I think the topic of this thread is diverging into "what to do when you have a long layover at LAX" :D

I'll put in my share:

If you like old WWII style planes and a bunch of pictures of the now defunct aerospace industry back in the good ol' days of LA, I recommend the Proud Bird Restaurant. Take the free "G" shuttle which takes you to the Metro Green Line LAX/Aviation station. You'll see it on your left side as the bus passes by the restaurant to the intended train station. Once you reach the station, walk back to the Proud Bird Restaurant, ~5 min walk.

How to kill time if you have a long night-time layover at LAX:
Take the Thrifty rental car shuttle. 24 hour Denny's right across the street. It's part of the Travelodge there, but you don't need to be a guest there to get a midnight grub.

OP is from Australia, but I don't know about OP's friends, the ones who face this situation. The bag situation is another good reason for the rental car. Even if they just have carryons, a car can make the whole thing easier and more pleasant. Even if they need all the insurance, that only adds about $25/day, the whole thing should be possible for $50 for the group, they were willing to pay $50 each to get into the Admirals Club.

If I were in this situation with friends, we would rent a car and go to Duke's in Malibu if the weather was nice. But then, I really like their food and ambiance. The idea about visiting AF1 at the Reagan Museum has a lot of appeal also.

Other than a mention of the Admirals Club, this (now retitled) thread is about a LAX layover, so it will make a short trip to the appropriate Forum.

AA Moderator

Add me to the chorus of those advocating renting a car. LA by bus can be daunting for those who do not know the city. Renting cars in LA seems unnaturally cheap. I guess they have fewer add on fees than many other places.

Thank you all for your advice. I will pass it on to my friends. They are all Australians and I am not sure if all have been to LA before. I am not sure if they will want to leave the airport and risk missing their connection however some of the nearby attractions sound interesting. The Alaska Airlines lounge was not an idea that had occurred to me as my limited experience in the USA has mainly been on AA, which has been a very pleasant airline to travel on.

Los Angelinos are addicted to their cars. Why do you think we're the second largest city in the US but yet without any direct rail link to the airport or even a people mover at the airport? And they want us to use ONT as a secondary airport to LAX. I'm all for the idea, but there are no public transportation means to get there! :mad:

Our motto is: if we're gonna have to invest in rails, let's use that money to expand our freeways instead :rolleyes:

Basically if you're in LA, everyone is expected to drive, including tourists.

I'm all for investig in public transportation, and I've seen it work elsewhere, but sadly our city thinks differently. Welcome to L.A.! :td::td:

45 minute ONLY IF YOU HIT NO TRAFFIC...

1-1.5 hours is a lot more likely...plus whatever time you take to rent & drop off the car.

Yes, you can make it in an 8 hour layover.....but it's roughly 50 miles away and transverses several tough freeway interchanges and bottlenecks, and unless you are used to driving busy urban highways, it's apt to be a shlep.

I'd frankly look for places a little closer in to LAX.

The problem is, LA has less than half the population density of most of the cities with great rail based urban transit... Unlike places like SFO, NYC, or DC; LA has a very ill-defined "urban center" and few corridors with high population to serve. The high cost of rail infrastructure can't be justified by the amount of prospective ridership.

Incidentally, yes, there IS public transit to ONT... just not terribly handy one-seat connections. (IE: from LA Union Station take either the Metrolink San Berdo Line *or* the Foothill Transit "Silver Streak" Bus to Montclair station/transit center and change to Omnitrans Bus 80 which will drop you off at Vineyard & Holt, a short block away from ONT) Incidentally, that's 40 miles...between the two, which is NOT a short public transit route anywhere in the US.

Because the objective facts are different for LA than elsewhere. Can you name a "transit friendly" city that is both as large and that has as low a population density as LA?

I just had a 6 hour layover so I called Hilton and asked for the cheapest day room in the area. Stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn LAX for $79 which included, shuttle to and from terminal, a full breakfast for the three people in my party, some much needed rest and a shower, and a stay credit with Hilton. I finished up only being there for about four hours but I still consider it a very well spent $79 in my opinion.

