There’s plenty of information available online for tourists seeking a hotel room near the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, or Universal Orlando in Florida, but details on lodging around Universal Studios Hollywood can be hard to come by. If you’re staying overnight near Los Angeles’s original movie-themed attraction, consider this review (direct from the new Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2020) of the BLVD Hotel & Spa near Universal Studios Hollywood.
Before we delve into the BLVD Hotel & Spa itself, it’s important to know a bit about on-site hotels at Universal Studios Hollywood. Hilton and Sheraton both operate hotels on USH’s property, but if you’ve experienced the exceptional perks offered to guests at Universal Orlando’s Loews hotels, lower your expectations before booking an on-site room at USH. Both on-property hotels are pricey for the room size and service quality, the parks are a poorly marked 10-minute hike away, and no theme park bonuses—such as front-of-the- line passes or even early entry (unless you purchase a designated vacation package)—are included.
Therefore, we strongly suggest investigating one of the off-site hotels that are easily accessible to Universal. One of the closest affordable hotels to Universal Studios is the BLVD, located at 10730 Ventura Blvd. in Studio City. You can see the property and a guest room in this hotel tour video:
BLVD’s full-service bar and 24-hour grab-and-go café give it the appealing vibe of a hipster hangout. There’s even a daily happy hour with drink specials.
That Tinsletown style extends to the celebrity photo-festooned guest floors. The rooms themselves, which are of average size, are equipped with all the standard amenities you’d expect in a value-price urban motel, including a mini-fridge and microwave, 42″ HDTV, and green bath products.
While the guest rooms were updated fairly recently, and their modern furniture looks fabulous in photographs, they unfortunately exhibit some odd form-over-function design decisions, such as weirdly dark lighting.
Some rooms are also showing wear, with loose faux-hardwood floorboards and wrinkled carpets. Rooms have lots of electrical outlets but no USB plugs, and the Wi-Fi is painfully slow. Still, it’s perfectly acceptable for a night or two, though you should compare rates with the Tilt down the block.
As for the Spa part of BLVD’s name, there is a limited menu of services available from the Vya Spa, which is open by appointment only. There’s also a tiny indoor pool.
Parking in the BLVD’s indoor garage costs a pricey $31 per day.
If you want to forgo renting a vehicle, you can hop on a free Universal Studios shuttle bus that will conveniently take you from Lankershim Boulevard and Universal Hollywood Drive to the main entrances of USH and CityWalk. The bus runs daily, beginning at 7 a.m., with pickups about every 10–15 minutes; service continues until about 2 hours after the theme park closes. Refer to the posted times at each shuttle stop for information on the last departing shuttle.
Alternatively, spring for a $5 rideshare to the park. It’s also possible to walk to Universal, but it’s a 15-minute hike up an extremely steep hill.
Overall, we rate the BLVD Hotel & Spa near Universal Studios Hollywood
3 stars out of 5.
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