Petit Ermitage

Good location just btw W Hollywood and Beverly Hills but otherwise this is the place that taste and time forgot. My partner and I nicknamed it Beverly Hills Bordello. Every surface is covered with adornment busier and uglier than the next. Our room had three paint colors on the walls: two were rust and mustard yellow, and a fake “shabby chic” turquoise trim. It also had smudged walls and stained ceilings. The elevator is covered in wood and feels like entering a stinky, stale sauna. The hotel entrance is chipped paint railings and stairs—a paean to deferred maintenance. The check in person didn’t say welcome or hello just barked “credit card and ID.” The rooftop is ok for breakfast but the pool area is jam packed with“influencers” and “models” making kissy faces into their camera phones and the scary looking men who want to screw them —many of them smoking. We took a long look around when we left because we are never coming back. Read less

We did another event at Petit Ermitage late this summer, and it was yet again such a great experience that we thought it was important to share here. Petit is a special creative haven for both locals and visitors, and everything about the space feels intentional and inspiring, which makes it the perfect place for us to host our events. Troy deserves a huge thank you for pulling everything together. He is always incredibly helpful and professional, but also just really easy to work with. He is a creative problem solver who anticipated needs we hadn't even thought of and always had a solution ready. His attention to detail and proactive approach made what could have been a stressful process feel effortless. The rest of the staff was just as wonderful. Everyone was accommodating, friendly, and genuinely seemed happy to help us succeed. If you're looking for a hotel to stay at or host your next event that combines creativity with exceptional service, we can't recommend Petit Ermitage enough. And if you have the chance to work with Troy, you're in incredible hands. Read less

One arrives at Petit Ermitage hoping for louche indulgence, candlelight charm, and that particular West Hollywood brand of nonchalant glamour — the kind of place where Peter Sellers might have mislaid his trousers and no one would have thought it remarkable. Alas, what we found was an establishment oscillating somewhere between inspired eccentricity and organised chaos. The front desk team were a roll of the dice — some quite delightful, others seemingly suffering from a rare allergy to engagement. Our first room, charming in theory, was in practice a biohazard. My wife’s asthma was instantly stirred by the unholy alliance of ancient carpets, heavy drapery and what I can only assume was a century of dander and dreams. We fled after one night. The second room was almost habitable, provided the windows remained open and one avoided the sofa, which appeared to have lived a more eventful life than most Hollywood agents. Now — credit where it’s due. The rooftop pool was an absolute triumph. Mad, glittering characters swirled about like extras from a lost Fellini reel, and the cocktails were worthy companions to the spectacle. The gym, though excellent, required reservations, which lent the curious air of booking an audience with one’s own dumbbells. Housekeeping were lovely, albeit operating on Hollywood time — by which I mean “whenever inspiration strikes.” The concierge at the fringe door was a genuine delight, a calm figure amid the fragrant storm. Food and drinks upstairs: splendid. Properly done, served with a smile that hinted at insider knowledge. But, dear reader, the cracks showed. There was, as others have noted, no discernible adult in charge. During our stay we were treated to the most extraordinarily candid staff conversations about management woes, operational oddities and general gossip — all delivered within guest earshot, as if part of the entertainment. When we were forced to move rooms, management neither assisted nor acknowledged the inconvenience. Had it been our hotel, we would have moved the luggage for the guest — and sent up a bottle of something agreeable as a peace offering. Here, we were met with polite silence. I should add that the hotel’s Tripadvisor responses — all silky wit and promise — was among the reasons we booked in the first place, forsaking our usual haunt at the Sunset Tower. One fears those very missives will now be repurposed to bid us a fond and final farewell! And yet… what a curious, unforgettable fortnight. Wildly imperfect, occasionally maddening, but never dull. The Petit Ermitage remains a place one wants desperately to love — a near miss, dressed in velvet and patchouli. So close, but still so far. What a shame — but not, I must admit, an unhilarious two weeks. Read less

After traveling over 20 hours from Buenos Aires, we arrived at the hotel at 1:15 p.m.—exhausted, hopeful, and ready for even a small dose of wonderfully bohemian hospitality. It was not our first stay, and our previous experience had been very pleasant. Unfortunately, what we received from the front desk was more performance art in indifference than any semblance of service, let alone going above and beyond. At the front desk, Gabriella informed us our room wasn’t ready. Fair enough. I politely asked if we could be accommodated as soon as one became available. Her unconvincing reply: “I will see what we can do, but Check-in is at 4 p.m.” I assured her I knew the policy but was asking, as most hotels would understand, for a bit of compassion and initiative. I thought that in an hour or so a room would almost certainly be available, and she said she’d text us as soon as room was ready. She didn’t. We went to the pool, had lunch, and by 3:00 p.m., still nothing. I went back down to check—only to be met with the same rebuff, delivered with the same deadpan precision: “I am sorry, nothing is available yet. Check-in is at 4 p.m.” She had a thing about 4pm. Given that check-out is at 11 a.m., and the hotel charges a dollar a minute if you are late, the notion that no room was ready four hours later strains credulity. I explained again we’d been traveling for 24 hours and would really appreciate a shower and a change of clothes. No dice. It suddenly dawned on me that Gabriella had for some reason decided that, come hell or high water, she was not going to let us check in until 4:00 PM. This was a hill she was prepared to die on. Then came the pièce de résistance: 4:00 p.m. came and went—no text, no call. And when I went back down at 4:05, no Gabriella! I discovered she’d actually left at 3:30; apparently her shift expired at about the same time as my patience - so she knew full well she would not even have to face my full dissatisfaction. She literally didn’t give a damn. A charming gentleman at the desk got us checked in immediately and noted that Gabriella was supposed to have called us. The contrast could not have been starker. In that moment, Petit Ermitage lived up to its online reputation: most of the staff are five kinds of fabulous, others seem to be conducting a psychological experiment on how far guests can be pushed before they snap. Incidentally, I was with one of the housekeeping staff in the elevator - she was the sweetest lady. If Gabriella had called her and said “how fast can you get a room ready for a guest who has been traveling for 24 hours?” I absolutely know she would have bent over backwards to get me into a room in well under an hour. Gabriella had turned what could have been an easy win for her and the hotel, into a guest who will never return. To add to the absurdity, I was told there was no manager on duty, and no general manager at any time - only a reservations manager. That might explain why there’s no adult supervision. If there is a hotel policy that says no guest may be checked in until 4pm, it is an utterly misguided one. I noticed that at that time, several guests who had also been waiting by the pool to check in all descended on reception simultaneously, and the nice man quickly became overloaded, as was the porter, and the phone was ringing off the hook unanswered, and people were waiting, and it took a further 40 minutes to get my luggage delivered to the room (eventually done not by the porter, but by the nice man on the front desk!!). All of this overloaded chaos was entirely avoidable. If guests were checked in as rooms became available, the guests would be happy, the staff would not be stressed, and the hotel’s reputation would be intact. A much better system for all concerned. A hotel that trades on “bohemian charm” might want to take a look at replacing staff who consider passive aggression and inflexibility a commendable skillset. Read less

Excellent 2 night stay at Petit Ermitage. Our room was really beautiful with super comfy bed and pillows. If you are staying on a weekend and want to use the roof top pool, contact them in advance and book a pool side bed as it got VERY busy Saturday afternoon. Located right in between Santa Monica Blvd and Sunset Strip we found the location to be excellent for getting around. Great stay and would stay again! Read less