LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review :  3 July 2009 by Eric Crossley   (USA)

Customer Rating :  1/5

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How to count the ways I hate LAX and especially United Airlines. Last week I made the mistake of flying out of LAX on United to DC via Chicago. For a 8:20 AM flight I was two hours early and still barely made the plane. LAX is old, dirty and 100% unable to accomodate the huge number of passengers who use it daily. United Airlines at LAX is a disaster. First of all, they have dozens of gates and a small check-in area that is overrun with hundreds of people. Inefficient, crowded, absolutely ridiculous. So, you want to use curbside check-in for your bags? How does a 45 minute wait sound? I have never seen anything like it. But the best is yet to come, the amazing TSA security fiasco for United at LAX. A long corridor, one TSA agent for first class/premier/ etc. and one agent for everyone else. I got in line with 75 minutes to go before my plane took off. It took an hour to get through the line. Not only is there only one TSA agent for the hundreds of people who are not important to United, but at times, our one lone TSA agent took people from the first class line! At one point we did not move for 15 minutes! While all this happened, an overworked United employee was going up and down the line to pull people who were going to miss their flights to the front of our Ellis Island like line. So, if you were late you were rewarded. This was the worst I have seen in awhile, tied with Logan in Boston for a total disastrous check-in "system."

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review :  25 June 2009 by Richard Turnley   (Australia)

Customer Rating :  4/5

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I transited at LAX from an AA domestic flight to an UA flight to Australia in late May and then again from an international UA flight to a domestic AA flight on 19 June - on both occasions I went through in record time with no fuss, no delays and with courtesy. This is in stark contrast to the problems I have always had in Tom Bradley and which according to my seat neighbour was still a nightmare - so maybe a few of the problems are fixed and is best to keep away from airlines using Tom Bradley if you have high blood pressure or do not want to develop it.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review :  15 June 2009 : by P McCorkle  (USA)

Customer Rating :  1/5

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Just figuring out where you're supposed to be in this airport is a nightmare. And the staff are completely useless no matter what you're trying to do. The staff don't even know what terminal you should use. In fact, I think most of the staff at the counters are high school minimum wagers. Completely useless. How is it I've never had a single problem in countless foreign airports where few people speak English but an airport in my own country is completely nonsensical ? Cleanliness is terrible. The lines at ticket counters, security, and even the gates are terrible. I've waited at lines out the door for security. Even customs for Americans was two hours. That's longer than it takes to go through foreign customs! I've been delayed nearly every time through this airport, and the times I wasn't delayed I just got lucky. The following reasons include 2 hours at customs and 2 more hours through security (all that time spent standing in line) meant I missed a flight despite a 3 hour layover. A check-in agent for Frontier delayed 7 passengers (yes 7!!) because a single woman had a bag that was 2lbs over the limit of 50. He spent 45 minutes dealing with this woman while the rest of us were stuck and despite pleas, never once called for assistance or just moved on in the line. Finally, a shuttle broke down and got stuck in the middle of their "highway" thing going through the airport. They had to finally dispatch a patrol car to set up a road block to get us off the infernal thing - and then walk to our terminals, by which time we were all late. Brilliant!

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review :  9 June 2009 : by S Koenig  (Brazil)

Customer Rating :  4/5

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As large, crowded and at times confusing as LAX can be, when we recently arrived late on a weeknight, we moved through it quickly. Luggage arrived relatively quickly, and we only had to wait 5 minutes for a shuttle to our hotel (note: several shuttles serve multiple hotels, so you need to look at the electronic destination signs on the shuttle busses carefully). We rented a car the following day, but in order to avoid having to take one shuttle bus back to the airport and then another to the specific rental car company, we walked directly from the hotel to the rental car facility.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review :  29 May 2009 : by John Kou  (USA)

