The Penthouse Suite at Sunset Tower Hotel

Why it is on the list

The Penthouse Suite is the largest room in the Sunset Tower Hotel: about 2,000 sq ft, with one king bedroom, a separate living area, a separate dining room and planted terraces that wrap around the suite, facing the Hollywood Hills on one side and downtown Los Angeles on the other.¹ The limestone bathroom has a deep soaking tub, a daybed and a stand-alone shower behind floor-to-ceiling glass.¹ The tower was designed in 1929 by Leland A. Bryant, opened in 1931 and has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1980; John Wayne, Frank Sinatra and Howard Hughes each lived in its penthouse.² Jeff Klein bought the building in 2004 and had Paul Fortune restore it; the Tower Bar is the hotel's restaurant.³

It is one bedroom, and the hotel allows no more than four guests in a room at any time and no parties.⁴ To host a dinner or bring a family, take the Presidential Suite at The Maybourne Beverly Hills instead. For split-level rooms with 20-foot ceilings and a south-facing terrace, the hotel's Townhouse Suites are about 1,750 sq ft.¹

How to get it

Write to reservations@sunsettowerhotel.com or call +1 323 654 7100 and ask for the Penthouse Suite.⁵ Check-in is at 3pm and check-out at noon.⁴ A daily amenity fee of USD 51.98 per room is added, covering the minibar, restocked every three days, and internet; valet parking is USD 70 a day, around the clock.⁴ Pets of 40 lb and under are welcome for a one-time fee of USD 100.⁴ Outside alcohol is not allowed.⁴

Discretion

No photography or filming is allowed anywhere in the hotel without the general manager's approval.⁴³ The front door on Sunset Boulevard is one of the most photographed hotel doorways in Los Angeles.³ The terraces belong to the suite.¹