Can We Get Away Without a Car - LA and Disney

[ParkHopper1]

i believe the car rentals near Disney close at 6pm so we would need to get there before then.

If you do a one way rental to SNA airport to drop the car it is only a $20 uber ride to the DL resort area. They are open well past 6p.

Alamo in DTD I belive has an after hours key drop as well.

 

[Frozen2014]

Thanks. I'll look into it..but it makes more sense dropping the car off at one of the rentals near Disney vs going back to SNA. There is an Etnerprise and Hertz at both hotel and Disney locations.

 

[kathy884]

I did a mini LA/Disneyland trip with DS 21 last January. I looked at options and ended up deciding to do the car rental route. We flew into LAX, stayed overnight near Hollywood, had one full packed day for LA things, and then spend three nights in Anaheim and went to Disneyland and California Adventure. I thought the car was the quickest way to do different things in LA -- We in a very busy full day did the Warner Brothers Studio tour, the Griffith Observatory, stopped at a Lolli and Pops flagship store at a big mall (DS works part time at one of these where we live), went to the Hollywood area to see the stars and the Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, headed to the Santa Monica pier, and then drove to Disneyland where we parked our car and kept it parked the whole time (heaven after dealing with LA traffic). The days at Disneyland and CA adventure were great, and then last day we drove back to LAX to fly home. Do note, though, too as I was checking out of our lodging place on our LA day, so I really and truly needed the car as a place for luggage storage. We used the WAZE app for getting around and dealing with traffic in LA, and that was a great app to have.

Yes -- we paid for parking while we were at our hotel -- I think $14 a night. You can ask and check out one way rentals, etc. With more limited hours for non-airport locations and sometimes one way rental charges, sometimes it's easier, more convenient, and cheaper to just keep the car, even if you aren't using it. I know with our limited time and busy plans, that would not have worked with our itinerary. If the hours work for you, though, and the rental location is really close and someone has an hour or so to kill and take care of that, why not. // Never hurts to look at options.

 

[BayouQueen]

Most options have been covered thoroughly by prior posts, but I'd just emphasize that vacation time is valuable. You will spend much more of your time at actual places of interest if you rent a car. I'm a So Cal native and it is true that public transportation is possible, but is very time-consuming.

 

[Frozen2014]

I did a mini LA/Disneyland trip with DS 21 last January. I looked at options and ended up deciding to do the car rental route. We flew into LAX, stayed overnight near Hollywood, had one full packed day for LA things, and then spend three nights in Anaheim and went to Disneyland and California Adventure. I thought the car was the quickest way to do different things in LA -- We in a very busy full day did the Warner Brothers Studio tour, the Griffith Observatory, stopped at a Lolli and Pops flagship store at a big mall (DS works part time at one of these where we live), went to the Hollywood area to see the stars and the Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, headed to the Santa Monica pier, and then drove to Disneyland where we parked our car and kept it parked the whole time (heaven after dealing with LA traffic). The days at Disneyland and CA adventure were great, and then last day we drove back to LAX to fly home. Do note, though, too as I was checking out of our lodging place on our LA day, so I really and truly needed the car as a place for luggage storage. We used the WAZE app for getting around and dealing with traffic in LA, and that was a great app to have.

Yes -- we paid for parking while we were at our hotel -- I think $14 a night. You can ask and check out one way rentals, etc. With more limited hours for non-airport locations and sometimes one way rental charges, sometimes it's easier, more convenient, and cheaper to just keep the car, even if you aren't using it. I know with our limited time and busy plans, that would not have worked with our itinerary. If the hours work for you, though, and the rental location is really close and someone has an hour or so to kill and take care of that, why not. // Never hurts to look at options.

Thank you for sharing. This is quite helpful as a few of the items are what we have planned for one of our days (staying near wax museum, and Warner Brothers followed by Santa Monica Pier). We are seeing Griffith Observatory but it's part of the 5 hr tour (along with Farmer's Market/The Grove, Beverly hills, sunset blvd, the sign, homes, and touristy things)...so at least our tour covers a bulk of the places we want to see but don't need to spend hours at.

