We stayed at the apartment for a total of 7 weeks.
The place is exactly as it's shown in the pictures. Its clean , spacious and has plenty of amenities. There's plenty of towels and beach towels and plenty of pots, pans and cutlery. The bed is huge and extra comfy. The washers dryers are excellent, you can do two wash loads and two drys for $7 ( make sure you stock up on quarters ). Check in was super easy. We only needed to text Mike / Alba once or twice and they got back to us quickly. It's in a great location, it's safe, quiet, you can walk to the beach front in 2 minutes, the Venice Canals are right behind the apartment, Abbott Kinney is just up the road and Marina Del Rey & Santa Monica are also within walking distance.
Uber is a must when going further , you can rent a vehicle but we found it easier and cheaper to Uber it, but there's also a bus stop just up the road from the apartment. The Starline buses also pass the apartment and you can get tickets for them from Santa Monica Pier. The bus routes literally cover everywhere you would want to go. There are plenty of shops near to the apartment. Alan's Market is literally a 10 minute walk and he has everything you could possibly need, if you're staying longer definitely go to Ralph's, you can pick up a discount card to save money and the store is just 5 min drive up the road ( straight up Washington blvd and then right on Lincoln ). We found Santa Monica downtown was best for clothes shopping and it has a great selection of restaurants and also two cinemas.
I would definitely recommended staying at any of Mike and Albas apartments.
*** Top Tips ***
If you sign up with AMC theatres ( you can do this even if you're from the UK ) you get cheaper tickets on a Tuesday and other discounts.
Get a Ralph's cards to save on food shopping
You can get free tickets for shows and movie premiers from 1iota.com
Starbucks & Coldstone always have quarters
There's a quieter beach, which you can actually swim at over at the Marina
Get Uber to pick you up from the back road ( Strongs ) the front road is always busy and they have trouble finding a spot to stop.