Earlier than Disneyland guests can take a spin on a teacup or race in Radiator Springs, many might want to take one other experience first: on a aircraft.
Should you plan to fly to Southern California for a trip on the Happiest Place on Earth, the airport choices could seem a bit overwhelming. Whereas the overwhelming majority of tourists to Walt Disney World in Florida arrive at a single airport, guests to its California cousin have about half a dozen viable choices.
Which Southern California airport is the very best in your Disneyland trip? It relies upon! I’ve flown into them a number of occasions on my travels and definitely have my favorites. Which of them will work greatest for different Disneyland guests, nonetheless, relies on a wide range of private elements, together with distance, availability of nonstop flights, most well-liked airways and worth.
John Wayne Airport (SNA)
The closest airport to Disneyland — and the one one situated inside Orange County, California — is John Wayne Airport. It’s within the metropolis of Santa Ana, simply two suburbs south of Disneyland’s dwelling in Anaheim.
John Wayne Airport might not have a giant identify outdoors of California, however it punches properly above its weight. The airport has flights on simply over a dozen U.S. and Canadian carriers, together with all 5 of the biggest U.S. airways. SNA presents nonstop service to almost 50 cities in North America. On the identical time, it nonetheless feels small and simple to navigate, with brief walks and affordable safety traces (TSA PreCheck is obtainable, however there are not any Clear Plus lanes).
Southwest Airways and Alaska Airways supply probably the most flights at SNA, with frequent service to many main West Coast cities. For instance, there are normally 4 to eight arrivals each day from Oakland Worldwide Airport (OAK) and 5 to 10 each day from Las Vegas’ Harry Reid Worldwide Airport (LAS) aboard Southwest alone.
The airport solely serves a handful of nonstop locations east of the Mississippi, so East Coast vacationers might discover the general journey time to SNA much less interesting if a connection is required.
The best approach to journey from SNA to Disneyland is through the use of a ride-hailing service. Shared shuttle providers out of SNA are sometimes costlier than a regular UberX or Lyft experience, even for solo vacationers. The 14-mile experience takes about 20-Half-hour and normally runs $25-$30 earlier than the tip. The 2 ride-hailing service pickup zones at SNA are inside simple strolling distance of the terminals.
Associated: Issues to know earlier than utilizing a ride-hailing service on the airport
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SNA additionally has all main automotive rental firms on-site inside strolling distance. Contemplate the general price fastidiously, nonetheless, earlier than you hire a automotive. In my expertise, most guests will not want one as a result of Disneyland’s compact dimension. Moreover, parking costs at many Disneyland-area accommodations will be dear. Should you plan to spend most of your time at Disneyland and solely use a automotive for a couple of daytrips, renting for a day or two close to Disneyland could also be cheaper. There’s an Alamo workplace inside Disney’s Pixar Place Resort in addition to a number of rental automotive firms by the Anaheim Conference Middle a couple of blocks from Disneyland.
Lengthy Seashore Airport (LGB)
The small however mighty Lengthy Seashore Airport can be extraordinarily near Disneyland; it is about 14 miles west of the park in Los Angeles County, not removed from the Orange County border. LGB has grow to be an more and more engaging different to SNA for a lot of Disneyland vacationers (myself included), significantly these from West Coast locations.
Lengthy Seashore is a serious Southwest Airways stronghold, with only a few flights a day interspersed from Delta Air Strains and Hawaiian Airways. Southwest acquired a considerable variety of slots after JetBlue withdrew from LGB in 2020 and now presents nonstop service into LGB from greater than 20 locations. I’ve discovered that Southwest’s fares are normally a bit cheaper than these into SNA from cities with nonstop service to each airports, making it a money-saving alternative for a lot of vacationers.
One other benefit of Lengthy Seashore for Disneyland vacationers is the airport’s compact dimension. I can routinely stroll off a aircraft at Lengthy Seashore, head to the curb instantly in entrance of the terminal, and be in an Uber on my approach to Disneyland in lower than 5 minutes. The rental automotive middle is simply steps away as properly.
The space from LGB to Disneyland is sort of an identical to the gap from SNA to Disneyland. Nevertheless, the drive takes about 10-Quarter-hour longer (and about $10 extra in Uber or Lyft fare) as a result of it’s largely alongside floor streets or a extra circuitous freeway route. There generally is a little extra site visitors throughout rush hour to contemplate, however it’s not often crushing.
Lengthy Seashore Airport can be ending up a serious renovation, so the airport feels extremely recent in the mean time. The airport additionally has Clear Plus lanes, though its safety traces (particularly with TSA PreCheck) are so brief that you will not often want different shortcuts. Lengthy Seashore is certainly an airport the place you possibly can lower it shut, that means extra time for rides within the Disneyland theme parks!
