By Harriet Baskas

Airport essentials Airport Web site Airport maps Ground transportation Construction alert: The Tom Bradley International Terminal is scheduled to undergo renovation from late 2005 through 2008. Known simply as Mines Field when it first opened in 1928, Los Angeles International Airport (airport code: LAX) was a military facility during World War II that converted to commercial service in 1946. At one point the L.A. County Board of Supervisors proposed renaming the airport Jimmy Stewart International Airport, in honor of the late actor who earned a Distinguished Flying Cross while serving in the U.S. Air Force, but the city council nixed the idea. No one nixed the idea of honoring the world's fifth busiest airport with its own official song, however. Have a listen or sing along with the karaoke version.

Get oriented Take care of yourself Take care of business Explore the airport Transportation

Get oriented LAX Note Luggage carts are available in all airport terminals. There are no baggage storage facilities. This big and very busy airport is located 15 miles southwest of Los Angeles. There are nine terminals, laid out in a large horseshoe pattern with Tom Bradley International Terminal at the top. Terminals 1–3 and are on the north side of the horseshoe while terminals 4–8 are on the south side. Selected airline locations: Terminal 1: America West, Southwest, and US Airways. Terminal 2: Air Canada, Hawaiian Air, KLM, Northwest, Virgin Atlantic. Terminal 3: AirTran, ATA, Alaska, Frontier, Horizon, Midwest Express, West Jet. Terminal 4: American, American Eagle, Qantas. Terminal 5: Air France, Delta, Song, Spirit, Sun Country. Terminal 6: Aeromexico, Continental, and United. Terminal 7 and 8: Ted, United, United Express, United Shuttle. For a complete listing of airlines in each terminal, see the airport terminal map. It's fairly easy to walk between terminals, but if your destination is more than one terminal away, it's easier to hop on the free airport shuttle bus that stops every 12 to 15 minutes at the islands outside the lower (arrivals) level at each terminal. Take care of yourself Eat: There are a wide variety of dining options at LAX but—except for the Tom Bradley International Terminal and the Encounter Restaurant in the Theme Building—most choices are available to ticketed passengers only. Options post-security in the Tom Bradley International Terminal are somewhat limited. Pre-security, you can get a sit-down meal at Daily Grill or choose from a number of food court options, including El Paseo, Euro Coffee/Häagen Dazs (open 24-hours), Hamada Orient Express, Sushi Boy, and McDonald's. On the arrivals level, the Arrival Café is good choice as well. LAX Note Best bet for takeout: Sandwiches or salads from Wolfgang Puck. Best sinful snack: Häagen Dazs or Dryer's ice cream. Elsewhere in the airport, you'll find bars and coffee shops post-security in all terminals. Offerings include: Terminal 1: El Paseo, Gordon Biersch Brewery, Home Turf Sports Bar. The Backlot Deli offers takeout items and a Dryer's ice cream stand. Terminal 2: Boudin Sourdough Bakery, Burger King, Cheers Bar, Tampopo, Wolfgang Puck, L.A. Roadhouse-Route 66. Terminal 3: Home Turf Sports Bar and Jody Maroni. Terminal 4: Travel Right Café and Chili's Too (table service). Terminal 5: California Pizza Kitchen, Creative Croissants, El Cholo Cantina, Malibu Al's, McDonald's. Terminal 6: Home Turf Sports Bar, Jody Maroni's, Monet's, a California Deli, Redondo Beach Brewing Co., and Ruby's (a '50s-style diner with table service). Terminal 7: Boudin Sourdough Bakery, Karl Strauss Microbrewery, La Salsa, McDonald's, and Wolfgang Puck. Terminal 8: California Pizza Kitchen, L.A. Roadhouse-Route 66. If you're not in a hurry and crave something a bit different (actually a lot different), take a 5-minute walk over to the landmark Theme Building in the center of the airport and ride the elevator up to the Encounter Restaurant. The folks from Disney added a Hollywood touch to the place, with everything from a theme song in the elevator to retro-futuristic uniforms for the wait staff. Encounter, which features thoughtful preparations of steak and seafood, has a happy hour and a kids menu, and offers valet parking. The City Deli, at the base of the Theme Building, is intended to be the employee cafeteria, it's open to the public and offers a wide variety of soups, salads, and entrees at very decent prices. It's open 6 AM–1 PM. Relax and refresh: The mezzanine level of the Tom Bradley International Terminal has comfortable chairs, places to eat and drink, and lots of traffic (people and planes) to watch. If you've got a long layover and want to work out or get a shower, take the