Reviews of Beverly Hills Hotel, Los Angeles, United States

Review of Beverley Hills Hotel, by Daniel Scott

Queen of the glamour factor amongst Hollywood's luxury hotels, the Beverley Hills Hotel is a self-styled "Pink Palace". It was here that Marilyn Monroe began an affair with Yves Montand, during the filming of "Let's Make Love". Other Beverley Hills Hotel legends include the Beatles being smuggled - in disguise - through a back entrance at the height of their 1960s fame, and the Rat Pack (including Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr.) going on notorious drinking binges in the Polo Lounge.

Retaining the feel of a Spanish hacienda, the hotel now has an airy, peaceful feel to it which begins with the carefully-tended landscaped tropical gardens that surround it and extend inside to its open lobby. Built in 1912, it has also featured in movies Shampoo, The Way We Were and American Gigolo.

These days the Polo Lounge is a more sedate but nonetheless recommended fine-dining restaurant and, after a period of interior-design madness, the Beverly Hills Hotel as a whole has been restored to close to its 1940s best. The 203 homey, individually-decorated rooms are a generous size, complete with fireplaces and balconies or terrace. Goodies include ipod docking stations, satellite TVs with DVD players and rainforest shower heads.