NYer in need of Anaheim to LAX driving experts

[WorldWacky]

Being from Long Island and having to go past NYC, Staten Island and NJ anytime we want to drive…well, basically anywhere, we’re no strangers to traffic. If we’re fortunate to find a rare, solid gold, four leaf clover that’s been dusted by Tinkerbell herself, we MIGHT not hit traffic or construction if we leave our house between the hours of 4:58am and 5:01am.

That being said, our flight home from LAX could NOT be at a worse time. (In my defense, it was not the meticulously researched and very carefully coordinated flight that I originally booked back in January.) We will have an Enterprise rental car and a flight that leaves at 10:30am on a Wednesday morning. Yes, I know.
We’ll be attending a wedding over Labor Day weekend so we added a trip to Disneyland for Sun, Mon and Tues. Since we have never been, we’re going big and are staying in the Grand Californian.
Now panic is setting in with trying to figure out weekday rush hour morning traffic, returning a rental and getting checked at the airport on time. Do we just eat the “all ready paid for resort charge” for our last night and leave for a hotel near the airport Tuesday? Or do we try to deal with the traffic mayhem Wednesday morning? Would we need to leave at 5:00am, 5:30am, even earlier? What are we looking at here? For how many hours will we be crawling along the highway?
Please advise.

 

[Proud Cheapskate]

I'm from Boston, really used to traffic too. I've been to LA at least a dozen times and I really feel the traffic there is much worse than NYC. I feel like the traffic in NYC (and Boston to some degree) is predictable, whereas LA isn't. I remember sitting in bumper to bumper traffic is downtown LA at 1am. I remember leaving LAX at Noon and it taking over 2 hours to get to DL. Another time we left the Santa Monica Pier at 3pm and it took 75 minutes go to less than 15 miles to LAX. I don't know how anybody is on time for anything there. I'm sure if you left at 5 you'd be ok but personally, I'd stay at one of the hotels on West Century Blvd with a shuttle and turn the car in on Tuesday night. Keep in mind that all of the rental car shuttles are off site and each has there own shuttle (no centralized car rental center) so the car return can be time consuming as well. I was going to tell you that security lines at LAX are notoriously long too but we flew through LAX coming back from Hawaii last week and the lines were actually short, like 5 minutes. I'm sure that's Covid/fewer travelers related. Plus you can get up at a much more reasonable hour without the stress of having to drive to the airport before you leave. I'm the guy who's riding Haunted Mansion 2 hours before a flight out of Orlando so I have no problem cutting it close but like I said, SoCal traffic is so unpredictable I just wouldn't do it.

 

[Proud Cheapskate]

I'm from Boston, really used to traffic too. I've been to LA at least a dozen times and I really feel the traffic there is much worse than NYC. I feel like the traffic in NYC (and Boston to some degree) is predictable, whereas LA isn't. I remember sitting in bumper to bumper traffic is downtown LA at 1am. I remember leaving LAX at Noon and it taking over 2 hours to get to DL. Another time we left the Santa Monica Pier at 3pm and it took 75 minutes go to less than 15 miles to LAX. I don't know how anybody is on time for anything there. I'm sure if you left at 5 you'd be ok but personally, I'd stay at one of the hotels on West Century Blvd with a shuttle and turn the car in on Tuesday night. Keep in mind that all of the rental car shuttles are off site and each has their own shuttle (no centralized car rental center) so the car return can be time consuming as well. I was going to tell you that security lines at LAX are notoriously long too but we flew through LAX coming back from Hawaii last week and the lines were actually short, like 5 minutes. I'm sure that's Covid/fewer travelers related. Plus you can get up at a much more reasonable hour without the stress of having to drive to the airport before you leave. I'm the guy who's riding Haunted Mansion 2 hours before a flight out of Orlando so I have no problem cutting it close but like I said, SoCal traffic is so unpredictable I just wouldn't do it.

 

[Pluto468]

I grew up near Boston and agree about the LA traffic being worse/unpredictable. I've hit bad traffic there at all hours of the day and night. I used to live 15 minutes from LAX. Sometimes it took 45 minutes to get to Disneyland, sometimes it took 2 hours. I would probably return the car and stay close to the airport on Tuesday night, just to have a more relaxed morning on the day of departure. If you've already paid for your Grand Californian room and don't expect a refund, you could even stay at the park until closing, check out and head to LA then. (This is assuming there isn't some extra charge for checking out early from GC.)

 

[DizMe]

Being from Long Island and having to go past NYC, Staten Island and NJ anytime we want to drive…well, basically anywhere, we’re no strangers to traffic. If we’re fortunate to find a rare, solid gold, four leaf clover that’s been dusted by Tinkerbell herself, we MIGHT not hit traffic or construction if we leave our house between the hours of 4:58am and 5:01am.

