If you believe in karma, then the Casa del Mar has paid its dues. In the 1920s Santa Monica was the place to party, and the Club Casa del Mar was the hotspot - at least for silver screeners like Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford. Built for two million, a then unheard of sum, it was where stars went to indulge their taste for the illegal. It had the best gambling, and far and away (remember, this was during Prohibition) the best cocktails. It had a “special” relationship with the police, who would warn them before a raid, giving them enough time to tuck away the slot machines and floating bottles of gin. This would all change in World War II, when the building was used for military housing, and subsequently, as the headquarters for the infamous drying-out clinic (and some say cult) Synanon. The Casa went from vice supplier to vice stopper.
In 1999 the Casa itself was rehabilitated by the owners of the neighboring Shutters on the Beach. But whereas Shutters is contemporary, unpretentious comfort, Casa is high Regency with tear-drop chandeliers, floor-to-ceiling windows and potted palms. The floors are marble and the curtains are beaten gold silk. Many visitors, in fact, are taken aback by the East Coast nature of its appearance - a Hudson River or Newport mansion dropped accidentally on the California beach. But even the Astors didn't have a bathroom to rival the Casa's. Tubs have 42 jets and the showers are large enough to host a tea party. The bathrooms are arguably the highlight of the Casa rooms, which are all decorated with the same apricot-and-paisley motif. The Little Prince by your bed, teddy bear on your pillow, and a rubber ducky in your bath are a little strange for us, but no doubt a delight for the young at heart.
But downstairs, the Casa del Mar is just as it was in the old days. The bar hops with the media and fashion crush, and elegantly coiffed, swan-like muses exchange air kisses over flutes of champagne. And for those particularly hard to impress there is the original 1926 building itself, which, with its several storied bay windows, and ballroom that opens onto the beach, is most marvelous indeed.
Contact & location
1910 Ocean Way, Los Angeles Area
+1.310.581.5533
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The photos displayed on this page are the property of one of the following authors:
Hotel description
If you believe in karma, then the Casa del Mar has paid its dues. In the 1920s Santa Monica was the place to party, and the Club Casa del Mar was the hotspot - at least for silver screeners like Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford. Built for two million, a then unheard of sum, it was where stars went to indulge their taste for the illegal. It had the best gambling, and far and away (remember, this was during Prohibition) the best cocktails. It had a “special” relationship with the police, who would warn them before a raid, giving them enough time to tuck away the slot machines and floating bottles of gin. This would all change in World War II, when the building was used for military housing, and subsequently, as the headquarters for the infamous drying-out clinic (and some say cult) Synanon. The Casa went from vice supplier to vice stopper.
In 1999 the Casa itself was rehabilitated by the owners of the neighboring Shutters on the Beach. But whereas Shutters is contemporary, unpretentious comfort, Casa is high Regency with tear-drop chandeliers, floor-to-ceiling windows and potted palms. The floors are marble and the curtains are beaten gold silk. Many visitors, in fact, are taken aback by the East Coast nature of its appearance - a Hudson River or Newport mansion dropped accidentally on the California beach. But even the Astors didn't have a bathroom to rival the Casa's. Tubs have 42 jets and the showers are large enough to host a tea party. The bathrooms are arguably the highlight of the Casa rooms, which are all decorated with the same apricot-and-paisley motif. The Little Prince by your bed, teddy bear on your pillow, and a rubber ducky in your bath are a little strange for us, but no doubt a delight for the young at heart.
But downstairs, the Casa del Mar is just as it was in the old days. The bar hops with the media and fashion crush, and elegantly coiffed, swan-like muses exchange air kisses over flutes of champagne. And for those particularly hard to impress there is the original 1926 building itself, which, with its several storied bay windows, and ballroom that opens onto the beach, is most marvelous indeed.
Contact & location
1910 Ocean Way, Los Angeles Area
+1.310.581.5533
Be the first one to add a review
The photos displayed on this page are the property of one of the following authors:
Hotel Casa Del Mar Santa Monica
This travel guide also includes text from Wikitravel articles, all available at
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This travel guide also includes text from Wikipedia articles, all available at
View full credits