Los Angeles LayoverLos Angeles International Airport A City Layover guide
The Theme Building at LAX, lit purple at night under a full moon

At the airport

Spending your layover inside Los Angeles International Airport

Photo: Junkyardsparkle, CC0

At a glance

Hotels at the terminals
None; hotels within a mile, by free shuttle
Airside rooms
None
Day room
Travelodge LAX, 9am to 8pm, from US$74.95 for two
Lounge entry
Priority Pass spas at Tom Bradley and Terminal 1
Showers
None at the airport
Left luggage
None; storage in town from US$4.25 a day
Wi-Fi
Free in every terminal

LAX has no hotel inside the airport, no transit area, no showers and no lockers. You clear the border and collect your bags first, then choose a room by shuttle before security or a spa or lounge after it.

Can you sleep at LAX during a layover?

Not in a hotel inside the airport, because LAX has none. Airport hotels stand within a mile and send free shuttles to the terminals' upper level; the Travelodge by Wyndham LAX lets day rooms from 9am to 8pm for US$74.95 for two (seen November 2026). After security, Priority Pass members can rest at the Be Relax spas in the Tom Bradley International Terminal and Terminal 1. The airport has no showers and no left luggage.

We earn a commission if you book through some links on this page, at no extra cost to you. How we make money.

Hotels in and next to the terminals

Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) has no hotel inside it and no transit area to sleep in. Arriving from abroad, you clear the border and customs with your bags before you can rest anywhere, so every bed is a short drive away.

HotelWhereAirside or landsideHow you get there
Travelodge by Wyndham LAXNear the airportLandsideFree 24-hour hotel shuttle; call the hotel for a pickup
Hotels on Airport, Century, La Cienega, Manchester and Sepulveda boulevardsWithin about a mile of the terminalsLandsideEach hotel’s free shuttle

Hotel shuttles stop on the upper (departures) level outside each terminal, at the red signs, not at baggage claim, so after customs go up a floor. No hotel is close enough to walk to with bags. For a full night, any of the boulevard hotels will do; book as you would anywhere, since no airline at LAX gives connecting passengers a free room.

Day rooms

Only one hotel near LAX publishes a day rate. A room for the daytime gives you a bed and a shower between flights.

HotelHoursPrice (seen November 2026)
Travelodge by Wyndham LAX9am to 8pmUS$74.95 for two people, US$79.95 for up to four

Add US$10 for an arrival between 15 June and 31 August. Rooms are let subject to availability, so book ahead on 800-421-3939 and confirm the price as you do; once you have your bags, call the hotel again for the shuttle. Allow for the shuttle both ways and for security again on your return: with a flight in the evening, leave the hotel about 2 hours before departure (our estimate).

Lounges you can pay for

All of these are after security, so you check in for your next flight and pass the checkpoint first.

Tom Bradley International Terminal, LAX. Photo: Don Ramey Logan, CC BY 4.0
LoungeTerminalHoursEntry
Be Relax SpaTom Bradley International9am to 9pmPriority Pass
Be Relax SpaTerminal 16am to 10pmPriority Pass
Virgin Atlantic ClubhouseTom Bradley International8am to 10:30pmPriority Pass, with an extra fee
GamewayTerminal 35am to 10pmPriority Pass
GamewayTerminal 66am to 9pmPriority Pass

No walk-in prices are published, so without a membership, ask at the door. The Tom Bradley International Terminal also has five airline lounges for business and first-class passengers, run by the airlines for their own customers. Every terminal is joined after security, so a lounge in another terminal is open to you too: go through security at your own terminal, then walk. Allow for the walk back to your gate, up to about 40 minutes from one end of the airport to the other.

A lounge at LAX. Photo: Sladearch, CC BY-SA 4.0

Showers

LAX has no public showers. Your choices are the Travelodge day room, with its own bathroom, or an airline lounge that has showers, if your ticket gets you in.