Customer Rating :  4/5

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Two years ago, security was a mess and I could see lines coming outside of TBIT. Now, things are moving more smoothly, thanks to the new matrix building which now houses the check-in baggage explosive detectors and allows tsa to do the job behind the scenes instead of passengers going to a second long line after checking in their bags. The new check-in stands look nice with the new LCD displays and orange canopies. Some parts of LAX are still dumps (T6 and T2) but the recent work on T3 and T1 make them look similar to terminal 4 (the best terminal). However, the T3 baggage claim hasn't been renovated though.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review :  26 May 2009 : by G Marek  (USA)

Customer Rating :  1/5

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The bad thing about travelling to the South Pacific from the US is that the majority of the flights originate here. I cannot emphasize enough what a horrendous place LAX is. The staff there were unspeakably rude to us. Other reviewers have it pegged: the staff seems miserable and take it out on passengers. The entire place is semi-organized chaos, and most facilities we saw were dirty and not maintained well. We have travelled a fair amount, and LAX is unquestionably, hands-down, the worst experience, and the rudest people we have ever had the misfortune to deal with in the world. Try to avoid if at all possible in your travels.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 11 May 2009 : by S Wick

Customer Rating :  1/5

Coming in from a long, delayed flight from South America (middle of the night) I had the "pleasure" of going through Immigration/Customs. The agent was one of the rudest people I have encountered. As he appeared to be extremely unhappy with his job it was evident he was going to make everyone else just as unhappy. I made the mistake of looking at his name tag too long that as I stood in line awaiting my bags in baggage claim he made a special point in coming out of his booth to scream at me for looking at him. I understand that the job these men and women have is not an easy one, however is it necessary for them to go out of their way to share their misery & discontent with the rest of us that would just like to enter the country unscathed and be on our way.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 24 April 2009 : by M Larson

Customer Rating :  2/5

Really big, disorganized, poorly thought out airport. I used to love LAX back in the day but it is now Frankenstein's monster with all the additions seemingly tacked on with little or no thought. You take your life in your hands when you need to stand on one of the concrete islands to wait for a shuttle bus. A world class city like LA deserves a better airport.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 23 April 2009 : by E Mabley

Customer Rating :  2/5

Departing the Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT) is a test of patience. Security lines are slow, the TSA staff are poorly trained, half the terminal is dark and dirty and the other half is under renovation with scaffolding, brooms and buckets strewn about, and food options are very limited. On the return, customs/immigration was a breeze, but again I had to navigate my luggage through a minefield of brooms, buckets, hard hats, loose planks and other construction debris.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 26 March 2009 : by Sonia Bidwell

Customer Rating :  1/5

I travelled Air New Zealand from Heathrow to Auckland and had to transit through LAX. Never again! A horrendous experience. We were all treated like undesirables - perhaps we looked like that after a long journey and arriving in the middle of the night, but even a smile would have been welcome. The staff were grim faced robots indicating the identification procedure with a suspicious attitude. I found the finger printing quite frightening. The economy passengers lounge was a disgrace and I felt sorry for those who had to endure it. I was most fortunate to be in the Premium lounge and this was good.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 20 March 2009 : by L Martin

Customer Rating :  1/5

LAX is by far, the worst, not user-friendly airport I have been to. I arrived to LAX for an international flight. You receive no instruction on how to get to a connecting flight to Japan. For a while, I was wondering what in the world TBIT was, and couldn't find any staff, so I asked a police officer who kind of explained. LAX could benefit from more signs to explain to the public how to get to certain areas. You have to exit the terminal, walk across the ever flowing traffic and get to the middle of the median to wait for a shuttle. Of course every shuttle but mine was arriving every two minutes! As I waited, solicitors (adults and children) come up to me and asked me to donate for hunger and for a trip to Magic Mountain. I am all for donating, but I don't believe these things are credible. 15 minutes later, my shuttle arrived, and I knew the worst part was over. Wrong!!! I had to listen to the kid solicitor get on the shuttle and bug everybody on it about donating. Than,TBIT is the most disorganized terminal ever and the wait to get thru security must have been an hour. If there is any airport that can benefit from a tram or monorail system, it would be LAX. On a lighter note, Seoul Incheon is a beautiful airport with great directions, and you don't feel like you're in a rat race going nowhere.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 4 March 2009 : by Markku Lipponen

