Originally Posted by EdisonCarter
I don't agree - I've spent a lot more time in the LAX remote terminal than in IAD, and I don't think LAX is that bad. Primarily because the trip over there is much easier than at IAD and the flights out (or at least my flights) are almost never delayed. Sure, the building is not as interesting, but the overall feeling is much less chaotic and stressful, which is all that I ask for the short time periods I spend there each trip.
It might also help that at IAD you have to walk outside to all sorts of nasty weather (hot and humid, snowing, and everything in between) but in LA it's almost always a comfortable, dry, 70-80 degrees with the two dominant smells being two of my favorites: the ocean breeze and jet exhaust.
I think the weather is a huge part of it. At IAD, you spend a lot more time indoors. There is also all the covered pathways in the back behind the doors that no one can see that are just depressing to me (glass and concrete). It's also all artificial lighting, (are there any windows/glass to see outside besides the doors you enter/exit for the buses?) whereas at LAX you can look outside and its usually nice (except when you have torrential rains for days on end, of course
).