Flying from Los Angeles to Phoenix?
Add a departure date and see which side gets the sun.
Flying from Los Angeles to Phoenix?
Add a departure date and see which side gets the sun.
Flying from Los Angeles to Phoenix?
Add a departure date and see which side gets the sun.
Los Angeles → Phoenix
A short flight within United States. No clock change on arrival.
The Entertainment Capital of the World
Los Angeles is a spread-out city in a much larger county, with the Pacific on one side and mountains on the other. The places travelers usually mean by "LA" can be far apart: beach cities, studio districts, downtown, canyon neighborhoods, museum corridors, and the San Fernando Valley. The region is built around driving, and a short distance on the map can become a long trip in traffic. Where you stay matters more here than in most cities, because crossing the basin can shape the day.
City access
LAX sits on the coast at the western edge of the basin, handy for the beaches and the Westside but a long way from downtown, Hollywood, or the Valley. Transit to the airport is limited and slow, so most travelers leave by car, ride-hail, or shuttle. Factor the drive into your timing, because from the eastern and northern suburbs it can be one of the longest legs of the trip.
Nearby airports
| 176 km / 109 mi |
Surrounding hubs
| 1,385 km / 861 mi | |
| 1,537 km / 955 mi | |
| 1,741 km / 1,082 mi |
The Valley of the Sun
Phoenix anchors a wide, flat desert valley ringed by mountains, one of the hottest big cities in the country and still growing quickly. Summer heat is intense enough to shape daily life for months, pushing outdoor plans to early morning or evening. The metro grew up almost entirely around the car, with a single light-rail line cutting through downtown and Tempe but reaching only a fraction of the sprawl. Plan around the heat as much as the distances.
Surrounding hubs
| 968 km / 601 mi | |
| 1,046 km / 650 mi | |
| 1,393 km / 866 mi |
Find out which side of the plane to sit on.
Pick your airports, set your departure time, and you're done.
We calculate the sun's position based on your flight path and departure time, then tell you which side of the plane gets direct sun and which stays shaded. No guessing, just math.
Enter your flight
Pick your departure and arrival airports and set your departure time at the departure airport. FlightSide estimates the duration and you can adjust it if you know the exact schedule.
We track the sun along your route
Your flight path is broken into hundreds of points. At each one we check where the sun is and which side of the plane it faces.
You get a recommendation
Which side of the plane to sit on, left or right, depending on whether you'd rather avoid the sun or enjoy it. The percentages and the map are there if you want to see why.
Want to go deeper? Accuracy, edge cases, polar routes — see the FAQ →
Notes from the product.
Small updates, route observations, and clearer explanations for how the app keeps evolving.
Type less, wait less, wonder more
Airport search now understands metro codes and old city names, FlightSide loads noticeably faster, and a new Feeling lucky button chooses a flight for anyone without one in mind.
A closer look at the route, not just the seat
FlightSide now shows the two cities and key details about the flight alongside the seat recommendation: confirm you picked the right airports, read the time change off two clocks, and check the return leg.
It's all about the sun (after all)
Not all sunlight reaches the side windows. FlightSide now weighs the sun’s angle to the cabin and shows twilight along the route.