Hollywood Burbank Airport is in Burbank, a few miles north of Hollywood proper, on the edge of the San Fernando Valley. Anyone accustomed to LAX notices the difference almost immediately. BUR is smaller, easier to read, and closer to many places visitors actually want to reach in the Valley and Hollywood. This guide explains how the current terminal works, which airlines use it, where to eat, and what to expect when leaving the airport.
The terminal layout below is about to change, since a new building opens on October 13, 2026 and replaces the two existing terminals. The airlines serving BUR remain the same regardless of which terminal they operate from. The airport has not announced a dining lineup for the new space yet, so the restaurants listed below reflect what is there today.
BUR is not short on carriers, even if the names skew more regional than a major hub’s roster.
JSX stands apart from the rest. It operates outside the standard terminal setup entirely. Smaller jets fly from a separate facility nearby to spots such as Las Vegas, Napa, Concord, Scottsdale, and Taos. That means avoiding the main terminal’s check-in counters and TSA checkpoint entirely. JSX still asks passengers to arrive twenty to thirty minutes ahead for its own departure process.
None of this comes close to LAX’s global reach, but for trips within the country, BUR covers more ground than its size suggests.
Commercial flights are not the only way into BUR. Two fixed-base operators serve private jet arrivals and departures at the airport. Hollywood Burbank Jet Center sits close to Hollywood and the surrounding studios, and Atlantic Aviation operates a few miles away on Sherman Way.
Hollywood Burbank Jet Center runs around the clock, and Atlantic Aviation operates 4:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., with after-hours service by arrangement. Both maintain their own ramp and ground crew, separate from Terminal A and B. A private arrival never has to touch the commercial side of the airport. For comparison, BUR has no airline lounges in either terminal.
Private flights use a separate facility rather than Terminals A or B, so arranging a car works differently than for a commercial arrival. Anyone meeting someone after a jet arrival should confirm which of the two facilities the flight uses. The car needs to head there, not to the airline terminal.
This terminal is easy to understand on a first visit. Terminal A has nine gates, A1 through A9, and Terminal B has five, B1 to B5. Gates in each terminal sit close together, so a long walk between them is unlikely.
The compact footprint keeps walking distances relatively short compared with larger airports, although security and parking time still vary. The small layout is part of BUR’s appeal, even though the building dates back to 1930. Boarding still happens the classic way, via a stairway and across the tarmac rather than a jet bridge.
That setup has an expiration date. A new terminal, Elevate BUR, opens in October 2026, replacing the existing one entirely. The replacement terminal keeps the same 14-gate limit but increases the building from roughly 232,000 to 355,000 square feet, allowing wider corridors, larger baggage areas, updated security facilities, and more concessions. The new parking structure adds EV charging as well, and ground-level boarding onto the tarmac continues in the new design.
Short on time? Both concourses have a Peet’s Coffee, Gates A4 and A6 in Concourse A and near Gate B3 in Concourse B. The grab-and-go counter at Pasadena Marketplace is right next to Peet’s.
Got a few minutes to sit down? Guy’s Burger Joint is near Gate A5, and Fresco at A3 covers something lighter. Concourse B adds Lunch Box Bar & Grill and a Sports Bar for a full sit-down meal ahead of boarding.
None of it matches a major hub’s food hall, but there’s enough here for a quick coffee or a real sit-down meal.
Rideshare cars and taxis load at designated areas in front of the terminal, and many nearby hotels run their own shuttles as well. Two Metrolink stations also serve the airport. Burbank Airport-South connects by an elevated walkway, backed up by an on-demand shuttle running from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. Burbank Airport-North relies on a shuttle alone, running from 5 a.m. to 12:30 a.m.
A pre-arranged car service is another option, particularly for anyone headed straight to a meeting or a specific hotel. The right choice really depends on where you are staying, how much luggage you have, and what comes next after the airport.
That mix of size, dining, and location is what makes BUR worth choosing for a Los Angeles trip.
