Getting to Disneyland

[stardust190]

My neighbors are going to Disneyland in October. They have a house rental that is a 15 minute walk from the gates. They have 4 kids (9, 6, 4, 1) and mentioned walking to the park. I haven't been to Disneyland in years - since before I had kids, but just thinking about a walk after a long day in the park with my two kids makes me tired. Are there any other decent transportation options out there? They heard that parking is terrible.

 

[sjmac42]

What are the nearest cross streets to the house rental as you may be able to use the ART bus service for a small fee. If it really is a 15 min walk that will usually be the quickest option but many house rentals that quote 15 mins are been optimistic or just plain exaggerating. They also need to be licensed by the city to be legal. Depending where you need to get to, rideshares may also be an option.
As for parking, yes it can be time consuming getting in and out but depending where you’re staying, could be an option. Thing is by the time you walk to a parking lot, to and from a bus or shuttle or to catch a rideshare, you’ve probably already walked for 10-15 mins anyway.

 

[BayGirl22]

Yeah, 15 minutes is the normal walk to any of the hotels or parking lots. That said, there are few houses within 15 minutes. ART is a good option and passes are cheap. We found it was not always early enough for rope drop so we'd sometimes walk over in the morning but take ART back to the hotel - when we stayed about a block (15 min walk) away.

Without knowing the exact location of the house its hard to give more specific advice. Rideshare will not be an easy option with kids that age.

 

[lalasmama]

Depending where you need to get to, rideshares may also be an option.

Kids are 9, 6, 4 and 1, which means 3 of them need car seats/boosters to do a ride share. California requires child restraints for anyone under the age of 8, and rear-facing under the age of 2. The great majority of ride shares won't have a third row that would easily accommodate a rear-facing seat, a forward facing seat, and a booster, plus another kid and 1-2 parents. Our Explorer can do 4 child seats, but we can't fit even a scrawny 5th person back there. And I don't know any parent who thinks, "Let's carry 3 car seats/booster seats through Disneyland all day! No big deal!"... The time waiting for an Uber that size would probably be substantially longer than the 15-20 minute walk.

 

[BayGirl22]

Also, not sure why they heard parking is awful. Most visitors to DL are locals and they drive there, so plenty of parking and the lots are fine. Parking is not cheap though, so plan on whatever it is ($25?) per day on top of other costs. Depending on which lot there is a shuttle or a walk.

It used to be that people would walk to the Toy Story lot from hotels/rental homes and take the shuttle. Not sure that's still an option since it reopened, but there are is a youtube video out there they can check out the current state of parking.

 

[starry_solo]

Are the trams operational at this time (from the Pixar structure)?

 

[Wesley815]

Are the trams operational at this time (from the Pixar structure)?

Sadly nope, and no word on any return date. Doubtful you'll see them in 2021.

 

[Matrixleos]

Are the trams operational at this time (from the Pixar structure)?

Updates on Disneyland Resort Trams are that these will take a long time to return. The current lifespan of the Trams are roughly 20 years and the DLR Trams are all 23+ years old. After the Covid-19 shutdown, there are major repairs needed just to get the old Trams operational or Disney might opt to purchase new Trams. Either way, with repairs or replacements ordered, it will take several months for these to return.

 

[Malcon10t]

Are the trams operational at this time (from the Pixar structure)?

Not at this time. There seems to be a couple theories on this. What I have heard is they are working on getting staffing back in the park first. They don't view the trams as important as ride attendants. They only have about 50% of what is needed currently. Trams are not a priority as they have the walkways working well.

 

[starry_solo]

Not at this time. There seems to be a couple theories on this. What I have heard is they are working on getting staffing back in the park first. They don't view the trams as important as ride attendants. They only have about 50% of what is needed currently. Trams are not a priority as they have the walkways working well.

That's what I figured. Maybe thats why people don't think it's worth it to drive there if they have to walk from the tram (if the house is actually that close by)

 

[Bigmace]

Plenty of hotels are much closer than 15 minutes. I timed my walk from the gates of California adventure to the Tropicana last Thursday when we were there. My wife and I are pretty fast walkers and we hit the light on the harbor crosswalk exactly right but it took us a total of 5 minutes and 30 seconds from the gate to the Tropicana entrance. So plenty of close options.