Los Angeles Worldwide Airport (LAX)
On the opposite finish of the airport dimension spectrum is the behemoth that’s Los Angeles Worldwide Airport. LAX is about 35 miles northwest of Disneyland Resort.
Los Angeles Worldwide Airport is the biggest and busiest airport within the western half of the US, so it goes with out saying that passengers have a mess of flight and airline choices right here. For vacationers coming from most main cities on the East Coast or from worldwide locations, LAX could be the solely airport providing nonstop service to the Disneyland space. The huge competitors at LAX may drive costs down, so the airport is commonly the most cost effective possibility.
Floor transportation at an airport like LAX is extra sophisticated and time-consuming than at LGB or SNA. Journey-hailing is much less handy and extra time-consuming, because the airport has a single pickup zone (LAX-it) that arriving passengers might want to take a shuttle to succeed in. Solely black automotive providers are allowed to choose up curbside. Customary UberX and Lyft fares between LAX and Disneyland are usually $60-$80 every manner, however surge pricing can generally trigger wilder worth swings at peak intervals.
Due to the price and distance, shared shuttles will be extra economical choices from LAX to Disneyland, particularly for solo vacationers or {couples} or households and teams too giant to slot in an everyday Uber or Lyft automobile.
Visitors between the airport and the theme parks will be substantial throughout rush hour. Vacationers have to plan for the experience to take as much as an hour or extra at peak intervals, and for a serious airport’s longer ticketing counter and safety traces. When evaluating airport choices, these flying in for a really fast Disneyland journey ought to take into account the time misplaced in transit.
Because of this, I have not flown to LAX for a Disneyland-only journey in near a decade. It merely takes too lengthy and is simply too costly when coming from airports within the San Francisco Bay Space (my dwelling base), the place each SNA and LGB are alternate options. But when LAX is your solely nonstop possibility, it is nonetheless possible the smarter alternative, even with the extra important hassles on the bottom.
Different Southern California airports to contemplate
I extremely suggest reserving flights into SNA, LGB or LAX for guests solely planning to spend time at Disneyland. In case your travels to Southern California embrace greater than Disneyland, different regional airports can turn out to be useful. Though these airports are farther away, they might be nearer to one thing else you intend to do. Moreover, they might supply price financial savings or a nonstop flight possibility to save lots of on total journey time.
Ontario Worldwide Airport (ONT)
Positioned about 33 miles northeast of Disneyland, Ontario Worldwide Airport is a medium-sized airport in San Bernardino County. The airport is bigger than Lengthy Seashore Airport however smaller than John Wayne Airport. Southwest carries probably the most passengers from ONT, however American Airways and Frontier Airways even have a considerable variety of flights.
The drive from ONT to Disneyland can usually be comparable in size to the drive from LAX however with totally different site visitors and commute patterns to contemplate. The airport serves most of the identical nonstop locations that LGB or SNA does, so I discover the airport solely actually is sensible for Disneyland vacationers who discover a severe flight deal or are coming from these few cities with out LGB or SNA service.
Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR)
Hollywood Burbank Airport (previously often called Bob Hope Airport) is an airport comparable in dimension to ONT within the north suburbs of Los Angeles. The drive to Disneyland is simply about 40 miles, however the route passes by means of the entire worst of larger Los Angeles site visitors, probably making the journey two hours or extra throughout peak occasions.
For Disneyland-only holidays, BUR isn’t well worth the distance and site visitors. The airport, nonetheless, generally is a very good possibility for vacationers who additionally plan to go to Common Studios Hollywood, situated simply 5 miles away. Common Studios has grow to be an more and more well-liked theme park for guests past Southern California with the addition of Tremendous Nintendo World final 12 months.
San Diego Worldwide Airport (SAN)
Some Disneyland vacationers might need to take into account San Diego Worldwide Airport. It is the second-largest airport in Southern California behind LAX and presents extra nonstop flight choices than the smaller regional airports, particularly from East Coast locations. It is also the closest airport to Legoland California, so guests who need to mix Legoland and Disneyland in a single journey might discover it handy.
Taking a ride-hailing service or a taxi from SAN to Disneyland can be cost-prohibitive for many vacationers, however there are some transportation alternate options. Rental vehicles are routinely fairly inexpensive in San Diego. The 95-mile drive from SAN to Disneyland will be filled with site visitors, so plan on the journey taking two to 3 hours. Moreover, an Amtrak practice runs from downtown San Diego (only a few minutes from the airport) to Anaheim.
Backside line
There isn’t any scarcity of airport choices for vacationers flying into Southern California for Disneyland holidays. SNA and LGB are probably the most handy and easy-to-use decisions, however they do not at all times have flight choices to serve vacationers from past the West Coast. Airports a bit farther afield can current the chance to economize or miles, along with being extra handy for guests touring to different Southern California theme parks or vacationer points of interest on a Disneyland journey.
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