Best Ways to Travel from LAX to Disneyland in 2024

Top tips from LAX to Disneyland. This article answers of your most important questions on getting you from the airport to Disneyland including:

• Location and Drive Time – 34 miles, as little as 40 minutes
• Shuttles from LAX to Disneyland – I recommend Karmel Shuttle
• LAX Car Rentals – Closest reputable, off site rental lots are Avis and Budget
• Ride Share –  How to grab an Uber or Lyft from LAX to Disneyland
• Public Transportation – And why I don’t recommend it

I’ve got all the answers on how to get from LAX to Disneyland. My last LAX airport experience was August 2024 and it went smoothly. There are so many reasons the Los Angeles airport has a bad reputation, but it’s also not out of the question for your trip to Disneyland. We’ll go over all the basics, including the good and the bad. 

Bonus: if you’re traveling internationally for the LA28 Olympics be sure to read this guide on Disneyland and Olympic celebrations.

LAX Drive Time to Disneyland

In California, we don’t typically speak in miles, but for sake of information—Los Angeles airport (LAX) is 34 miles from Disneyland. You can get to Disneyland from LAX in as little as 40 minutes, but with traffic it’s best to plan for 2 hours. More likely it will be a 1 hour drive time.

How long does it take to get from LAX to Disneyland?

You can get to Disneyland from LAX in as little as 40 minutes, but with traffic it’s best to plan for 2 hours. More likely it will be about a 1 hour drive time.

How long does it take to get to LAX from Disneyland?

When you’re planning to depart out of LAX after your Disneyland Vacation, you want to give yourself much more time. Plan on leaving Anaheim 2 hours before you want to be at the airport. Airport arrival time and how much time you need before your flight depends on many factors such as:

• domestic or international flight
• baggage check
• security check points
• dining or errands before your flight
• number of people in your party
• if you’re returning a rental car
• which terminal your airline is located
• holidays and travel delays

It’s always smart to check your airline’s current recommendations for arrival time as well. I personally have TSA pre-check and don’t mind pushing my airport arrival time when I am traveling solo, with only carry on bags.

LAX departure travel time tip: Check google maps each day for a couple of days before your flight, at the same exact time you’d like to leave. This will give you an idea of what traffic is like around your departure time.

Shuttles from LAX to Disneyland

The absolute easiest option when arriving at LAX is to schedule a shuttle because they can pick you up curbside. Everything else (besides private cars of friends and family) needs to go via a shuttle to an off site location like car rentals and ride shares. That can easily add an extra hour to your day.

I recommend Karmel, book a shared or private shuttle to get to Disneyland as quickly as possible.

If you’re taking a shuttle and have kids, remember car seats are needed for most transportation methods for kids under 8 years old to make sure you’re in compliance with current California car seat laws.

When you travel to and from Disneyland in a shuttle, rental car or rideshare you are required to provide a car seat—if needed, for your child. Very few services offer car seats. And if they do I would be concerned. 

Here is why I think you should bring your own car seat with you when you travel:

1. Your child’s car seat can come with you for free! Trips with Tykes explains it all here and adds, “Every U.S. airline allows you to check a car seat free of charge when traveling with a child. You can check your car seat at the airport baggage counter or wait and check it at your gate.”
2. If your child has a plane ticket (2 and over require one anyway), it’s so nice to have them secure on the plane in a place they already feel comfortable—their own car seat.
3. The biggest reason is going to take more explaining. And it has to do with insurance and liability. Let me explain…

• According to Karmel, offering car seats is not permitted by any insurance provider or department of transportation. What does that mean for all the services offering car seats for your shuttle drive? If transfer companies offer car seats, they are often unaware of the risks in the event there is an accident. Insurance companies do NOT cover medical expenses resulting in an incorrectly installed or incorrect size car seat. And I personally do not want to find out what that would mean for me or my family.
• A little more about insurance from Karmel, “Car seats must be properly installed and latched down with safety clips. Installed by police or fire department only. Certificate is issued once installed. Insurance will cover any claims with this certificate. It is impossible to have a car seat professionally installed every time.”
• Car seats are specifically designed for a child’s age, height and weight. It is impossible for any transfer company to meet those needs. Wrong size seat results in no insurance coverage.

In addition, you know your child and their needs best, along with their car seat requirements, the condition of your car seat (including expiration dates). I recommend these travel gear options:

• $ Gate check car seat travel bag with bright neon straps
• $$ Padded, adjustable and chic car seat travel bag
• $ Bubble Bum inflatable booster seat
• $ hiccapop UberBoost travel seat

We used a car seat travel bag similar to the ones above for 13 years for our little one’s car seats. It was seriously a life saver, and let me tell you that thing got beat up! Better the bag than the expensive car seat, that’s for sure.

