LAX to Palm Springs Transfer
The long run east from Los Angeles, at a fixed price for the whole vehicle.
The drive
Los Angeles to the desert
It is 126.1 miles from LAX to Palm Springs, about 2 hr 30 with clear roads. Clear roads are the caveat that matters here.
The route crosses the Los Angeles basin before reaching Interstate 10, and that first part is the variable. A Friday afternoon departure routinely runs an hour longer than the free-flow time, and the April festival weekends are worse again.
Nobody can promise a duration on this road. What we can do is track the flight so the pickup matches when you actually land, and hold the price whatever the traffic does.
This trip at a glance
- Distance
- 126.1 miles via Interstate 10
- Free-flow time
- about 2 hr 30. Add an hour for a Friday afternoon.
- Flight tracked
- 60 minutes free waiting from landing.
- Fixed price
- Quoted per vehicle. Traffic does not change it.
Prices
What an LAX to Palm Springs transfer costs
The quoted total covers the whole vehicle. On a run this long it is worth pricing against the fare difference that sent you to LAX in the first place — the transfer can absorb the saving.
Luggage decides the vehicle more often than headcount on a journey of this length.
| Vehicle | Seats | One way | Round trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business Sedan | Up to 2 | $580 | $1,160 |
| Premium SUV | Up to 5 | $630 | $1,260 |
| Executive SUV | Up to 5 | $720 | $1,440 |
| Sprinter Executive | Up to 12 | $995 | $1,990 |
| Sprinter Coach | Up to 14 | $995 | $1,990 |
| Executive Coach Bus | Up to 40 | $1,605 | $3,210 |
| Motor Coach | Up to 55 | $1,770 | $3,540 |
Timing
When to travel, and when not to
Midday and late evening departures out of Los Angeles are the quick ones. Weekday afternoons from about three o'clock, and Friday from lunchtime, are the slow ones.
If your flight lands in the middle of a Friday afternoon there is nothing to be done about the traffic, but there is something to be done about the expectation: assume three and a half hours rather than two and a half and the day works out.
Going the other way, leaving the desert for an LAX departure, the same logic applies in reverse. Sunday afternoons westbound are the heaviest of the week.
When this drive is quick
- Quickest
- Mid-morning, or after about 8pm, in either direction.
- Slowest eastbound
- Friday from lunchtime, and weekdays from about 3pm.
- Slowest westbound
- Sunday afternoon, when the weekend traffic returns to Los Angeles.
Groups
Arriving as a group from Los Angeles
A group landing at LAX has a decision to make that a couple does not: one vehicle or several. On a two-and-a-half-hour drive the answer is usually one, because splitting a group across two cars on a long freeway run means two arrival times and two sets of problems.
The larger vehicles also change what the drive feels like. A Sprinter or a coach on Interstate 10 is a different experience from a packed SUV, and on this distance that matters more than it would on a short transfer.
For festival weekends in April the same vehicles are in heavy demand and go early. If your group is arriving for Coachella or Stagecoach, book the transfer when you book the flights rather than after.
One vehicle or two
- One vehicle means one arrival time, not two.
- Luggage fills a vehicle before the seats do on a long run.
- April weekends: book when you book the flights.
Going home
What time to leave Palm Springs for LAX
This is the return people get wrong, because the drive out felt fine and the drive back is on a deadline.
Work backwards from the airline's check-in cut-off. Allow the about 2 hr 30 of driving, add an hour if you are traveling on a Sunday afternoon or a weekday rush, then add whatever the airline asks for your departure.
If you would rather not do the arithmetic, call with the flight details and we will pick the time with you.
Working back from the cut-off
- Start at the airline's check-in deadline, not the departure time.
- Add the driving time, then an hour for a Sunday or weekday rush.
- Then whatever the airline asks you to be at LAX for.
At LAX
Finding your driver at LAX
LAX is nine terminals arranged in a horseshoe, and they are far enough apart that the wrong one is a shuttle ride rather than a walk. The terminal on your confirmation is what the driver works from.
Where a hired vehicle may wait at LAX is set by the airport rather than by us, and it has changed more than once in recent years. Your confirmation names the meeting point that applies when you land, which is why it is worth reading rather than assuming it is the same as last time.
We track the inbound flight, so the pickup is set from when you actually land rather than from the schedule. Waiting is free for the first 60 minutes after the aircraft is on the ground, which on a long-haul arrival covers immigration and bags.
If you cannot find the driver, call rather than walk. The number is on the confirmation and the vehicle is usually closer than it seems.
Landing at LAX
- Terminal
- Nine of them, in a horseshoe. The wrong one is a shuttle ride.
- Meeting point
- Named on your confirmation — the airport sets where hired vehicles wait.
- Free waiting
- 60 minutes from when the aircraft is on the ground.
Nearby
Other Palm Springs trips
The valley is served from three airports and runs east to west along one highway, so the alternatives below are the same service at a different length.
Booking
What we need, and what is included
The flight number, the terminal, the full desert address and the bag count. LAX terminals are far apart, so the terminal matters as much as the flight number.
Tolls are included. Tips are not included and are at your discretion. Cancelling is free up to 24 hours before pickup.
Palm Springs airport transportation covers the valley. The other long run is San Diego to Palm Springs.
Frequently Asked Questions
126.1 miles, mostly on Interstate 10.
about 2 hr 30 with clear roads. A Friday afternoon is routinely an hour longer, and festival weekends longer still.
From $630 one way in a Premium SUV for up to five, or from $580 in a Business Sedan for two. Round trip is twice the one-way price.
No. The price is fixed per vehicle when you book, whatever the road does on the day.
Often. PSP is minutes from town against a two-and-a-half-hour drive from LAX, so compare the fare difference against the transfer before booking the ticket.
We track it. The pickup moves with the aircraft and waiting is free for 60 minutes after landing.
Work back from the airline cut-off, allow the driving time, and add an hour for a Sunday afternoon or a weekday rush.
Yes. Burbank, Long Beach and Orange County are all quoted the same way, as are hotel and residential addresses across Los Angeles. Give the street address and we will price from there.
If you want one, say so when you book so it is in the quote. A single short stop on a drive this length is normal; a detour of any distance changes the price, and we would rather agree it in advance than on the road.
Yes — up to 55 seats. On a drive this long one larger vehicle usually beats two smaller ones, because it gives you one arrival time instead of two and more room for a week's luggage.