Customer Rating :  4/5

Arriving to terminal 4 and departing from TBIT. I had my luggage thru checked and I had a boarding pass for my next international flight. Very fast I was an entrance of terminal 4 and an only difficulty was there. There are two separate lanes: left one lead security checkpoint and right side is a way out. Maybe it would be nicer for customers if there was a bigger sign for security checkpoint and way out. Short and easy walk to an International terminal. There were some renovation works unfinished, but terminal seems improving. A queue for a security checkpoint was only 20-30 people long and it moved fast. It took only 10-15 minutes. Before noon, at least, TBIT was not a bad terminal for departure. Arrival may be a different matter.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 18 February 2009 : by P Bolt

Customer Rating :  2/5

Must have been a case of expecting the worst, given it's reputation, but LAX wasn't that bad. Flew in from Melbourne on QF - took a while to get through immigration (some 30 mins or so) but the staff kept moving people from queue to queue to reduce their wait time) baggage ready to be collected and staff willing and able to answer questions helpfully. I can see that it would be hell on earth when a bunch of flights arrive together, though. Long queue to drop off the bags for the next leg of the flight and a wander over to Terminal 4 for American Airlines domestic. Security at this terminal was packed and moving slowly - again more people here would have made it a bad day. Overall I had 2 hrs and 50 mins for the connection and I was at the American gate (first of three) just under 2 hours after landing. Not bad, but an appalling state of affairs for a first world major hub airport.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 3 February 2009 : by G Bell

Customer Rating :  1/5

LAX is probably the worst airport I have encountered in all my travels. Firstly, if continuing travel from your original destination through LAX (in my case Sydney, Aus to SFO), you head through customs, pick up your luggage, then re check your luggage on to your next flight (all fair enough). Following this, although you have already been checked through international security, you have to head out and battle through domestic security, which for us took almost 2 hours!!!! They seriously need to have a good look at the amount of security they have in place for the amount of traffic going through there. On the way home the lack of shops for both food and shopping once through customs is ridiculous. Unlike most other airports there is little in the way of things to do for children. I will not be travelling through LAX again. SFO is a far better option. I understand there are renovations in place, but how long has that been going on for? As a gateway to a great country, LAX is appalling.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 26 January 2009 : by R Lewis

Customer Rating :  2/5

Arrived from Melbourne on QF at TBIT. I was seated towards the rear of economy, but it only took 45 minutes to clear immigration and customs. Easy walk to Terminal 7, chaos at United check-in (not enough agents to handle problems with automated check-in, almost everyone traveling internationally had to be seen by an agent). Long lines at security. Total time between landing at LAX to gate lounge for connecting flight was about 3 hours - I had allowed 4 hours to make the connection. Departed LAX on QF from TBIT. Check-in fast, long lines at security but passenger throughput much faster than at Terminal 7. Lots of construction going on airside, poor shops. Overall a poor experience. I try to avoid LAX if at possible - I was going to Vancouver but couldn't get bookings for either SFO or YVR when I needed to travel. Unfortunately, the situation from Australia is likely to remain poor, with limited competition.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 25 January 2009 : by Mark Cowell

Customer Rating :  1/5

LAX (Tom Bradley) makes LHR T1 look like Changi. Rows upon rows of unused $4 trolleys loiter the pavement. Check-in areas fairly conventional and excellent BA staff helped to smooth this part of the adventure. Passport staff and security staff also pleasant albeit, they have to work in a grim environment. Airside, more like a 1970's underground carpark than air terminal for the US 2nd City. Alteration works are no excuse for such a poor environment. Duty free sales virtually non-existant. Those that do exist sell at twice the US high street costs. Boarding the aircraft was a relief.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 8 January 2009 : by S Dian