Rent a Car and Drive from LAX to Disneyland 

Where are LAX rental cars located?

Upon exiting the baggage claim area, look for the purple signs and cross the street as needed to stand under the purple sign and wait for your rental car company’s shuttle bus. All rental cars are located off-site, about 15 minutes away.

However, depending on how busy the airport is, it can easily take 45 minutes for the shuttle to make its rounds from terminal 1 to the LAX exit. It’s a pain, but planning for this time before your trip can ease anxiety. 

What you need to drive a rental car from LAX to Disneyland:

• A valid driver’s license recognized by the state of California. If you have questions about the validity of your foreign license in California, contact the state department of motor vehicles.
• A credit card for securing your rental reservation.
• A car rental reservation, I like using Costco Travel for the best rates. I also prefer Enterprise Rental Car at LAX.
• Car Seats for children under 8; make sure you’re in compliance with current California car seat laws.
• Your destination entered into your preferred navigation method (I like google maps).
• A good navigator who can tell you what steps are coming next as most GPS-type of methods are too slow to announce the quick moves you might need to make.
• Patience. If you miss a turn, an on-ramp or exit, relax. You will get there.

Note that most hotels charge for parking, so be sure to add that into your cost when determining the best method of transportation for your group.

If you’re nervous about driving in LA: I grew up in Los Angeles and as a teen with a car and a license, it meant that freeway driving was a must. You learn quickly to navigate the endless freeway swaps and which freeways have what names associated with them. This was long before GPS and google maps.

I once took the wrong freeway home from the valley while driving my dad’s car. He wondered why I used SO much gas. Well, that’s what happens when you accidentally hop on the 101 instead of the 405 and take the scenic route all the way around before catching up with the 118 and back to the 5. Sorry, Dad. I think I owe you some gas money.

Even though I took the wrong freeway, I still knew it would eventually take me back to where I wanted to be. Because Los Angeles is so spread out, we did a lot of driving as teens and eventually you get the hang of it.

Coming to LA and traveling into Orange County for your Disneyland vacation might seem like a nightmare. The traffic, the freeways, the traffic. But I’m here to tell you, you can do it! You can navigate and handle the traffic for the hour-ish drive to Disneyland.

Get your Disneyland discount tickets from our partner, Get Away Today before heading over to Disneyland Resort.

Using Ride Share from LAX to Disneyland (Uber or Lyft)

Ride share programs are so easy, but they do not offer car seats in California 100% of the time. This service is just being introduced and sometimes you schedule a car with a car seat and one shows up without it. It’s very tricky because you never know the condition of the car seat either.

Another thing to note is LAX requires users of ride share programs to take a shuttle from the terminal pick up area to an off-site ride share lot. 

I’m still a  huge fan of Ubering to Disneyland. Ride Share services, including taxis must now be accessed via a quick shuttle ride away. Here’s a video I have that explains the situation.

The price is usually pretty decent and you can even preview pricing by inputing your pick up and destination before your trip. 

Public Transport LAX to Disneyland

I’ve been asked this question a few times—how do you use public transportation to get from LAX to Disneyland? The reason I don’t have an answer from my own experience is because I do not recommend using public transportation in LA. Especially when going such a long distance to Orange County. 

Even though I don’t recommend using public transportation, I’ve used my fair share of buses and trains growing up in the LA suburbs from trains to Union Station and city buses to Cal State LA Campus… but here’s how you get to Disneyland via Public Transport.

• Step 1: Take the FlyAway Bus to Los Angeles Union Station. FlyAway tickets need to be purchased in advance on the FlyAway app. I’ve used the FlyAway my entire life from Van Nuys to LAX, it’s simple, cheap and safe at about $10 per person. The coach style buses are popular and get full quickly so you might need to wait in line outside the terminal for a few buses. TIME COMMITMENT 30-60 minutes minimum for this step.
• Step 2: Arrive at Union Station, you’ll be boarding the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner. See the schedule and prices for the Pacific Surfliner here. Train fares start at about $16 for a one way ticket. TIME COMMITMENT 45-60 minutes minimum for this step.
• Step 3: Arrive at Anaheim Regional Transportation center, you’ll be boarding an ART bus for nearby hotels. ART shuttle buses run frequently and you’ll need the aWayWeGo app to link or buy tickets. A one day ticket is about $6. TIME COMMITMENT 15  minutes minimum for this step.

Total price and time commitment to take 2 buses and 1 train on a one way trip from LAX to Anaheim comes out to about $32 per person taking about 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours or more.