LA’s Chateau Marmont: A Blank Canvas to Create Your Own Hollywood Story
Perched above the Sunset Strip, part hideaway and part time capsule, Chateau Marmont is a hotel you feel as much as you see. This is what it’s really like to arrive, check in and disappear for a while — plus the films, myths and practicalities of the Castle on Sunset.
Why is it called a Chateau?
The hotel was named for its resemblance to a French château. Developer Arnold “Erwin” Horowitz modelled the building on Château d’Amboise in France’s Loire Valley, with pale stone, slate gables, archways and turrets.
Where does the name Chateau Marmont come from?
The Chateau is located on Marmont Lane, just off Sunset Boulevard — so that’s why it is called Chateau Marmont.
Why is the Chateau so Famous?
If you must get into trouble, do it at the Château.
The line, attributed to Columbia Pictures founder Harry Cohn, set the tone early on — this was not just a hotel, but a place where Hollywood lived a little larger and less carefully.
Since it opened in 1929, the Château has been famous precisely because it was different. It became the discreet backdrop for Hollywood stars to fool around, for musicians to move in for months at a time and create, and for stories — whispered or shouted — that would never have survived the lobby of a conventional luxury hotel.
Unlike almost anywhere else, its reputation precedes the rooms, the restaurant, or even the address. This is a truly storied hotel, part sanctuary, part spectacle, attracting visitors and headlines in equal measure.
If ever there was a hotel worth travelling for, the Chateau is it.
Where is it?
The official address is 8221 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90046, United States, but the entrance is just off Sunset, up a steep incline on Marmont Lane. Whilst all eyes are on the big sign and fabled architecture, a discreet garage offers a concealed entrance for all hotel visitors.
What is it really like to stay at the Chateau?
Actually quite bland — but that’s the point. Unlike other LA hotels like The London West Hollywood, or the more famous Beverly Wiltshire (Pretty Woman) or Beverly Hills Hotel (Hotel California album cover location), that are gleaming, bright and welcoming, the Chateau is almost neglected.
The service is attentive but not effusive. After staying in other hotels, most notably the London, you almost feel ignored — but the staff here are used to dealing with either prima donnas seeking full attention, or superstars that just want to be left alone. A couple of ‘normal’ humans fresh back from Desert Trip in Palm Springs were neither.
What are the rooms like?
We booked a Junior Suite: two modest bedrooms, a small kitchen and a generous living room that became the heart of our stay. Think more pre-war New York than contemporary LA — vintage bathrooms and simple kitchens that feel charming if you let them.The living space had what we actually needed: a good stereo, a desk for notes, a sofa for reading, and enough surface space for a week’s worth of records.
At first the décor felt plain — neutral walls, no Hollywood glitz — but that’s the trick. The hotel adapts to you. It’s a place to write a screenplay, to recover after a tour, to go quiet for a while.The living room was comfortable, the hi-fi an excuse to play Hotel California (how could you not?), the beds were OK and the kitchen looked rarely used. Again, compared to more traditional hotels this was a little lacklustre — but we came to realise it was just a blank canvas waiting for you to make your mark.
Bungalows are the property’s folk heroes — more private, more self-contained, and the source of much of the lore. We saw them whilst seated around the famous pool, but didn’t venture further.
Restaurant & Bar: Comfort Over Ceremony
The restaurant is open to the public (book ahead). Expect well-done comfort: burgers, fries, mac and cheese, the sort of food that makes sense on a shaded terrace behind the bar. Service is softly spoken; photography is politely discouraged. It isn’t “fine dining” and doesn’t need to be. The luxury here is calm: time to talk, space to notice who’s not trying to be noticed.
Can Anyone Go to the Chateau Marmont?
Yes the restaurant and bar welcome non-residents with advance reservations. The hotel grounds and guest areas are for residents only. Keep phones pocketed, follow the staff’s lead, and you’ll fit the rhythm quickly.
Chateau Marmont – On Screen
Movies and Chateau Marmont are synonymous. This infamous retreat is not just renowned for the stars who stayed (and sometimes died) here, but also as an iconic location for film and TV.
Daisy Jones & the Six (2023)
Daisy (played by Riley Keough) moved into the Chateau, adding further authenticity to the excellent TV show.
Somewhere (2010) – Sofia Coppola
Much of Coppola’s hazy portrait of fame unfolds inside the Chateau. Actor Johnny Marco (Stephen Dorff) lives there between gigs, drifting from room to corridor to poolside. The poster itself shows the characters reclining at the pool.
Trivia: most of the filming took place in Room 59.
La La Land (2016) – Damien Chazelle
The film is a love letter to Los Angeles and jazz. Right at the end, we see Mia living in a Chateau Marmont villa — a quiet nod to Hollywood history that lands perfectly.
A Star is Born (2018) – Bradley Cooper
In one scene, Ally (Lady Gaga) looks out from the Chateau to see her name on a giant billboard on Sunset Boulevard. That billboard was real, placed directly outside the hotel to promote the film.
Myra Breckinridge (1970) – Michael Sarne
Based on Gore Vidal’s novel, the film features Raquel Welch as an ambitious actress living and partying at the Chateau. Contemporary stills show Welch around the hotel during filming, making it one of the most glamorous screen associations.
The Doors (1991) – Oliver Stone
Stone’s biopic includes Jim Morrison clambering onto the Chateau’s rooftop — a scene rooted in rock ’n’ roll legend, though the real incident supposedly happened down the road at the Riot House.
Almost Famous (2000) – Cameron Crowe
Crowe’s semi-autobiographical story of a teenage rock journalist captures the golden age of LA’s music hotels. Alongside the Riot House, the Chateau makes its appearance as part of the band’s journey.
Four Rooms (1995) – Quentin Tarantino & co.
This anthology film, set in a fictional LA hotel, shot many of its interiors at Chateau Marmont — its distinctive arches and corridors playing themselves on screen.
Laurel Canyon (2002) – Lisa Cholodenko
This drama about music, ambition and love in LA is centred on the Canyon, but the Chateau features briefly — fitting, given its deep ties to the music scene of that era.
It Happened at the Chateau……
and some of the stories are true!
Yes, John Belushi died in a cottage at the Chateau from a massive drug overdose on March 5, 1982.
In 2004, photographer Helmut Newton lost control of his Cadillac while leaving the Chateau, crashing into a wall and later dying from injuries sustained after a heart attack at the wheel.
Did Led Zeppelin ride motorbikes around the halls? Probably not — I’ve seen the halls and they are too small. It probably happened down the road at the Riot House.
No, Chateau Marmont is not the inspiration for Hotel California (or the album cover), but the Eagles did stay here and write songs — we’re just not sure which ones.
Neil Young stayed at the Chateau, penning songs we believe became Cinnamon Girl and Cowgirl in the Sand in Room 29.
A dogged rumour, that remains a rumour, is the elevator tryst between Benicio Del Toro and Scarlett Johansson after the 2004 Oscars.
Who knows the truth? The hotel staff certainly won’t tell.
Is It Worth It?
With the passing of time the answer is yes. To begin with I felt a little disappointed that it wasn’t the rock star dream I was hoping for. But then — I’m not a rock star, and I realised the hotel is just the location, the blank canvas for you to create your own Hollywood story.
Maybe you can too.