Posting this here because it's in connection with a possible UA trip but it's more an airport question.

I might book my girlfriend and her mother on a routing of ATH-IST-LAX-(LAS) on a UA award. The arrival in LAX is late in the evening and the departure is the next morning.

If we decide that I will drive to LAX to pick them up, can they retrieve their bags in LAX? I'm guessing they probably have to clear customs in LAX and then re-check for the LAX-LAS leg, so it's probably a yes.

If we knew for sure what we want to do we would probably book it that way, and it's unlikely it would cost more miles, but we're not sure yet.