Jim,
The closest airport is Long Beach which is a very easy airport to get in and out of. Jet Blue is a great little airline flying in and out of LB.
The other airport which unfortunately is more of a zoo is LAX...but, it is only about 25 minutes from the San Pedro Pier (technically I guess it is called L.A. Harbor) where we'll disembark. There are shuttles which are easy to catch from either airport. My guess is that unless you're on Jet Blue, the fares into LAX will be less expensive than Long Beach airport.(especially on something like Southwest Airlines)

As for hotels....can't help much there. I think some have stayed at the San Pedro Hilton. Gil was going to be staying on the Queen Mary (yep, the original) in Long Beach for one night before he had to cancel his Mariner cruise next week.

Hope you can join us!