Los Angeles Athletic Club

Two indoor tracks' worth of history sit above the Los Angeles Athletic Club's ground floor on West Seventh Street, where the original 1912 gymnasium now shares space with a full spa, steam room, and racquetball courts rarely found in a downtown hotel.

Rooms above keep period crown molding despite modern air conditioning and cable TV; the indoor pool below has hosted Olympic swimmers training in the club's early decades.

Seventh Street's financial and jewelry districts spread out on foot, a practical base for business travelers and downtown history buffs alike.