Disappointed after all the positive reviews
I stayed here last week, 2 nights for business. After many positive reviews and looking at other properties, I finally decided on the Four Points Sheraton LAX. I could tell from the reviews and photos that the property was undergoing a makeover, though the building itself was clearly older. The common areas (lobby, bar/lounge area, etc.) looked fresh and modern. So far so good, and met the expectations I had from doing my Trip Advisor research.
Things fell apart when I got to my room in the middle tower. The only window opened to the hallway. The hallway in turn had (dusty) windows overlooking the pool area. In other words, the original design of this tower is just odd. For privacy, you have to close the curtains or shades and then you have no natural light. There was also a lot of noise from the people and housekeeping staff going by; the windows don't offer much sound insulation. The thermostat didn't seem to work. The cool air was noisy and kept blowing no matter what I set the temp to, so I had to turn it off completely. Then the room got too warm and eventually woke me up, not to mention the mattress felt like it was dropping slightly down and away from the headboard, toward my feet.
The room itself was recently updated, nothing great just nice by today's standards. Pretty much every major hotel chain is following the same retro-modern updates for their second and third tier chains (Holiday Inn Express, Hyatt Place, Springhill Suites, Courtyard by Marriott, etc.). This is not a complaint at all, and a trend I whole-heartedly endorse.
There was no closet--only an armoire crammed into the bathroom between the shower/toilet on the left and sink/vanity area to the right. The armoire was not deep enough for me to hang my garment bag, slightly annoying. Also, they have energy saver, motion-sensor light switches in unintuitive locations. The sink area light was on the wall outside the bathroom and the shower/toilet light was outside the doorway as well. Once, I was on the toilet and the light just switched off while I was sitting there.
Shortly after checking in, a housekeeper barged in without knocking as I was working at the desk. She was apologetic and said "oh, I'm sorry, did you check in?" I'm thinking "yes, how do you think I got in?" (I could've been watching porn or something--how embarrassing!) After the first night, I decided to ask for a different room. I was relieved that the front desk gave no resistance to the request. But when she went to find a room in a different tower, the rooms there had not been redecorated (no flat-panel TV, for example). I thought a minute and decided it couldn't be worse than the first room, especially if it had an exterior window instead of hallway window. I'm glad I switched. The room was definitely quieter and more comfortable. The bathroom fixtures looked pretty ancient, but I didn't mind taking everything else into account.
The first night, I was too tired to drive anywhere for dinner. I was intrigued by the Brewster's Bar in the lobby, which offers over 100 different beers (about 10 on tap and the rest in bottles). I didn't have high hopes for the hotel food, and I was right. With my first (yummy) Belgian-style ale, I ordered the "charcuterie" off the small plates menu. The description was assorted "salumi and cheeses." When the plate arrived, I couldn't have been more disappointed. I love plain old salami but what appeared was slices of supermarket pepperoni and ham or Canadian bacon--accompanied by rubbery sticks of bland white and pepper jack cheeses. Some nerve calling it "charcuterie" or "salumi"! With my second beer, I just went for traditional buffalo wings and seasoned fries. Nothing you can't get at home from Costco frozen foods, but at least I knew what I was getting. The beer selection is truly impressive and easy to read. They also provide a glass of big pretzel sticks when you are seated. In any case, I can definitely recommend the bar as the highlight of the entire property. Note that their definition of "happy hour" includes drink specials but no food specials.
I am bummed because my default hotel (Sheraton LAX Gateway) was over our company's hotel limit for the dates I needed. I get to book my own travel and pick my own hotels so can stay pretty much anywhere. After doing the research on Trip Advisor, I never imagined it would be this disappointing. I am definitely not a hotel snob but won't be coming back.