Navigating LAX

[AB0274]

Hi there,

I will be travelling from SYD to LAX in the New Year on a Classic Rewards Business flight. And then from JFK to LHR 72 hours later Classic Rewards Business with British Airways (planning stop over in NYC on the way)!

Unfortunately there was no suitable route/availability when I tried stitching the LAX to NYC flight through multi-city booking on the Qantas website. So booked the two legs and have decided to organise the middle myself.

I've never travelled through LAX before...

A couple of questions:

• My QF17 flight from SYD to LAX lands at 09.05. How long do you think it will take to disembark, clear customs and baggage, before re-checking in for my domestic flight to NYC?
• What time would be 'safe' to book my LAX to NYC flight for? It seems like there is good availability every hour or so across AA and Delta.
• And which airline would you recommend and offers the best flexibility if there are any delays on my travels from SYD to LAX>? Are AA and Delta much the same?

 

[UP4014]

Presume in the new year means January?

Plenty of bad weather and delays when flying. If been holed up in the AA lounge for 6 hours after landing and that’s with the through ticket.

Allow plenty of time. If I was doing this I would stay and airport hotel and go early hours the next day before the delays build up. Also your sleep pattern could have you up early.

If you must go that day allow 5 or 6 hours, winter flying in North America is not without delay.

 

[AB0274]

Actually in June! But I do like your tip of the airport hotel. I'm hoping for a relaxing /stress-free trip. Don't want to put myself through any unnecessary stress!

 

[RooFlyer]

My QF17 flight from SYD to LAX lands at 09.05. How long do you think it will take to disembark, clear customs and baggage, before re-checking in for my domestic flight to NYC?

No less than 5 hours. You have to allow for:

* arrival delays
*de-boarding the aircraft and walking to immigration
*immigration
*collecting bags, customs queues
*getting to whichever terminal your domestic connection leaves from INCLUDING re-doing security
* Being at the departure gate 30 mins before departure.

This site gives historic immigration wait times at LAX. There is a link there for customs. But don't underestimate time to re-clear security to re-enter airside.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) - CBP Airport Wait Times (AWT)

CBP Airport Wait Times

awt.cbp.gov

What time would be 'safe' to book my LAX to NYC flight for? It seems like there is good availability every hour or so across AA and Delta.

As BAM1748 suggested, an airport hotel is a good idea, and fly early the next day. There are regular free shuttles (tip) from the kerbside to the hotels.

And which airline would you recommend and offers the best flexibility if there are any delays on my travels from SYD to LAX>? Are AA and Delta much the same?

As for airline, I don't think that's a big consideration. Both have hubs at LAX and JFK. If you decide to fly through same day, if you are flying Qantas into LAX, then AA would be the easier terminal to get to from TBIT, where you will arrive and as you are a member of QFF, you will get some points & SCs on the AA flight (although this should be a very minor consideration!)

 

[ayebee]

Agree with comments above about allowing plenty of time for immigration etc.
Have done several same day connections via LAX on separate tickets without missing one, and typically with departures around 1 to 2pm after nominal arrival time of 6 to 7am. Most times could have made earlier flights, but it was a question of risk.

Have even missed the single booking Qantas connection at LAX to JFK several times due to long waits at immigration even with a priority pass.
At least Qantas rebooked us on AA and the bags were tagged through, which avoided a new check-in at the domestic terminal. That allowed us to clear security in TBIT and then use the airside link to AA terminal, but usually meant a long wait in AA terminal for the afternoon flights.
Last couple of JFK trips we gave up on connecting and booked an airport hotel, and got lucky each time there was a room available at 8am.

I have never tried it, but maybe others here may know whether Qantas will tag your bags through to JFK with a separate AA ticket based on the oneworld relationship.

If you only have 72 hrs between arriving LAX and departing JFK, then I suspect it comes down to priorities.
The airport hotel at LAX will de-risk connecting on a separate ticket, however will reduce your time in NYC by a day, and how that affects your plans there.

If you decide on same day connection, you will be departing LAX maybe mid afternoon which will mean a late arrival into JFK. That has its benefits of less traffic getting to your hotel if Manhattan is your goal. If the LAX airport hotel is the decision, then you can get an early flight next morning for late afternoon arrival, and enjoy the peak hour traffic.

 

[Quickstatus]

As the LAX-JFK flight will be on a separate ticket, I would either allow no less than 5 hours for a same day flight or book the next day.
If book the next day, get an airport hotel.

You could also book an airport hotel for the day. This is typically an 8-5pm booking and is a feature of a lot of airport hotels. Just ask for a "day booking". In this case you could get an evening flight arriving in JFK early morning. Though I dont like this idea because the traffic at time. The best time to arrive in JFK for a ex AUS passenger is early evening for body clock recalibration reasons.

AA is likely better due to the "relationship with QF though it seems tenous at best. Here you will possibly find it easier to reschedule a missed connection if you are arriving in QF.

AA - T4
DL - T3
B6 - T5

All easily accessible.
AA if you want QF points/SC.

 

[harvyk]

+1 for staying overnight in LA. There are quite a few decent options for airport hotels and most of them have free or cheap shuttles which run very frequently.

Immigration at LAX can be hit and miss. Fastet time though for me was about 20 minutes, but I've also had the many hours wait. If you really don't want to overnight it, give yourself a loooong time between flights (eg 8 hours). I wouldn't consider doing anything shorter without some sort of guarantee (aka joined tickets / one PNR)

 

[cove]

Before we bought an apartment in Marina del Rey we would stay at either Marriott West Century or Embassy Suites North. Both were quite ok for a night stay and we would use their swimming pool to relax after the long flight.

 

[jpp42]

If the LAX airport hotel is the decision, then you can get an early flight next morning for late afternoon arrival, and enjoy the peak hour traffic.

Side note but JFK AirTrain connecting to Long Island Railroad (LIRR) is a perfect way into Manhattan to avoid the nasty peak hour traffic. Offpeak it would take longer so taxi is probably better.

You could also book an airport hotel for the day. This is typically an 8-5pm booking and is a feature of a lot of airport hotels. Just ask for a "day booking".

I second this idea - day bookings at LAX airport hotels are definitely available. Earlier this year my partner and I traveled on the same basis as OP - one PNR from SYD-LAX and separate unprotected booking onward later the same day (a 10pm redeye departure) . We stayed at the Renaissance by Marriott - the room was comfortable and quiet with good blackout curtains so we got some sleep. Only drawback was the shuttle bus was quite uncomfortable.

The idea we had was that by sleeping during the day and catching the overnighter, we had no concerns about late arrivals on our first leg (could have been delayed up to 12 hours), and we had a chance for some good quality sleep, while not quite wasting an entire day. Redeyes tend to be fairly cheap as well (except for lie-flat business class). We did have the advantage of an early check-in at our east coast destination, and admittedly this itinerary did slightly delay our body's adjustment to US time, but the jet lag is always a killer anyway.