Boutique Hotel in San Fernando Valley

A mosaic fitted with sepia-toned tiny square tiles hangs above the bartenders at The BLVD Bar, giving off the look of a vintage video game. Skyscrapers and palm trees are set against a dark-blue night sky, paying homage to the scenery typical of the nearby Ventura Boulevard and Studio City, where notable actors and directors filmed classic movies and television shows in a cluster of old and new Hollywood buildings. The BLVD Hotel & Spa sits a short trip from the star-studded Walk of Fame, and seeks to capture its own sense of Hollywood-style sophistication in its sleek, contemporary space.

The hotel's crisp quadrilateral exterior style carries over to its BLVD Suites, which exude a simple, modern elegance and come replete with a California-king or two queen beds. A separate sitting area lays out ample space for sojourners to store their suitcases or play duck-duck-goose. Private patios and balconies are affixed to some suites, revealing panoramas of rugged mountains or the buzzing Hollywood streets.

Plush modern furniture surrounds the bartenders at BLVD Bar & Café, who mix up cocktails such as the fruity Santa Monica Blvd, which blends Blue Curaçao, cherry vodka, and a mango mixer. The Sunset Blvd swirls Bombay Sapphire into green-tea liqueur and fresh mint. Wall-sized windows look out to the street.

After noshing on pastries and sandwiches at glossy tables in the bar’s lounge area, travelers can further unwind at the BLVD Spa, where experienced beautifiers deliver pampering body treatments amid a tranquil ambiance. Bioelements and Epicuren Discovery products swathe skin during cleansing custom facials, and deep-tissue and hot-stone massages work to rid muscles of built-up stress and tension. Oxide crystals, papaya enzymes, and crushed almonds exfoliate epidermises and expunge toxins during decadent, thorough body treatments.

Studio City: Hollywood History Near Popular Los Angeles Sites

Studio City’s corner of the San Fernando Valley is typically an easy drive from fabled Los Angeles sites such as the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Universal Studios, and the Griffith Park Observatory. But the city features enough charms of its own to occupy visitors. Originally developed as a home for silent-film industry buildings, Studio City is an intriguing blend of early Hollywood history and the modern-day moviemaking biz. Shows such as Seinfeld and films such as Addams Family Values once set up camp at CBS Studio Center, an old-Hollywood relic previously known as the Mack Sennett Studios and Republic Pictures studios. Today, directors still shout orders and jump into piles of reel-to-reel tape as they mill about 18 soundstages and hair-and-makeup stations.

Dozens of sushi restaurants line Ventura Boulevard, a bustling thoroughfare that also plays host to local boutiques, coffee shops, and antique stores. Parks and trails are sprinkled throughout the surrounding mountains, a pleasant escape from the hustle of the City of Angels.