The Westin Hotel Long Beach

Put a backpacker in this hotel and he'll be in heaven. Hands down, this is one of the nicest hotels I've ever stayed in. I was put up in this hotel on a business trip, so I didn't hesitate to indulge in all of its luxaries.

The rooms are amazing. The hotel does a great job providing a luxurious feeling to its guests. The interior is very sophisticated and modern. The bed is clean and comfortable. The room is climate controlled. You have all the basics: TV/Cable, AC, Iron, Free Safe, Closet, Dresser, Desk, Wifi & Ethernet (not free), Fridge, Mini-Bar, and Phone. The bathrooms are amazing. I've never had so many mirrors in one bathroom. They even provide you a robe.

I had two beds in my room. Being a backpacker who is used to sharing a room with 7 other guys and sleeping in a bunkbed, I had to consult a friend as to which bed to sleep in. She suggested I sleep in a different bed each night.

The food in the mini bar isn't really worth the money, but if the company is paying, why not try it? My assessment: the food isn't worth it at any price. I also took the opportunity to order room service. The staff was quick and friendly. The food was decent. Once again, probably not worth the price. But after a long day and a bad sunburn, it was nice to have the service. The buffalo wings were tasty and so was the ice cream.

The conference rooms were quite nice. They are what you come to expect for a conference room. They have wifi throughout the building, so that makes connecting to the Internet easy. You have to pay for Internet access, and you get access for 24 hours. Its important to know that their ethernet and wifi accounts are separate. If you pay for wifi Internet access, you won't be able to get Internet through ethernet (and vice versa). They really should fix this.

The hotel is kept at a extremely cold temperature. I did not think to bring anything with long sleeves. After all, I was in California during the summer. It was a bad move, the conference rooms were freezing.

The food was provided as a part of my conference, so I do not know what they provide to regular guests. The food they served was good, a standard style buffet. I would not say it was gourmet, but I definitely didn't go hungry.

The staff was friendly and informative, and they let me check in early. They have a luggage check, so if you need a place to store your luggage after you check out, you can just give it to someone at the door. Its free.

The hotel has a gift shop where you can buy the essentials you forgot, like aloe for your sunburn.

The hotel is not near the beach. It is a hike, but it is within walking distance. The hotel has a pool on one of its roofs. There aren't many attractions within walking distance of this hotel.