The Art of Skipping LAX
Los Angeles Airport holds the high honor of having one of the worst runway-safety records in the country. And if that’s not enough to scare you away, there’s the traffic, the security checkpoints, and the ever-longer delays. At the smaller regional airports—Bob Hope in Burbank and Long Beach—security is just as tight, but the lines are much shorter and the employees friendlier. JetBlue to BUR is still the best bi-coastal carrier, but be sure to check United.com’s “Deals” page for last-minute weekend fares to LGB. Burbank is north of LAX and Long Beach is to the south, but if you can avoid landing at rush hour, you can reach downtown in 40 minutes from Long Beach, or in 20 from Burbank. Even more critical than a rented convertible is a GPS navigation system (Hertz offers it as an upgrade for $10 a day) that’ll show you shortcuts you never knew existed.
-S.A.

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