Amtrak from LA to DL?

[Boiseboone]

Hi all,

I'm going to be in downtown LA for work and I'll be meeting my family at DL on June 3.

I think my LA hotel is fairly close to Union Station (I'll be staying at the Omni) and I'm trying to figure out the quickest way to get to GCH that morning. I'd like to be there by 10 a.m., if possible. I'll also have luggage.

So, this probably sounds like a dumb question to you city folks, but would Amtrak be my quickest and most cost-effective option? I'm not averse to spending, say, $70 or so on a cab if that will be quicker or easier.

Also, I've never been on a train before. (Small town girl, what can I say? ) Is there a checked luggage option, or will I be stuck holding my overstuffed suitcase on my lap?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

 

[Kittyskyfish]

Amtrak does run to Anaheim but you still have to use a separate mode of ground transportation from the Anaheim station to the GCR. It's $17 for the Amtrak ticket btw and some trains offer checked baggage, others don't depending on the train. The website will tell you before you purchase if you can check a suitcase.

If I was doing it...oh man I'd just take a taxi and call it a day. LOL!! I would gladly pay lots more to have someone drive me directly from point A to point B without worrying about getting to a station, checking luggage, catching another shuttle, etc.

Have a great time!!

 

[ImTooExcitedToSleep]

The Amtrak train takes 37 minutes between Union Station and Anaheim (Angels Stadium). The one-way cost is $14 (before discount) and they offered checked bag service on many of the trips.

There are several options in the morning, one is bound to work for you.

There are cabs sitting waiting at the station that can take you to the GCH. There is also the option of the ART bus, but with luggage I wouldn't use that option.


I took the train down last week with Union Station to Anaheim being the last section. There's only one stop (Fullerton) before Anaheim.

The only problem I had was that the person working at the Anaheim station didn't get a list of checked bags, so he didn't know to take mine off and it continued on towards San Diego. They delivered it (no cost to me) to my hotel a few hours later. I'm hoping this was a fluke.

 

[Boiseboone]

Thanks you guys!

Good to know Amtrak is an option.

But I do like the idea of how easy a taxi would be. Anyone have any ballpark idea of what this would cost? Also, is there likely to be much traffic at around 8:30 or 9 a.m. on a Sunday? Would it take longer to get to GCH by taxi or around the same time if I traveled by Amtrak + taxi?

So excited for my trip I can hardly stand it!

 

[SuzanneSLO]

Thanks you guys!

Good to know Amtrak is an option.

But I do like the idea of how easy a taxi would be. Anyone have any ballpark idea of what this would cost? Also, is there likely to be much traffic at around 8:30 or 9 a.m. on a Sunday? Would it take longer to get to GCH by taxi or around the same time if I traveled by Amtrak + taxi?

So excited for my trip I can hardly stand it!

A taxi fare calculator says its about $90 by cab from the Omni to Disneyland, with tip. By Amtrak, you will probably need a cab to Union Station and a cab from the Anaheim station to the GCH. Probably about $30 for both cabs.

Amtrak can be quicker during rush hour (and certainly feels quicker than sitting in traffic), but hotel to hotel total time is probably less with a cab. -- Suzanne

 

[bumbershoot]

I haven't taken it that direction, but I did San Diego to Anaheim, and really enjoyed it. They had luggage racks above, if I'm remembering correctly, and that's where I put my bag. If the train you're looking at is the Surfliner, that's the same train I took, so it could be the same.

Then I snagged a taxi that was $13 by meter (but we'd worked out $10 flat fee ahead of time) to the Disneyland Hotel.

 

[DisneytheKid]

I'm not sure how close you are to LAX but if you could get dropped off there Super Shuttle delivers to the area hotels for $16pp.

 

[Renae De Liz]

I went from San Diego to Disneyland on my trip to DL in 2009. It was a breeze, and a cool add on to the experience of getting there My son loved the train, and we got to relax and check out the beaches along the way. Baggage was no problem. We had to take a taxi from the train stop to Grand Californian, but it was like 3 miles I think.

I hope you have a fantastic trip!!