That being said, our flight home from LAX could NOT be at a worse time. (In my defense, it was not the meticulously researched and very carefully coordinated flight that I originally booked back in January.) We will have an Enterprise rental car and a flight that leaves at 10:30am on a Wednesday morning. Yes, I know.
We’ll be attending a wedding over Labor Day weekend so we added a trip to Disneyland for Sun, Mon and Tues. Since we have never been, we’re going big and are staying in the Grand Californian.
Now panic is setting in with trying to figure out weekday rush hour morning traffic, returning a rental and getting checked at the airport on time. Do we just eat the “all ready paid for resort charge” for our last night and leave for a hotel near the airport Tuesday? Or do we try to deal with the traffic mayhem Wednesday morning? Would we need to leave at 5:00am, 5:30am, even earlier? What are we looking at here? For how many hours will we be crawling along the highway?
Please advise.

I'm sorry, I can't help you here, but I just wanted to say that your writing style made me smile, especially with the Tinkerbell and clover comment

 

[WorldWacky]

I'm sorry, I can't help you here, but I just wanted to say that your writing style made me smile, especially with the Tinkerbell and clover comment

Thank you.

 

[WorldWacky]

Well, if our friends from Boston are both recommending the night before, that’s PROBABLY the thing to do. Boston traffic is no joke either. I would still definitely plan on running my family ragged in the parks all day Tuesday. Hopefully by 11pm, the rest of CA will be tucked in bed and not on the road with us! I don’t expect a refund and wouldn’t bother asking for one because I’d like to utilize the room all day Tuesday if needed. Thanks for the advice!

 

[msteddom]

LA local here. You will probably be fine if you leave by 5. Traffic hasn’t been getting too bad until around 6:30 recently.

 

[sjmac42]

I’m from Australia but have driven between LAX and Anaheim many times. Max it’s taken me to the rental return is just over 2 hours, quickest is 50 mins on a weekday around Memorial Day at 6pm. From car drop off to terminal is usually under 30 mins. I think if you left at 6am to 6-30am you’d have plenty of time. If it takes 4 hours to get there, c'est la vie I guess but you’d have to be really unlucky.
But what I’d do is return the car in Anaheim the day before and organise a shuttle, private or group. They will know the traffic patterns and give you a pickup time that will get you there.

 

[starry_solo]

FYI, the airlines don't even open their check in counters until 6 am... unless its changed. The last time I flew out of LAX was 3 years ago and the construction at LAX had been completed.

You should be ok driving at 5 am. Download the WAVE app. Check sig alert for construction, but you should be ok leaving at 5 am for the 1030 flight. Overnight Construction on freeways typically happen from 10 pm to 3 am

 

[IsleofDisney]

I'm a local, not from LA are but further inland and agree that traffic is unpredictable, even more so lately. I don't know if we've forgotten how to drive since in heavy traffic since or if we're more easily distracted, but with quarantine lockdown I've noticed more accidents on the freeways wherever you go. What I would do is use a map app, I use Google Maps, to check the estimated travel time needed for your day & time of arrival and go with the longer estimated time.

 

[GoingSince1990]

I’m the paranoid dad who always leaves really early for airports, and I would say leaving at 6 would be absolutely fine. Google Maps says typical drive time is between 40 minutes and 1 hour 10 minutes on a Wednesday at 6 AM; you can also reassure yourself while still at home by checking the current actual drive time at 6 AM Pacific time (so 9 AM Eastern) a few times on weekdays. One thing I would suggest is to figure out ahead of time which gas station you are going to refill the rental car at, or alternatively you may want to prepay for the gas, to save that bit of extra time.

 

[Iceman93]

What do you mean by "Do we just eat the “all ready paid for resort charge” for our last night and leave for a hotel near the airport Tuesday?" That you pre-paid for your room at the GCH? If so, there's no way I'd just abandon that and pay for a second room at an LAX-adjacent hotel.

One thing you alluded to but didn't come right out and say is that your originally-booked flight may have been at a better time. If so, and the airline changed the schedule on you, you can absolutely call them to get a free change to another flight that would be more convenient for you. Have you tried that?

Will you have bags to check? Are you flying first class or have elite status with your airline? Do you have TSA Precheck and/or CLEAR? Each of those factors could shorten the amount of time you need to allow between airport arrival and flight departure.

Without knowing the answers to those questions, if it was me I'd plan to leave the GCH at 7am for a 10:30am flight. A run up 5N to 605S to 105W really should be do-able in 60-90 minutes even at rush hour. Let's even say it takes two hours to get to the Enterprise lot, then another 30 minutes to ride the shuttle to your check-in counter. Now you're checking in an hour before your flight. Allow 30 minutes to get through security and to your gate, which puts you there right at boarding time. Stressful? Potentially, but I've also allowed a lot of pad in there so it's more likely you'd get to the gate sooner.

I guess it all depends on your risk tolerance. The times I suggested above are the right balance for me--I'd rather get two extra hours of sleep than allow for any potential contingency and end up bedraggled in those uncomfortable terminal chairs for two hours.