Our LA hotel does include parking so no additional cost there (although I've heard the spots can be tough to park in but that seems common for a lot of hotels I read about), but our Anaheim one does charge a small fee ($11/night). So I think it's cheaper to drop it off when we arrive at Anaheim as opposed to keeping it for the additional 5 nights...but I will calculate to make sure. And unless we rent a car for our entire stay, the pick up and drop off would be different. If keeping with the 6pm drop off time, then we would probably do La Brae Tar Pits or Children's museum but not both so we don't feel rushed.

Good tip about WAZE app. We'll be making the switch from LA to Anaheim on a Monday so we could hit rush hour. We did decide to purchase data plans so this is an option.

 

[Frozen2014]

Most options have been covered thoroughly by prior posts, but I'd just emphasize that vacation time is valuable. You will spend much more of your time at actual places of interest if you rent a car. I'm a So Cal native and it is true that public transportation is possible, but is very time-consuming.

Totally agree....although I'm not sure how much additional time uber will add...guess the waiting for it to come. I've actually never tried it before but keep hearing good things and if a cost savings then this is what we would use for the days not renting a car.

 

[StormyCA]

Uber is great! We've never waited more than 10 minutes for one. As far as cost, here's an estimator. Plug in your start/destination and it'll give you the fare for all types of Uber vehicles. We've found it very accurate.

http://uberestimate.com

Be aware, though, that some places in the LA area become subject to surge pricing on a regular basis, so it's good to be prepared and willing to pay or to have an alternate plan. Run the estimator a few times at the approximate day and time (i.e. a Monday at 11.30 or whenever) you'd be needing it to get an idea if surging happens frequently. For an example, my son and I were checking on Uber from USH to a particular restaurant near Union Station. We found that for the day of the week and time of day we'd be wanting Uber, surge pricing was very common and the one way trip that would have cost us $10 normally, would have cost around $30.00. We made other plans.

 

[BayouQueen]

Totally agree....although I'm not sure how much additional time uber will add...guess the waiting for it to come. I've actually never tried it before but keep hearing good things and if a cost savings then this is what we would use for the days not renting a car.

Uber is good, quick and reliable. Your distances are pretty far, though, so costs could mount rapidly. I'm sure you have your pencil sharpened to make those calculations. I'd just emphasize not to let fear of California freeways keep you from renting a car. They're really not that terrible.

Whatever you decide, have a wonderful visit!

 

[cruisehopeful]

If you aren't worried about the money, use Uber/Lyft. They are quick. As mentioned above, during busier drive times or when there are not a lot of drivers near you, you will pay a lot more for the same ride. My daughter has paid $18. to get from her place to mine and recently had an estimate for around $40 for the same route. Perhaps during surge pricing, a traditional taxi would better, idk.

If money is an issue, then you will likely do better having a car for the days you are visiting La Brea Tar Pits and Santa Monica. The other very nice thing about having a car is that if you suddenly see something you want to look at or visit, you can easily alter your plans and do whatever you want at the moment. When you are only doing Disneyland stuff, a car is generally not worth having.

 

[Frozen2014]

Thanks so much. From the replies, our best option is either rent car for all of our LA parts or part of it:

• Rent car at LAX. Use for all our LA days. Drive to Anaheim and return car. Days at Disney (no car needed). Uber/Lyft/taxi/shuttle to LAX
• Uber/Lyft/taxi/shuttle from LAX to hotel. Use when needed for Universal and following day (tour is most of day). Rent car and use for (1) day we visit Warner Brother's/Santa Monica Pier, (2) day we check out of LA hotel, go to La Brae Tar Pits. Drive to Anaheim and return car. Days at Disney (no car needed). Uber/Lyft/taxi/shuttle to LAX

Good to know about uber. I noticed the estimator shows a range so that explains it.

 

[ashley0139]

Good tip about WAZE app. We'll be making the switch from LA to Anaheim on a Monday so we could hit rush hour. We did decide to purchase data plans so this is an option.

Small thing, but I much prefer Google maps these days to Waze. Waze will often take you very far out of your way to save you what might be a minute of your time (but you don't know that). It can give you a ton of unnecessary turns. Google maps is going to be a little more straightforward, especially for someone who doesn't know the area well. A lot of times the Google maps way is shorter anyway. Honestly if I'm driving far (like down to DL from LA) I'll check both and see which makes the most sense, but that might only work if you know what you're looking for.