 

[smartlabelprint]

Honestly I’d suggest they cancel the rental and get a hotel across the street. This is a recipe for disaster. Friends of ours went years ago with 4 kids same-ish ages and stayed at a rental. They hated it and have never been back.

 

[felice]

I thought there were restrictions now on house rental, even more so if it was something secured through Airbnb. A hotel may well be more secure at the least - and you'll have the option either of an onsite shuttle service or ART buses nearby to the hotel.

 

[lalasmama]

I thought there were restrictions now on house rental, even more so if it was something secured through Airbnb. A hotel may well be more secure at the least - and you'll have the option either of an onsite shuttle service or ART buses nearby to the hotel.

You are correct, they instituted stricter guidelines for short-term rental properties in Anaheim. Specifically, they now require a permit to operate. Last I heard, there's around 250-300 properties that are permitted, so there are definitely short term rental options that are legal

 

[sjmac42]

Hopefully the OP will get back to us with the nearest cross streets so we can advise on the transportation question otherwise it’s just speculation.

 

[twincruisers]

If they are set on the house rental, I’d walk in the morning and pay for an Uber on the way back home. Otherwise, I agree that getting a place closer would be important so the younglings can go back and rest in the middle of the afternoon when they hit the wall.

 

[smartlabelprint]

If they are set on the house rental, I’d walk in the morning and pay for an Uber on the way back home. Otherwise, I agree that getting a place closer would be important so the younglings can go back and rest in the middle of the afternoon when they hit the wall.

And it will be near impossible to Uber with 3 car seats.

 

[twincruisers]

And it will be near impossible to Uber with 3 car seats.

True, even more reason to stay closer. Best Western across the street have Some nice options.

 

[FeistyDisneyMom]

My fam stayed in a rental in 2014 and loved it so much we stayed with the same company but different property in 2019. The walk in 2014 was much shorter for us as we could go through GC, and it was a couple blocks closer anyway (we were on heather ln, between kimberly and holgate). Our 2019 stay was about as far away as I could possibly handle being - the walk in the morning was ok, but the way home was a challenge (on bayless a block south of cerritos). We will be staying in a rental again in June 2022, but this one seems closer than the last one (castle & feather).

I think it is easy to talk about ubers and just staying across the street for small families, but a family of 6 doesn't FIT in the motels that are so convenient, and it gets super spendy to try to get suites/multiple rooms. Uber is just not an option with that many small ones, and even ART can be a challenge. My advice is to stick with the walking plan, but TRAIN! Be pushing those strollers fully loaded all over the place as much as possible ahead of time, and the walks won't be that challenging. I did that with both of our other trips, and it paid off - I was an open-to-close mom nearly every day of our trip, while DH and my BIL would poop out early and head home The kids (at the time 12, 9, 7, 7, 5, 2) did pretty well. DS7 managed to close the park with me one night (at midnight!), and walked by himself all the way back! The next night DD9, DS7 and DD5 all stayed with me and I kept a stroller. DD5 zonked out and I pushed her home. We had a blast, and the walk home was part of the fun bonding time

It is definitely doable, even with the strollers

 

[BayGirl22]

.....

I think it is easy to talk about ubers and just staying across the street for small families, but a family of 6 doesn't FIT in the motels that are so convenient, and it gets super spendy to try to get suites/multiple rooms. Uber is just not an option with that many small ones, and even ART can be a challenge. ....

Agree Uber is not an option.

There are a few hotels across the street that have rooms to accomodate 6 or 8 people. They aren't the nicest high end hotels, but they are serviceable and probably comparable $ to a rental. Slightly higher priced Courtyard has a room with 2 doubles + bunk beds that would fit a family of 6.
I would advise any large family to compare those options to a rental house and get a realistic walking time. Like you said it really depends on the house location. It also really depends on the family, some are more used to walking and some are not.