Spotting at LAX

[matthew mcdonald]

In mid to late October this year I will be passing through LAX for a day or two on my way to Calgary and was wondering if there were any maps, layouts or people with information on where the best places to spot are at the airport. (Keeping in mind I will be on foot).

Thanks heaps in advance.

[Tim Bowrey]

Everything you need Matty

http://spotterswiki.com/index.php?title=LAX

[Sarah C]

The link Tim posted is a good summary. I am biased but I think LAX is probably one of the best spotting airports in the world.

The best two locations are the In 'n' Out Burger and Imperial Hill. The In 'n' Out Burger in particularly good in the afternoon. Not only do you get the north arrivals, the aircraft are so close to you on approach. And the burgers are worth the trip as well!

The Imperial Hill is best for South Arrivals/departures. You will need a good lens but the height and location is ideal for photos, particularly in the morning.

Also, depending on your itinerary, the new reLAX lounge at the TBIT is good if you don't have lounge access. You do pay for the time you are there but it gives you great views of aircraft taxiing to the runways, the QF aircraft resting area as well as both runways.

PM if you want more information.

[Karl M]

As stated above, Imperial Hill & In-N-Out burger are the two spots to visit, and there both easy access.

But note with In-N-Out, if taking photo's, you may come across back lit photo's in the afternoons.

[Montague S]

In-n-Out is a terrible spot, Imperial Hill is the best spot at that time of year because the sun remains behind you the entire day, if you want the sunset shots then its Sepulveda for the 24 arrivals...there is a multi-story carpark which is great for these shots.

http://www.airliners.net/photo/China...-ER/1004525/L/

if this spot is open then for me its the very best place at LAX.

http://www.airliners.net/photo/Atlas...SCD/0797225/L/

its listed as a spot to avoid, but it can be done and is best on weekends, its the cargo lot.

[Scott Lindsell]

Matthew,
Agree with Monty, except for a visit for lunch In and Out is terrible except shooting very late evening in summer. Don't forget the Proudbird for an additional approach shot location in October too.
TBIT to Imperial hill is about $12 in a cab. There is a good hotel in El Segundo (Embassy Suites LAX Intl South) which has good deals from time to time and is only a short walk from the hill.
Scott.

[matthew mcdonald]

Thanks for the reply about the In n out Monty and Scott. I will be passing through LAX around the 26th, 27th, 28th of october and am currently looking for accomodation for a couple of nights at the airport. If any one has any ideas I would love to hear them.

Thanks in advance.

Decent hotels around Lax would be Hilton, Westin, Crowne Plaza. Sheraton is apparently not that bad, although someone on the reservation needs to be over 21 to access any Sheraton hotels around LAX.

But by all means just use Priceline and their online bidding thing. I actually booked my LAX hotel's today, and put a bid of $47USD on 3.5star hotel, in which there is only three of them, and got me the Crowne Plaza for $73 after tax/exhange rate etc..

Or if you are into the 2 star stuff, plenty of them around the area going pretty cheap.

[Adam G]

I recenltly sat in the Alaskan Airlines Club Room in Terminal 3 ($30 entry) for a few hours between flights in that terminal and it had fantastic views of widebody aircraft taxying by and a lot of local narrow bodies - it was also fairly quiet compared to other lounges.

[matthew mcdonald]

Thanks for the reply's guys. One more question I forgot to ask is who would people like to fly more: V Aus or Air Pacific?

Thanks for the answers