious glances. The menu caters for all dietary requirements and the vegan selections plenty. The wine list is extensive as are the by the glass choices. The prices were remarkably consummate with the location and we enjoyed a deliciously chilled Whispering Angel Rosé for $96. This place attracts celebrities and A-list clientele and a brilliant place to have selfie’s. Loved every moment and thank you. Read less