Just my recommendation.

 

[bumbershoot]

Sounds like overall, we really should rent a car for at least part of our tirp.

It does. Despite this...

As a note my DH hates driving in general so from what I hear, LA traffic would not make him a happy camper.

Is it possible that he could navigate and you could drive? LA driving really does require both. But the navigator has to be CLEAR, because some of the interchanges are just bananas with how many options there are.

My younger one will be 8 when we travel and she's tall. Not sure the laws in LA?

8+ or 4'9"+ means no carseat or booster in CA. Since she's 8 that means no carseat/booster, and since she's tall that's a bonus.

Believe it or not using public transport is something we take for granted in Europe, and unlike some people in USA we dont look down on those using public transport.

The person you're responding to said that it's because "Public transportation blows in SoCal". And it's true. IT has nothing to do with all the things you said.

A story to highlight a typical American's experience with public transport vs European's. the British seem to hate their train system. The ones I met just downed it constantly. Meanwhile, because I compare it to Amtrak, think it's the best thing in the world.

We traveled from Ireland to Wales by fast ferry. Takes you into Holyhead. From there you catch a train that (in our case) took us to Birmingham. I agonized over it. How will we get to the train station, how far is it, oh no oh no oh no. While we were on the ferry I was still agonizing while drowning my sorrows in a Guinness. Got to Wales, got bags, went through the line they had us go through, walked through the building and...RIGHT THERE was the train. Just right there.

Because that's how it's set up in other countries.

But not vast swathes of the US.

A good friend of mine, who is showbiz-adjacent, was teaching for a couple years. He grew tired of the car, and tried for a year to take public transport in LA. He quit it after only a couple months. It was adding HOURS to his day, just to talk to the bus and then the bus transfers etc.

Funnily enough, he's now a driver for Uber and Lyft.

Totally agree....although I'm not sure how much additional time uber will add...guess the waiting for it to come. I've actually never tried it before but keep hearing good things and if a cost savings then this is what we would use for the days not renting a car.

Uber and Lyft are pretty fast.

 

[wingednike]

Good memory. Thanks. Yes. DH and I were talking this morning and with uber, I would give in and we'd get the data plan. So non-issue.
My younger one will be 8 when we travel and she's tall. Not sure the laws in LA?

I calculated the cost of only using uber, uber for only airport travel, and a mix where we only rent car for our last 2 days in LA (and to transfer over to Disney). The thing is it's hard to calculate the extra costs for parking, gas, insurance etc.

One issue i realised in the option we only use uber...what do we do on our transfer day? We will need to check out from LA hotel at say 11am , but then we want to do La Brae Tar Pits and/or Children's museum. So without a car, this may not work. Or we just do La Brae Tar Pits in the morning and have the hotel store our luggage, and then uber straight from LA hotel to Anaheim hotel.

If I remember correctly, the La Brea Tar Pits and LACMA are accessible by taking the Purple Line, then catching the 720 bus.

Santa Monica is accessible by taking the Red Line to 7th and Flower, then taking the Expo line. If data use is not a problem, I highly recommend signing up for the MTA alerts on Twitter. They tweet out whenever a significant issue comes up.

 

[StormyCA]

Small thing, but I much prefer Google maps these days to Waze. Waze will often take you very far out of your way to save you what might be a minute of your time (but you don't know that). It can give you a ton of unnecessary turns. Google maps is going to be a little more straightforward, especially for someone who doesn't know the area well. A lot of times the Google maps way is shorter anyway. Honestly if I'm driving far (like down to DL from LA) I'll check both and see which makes the most sense, but that might only work if you know what you're looking for.

Just my recommendation.

I agree! I started a recent drive with Waze and quickly changed over to Google maps! I was semi-familiar with the general area and sort of knew how to get to my destination and the Waze route made absolutely NO sense to me.

BFF and I had Google maps on because the traffic on I5 was so horrendous on our trip down I5 the day after Xmas and the Waze traffic alerts were on it! At any rate we were 'warned' of slow downs and accidents and it said 'incident information provided by Waze'. Don't know if it was a pilot or if this always happens.