LA Travel Guide: Madcap Motel
I’m happy to report we finally hosted our first guests in over a year and a half here in LA! (Yay!) My family came to visit after months apart and after being cooped up inside for a year, we couldn’t miss an opportunity to do some good ol’ LA sightseeing. Since I’ve lived here for almost 7 years now, my parents and sister are no strangers to LA. We have explored a ton of amazing neighborhoods, done the most touristy of attractions, and hiked to some beautiful views. So this time we thought we would do something new and different, which brought us to “LA’s must see 17,000 sq ft immersive adventure full of visual oddities and whimsical wonders”, the Madcap Motel!
Daniel actually surprised me with the tickets for my birthday because what screams Rachael more than a mid century motel pop up??? And Madcap did not disappoint!
After waiting in a short line outside of the motel entrance, we entered the front doors leading to the cutest 1960s motel front desk check in, complete with retro room keys and uniformed hotel clerks. We took in all the amazing 60s decor while waiting for our “room to be ready” and the adventure to begin!
Everywhere you look around the room are the most perfect details, even down to the busy-body hotel staff actors and glowing lit cigarettes left in ashtrays.
When it was time to move into the second room, we were met by the next quirky character, a maid that filled us in about the history of the hotel (aka the backstory of the immersive experience) and the mysterious owner, J.P. Sando, who went missing back in 1966. And this is where the oddities really started to begin!
We were led into a room where we transported through a time warping wormhole and our final destination was a place called Elsewhere, with a funky hotel atrium complete with hanging greenery, vibrant colorful lighting, and some very peculiar hotel guests.
Surrounding the open atrium were a bunch of hotel room doors that led to a variety of different spaces that we were free to explore. Every room had fun interactive elements like sounds to listen to, buttons to press, or photo backdrops that make perfect instagrammable content. I love that you had as much time to explore each room as you wanted and there were different doors in and out of the rooms making the whole hotel feel like a maze!
I don’t want to give away all of the surprises, because exploring each and every room is all part of the fun of the experience, but a few of my favorite rooms included the lampshade mirror room, the sideways bedroom where furniture was floating, and the TV room with the oversized chair and television set.
We had so much fun at the Madcap Motel and would definitely recommend it for a unique LA sightseeing excursion. The overall experience only took about an hour, but the location in the Arts District in downtown LA makes a great spot to spend the whole day exploring!
If you are just looking for all the retro 60s vibes, the motel put out an awesome Spotify playlist that we’ve been enjoying listening to since our time at the Madcap! Here’s all the information for visiting the installation:
Address: 940 East 4th St Los Angeles, CA 90013
Hours: Closed Monday-Wednesday. Open Thursday 2-9pm, Friday 2-9pm, Saturday 11am-9pm, Sunday 11am-6pm
Website: https://www.madcapmotel.com
Tickets: https://www.showclix.com/tickets/madcapmotel
Prices: $40 Ages 12+, $30 Ages 4-11, Free 3 & under
And if you find yourself checking into the Madcap, be sure to send me a postcard from Elsewhere!
Xo Rachael
