Quick Question - What Airport?

[ZehnJahren]

Hi!

If you're going to Disneyland, what airport do you want to fly into? Is there only the one-and-only LAX, or something else?

TIA!

 

[deejdigsdis]

I like SNA (John Wayne -- Orange County). It's small and easy to navigate, and very close to DLR. One time my husband and I were picked up at our hotel at 3:55pm by Super Shuttle. We went to the airport, were checked in, through security and waiting at the gate by 4:30pm. Very nice.

 

[HydroGuy]

Hi!

If you're going to Disneyland, what airport do you want to fly into? Is there only the one-and-only LAX, or something else?

TIA!

There are six fairly common options...

"Airport Proximity to DLR and Ground Transportation Information" by 3TinksAndAnEeyore www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2318297

 

[DizFan13]

We love LGB. It is very small, and there is no difficulty getting from one place to the other. Rental cars and ground transportation is very easy to find and deal with. I think I've heard people say that the drive to Disneyland is a little longer than from SNA, but it is a very easy straight shot, and consistently takes us about 25 minutes to make the drive.

 

[CMHusband]

Orange County, John Wayne Airport is your best bet. Its closest to the park and easy to get in and out of. But not all airlines fly in there and sometimes the tickets cost a little more if you use that airport.

Long Beach airport if you are able, is close too, and even smaller, its like a little country airport, very nice but again not all airlines fly there. Jet Blue is the big one.

LA Internationa or LAX is fine, but its your typical very busy large airport. But never a problem really to get in and out of. Its probably about 45 minutes to an hour away from Disneyland depending on traffic which is always a factor.

 

[TheColtonsMom]

Our first choice is always sna/orange county/john wayne 13 miles 2 DL and check in check out is always smooth. We only fly in/out of LAX if we get a really good deal on tickets. Once we land I want to be where I can see DLR ASAP

 

[rgnok]

We've done LA (LAX), Ontario (ONT), and John Wayna / Santa Ana (SNA), all multiple times, but absolutely prefer SNA -- like a previous poster says -- small, easy in and out, easy rental cars and ground transport, and close!

 

[sierranevada]

First and foremost - SNA
Then in descending order:
LGB - close second to SNA
ONT
LAX - you really have to weight the cost of the flight plus transporation since it is quick far.

 

[Huff]

LAX is only one choice of 5 airports in the Los Angeles/Disneyland area. It is the largest and thus has the most flights in/out.

Heres a quick rundown of other airport choices, all far smaller than LAX.

SNA Orange County 12 miles from Disneyland
LGB Long Beach 20 miles from Disneyland
LAX Los Angeles 40 miles from Disneyland
ONT Ontario 42 miles from Disneyland
BUR Burbank 52 miles from Disneyland (near Universal Studios)

 

[bluegrizzlies1]

Id go with the cheapest from where you are first that will determine whats best for you guys.

for us from salt lake city long beach by far is the best small and in and out.

sna is way overrated and about 100 bucks more a ticket then lgb. Sna closer you bet worth 100 more a ticket i think not.

we have also flew into burbank its not bad at all but the drive is a lot further.

best thing to do is price the cheapest airport for you guys and then also before you book check to see how much transportation is going to be from each airport.

if transportation is going to cost you and arm and a leg from the cheapest place you might consider paying more for plane tickets and less for transportation.

 

[HydroGuy]

Orange County, John Wayne Airport is your best bet. Its closest to the park and easy to get in and out of. But not all airlines fly in there and sometimes the tickets cost a little more if you use that airport.

Long Beach airport if you are able, is close too, and even smaller, its like a little country airport, very nice but again not all airlines fly there. Jet Blue is the big one.

LA Internationa or LAX is fine, but its your typical very busy large airport. But never a problem really to get in and out of. Its probably about 45 minutes to an hour away from Disneyland depending on traffic which is always a factor.

I agree with this and all the other sentiments about SNA, LAX and others.

I have flown into all of them (except LGB) and also San Diego which I did not see mentioned.

One thing I really noticed in the last few years, and especially after having done Orlando a couple times, is that LAX is really ugly and its location is not that great and it feels very...well...unmagical.

