What to Do While You’re Waiting

If you arrive appropriately early or if the flight you’re meeting is delayed, you’re going to have time on your hands. Whether you want to spend it clearing up last-minute business, eating, drinking, sleeping or even taking a shower, there are many new or little-used facilities to accommodate you:

Automatic bank tellers--Bank of America and Citicorp automatic teller machines are in Terminals 1, 4 and 7. A Bank of America machine also is located in the Theme Building (the 135-foot building supported by parabolic arches, in the center of the loop).

Barber shop--In Terminal 6, it is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.

Business centers--In Terminals 1, 4 and 7 and operated by the Teletrit Co., these are areas offering office machine and conference room rental and other services for business travelers. Among these services are travel insurance, money exchange, baggage checking, notary public, photocopying, “fax” transmissions, secretarial service, office rental, computer time rental, Western Union and emergency cash (through Visa or MasterCard). The centers are open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

Currency exchange--In Terminals 2 and 5 and in the Bradley Terminal.

Mini-hotel--The Skytel at LAX, operating in the Bradley Terminal for slightly more than a year, offers 13 small hotel-type rooms for rent to travelers who want to shower, sleep or catch up on business chores in a private room. All rooms are soundproof and are equipped with beds, showers, toilets, sinks, color televisions, credit card telephones and writing tables. They are rented to only one person at a time.

For quick catnaps or showers, the rooms are rented at $7.95 for a half hour. For longer stays, the prices are $16 for one hour, $22 for two hours, $32 for four hours, $42 for six hours and $47 for eight hours. Tax is not included.

The Skytel is open 24 hours and reservations can be made by calling (213) 417-0200.

Postage stamp purchase and mail drop--In all terminals.

Restaurants--Eating facilities in the terminals at LAX, understandably, cater to people on the run and are therefore cafeteria-style. There are cafeterias and snack bars in each terminal. They open and close at different hours, depending on the volume of traffic in any particular terminal. Three snack bars, in Terminals 1, 6 and 7, are open 24 hours.

The cafeterias serve hot and cold sandwiches and entrees, salads and fresh baked goods.

Bars are located in every terminal and are open various hours, generally opening anywhere from 6 to 11 a.m., and closing somewhere between 8:30 p.m. and 1:45 a.m. Some bars serve hot deli sandwiches made to order.

The best food at LAX is served in the California Place restaurant and bar, suspended beneath the arches of the Theme Building. It offers a panoramic view of the airport and lunches priced from $5.95 to $16.95. Dinner entrees go for $9.25 to $19.50. Fresh local seafood is the specialty, but the Cobb salad ($6.95 at lunch, higher at dinner) has achieved a small measure of local renown. It is tossed at tableside.

There’ll be a set-price Thanksgiving dinner ($16.95 for adults, $8.95 for children under 12) that includes small individual turkeys carved at the table. Diners can take home the leftovers for sandwiches.

The restaurant is open Monday through Saturday for lunch between 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. and for dinner between 5 and 10:30 p.m. Sundays the hours are 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for lunch and 5 to 10 p.m. for dinner. The wait for a table varies at the California Place, but is seldom longer than 20 minutes. Lunch usually is much busier than dinner. Reservations are accepted, but not required.

The largest of the terminal food concessions is in the Bradley Terminal. The cafeteria-style restaurant on the mezzanine seats 280 and serves salads, sandwiches, hot entrees and fresh baked desserts. Meals in the cafeteria range from $1.50 to $7. An adjoining cocktail lounge features a seafood bar. Elsewhere in the Bradley terminal are five other cocktail lounges and two snack bars. The cafeteria opens each day at 7 a.m. and closes at 11 p.m. The cocktail lounges open at various daytime hours and all close at 2 a.m. The snack bars are open from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m.

Shops--Duty free shops are in Terminals 2, 3, 4, 5, the Bradley Terminal and the Imperial Terminal. Gift shops and news stands can be found in all terminals.

USO desk--In Terminal 4.