Sydney. Very similar (and sprawls to 60 mile radius, so directly similar to LA. But the difference: Sydney started out with a govt owned suburban rail system 80 years ago and built on it without building freeways or good roads (until recently). LA also started with a private rail and excellent private bus system; GM bought it in the 30s, tore up the rails and sold the right of way, and shut down the buses, while lobbying govt to build lots of roads and highways. Flash forward 70 years, govt owned rail is working pretty well and cost-effective despite the low population density, while in LA the profit motive has shifted the costs onto the public sector, while GM has done so well (3 months from bankruptcy at this point, so their plans didn't quite work in the long run). Most americans don't realize that LA started out with one of the best streetcar systems in the world, and it was the auto industry that demolished it.

LAX hotels specialize in day rooms (lots of people doing this) and it can be as cheap as USD 30. Varies a lot with supply and demand. Also several hotels have "24 hour" rates; you can check-in at any time, and your rate is good for 24 hours (so not a fixed check-out time). Rather useful for those 7 am to 7 pm connections. The Four Points does this, as does the Embassy Suites next door, several others (but less common than day room rates; day rooms must be vacated by 6pm typically).

My own choice when having an over-day connection at LAX is to rent a car and drive up PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) towards Malibu. Generally light and predictable traffic (an important consideration if you have ever been in an LA 3 hour traffic jam). Stay off the highways in LA unless you know what you are doing!

I can't speak for your evaluation of Sydney, but as a historian very familiar with my home town of Los Angeles, you are vastly mistaken on the history of public transit here. While L.A. had a decent rail based INTERURBAN transit system prior to the mid-1920s, it collapse was brought on by a fundamental mistakes of the LA city government....which insisted that it share its right-of-way with automobile roads, making it run slower and slower over time as traffic congestion led to delays. Further, fares were publicly regulated and capped by the city, which led to the streetcar and interurban companies loosing money on passenger service and lacking capital even to maintain their networks. The only thing which kept them financially afloat was freight and express service...which in the 1950s began to decline due to pressure from trucking firms. The myth of GM buying LA's transit system to dismantle it is just that...a myth. (There is some basis for the argument that GM was responsible for the collapse of OTHER American transit systems, but not LA's, and it was found largely INNOCENT of this charge in the Federal courts) The larger Pacific Electric lines NEVER fell into the hands of the GM consortium....but still collapsed due to lack of profitability. When the city finally directly took over the lines as a condition of the then owner (Southern Pacific RR) abandoning service...it discontinued the remnants of rail transit, and went to strictly bus service...because it lost less money on busses than streetcars.

You can follow the various threads of LA transit history at the website of The Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California.

Incidentally, LA public transit currently DOES NOT MAKE SUFFICENT MONEY FROM FARES TO OPERATE , requiring 86% of their revenue come from federal, state, or local grants, subsidies, and taxes. Less than 14% of their annual budget is fares collected... LINK

Exactly !

It really is a plague !

When I came to LAX as a tourist I always decided to stay downtown and then used Metro to go to different places.

The Metro system has a bad reputation here, I dont know why. Even though the ezpensive gas prices of the summer pushed more people into using it.

No idea why people think of it as dirty and shameful to use, in other cities of the size of LA it is business as usual. Talking NY, London, Tokio, Paris... of course these cities have a very extensive public transportation system which is easy and excellent to use.

I agree. I use the Gold and Red line all the time and the FlyAway bus when I got to LAX. No, it is not NYC or WAS, but the system has worked fine for me.

Lounge LAX
 

Flyers who do not have airline lounge access like me can use the "reLAX LOUNGE" in the middle of the restaurant area in the TBIT, before security. I am there as I post, it cost me $35 for 5 hours. The price varies depending on how long you are staying. I find it Ok, just refreshments but the bathrooms are outside in the main area. There are 10 computers and only four of us in the place. If it wasn't foggy the view would be great.
I will post photo's of it when I get home on Friday.
Happy New Year, Ray

Very unpractical IMHO. For that money you can easily purchase a day pass for your respective airline club within the secure area. There you will also get assistance regarding your flight which is possibly the biggest perk. Nobody pays for a lounge to get a free soda.