I only fly to LAX when I absolutely have to and would prefer any other SoCal airport to it. And I would pay extra to not fly there.

SNA is nice, close and convenient. Definitely, by far, my first choice if flying to DLR.

 

[TheColtonsMom]

Id go with the cheapest from where you are first that will determine whats best for you guys.

for us from salt lake city long beach by far is the best small and in and out.

sna is way overrated and about 100 bucks more a ticket then lgb. Sna closer you bet worth 100 more a ticket i think not.

we have also flew into burbank its not bad at all but the drive is a lot further.
X
best thing to do is price the cheapest airport for you guys and then also before you book check to see how much transportation is going to be from each airport.

if transportation is going to cost you and arm and a leg from the cheapest place you might consider paying more for plane tickets and less for transportation.

.
SNA is not always more expensive. Check those ticket prices. Our last ttrip it cost usa $2 per ticket more for SNA over LAX GT would have eaten up that in a second

 

[mydisneyobsession]

We chose the airport that offered us a direct flight, which was LAX. All of the other options would have required a change of planes. LAX also happened to be considerably cheaper.

With the option of Disneyland Express for transportation from the airport to Disneyland, we won't mind a bit more travel time on the ground.

 

[Capt. Swan]

From Denver we prefer flying into SNA, and if you can purchase your tix well enough in advance that you can shop around and watch prices a bit, then you can make the dollar difference between LAX and SNA negligilble. BY that I mean that for my family of 4, it is usually a 28-40 dollar diff to fly into SNA versus LAX, and we felt that was well worth it. I agree with Hydro guy that the general unpleasantness of LAX is so bad that SNA keeps the Disney magic that much longer.

 

[haydeecm]

I always go with the cheapest one, but my favorite is SNA.

LGB is a little too small, you have to actually walk on the tarmac and the baggage carousel is outdoors. It is really crammed while you are waiting, I had a stroller and did not know where to put it it was that crammed. My son had no place to run. Would not be a good airport if you had to do any type of waiting.

 

[abbie13_15]

We just booked our trip through southwest into LAX. It was almost $300 cheaper than SNA and had non-stop flights which I think are totally worth it. We chose an early fly in time and late fly out time just incase it is busy. We like to get there early.

 

[DebbieB]

I prefer SNA but will use LAX if I can get a non-stop or if the price/miles are much less.

 

[LisainCalifornia]

Absolutely SNA. It is super clean, modern, easy to navigate--and you get to DL the fastest.

We flew into Long Beach for the first time last trip, and will never do it again unless we have no choice. It is the opposite of SNA--not modern, slow moving, ugly, and you have to drive these side streets to get to Disneyland that are maddening. It looks like a "trailer-portable" airport. You even have to get off the plane outside through a ramp and walk into the trailer type of terminal.

SNA has lots of restaurants and is very sleek looking, and is comfortable to hang out in. When you walk out front there is a bunch of cabs and vans lined up to take people to Disneyland.

LAX may be cheaper, but it lands you pretty far from Disneyland. It takes about an hour or longer to get to Disneyland from there, and can be a real pain in the neck with LA traffic. We never fly into LAX unless we are seeing our inlaws first, as they live close to the area. Time is money when you are going to Disneyland, and you don't want to waste a minute fighting the crowds. A typical one hour commute in LA can easily morph into something twice as long.

 

[bluegrizzlies1]

.
SNA is not always more expensive. Check those ticket prices. Our last ttrip it cost usa $2 per ticket more for SNA over LAX GT would have eaten up that in a second

I didnt mean sna was more expensive in every case but where i come from utah sna is always more money then long beach.

And that is why i choose lgb i just cant see paying 100 dollars per ticket more to fly into sna

I just priced my dates feb 3-7 for 3 people from utah delta to sna is 850.20 and into long beach its 616.20 if it takes 234 dollars in transportation to get to disneyland from longbeach then im taking the wrong transportation.

southwest with plane changes 791.00 to sna hate plane changes

jetblue into long beach 616.20

so with that said thats why i like long beach but for someone else coming from a different state sna may be the better option and thats great

 

[briangl]

SNA, LGB, ONT, LAX in that order. Last time I used LGB it seemed like rental car rates were much higher than SNA or ONT.