free shuttle van to the nearby Crown Plaza Hotel and the adjacent branch of 24-Hour Fitness. The $10 day pass gives you access to the equipment and the showers. Branches of many major hotel chains line the roads around LAX. Most have free shuttle vans and offer day rates to travelers. Even if you don't check in for the day, remember that these hotels often have large comfortable lobby areas, good restaurants and bars, and staffed or self-service business centers. If you're feeling sick, there's a first aid station on the upper level of the Tom Bradley International Terminal. Hours: 10 AM–10 PM daily. Phone: 310-215-6000. Smokers is available outside the terminals, including the outdoor smoking lounges in terminals 3 and 6. Take care of business LAX Note Internet kiosks are located throughout the gate areas in terminals 3, 6, 7, 8, and in the Tom Bradley International Terminal. Currency exchange booths are located in the departure halls of each terminal and also in the arrivals hall of the Tom Bradley International Terminal. Fax, photocopy, and notary services are available pre-security at the ICE currency exchange booth on the lower level of the Tom Bradley International Terminal. Fax and photocopy services are also offered at the ICE booth in Terminal 3, post-security, across from Gate 30. The Travel Right Café, on the departure level of Terminal 4, has 48 dataport/phone jacks and electrical outlets. Café customers are not charged for recharging laptops, cell phones, and PDAs, or for accessing the Internet via toll-free and calls within the 310 area code. Wireless Internet access is available in many club lounges. Boingo offers wireless hotspots in the Tom Bradley International Terminal and in terminals 1–7. Airline club locations: Alaska: Terminal 3 Continental: Terminal 6. Delta: Terminal 5. Northwest: Terminal 2. United, US Airways: Terminal 7. Explore the airport Shop: In addition to plenty of newsstands/gift shops, you'll find branches of Hudson Booksellers in terminals 1, 3, 6, and the Tom Bradley International Terminal. Highlights elsewhere in the airport include Bow Wow Meow and Brookstone in Terminal 1; Destination LA/LA Edge (clothing, jewelry, etc. ) in Terminal 4; Spirit of the Red Horse (jewelry) in Terminal 5; and the Body Shop in Terminal 7. More shopping choices are offered both pre- and post-security in the Tom Bradley International Terminal. Sightsee: The largest and most intriguing piece of art at the airport is the space-age structure smack in the middle of the airport itself. This is the airport's Theme Building, which was constructed in 1961 and designated a cultural landmark in 1992. The building—a tower centered under the vertex of two 135-foot-high parabolic arches—houses the airport's observation deck (closed to the public since 9/11) and the Jetsons-style Encounter Restaurant, which is worth a visit even if you're not planning to stay for a meal. You can see art in exhibit cases located in Terminal 1 (just after security) and in the Tom Bradley International Terminal—both in the lobby (open to the public) and in the corridor leading from the customs area (for passengers only). Look out: In the Tom Bradley International Terminal, you'll find comfortable seating near the food court, close to a large window that overlooks the main taxiway connecting the north and south runways. Even if your kids have never seen "The Jetsons," they'll still enjoy a visit to the Encounter Restaurant. If you've got a few hours to spend, take a short cab ride over to the Flight Path Learning Center—Museum, located adjacent to the airport in the refurbished LAX Imperial Terminal. Exhibits include models, photographs, uniforms, and other artifacts highlighting the aeronautical history of Southern California. Admission and parking are free, and the center is open 10 AM–3 PM on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and the first Saturday of each month. Transportation Taxi fares to downtown Los Angeles start about $40. Travel time, of course, depends on the notorious L.A. traffic, but plan on spending at least 30–40 minutes with your cabbie. For information on shuttle service and other ground transportation services, see the airport's ground transportation page. To get downtown via light rail (which takes about an hour), take the free shuttle bus that connects LAX with the Aviation/LAX station of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Green Line. Board the "G" shuttle bus at the islands outside the lower level of any terminal. To go via bus, take the "C" shuttle (from the same pickup points as the "G") to the MTA bus center, where buses depart for points around the city.

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