Historic
Figueroa
Hotel Figueroa boasts a rich history deeply rooted in the women’s movement in Los Angeles. The hotel was the largest commercial building funded by women for women when it opened in 1926 by the YWCA as a safe haven for solo female travelers, who were prohibited from checking into most hotels without a male chaperone. Hotel Figueroa gave women the freedom to live uninhibited lives among other like-minded women, and this paradise of feminine energy attracted professional women from all over the world, turning the coffee shop and salons into diverse and intellectual women’s collectives that produced powerful art and activism alike. The hotel fully embraced its social conscience, holding press conferences and political rallies against sexism, racism, and other social issues. Within the walls of the Hotel Figueroa, progress was possible.
For more than 90 years, Hotel Figueroa has stood as a proud hub of creativity in Downtown Los Angeles. Discover more of our history below:
Proper Ladies
August 14, 1926 opened as Hotel Figueroa, for women only
February 1928, Hotel Figueroa opened floors for men
October 1930, Hotel Figueroa opened to all sexes
1931-1958 Hotel Figueroa is a hub of creative community, political organizations and social clubs in DTLA
1959-1976 Hotel Figueroa (and DTLA) operates as a semi-permanent residential hotel as the once dynamic downtown neighborhood experiences westward migration of offices and residents
February 1976, Uno Thimansson takes over Hotel Figueroa as General Manager, begins transforming it into a “Moroccan retreat.”
July 2014 Hotel Figueroa is purchased by Green Oak Real Estate and Urban Lifestyle Hotels, begins 3 year restoration to original Spanish Colonial Revival style
February 2018: Reopens to the public