Customer Rating :  1/5

I went through LAX on Dec 23 My flight arriving from MUC parked at the TBI terminal. It took 1 hr from exiting the aircraft, among the first in C class, to the baggage area. The immigration agent was kind of intimidating. I think manners are not at home among those people. It is a shame for LA and US citizens to have such agents that are the first greeting/welcoming to pax. I've also read some supervisor saying that poor service is now a thing of the past - well I don't know in airport this supervisor is on duty. The custom officials though are much friendlier. On departure, TBI has very little to offer: the only shops and restaurants that are on offer are based on the upper floor of the check-in area, but still a poor selection of them. If you then pass security, forget about them. Lucky if you found a toilet.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 24 December 2008 : by K Simpson

Customer Rating :  3/5

I travelled through LAX from LHR in November. Arrivals immigration was, for want of a better word. 'dire'. I was almost interrogated about my visit by the immigration officer and whilst I understand the need for security, his demeanour was rude and could have been perceived as intimidating. I felt lucky that I have transited through LAX numerous times and knew how srtoppy some immigration officers can be. To a tourist arriving on a first visit, I would imagine they would be so put off, they wouldn't return. On a plus note, my baggage was one of the first off the carousel and I exited the airport quickly. My departure was non eventful. There is a distinct lack of shops and the surroundings are drab and tired. I have only rated this airport fair given that my luggage arrived quickly.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 15 December 2008 : by H Albertse

Customer Rating :  1/5

I have been around the world and through excellent, good, fair and poor airports. In my experience LAX is a total disgrace - and I live in a "so-called" Third World Country. I found T4 poor and Alaskan T3 very poor. There is not nearly enough space between the entrance to terminals and the check-in counters, in order to handle the hordes of passengers. Security was an absolute joke, with TSA staff clearly not in the mood to process as many pax possible in a timely fashion. Why in the world stall checked-in passengers on the ground floor at the crowded ID checkpoint, while there are inoperable carry-on-and passenger scanners on the first floor at security?? I find it extremely ironic that the airport of "the rich and famous" is such a hole in the ground and astounding that the people of LA actually put up with it. In the future, I will personally avoid LAX like the plague - it is a joke of an "airport" and not worth the discomfort and stress.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 2 December 2008 : by C McLain

Customer Rating :  1/5

I travel to LAX about 2 times a year from Heathrow and I dread it. Although I live in the UK, I am a dual passport holder (US/UK) and my husband has a British passport. It's a nightmare for him. They have a bad habit of using 2 carousels for the luggage so if you are travelling alone, and have more than one bag, it's very difficult to keep an eye on 2 carousels. The staff are often abrupt and the panhandlers annoying. Limited choice of food unless you love McDonalds and the Duty Free shopping is a complete joke.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 11 November 2008 : by A Mendoza

Customer Rating :  3/5

First trip to LAX in 4 years. I was pleasantly surprised that immigrations was a breeze, and customs was also fast. From landing to the curb took all of 30 minutes, which was great. For my departure, most of the airport was already closed (midnight flight). The security screening was a bit slow, with slightly over dramatic personnel screaming instructions at everyone. Aside from that, almost everyone in the airport was pleasant and cordial. Most of the airport is under renovation, so the appearance is forgivable. The posters of the new airport look very promising indeed.

LOS ANGELES LAX INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT review : 11 November 2008 : by John Oram

Customer Rating :  4/5

On this occasion, LAX-LHR, it was difficult to find fault with LAX. TBIT has I think been refreshed a little and the eating facilities were perfectly acceptable. Security did not cause delay and in fact it was interesting to see that the TSA drones were disinterested. So, although we went through all the laptop/shoe etc thing I believe they are now starting to see for themselves how ridiculous it all is. ATC never do things the easy way at LAX and we had a massive taxi to 25L.