In the 12 months leading up to July 2024, Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) offered both non-stop and one-stop same-plane services to 78 international destinations, including a special one-off flight to Nice. Additionally, passengers had the option to connect en route to numerous other destinations.

An analysis of booking data reveals that approximately 39% of LAX’s total international traffic involved connecting flights. Recently, I explored San Francisco’s largest unserved long-haul markets, and I will soon conduct a similar analysis for Los Angeles.

Los Angeles’ Top 15 International Markets

The list below shows the top 15 international destinations from LAX, based on point-to-point traffic (whether non-stop or not) at the city level. All data is rounded and covers the period up to July 2024. While these numbers represent LAX-specific data, they may differ at the airport level. London Heathrow tops the list with 982,000 passengers—more on the London market shortly.

London: 1,103,000 roundtrip passengers (PDEW: 1,511; average fare: $824 one-way)

Guadalajara: 964,000 (PDEW: 1,321; average fare: $84)

Tokyo: 956,000 (PDEW: 1,310; average fare: $725)

Mexico City: 722,000 (PDEW: 982; average fare: $206)

Vancouver: 659,000 (PDEW: 903; average fare: $180)

Cancun: 642,000 (PDEW: 879; average fare: $210)

Los Cabos: 631,000 (PDEW: 864; average fare: $173)

Toronto: 572,000 (PDEW: 784; average fare: $334)

San Salvador: 570,000 (PDEW: 781; average fare: $191)

Seoul: 562,000 (PDEW: 770; average fare: $825)

Paris: 447,000 (PDEW: 612; average fare: $707)

Puerto Vallarta: 438,000 (PDEW: 600; average fare: $152)

Manila: 383,000 (PDEW: 525; average fare: $631)

Guatemala City: 378,000 (PDEW: 518; average fare: $195)

Sydney: 301,000 (PDEW: 412; average fare: $1,287)

The Massive Los Angeles-London Market

Between July 2023 and July 2024, over 1.1 million roundtrip point-to-point passengers traveled between Los Angeles and London. Heathrow saw 981,000 passengers, while Gatwick handled 122,000. About 93% of these travelers opted for non-stop flights, while the remainder connected through other cities.

These figures account only for those who traveled directly between Los Angeles and London. Many others used these cities as hubs to transfer to different flights, but this data focuses solely on direct traffic.

With such a high volume of passengers, airline capacity on this route is substantial. On average, 11 daily flights operated throughout the year, with some days seeing up to 13 flights and others as few as seven.

Six airlines offered non-stop service between Los Angeles and London: American Airlines, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic (to Heathrow), and Norse Atlantic (to Gatwick). Delta discontinued its service in May 2024, while Norse Atlantic launched flights in June 2023.

Variations in Base Fares

Base fares on this route varied significantly. Passengers flying to Heathrow, which serves more premium travelers, paid an average of $878 one-way across all cabin classes. Gatwick, on the other hand, had a much lower average fare of $431, primarily due to Norse Atlantic’s economy and premium economy offerings. This fare difference is not entirely comparable, as Gatwick passengers often traveled with low-cost carriers, while Heathrow served a larger share of business and first-class travelers. Additionally, some Gatwick passengers connected through hubs like Dublin (via Aer Lingus) or New York (via JetBlue or Delta).

The post London, Tokyo, Mexico, Toronto, and Paris Shine Among The 15 Most Popular International Destinations for 9+ Million Los Angeles Travelers appeared first on Travel And Tour World.