How long does it really take to fly from Las Vegas to Catalina Island? Here's a sample itinerary for a commercial flight plan. If you want to know the total travel time to reach Catalina Island, you need to include time at the airports. Eventually, you'll be able to customize this itinerary to select other nearby airports and choose your preferred airline.
Thursday, 4:31 pm: start in Las Vegas
drive for about 19 minutes
most airlines recommend you get to the airport at least 90 minutes before your flight, so arrive by 5:45 pm at the latest
4:50 pm: McCarran International (LAS)
if you need to check luggage, make sure you do it at least 30-60 minutes before departure, or in this case, by 6:15 pm
5:20 pm: get your boarding pass and go through TSA security
allow enough time for long security lines during busy travel seasons or holidays, and prepare for the wait time
6:20 pm: arrive at the gate
once you're ready to board, you can get something to eat in the airport or just relax near the gate
6:50 pm: prepare for boarding
check your boarding pass for your group number or listen to the gate agent as they announce boarding, some airlines require you to be in the boarding area 10-15 minutes before departure or risk losing your seat
7:05 pm: board Southwest Airlines Co. flight
you can scroll down to view other airlines that fly this route
7:15 pm: this is your scheduled departure time
but remember flights can be delayed, so take that into account
it takes the plane an average of 11 minutes to taxi to the runway
7:26 pm: wheels up! take-off from LAS
fly for about 44 minutes in the air
8:10 pm (local time): Los Angeles International (LAX)
Catalina Island is the same time as Las Vegas
taxi on the runway for an average of 11 minutes to the gate
8:21 pm (local time): arrive at the gate at LAX
deboard the plane, and claim any baggage
if you're renting a car, check if you need to take a shuttle to car rental agency, otherwise you can ride in a cab, limo, or Uber for about 2 hours to your destination
10:18 pm (local time): arrive in Catalina Island
Total travel time: 6 hours
How far is Catalina Island from Las Vegas? Here's the quick answer if you have a private jet and you can fly in the fastest possible straight line.
Flight distance: 268 miles or 432 km
Flight time: 50 minutes
Compare this to a whole day of commercial travel with the airports and waiting in line for security, which ends up taking a total of 5 hours, 47 minutes.
Flying private is roughly 4.6x faster, and saves you about 4.5 hours in your total travel time.
Because of the curvature of the Earth, the shortest distance is actually the "great circle" distance, or "as the crow flies" which is calculated using an iterative Vincenty formula.
This is a relatively short flight in a private plane, but you might be planning to book a commercial flight. In that case, your travel time would really need to include how many minutes to get to your local airport, wait for security, board and taxi on the runway, land at the other airport, and get to your destination. The flight itinerary at the top of the page takes into account all these factors to get a more accurate estimate of your actual flight time.
Looking at flights on Southwest Airlines Co. from LAS to LAX, here's a breakdown of the number of flights available each day:
Based on these statistical results, we chose Thursday for the flight itinerary above.
The most common route is LAS to LAX, so that's what we used in the sample itinerary. However, you may want to explore travel alternatives, you could try one of these routes:
We picked Southwest Airlines Co. for your main flight, but there are other airlines that you should check if you're looking for the cheapest flight, or you need a different schedule. Check the websites of these airlines:
Trippy has a ton of information that can help you plan your trip to Catalina Island. Start by reading the Trippy page on where to stay in Catalina Island. Check out some of the questions people have asked about Catalina Island like Looking for something cool (and cheap) to do for an afternoon. Click the button below to explore Catalina Island in detail.
The distance is the same either way if you're flying a straight line. But for a real trip, there can be plenty of differences so go ahead and check the reverse flight itinerary to fly from Catalina Island to Las Vegas, or go to the main page to calculate other flight times.
If you happen to know Las Vegas, don't forget to help other travelers and answer some questions about Las Vegas!