A Good Layover at the Custom Hotel, LAX
Chris · August 28, 2007
Last month while heading out on vacation, I had to fly through the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Other than the prospect of seeing palm trees, LAX is usually a miserable experience for me. Transfers are confusing, late departures are the norm, and I always feel a general sense of unrest at LAX.
So when I was recently introduced to a new hotel development slated to open at LAX in November 2007, I wasn’t overly thrilled to feature it here at Vacant Ready. After some digging, however, it turns out that the hotel property named the Custom Hotel, will actually be pretty cool. It’s a quirky, interesting and affordable alternative.
The hotel will re-open as the only independently branded boutique hotel property at LAX--amidst a sea of dreary corporate hotel brands. Right off the bat, the Custom Hotel will be able to offer a unique guest experience that virtually no other hotel in the area can offer.
The 250 room property will deliver “design and substance” at a modest price (a quick check for a pre-opening Oct. 22nd rate started as low as $89/night!). The Custom Hotel tower was originally designed by Welton Beckett, and is currently undergoing extensive renovations. You’ll know Beckett as the architect who designed some well-known L.A. buildings such as the Capitol Records Building, and the Theme Building at LAX. The Custom Hotel doesn’t quite have the same panache as those two buildings, but it is recognizably of the same genre.
Watch for property enhancements such as an outdoor fire pit(!?), a pool with stadium seating, vintage vending machines that deliver everything from socks to silly putty...and most importantly, “playfully themed rooms”. The hotel plans to offer day-use “layover rooms”, and a DJ lounge.
Formerly known as the Furama Hotel the Custom Hotel is being re-branded by California real estate developer-turned hotelier Avi Brosh, President and CEO of the Palisades Development Group. Brosh is a man-about-town in the local development community, and he has generated some press for his transition from real estate developer to boutique hotelier.
I hope I don’t have to visit LAX any time soon, but if I do--I’ll look forward to checking out this interesting hotel.
Check out some guestroom images from the hotel’s mock-up rooms: flat screens and doggy duvets on a budget!
