New hotels in Hollywood, Los Angeles

Hollywood & Vine has spent most of its century being described as more glamorous than it looks. The studios that gave the intersection its name mostly moved on, and the cinemas and offices that replaced them aged unevenly. For years the blocks around the corner were better known for souvenir shops than for anywhere an Angeleno would book a table. Towers, apartments and restaurants have since filled many of the empty lots, and in 2021 three hotels opened within about four months of each other: Thompson Hollywood and The Godfrey Hotel Hollywood in August, then Hollywood Volume, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel in December.

They are the only three we track here, and they do not offer the same stay. One is a new 11-story tower with a London interior designer, one is a 220-room lifestyle hotel built around a rooftop, and one gives much of its ground floor to shared space. The sections below explain the neighborhood first, then the hotels.

Getting around Hollywood

The Metro B Line (the old Red Line, renamed in 2020) is the reason Hollywood works for a visitor without a car. The Hollywood/Vine station sits under the intersection itself, Hollywood/Highland is a station to the west under the busiest stretch of the Walk of Fame, and Hollywood/Western is further east. Trains run south and east to Union Station in Downtown LA in roughly 25 minutes, which makes Downtown LA an easy half-day, and north through the Hollywood Hills to Universal City and North Hollywood.

For the Hollywood Bowl, the practical option is the Bowl shuttle. It leaves from Orange Court, the second level of the Ovation Hollywood lot at 1736 North Orange Drive, about 300 feet north of the Hollywood/Highland station exit. Departures run every 15 to 20 minutes starting two and a half hours before a concert, and the ride is free with a Metro ticket or pass. Walking to the Bowl is possible, about a mile, but it is uphill and nobody does it in evening clothes if they can avoid it.

A car is useful for Griffith Observatory, the canyons and anything beyond Hollywood, but parking at the hotels is a cost to check before booking rather than a given. Hollywood traffic around Highland and the 101 is heavy at rush hour and on concert nights.

What to do in Hollywood

The Walk of Fame, in two moods

The Walk of Fame has more than 2,800 stars set into the sidewalk, and they are not spread evenly in terms of crowds. The stretch between the TCL Chinese Theatre and Ovation Hollywood, at Hollywood and Highland, is the one in the photographs: tour-bus sellers, costumed characters, and a crush from late morning on. The Dolby Theatre, where the Academy Awards are held, is part of the same complex. Many visitors do this section once, quickly, and are glad to be done.

The Vine Street end is quieter and more interesting to many visitors. The Pantages Theatre at 6233 Hollywood Boulevard opened in 1930 and hosted the Academy Awards for a decade in the 1950s. Round the corner, the Capitol Records Building at 1750 Vine Street, a circular tower from 1956, still looks like a stack of records, and the studios behind it are still working. From the Thompson Hollywood on Wilcox Avenue both are a walk of a few minutes.

Between the two

The Egyptian Theatre at 6712 Hollywood Boulevard opened in 1922. Netflix bought it in 2020 and reopened it with the American Cinematheque, which programs repertory and classic film there. Musso & Frank Grill at 6667 Hollywood Boulevard dates from 1919 and is the oldest restaurant in the neighborhood, still run on red banquettes, a long menu and waiters in jackets. A dry martini and a steak at the counter is a reasonable way to spend an hour, and it is a better memorial to old Hollywood than most of the boulevard.

Music, outdoors and the cemetery

Amoeba Music, the record store on Sunset Boulevard, is a few minutes by car from Vine and is the reason the area is still associated with vinyl. Hollywood Forever on Santa Monica Boulevard is a working cemetery with a lawn that hosts outdoor film screenings in summer, an odd and pleasant evening. On Sunday mornings the farmers market on Ivar Avenue and Selma Avenue sets up near Hollywood & Vine.

Beyond the neighborhood

Griffith Observatory opened in 1935, charges nothing for entry, and has the best view of the Hollywood sign and the basin from its terrace. You can drive up, take the shuttle in the afternoons, or hike from the park. Runyon Canyon is the more popular hike, with entrances off Fuller Avenue, and gives a longer look back across the basin at sunset. Universal Studios is about a 15-minute drive from Hollywood & Vine outside peak hours, or a few stops on the B Line to Universal City. The beaches are a different trip: Santa Monica is 45 minutes or more by car on a normal day.

Where to stay in Hollywood

Thompson Hollywood

Thompson Hollywood opened on August 9, 2021, in a new 11-story building on Wilcox Avenue, one block off the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street. It has 190 rooms and belongs to Hyatt's Thompson Hotels line, with interiors by the London firm Tara Bernerd & Partners. The owner and developer is Relevant Group, a Los Angeles company that has built much of its portfolio in this part of Hollywood. The group's own description of the design leans mid-century rather than costume-drama. Rates from about $280 a night.

