Daughter is taking a flight from Washington DC to LAX to visit her grandmother in Burbank for Christmas, arriving about 10 am the Wednesday before Christmas. Can anyone give me a ballpark about what cab fare would cost to Burbank (close to the BUR airport)?

I know there is Supershuttle and Primetime, but have gotten pretty discouraged with Supershuttle; always seems to take forever as they don't load very effeciently from airports - just pile people in and drive all over. Is Primetime any better?

Thanks for any advice.

It is nearly 30 miles so a taxi will cost a small fortune. Can't she fly into Burbank?

But my guess would be $95-$100-ish if they don't get stuck in bad traffic.

She has already made the reservation and did it because there was a big cost differential. DC to LA flights are fairly inexpensive because it is such a hugely travelled market. Anyone with any experience with the shuttles in the LA area?

Try using excucars on www.supershuttle.com You are the ONLY one in the car. We used it recently and it was not too expensive. It only cost us about $10 or so more than the Supershuttle vanpool.

It's cheaper on line to make your reservation. Good luck.

Hmmm. Am a bit confused. I used the link for Supershuttle and the site said they did not serve Burbank. Then I looked up Execucar and got a quote for $95 (that site said for cheaper fares, use Supershuttle as they are owned by the same company).

Anetti did you get your ride in a supershuttle van or another type of car?

I used something called "excucar" that I found through the supershuttle website. I used it last August and the difference in rate between the car and the van at that time was only $10. Maybe, the rate has gone up. At the time, I thought it a great deal!

PS. I think it cost us $49 to Long Beach.

Thanks. That is strange. Somewhere in the $50-60 range is what I was hoping to pay. Maybe I will just call them on Monday and get some more info. Burbank doesn't look much farther than Long Beach on a map.

We thought it was a great deal at the time. Maybe something has changed. However, I bet you don't need to wait until Mon to call; they probably have someone to speak to on Sun or perhaps, tonight. I'll be curious to read what you find out.

BTW, I have had terrible experiences lately with Superhuttles' vans. They ride round and round the airport looking for passengers and when they finally leave the airport, you find that the person sitting next to you is going about 1/2 hr or more from your home and they are delivering him and two others first before they take you home!!

This is why I gave up completely on Supershuttle. I think they must have changed their business model. In the "old days" there was some geographic logic to who they picked up. I think that has changed. I had a long chat with the last SS driver and he said that it is all independently leased now so the drivers are on their own to pick up as many people as possible to make their money. I won't go near them anymore because there is no "geographic assurance" anymore. They used to advertize no more than 3 stops etc. but if you notice, that is no longer being said. And they can take forever to get you home!

Years ago, I took the SuperShuttle from LAX to the Loew's Santa Monica - 6.6 miles according to Googlemaps. It took close to an 1-1/2 hours. That was the one and only time I took Supershuttle anywhere

Taxi costs can vary wildly for trips between the same destinations. The reason is that taxi meters take time into account as well as distance.

A taxi fare might very well double from LAX to BUR if the freeways are long slim parking lots and you can never predict when that may happen. The LA freeway system is so interconnected that an accident on I-10 can cause horrendous backups on the 405, not to mention accidents in the pass between LAX and the San Fernando Valley.

As a possible alternative, your daughter could catch the flyaway bus at LAX, take it to Van Nuys Airport ($7.00), then take a cab from there to grandma's house in Burbank.

Another alternative would be to find a Burbank hotel that does free shuttles to and from LAX (there must be some, since Burbank is an employment hub for the entertainment industry) and use that service.

Wow, thank you surfergirl. Those sound like two terrific ideas. Will look into both of them and report back!

I looked into the flyaway bus and that looks perfect. Thanks so much.

Reviving this thread for a related but slightly different question. Arriving LAX at 5:20 pm next week and need to get to the Marriott LA Live. Someone else would pay for a taxi for me, but I would love something that did not take as long as it looks like driving will. Any subways or metros or anything that would be more expedient??

A taxi door to door will be faster than any combo of public trans.

No. You'd have to take a shuttle to the Aviation Green Line station, then take the Green Line to the Blue Line, get off at Pico, then walk a fair amount. Not any portion in a particularly safe area either. 5:20 is in the middle of rush hour, so unless you're coming in on a Saturday or Sunday, you're going to be stuck a while. I'd personally rather rent a car at that hour or see if the Marriott has an airport shuttle (I would think they would -- it's a pretty upscale place) rather than spend an hour or two sitting in a cab with a potentially smelly cab driver -- most of whom drive as if they're on acid and break nearly every driving regulation there is, but specifically crossing double yellow lines to make turn pockets, and shooting through red lights as if it's only a suggestion.

Thanks jean Jean and Surfergirl. I probably should have just taken a later flight; this is what I really dislike about LA but rather than start a San Francisco/LA debate I will call the Marriott . Great suggestion. (I have the same feelings here. Yellow cab is great for getting SFO. I take a lot of cabs there and they always send great cabs and great drivers. Getting home FROM SFO is a total crap shoot and I usually get similar drivers to what you are describing, all intent on making the trip to my house a "short run", which it is not.