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.
In case you plan to fly to Southern California for a trip on the Happiest Place on Earth, the airport choices could appear 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 one of the best on 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, nevertheless, is dependent upon quite a lot of private components, together with distance, availability of nonstop flights, most popular airways and worth.
John Wayne Airport (SNA)
The closest airport to Disneyland — and the one one positioned inside Orange County, California — is John Wayne Airport. It’s within the metropolis of Santa Ana, simply two suburbs south of Disneyland’s house in Anaheim.
John Wayne Airport might not have a giant title outdoors of California, however it punches nicely above its weight. The airport has flights on simply over a dozen U.S. and Canadian carriers, together with all 5 of the most important U.S. airways. SNA affords nonstop service to just about 50 cities in North America. On the similar time, it nonetheless feels small and straightforward to navigate, with quick walks and cheap safety strains (TSA PreCheck is obtainable, however there aren’t any Clear Plus lanes).
Southwest Airways and Alaska Airways supply essentially the most flights at SNA, with frequent service to many main West Coast cities. For instance, there are often 4 to eight arrivals every day from Oakland Worldwide Airport (OAK) and 5 to 10 every 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 strategy to journey from SNA to Disneyland is by utilizing a ride-hailing service. Shared shuttle providers out of SNA are sometimes costlier than an ordinary UberX or Lyft experience, even for solo vacationers. The 14-mile experience takes about 20-Half-hour and often runs $25-$30 earlier than the tip. The 2 ride-hailing service pickup zones at SNA are inside straightforward 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 automobile rental corporations on-site inside strolling distance. Contemplate the general value rigorously, nevertheless, earlier than you lease a automobile. In my expertise, most guests will not want one attributable to Disneyland’s compact measurement. Moreover, parking costs at many Disneyland-area lodges may be expensive. In case you plan to spend most of your time at Disneyland and solely use a automobile for just a few daytrips, renting for a day or two close to Disneyland could also be cheaper. There may be an Alamo workplace inside Disney’s Pixar Place Resort in addition to a number of rental automobile corporations by the Anaheim Conference Middle just a few blocks from Disneyland.
Lengthy Seashore Airport (LGB)
The small however mighty Lengthy Seashore Airport can also 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 change into an more and more enticing various 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 just some 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 affords nonstop service into LGB from greater than 20 locations. I’ve discovered that Southwest’s fares are often a bit cheaper than these into SNA from cities with nonstop service to each airports, making it a money-saving selection for a lot of vacationers.
One other benefit of Lengthy Seashore for Disneyland vacationers is the airport’s compact measurement. 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 strategy to Disneyland in lower than 5 minutes. The rental automobile heart is simply steps away as nicely.
The space from LGB to Disneyland is almost 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 is usually a little extra site visitors throughout rush hour to contemplate, however it’s not often crushing.
Lengthy Seashore Airport can also be ending up a serious renovation, so the airport feels extremely contemporary in the meanwhile. The airport additionally has Clear Plus lanes, though its safety strains (particularly with TSA PreCheck) are so quick that you’re going to not often want different shortcuts. Lengthy Seashore is certainly an airport the place you may 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 measurement 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 most important and busiest airport within the western half of the US, so it goes with out saying that passengers have a large number of flight and airline choices right here. For vacationers coming from most main cities on the East Coast or from worldwide locations, LAX will be the solely airport providing nonstop service to the Disneyland space. The large competitors at LAX can even drive costs down, so the airport is commonly the most cost effective choice.
Floor transportation at an airport like LAX is extra sophisticated and time-consuming than at LGB or SNA. Trip-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 automobile providers are allowed to select up curbside. Commonplace 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 durations.
Due to the fee and distance, shared shuttles may be extra economical choices from LAX to Disneyland, particularly for solo vacationers or {couples} or households and teams too giant to slot in a daily Uber or Lyft automobile.
Site visitors between the airport and the theme parks may be substantial throughout rush hour. Vacationers have to plan for the experience to take as much as an hour or extra at peak durations, and for a serious airport’s longer ticketing counter and safety strains. When evaluating airport choices, these flying in for a really fast Disneyland journey ought to think about the time misplaced in transit.
For that reason, I have never flown to LAX for a Disneyland-only journey in near a decade. It merely takes too lengthy and is just too costly when coming from airports within the San Francisco Bay Space (my house base), the place each SNA and LGB are alternate options. But when LAX is your solely nonstop choice, it is nonetheless doubtless the smarter selection, even with the extra important hassles on the bottom.
Different Southern California airports to contemplate
I extremely advocate reserving flights into SNA, LGB or LAX for guests solely planning to spend time at Disneyland. In case your travels to Southern California embody greater than Disneyland, different regional airports can come in useful. Though these airports are farther away, they could be nearer to one thing else you intend to do. Moreover, they could supply value financial savings or a nonstop flight choice to avoid wasting on general journey time.
Ontario Worldwide Airport (ONT)
Situated 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 essentially 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 typically be comparable in size to the drive from LAX however with totally different site visitors and commute patterns to contemplate. The airport serves lots of the similar 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 generally known as Bob Hope Airport) is an airport comparable in measurement to ONT within the north suburbs of Los Angeles. The drive to Disneyland is barely about 40 miles, however the route passes by means of the entire worst of better Los Angeles site visitors, probably making the journey two hours or extra throughout peak occasions.
For Disneyland-only holidays, BUR is never definitely worth the distance and site visitors. The airport, nevertheless, is usually a very good choice for vacationers who additionally plan to go to Common Studios Hollywood, positioned simply 5 miles away. Common Studios has change into an more and more widespread theme park for guests past Southern California with the addition of Tremendous Nintendo World final yr.
San Diego Worldwide Airport (SAN)
Some Disneyland vacationers might need to think about San Diego Worldwide Airport. It is the second-largest airport in Southern California behind LAX and affords 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 reasonably priced in San Diego. The 95-mile drive from SAN to Disneyland may be stuffed with site visitors, so plan on the journey taking two to a few hours. Moreover, an Amtrak prepare runs from downtown San Diego (just some minutes from the airport) to Anaheim.
Backside line
There is no such thing as a scarcity of airport choices for vacationers flying into Southern California for Disneyland holidays. SNA and LGB are essentially the most handy and easy-to-use decisions, however they do not all the time have flight choices to serve vacationers from past the West Coast. Airports a bit farther afield can current the chance to save cash or miles, along with being extra handy for guests touring to different Southern California theme parks or vacationer sights on a Disneyland journey.
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