Because it is a new build and not a conversion, the rooms and public spaces were laid out from scratch. The Metro station beneath the intersection is the main practical advantage, along with the walk to the Pantages and the Capitol Records Building.

Hollywood Volume, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel

The Volume opened on December 1, 2021, under the name tommie Hollywood, and took its current name and Marriott flag in October 2024. The 212-room hotel sits next to Thompson Hollywood, in the blocks near Sunset Boulevard that hospitality press calls the Vinyl District. The nine-floor midcentury design is by Studio Collective, and the hotel turns more than 15,000 square feet into shared food, drink and workspace rather than a conventional lobby. A Yucatan-inspired restaurant by chef Wes Avila anchors it.

It was part of a push to make this area somewhere Angelenos would come for an evening, not only visitors with a camera. Rooms start around $150, the lowest of the three.

The Godfrey Hotel Hollywood

On Cahuenga Boulevard, at number 1400, The Godfrey opened in August 2021 as the first West Coast hotel under the Godfrey name and Oxford Hotels & Resorts' tenth in California. It has 220 rooms and a lifestyle positioning, and its signature is I|O, a 12,000-square-foot rooftop that the hotel bills as the largest public rooftop venue in Hollywood. Public in this case means open to non-guests, which affects how quiet the building is on a Friday night.

The neighborhood around the Godfrey is where entertainment offices sit, with Netflix on Vine, Live Nation, Fender and BuzzFeed all nearby, so the guest mix tilts toward industry travelers midweek. Rates from about $210.

Which hotel for which trip

First-time visitors who want the Walk of Fame, the Pantages and the Capitol Records Building on foot, and the Metro without a transfer, are best served by Thompson Hollywood. It is the shortest walk to Hollywood & Vine, and it is the most expensive of the three.

Those on a budget, or planning to spend evenings on shared terraces and in restaurants rather than in their room, should look at Hollywood Volume. It is the cheapest per night, and it shares a block with Thompson Hollywood, so the location advantage is almost the same.

For a rooftop and a livelier ground floor, The Godfrey. For a quiet stay it is the one to avoid on weekend nights, when I|O is open to the public.

None of the three is a resort. Pools, spas and large rooms are not what this part of Hollywood sells; if that is the priority, Beverly Hills is the better search.

Eating and nightlife

No single street concentrates the dining here, but a few places anchor it. Musso & Frank is the old-school option on the boulevard. The Yucatan-inspired kitchen at Hollywood Volume is the best-known recent opening among the three hotels, and I|O at the Godfrey is the place for a drink with a view of the skyline. Sunset Boulevard to the west turns into the Sunset Strip at the West Hollywood line, where clubs and late dining are denser. The Strip is about 10 minutes by car along Sunset, so a rideshare home is easier than a hotel there for travelers who plan an early start.

Nearby neighborhoods

West Hollywood is the nightlife answer, with the Strip, bars and a more residential street grid. Downtown LA suits a trip built around museums, Union Station and the larger hotel stock. Beverly Hills has the luxury end of the market. For the city as a whole, see Los Angeles, and for other cities and states, the United States guide.

Frequently asked questions

What is the newest hotel to open in Hollywood?

The newest is Hollywood Volume, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel, which opened on December 1, 2021, as tommie Hollywood, and is the most recent of the three hotels we track. Thompson Hollywood and The Godfrey both opened in August 2021, so all three arrived within roughly four months.

Which Hollywood hotel is closest to the Walk of Fame?

The closest is Thompson Hollywood, on Wilcox Avenue a block from Hollywood and Vine, is the closest of the three to the Vine Street stretch, with the Pantages Theatre and the Capitol Records Building a few minutes on foot. The busiest part of the Walk of Fame, at Hollywood and Highland, is further west and is a short ride on the B Line.

Is Hollywood a good base for visiting Universal Studios?

Yes. Universal Studios is about a 15-minute drive from Hollywood & Vine when roads are clear, and the B Line also reaches Universal City in a few stops. It is closer than from Downtown LA or Beverly Hills.

How far is Hollywood from the Sunset Strip?

About 10 minutes by car west along Sunset Boulevard, into West Hollywood. There is no direct Metro line, so most visitors take a rideshare.

How do I get to the Hollywood Bowl from Hollywood?

Take the free Bowl shuttle, which is free with a Metro ticket or pass. It leaves from the Ovation Hollywood lot on North Orange Drive, about 300 feet north of the Hollywood/Highland station, every 15 to 20 minutes starting two and a half hours before a concert.

Is Hollywood safe and walkable for tourists?

Yes during the day and early evening along Hollywood Boulevard and around Hollywood & Vine, where foot traffic is constant. Like any dense urban tourist strip, it deserves normal city caution late at night, and the quieter side streets are better done by ride than on foot.