We are connecting through either LAX or SFO - any thoughts or recommendations? We will be coming from EWR and heading to SYD. Both options are on United.

Both are Boeing 787, similar seat configurations, seat availability, price, layover, flight times. The only difference is SFO vs. LAX. I guess I'll do a deep drive and see if there is a huge difference if we have to change terminals, etc?

Any input?

I prefer LAX (call me crazy ) but for this itinerary -- I'd probably choose SFO mostly because United's terminal and Tom Bradley are so far apart at LAX.

Can be more fog delays at SFO though.

Yesterday, the LAX-SYD nonstop departed from T7 and SYD-LAX arrived at TBIT. Maybe use both: xxx-lax-syd-sfo-xxx
You can expect fine weather at LAX

Some great points have been made about the weather difference. I had a long layover last year at SFO (also flying United) and I thought it was a very nice airport. But the weather issues might tip the scale in favor of LAX.

I could have mentioned that your EWR-LAX flight is likely to land at T7, the same terminal that your your flight to SYD is likely to use. I would definitely use LAX outbound.

I was surprised to see that yestereday's SYD-LAX arrived at the TBIT. I have arrived on United international flights at T7 and gone through security there, but it has been a few years since I have done so.

Thursday's SYD-LAX is arriving at TBIT. I see a pattern here.

I'd use LAX . Too much crappy weather at SFO.

thanks for thoughts. It may become a moot point ... the most recent flights have a few more options with 2+ hours layovers. Probably leaning towards SFO right now - since I think it is easier than switching in and out of TBIT and United has a hub there.

It will probably come down to seat selection since it is a 15 hour flight onward!

Don't you also have to change terminals at SFO?
At least T7 and TBIT are close together.

I always find the gates at SFO crowded because of the fog delays. Hate that airport for departures.

>>At least T7 and TBIT are close together<<

They are almost as far apart as is possible -- only T-8 is farther from TBIT.

The TBIT is not going to be an issue for the outbound trip, EWR-LAX-SYD. That connection is probably going to be in T7. Both flights are going to be in a United terminal, T6, T7, or T8.

But your arrival gate from EWR could be the same as the gate for the departure to SYD.

time for the reality check of what happened:

outbound: We connected through SFO. Planned about a 3 1/2 hour layover since we had taken advantage of a Platinum AmEx offer and hoped to spend the time chilling there. Well... the best laid plans and all that! From EWR, we were posted as about a 1 hour delay. We boarded, and then they announced a ground hold in SFO due to fog. (you are smart people). When they made us de-plane, our hearts sunk. I scooted out first, and ran to Customer Service to find out if there was ANY OTHER WAY to get to Sydney. Through LAX? not enough seats. Through IAH? couldn't make the connection. They did give us an option of an Air New Zealand flight that would connect through Auckland, but it was only 15 minutes later than our flight, so not really helpful.

I ended up talking to a ground crew guy at EWR who was EXTREMELY helpful. He looked at our flight and saw there were 16 people also making the connection. And the gates. And the load. And the status of the incoming flight we would be heading out on to Sydney. He gave us hope.

Our flight was scheduled to depart SFO at 11:00pm. Based on when we finally departed, we estimated landing at 10:30pm. We would scramble. But... then we hit turbulence and diverted slightly. And then we hit thunderstorms and diverted. Our estimated arrival time was 11:00pm. In the meantime, I talked to every flight attendant, my husband tweeted with United customer service. When we landed, they asked everyone to wait to allow the Sydney passengers to depart first. The people around us wished us good luck and cheered us on. And when we arrived in the terminal... we RAN! Some of the family is faster than others (kids) and some of us are old and slow (me). But they held the flight and all 16 passengers made it. (side note: I waved at the AmEx lounge as I jogged past it wishing I could have partaken in its hospitality).

We ended up sitting on the ground in SFO for another 45 minutes - we had lost our window in Sydney. But we made it. And the flight was slightly delayed arriving in Sydney, but we made our ultimate destination (Hamilton Island).

The downside? After sitting on a 6 hour flight with no recovery time in-between, the 15 hour flight felt even longer. We were thankful that we were on United and had booked premium economy seats - those extra few inches make all the difference in the world.


return flight: We connected from Fiji - LAX - Philadelphia on Fiji Airways, then American. Again, we had about 3 hours. We arrived pretty close to on time - but passport control and customs was CRAZY! There was a line in baggage claim to get in the line for passport control. After standing in it about 15 minutes, we were close enough to read signs and realize there was a different line for Global Entry. We were so happy to have Global Entry!!! We figure it saved us 1-2 hours of waiting in line. (We later found out that Customs and Passport control computers had broken down causing all the delays).

After walking through many dark small tunnels, we arrived at our terminal - we had about 45 minutes to kill. We were happy to grab food and drinks to fortify us for the rest of the flight home. Somehow, the Fiji - LAX - Phil didn't seem near as long as the outbound flights. In reality, there were a *little* shorter, but we weren't so worried about the onset of our vacation and missing a vacation day.

Honestly, I wasn't a fan of either airport. No good options when you are flying west though.

thanks to everyone for thoughts.

Thanks for the update. I had to laugh, because we had recently returned from a trip to New Zealand at the time you first posted. And I was going to tell you what happened with me and my husband vs. my friend going to the same place at the same time, and why you should go from LAX. OK, I'll tell you anyway.

First, we all live in L.A., but my friend with her years in corporate and weekly travel, she had to use United and use her points for Biz class both ways. They routed her LAX to SFO to AKL (Auckland). While we took Biz class from LAX to AUK.

Friend had to leave LAX on UA at 7:00 p.m. for SFO, then sit there for an 11 p.m. departure, arriving in AKL around 7:15 a.m., about an hour after we arrived. Which meant we had to wait around until she got there.

Our plane took off at 9 and got us in at 6 a.m. We left on time and arrived on time.

Before we left, we got all these texts complaining that although she got to SFO with hours to spare, it was fogged in and the plane would not be taking off at 11, but more like half an hour later. When we arrived, we got all of these texts sent after we'd left that the fog had not lifted and they were just sitting there on the tarmac but hoped to leave by midnight. She ended up getting in closer to 9 a.m., exhausted. And although on that flight, her luggage DID arrive, she left her IPAD on the plane. Better, I guess, than our last trip together when she met us in Budapest after 4 flights from LAX on United, and her bags were lost in transit for 4 days (eventually found in Frankfurt and sent to the hotel the night before we were to leave).

We visited Australia alone last year, taking Air New Zealand from LAX and it was on time, and the gap from landing in AKL to SYD was very pleasant in the ANZ lounge.

The last time I took a connecting flight through SFO in order to use miles, the connecting flight from SFO was oversold and they were asking for volunteers, but the next available flight with open seats was some ridiculous amount of time later, unless you wanted to go to Orange County instead of LAX (this was AA).

Too many weather delays out of SFO, go via LAX.

The prior time, the connecting flight LAX to SFO was cancelled with no notice to me. A few days before leaving I noticed that my international oubound flight didn't have the LAX to SFO leg at all. After a comedy of errors I was able to get on the nonstop to Santiago from LAX instead, over LAN's dead body. (That was thanks to the AA gate agent, and to traveling carryon only).