LAX is the pickup people ask me about more than any other, and almost always for the same reason: they have stood in the LAX-it lot at 11pm with a dead phone and a surge multiplier, and they never want to do it again. A private booking works differently, and it helps to know exactly how before you land.
Before you land
When you book, put your flight number in the notes field. That single detail is what lets me watch the arrival rather than the clock. If your flight leaves late out of Denver or sits on the tarmac at LAX for forty minutes, the pickup time moves with it and nothing changes on your side. There is no waiting charge for a delay that the airline caused, because you did not cause it.
About twenty minutes before you land I send a WhatsApp message with the car, the plate and where I will be. If you prefer a phone call instead, say so when you book and that is what you will get.
The meeting point
For domestic terminals I meet you at the arrivals curb on the lower level, at the column number I send you. Curb time at LAX is tightly enforced, so the timing matters: I stage in the cell phone lot and pull up once you tell me you have your bags. That is usually a two to four minute wait, not the twenty minute wait people expect.
Tom Bradley International is the one exception worth planning for. Immigration and customs are unpredictable, so for international arrivals I park and meet you inside at the arrivals hall with a name sign. It costs a few dollars in parking, and it means you are not hunting for a car after an eleven hour flight.
Luggage, and what actually fits
The Model Y has a rear cargo area, a deep well under the load floor and a front trunk. In practice that is four large checked bags plus carry-ons, or two large bags plus a set of golf clubs, or a stroller and a week of family luggage. If you are moving something unusual — a cello, a surfboard bag, six boxes of trade show material — tell me before you book and I will tell you honestly whether it fits.
The fare
Your price is calculated from the real driving route between your two addresses and locked before you confirm. It does not move because it is Friday at 5pm, because there is an accident on the 405, or because a concert let out at SoFi. That is the entire point of booking ahead rather than opening an app at the curb.
You can pay by card online at the time of booking, or in the car. The number is the same either way.