Security on the way back

LAX sells no paid fast lane through security. TSA PreCheck lanes are quick, with about 99 in 100 travellers waiting under 10 minutes, but only for members. Standard-lane waits aren’t published. The airport is busiest from 11am to 2pm and from 8pm to 11pm, when its own advice is to allow extra time; the guide’s 90 minutes before departure is meant to cover a queue at those hours. Going out from the US there’s no passport control, only security.

The check-in hall of the Tom Bradley International Terminal. Photo: Carlsmith (en) (zh), CC BY-SA 3.0

Left luggage

LAX has no lockers and no left-luggage desk, so store bags where you’re going, not at the airport.

ServiceWhereFrom (seen November 2026)
BounceShops and hotels in Santa Monica, Venice, Hollywood and downtown; none inside the terminalsAbout US$4.25 a day
LuggageHeroShops across the cityAbout US$1.50 an hour, plus US$1.99 a bag
Radical StorageMore than 110 places across the cityAbout US$2

Prices and hours vary by place, so check the one you book. Luggage carts in the terminals cost US$8.

Connections, money and Wi-Fi

  • Wi-Fi. Free and unlimited in the public areas of every terminal: join “_LAX Free WiFi”. The FlyAway buses and the LAX-it pickup lot have it too.
  • Phone data. The free Wi-Fi ends at the kerb, so set up a US eSIM before you fly for maps, rides and bus times outside.
  • Money. Everything takes contactless cards, the buses and trains included, and the FlyAway takes no cash.
  • Changing terminals. After security, every terminal is joined by walkways, so you can walk from one to any other without being screened again. From Terminal 1 to Terminal 8 is about 2 miles, roughly 40 minutes on foot (our estimate); follow the gate numbers on the signs. Before security, on separate tickets, walk along the kerb or take the free Airline Connections “A” shuttle, which runs around the clock from the pink LAX Shuttle signs on the lower (arrivals) level.
  • The people mover. SkyLink, the airport’s new train, isn’t open yet and has no opening date. Shuttle buses link the terminals, the car parks and the Metro meanwhile.
A FlyAway bus at Union Station. Photo: Frederick Dennstedt from los angeles, usa, CC BY-SA 2.0

Questions people ask

Can I sleep at LAX on a layover?

Not in a hotel inside the airport: LAX has none, and no transit area. Arriving from abroad, you clear the border and collect your bags, then take a free shuttle to a hotel within a mile, or check in again and rest after security in a Priority Pass spa.

Is there a hotel inside LAX?

No. The nearest hotels are within a mile, on Airport, Century and Sepulveda boulevards, and their free shuttles pick up on the upper (departures) level of every terminal, at the red signs.

Can I take a shower at LAX?

Not in the terminals: LAX has no public showers. A day room at the Travelodge by Wyndham LAX, US$74.95 for two from 9am to 8pm (seen November 2026), comes with one, and some airline lounges have them for their own passengers.

Can I use Priority Pass at LAX?

Yes, after security. The Be Relax spas in the Tom Bradley International Terminal (9am to 9pm) and Terminal 1 (6am to 10pm) take it, as do Gameway's gaming lounges in Terminals 3 and 6. The Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse in Tom Bradley charges members an extra fee.

Where can I leave my luggage at LAX?

Nowhere at the airport: LAX has no lockers or left-luggage desk. Store bags in town instead. In November 2026 Bounce listed places from about US$4.25 a day in Santa Monica, Venice, Hollywood and downtown, and LuggageHero charged from US$1.50 an hour plus a US$1.99 fee a bag.

Can I get through security quickly at LAX?

With TSA PreCheck, usually: about 99 in 100 travellers wait under 10 minutes in its lanes. LAX sells no paid fast lane. Standard-lane waits aren't published, and the airport is busiest from 11am to 2pm and from 8pm to 11pm, so the guide's 90 minutes before departure allows for a queue.

Sources and last check

Rules, fares and opening hours change. We last checked this page on 8 November 2026 against these sources. Always confirm entry rules with your airline and the official source before you fly.

Header photo: The Theme Building at LAX, lit purple at night under a full moon. By Junkyardsparkle, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC0.

Photo1 / 1