 

[Matrixleos]

Growing up in NYC/Long Island/NJ, I can say that traffic if the closest comparison to LA traffic.

Personally, I'd keep your reservation at the Grand Californian and don't rush your Disney experience. Just be prepared to leave Disneyland area no later than 5am, just give yourself as much cushion time as possible. When we drove to LAX, hardly any traffic at 5am to 5:30am (take advantage of that time). Traffic didn't really start building up till after 6am.

Also factor in that where you drop off your Enterprise rental car is about 15 minutes from the airport and you have to wait for the shuttle service from the car rental facility to drop you at the airport.

Also since this is your first time visiting Disneyland, I've linked a Planning and Information thread below. I haven't updated it over a month but has all you basic info, especially how to get boarding groups for Rise of the Resistance and Web Slingers....

https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...ing-disneyland-trip-report-7-28-8-05.3848213/

 

[twincruisers]

I'd say 6:30am departure will work be the tightest window I would choose. Family can sleep in the car if you can handle the driving.

6:30am departure - keep your nav program on, mornings on I-5 north are typically the first to back-up the closer you get to LA.
7:30-8:00am arrival at Enterprise (70-90 mins to LAX would be my normal expectation if you use the 105 West carpool lanes)
8:00-8:30am arrival at the terminal from Enterprise shuttle
8:30-9:00am counter check-in and TSA assuming you have at least TSA Pre-check for the whole family
9:00-10:30am waiting time/unexpected surprises time window

That's how I would book it as a single traveler at least. I've done this a few times from Orange County to LAX for work in general. Maybe add in 30-60 mins earlier for family speed and extra

 

[wowsmom]

Be sure to check all the different driving options to LAX. We live in Anaheim and usually go 91W-605N-105W but the exit for the 605N is one lane and gets pretty backed up at times, so last time we passed that and took the 710N to the 105W. Or you could take the 91W to the 405N. Google with traffic turned on is really accurate.

 

[sjmac42]

Also have a look at flying out of SNA (Santa Ana John Wayne Airport). It’s much closer to DL and much easier to navigate. As your airline has changed your flights, maybe they‘d be willing to change your departure airport as well. For a 10-30am flight out of SNA you’d probably be able to leave an hour to 90 mins beforehand.

 

[WorldWacky]

What do you mean by "Do we just eat the “all ready paid for resort charge” for our last night and leave for a hotel near the airport Tuesday?" That you pre-paid for your room at the GCH? If so, there's no way I'd just abandon that and pay for a second room at an LAX-adjacent hotel.

One thing you alluded to but didn't come right out and say is that your originally-booked flight may have been at a better time. If so, and the airline changed the schedule on you, you can absolutely call them to get a free change to another flight that would be more convenient for you. Have you tried that?

Will you have bags to check? Are you flying first class or have elite status with your airline? Do you have TSA Precheck and/or CLEAR? Each of those factors could shorten the amount of time you need to allow between airport arrival and flight departure.

Without knowing the answers to those questions, if it was me I'd plan to leave the GCH at 7am for a 10:30am flight. A run up 5N to 605S to 105W really should be do-able in 60-90 minutes even at rush hour. Let's even say it takes two hours to get to the Enterprise lot, then another 30 minutes to ride the shuttle to your check-in counter. Now you're checking in an hour before your flight. Allow 30 minutes to get through security and to your gate, which puts you there right at boarding time. Stressful? Potentially, but I've also allowed a lot of pad in there so it's more likely you'd get to the gate sooner.

I guess it all depends on your risk tolerance. The times I suggested above are the right balance for me--I'd rather get two extra hours of sleep than allow for any potential contingency and end up bedraggled in those uncomfortable terminal chairs for two hours.

To answer a few if your questions, yes, I did mean that we’ve already paid for our full resort/ticket package so we’d essentially have to just forfeit the cost of the room for Tuesday night.
We very rarely fly anywhere so we don’t have any elite status or TSA PreCheck clearance. (I WISH we were flying first class, but nope, just Economy for us.)
I wish we had a better time to switch to, but our flight is coordinated with our college-aged daughter’s flight. She’s flying to a different city, with a layover. Her flight was changed as well and any alternative pushes her arrival time too late. It wasn’t quite as complicated with our original times.
I’m going to mull all this over and talk to the hubby. Thanks for your input!

 

[MillauFr]

5a is way too early. You don't want to leave before 6a. Even at that hour you will have plenty of dead time and your family will be complaining that you left too early

 

[WorldWacky]

Growing up in NYC/Long Island/NJ, I can say that traffic if the closest comparison to LA traffic.

Personally, I'd keep your reservation at the Grand Californian and don't rush your Disney experience. Just be prepared to leave Disneyland area no later than 5am, just give yourself as much cushion time as possible. When we drove to LAX, hardly any traffic at 5am to 5:30am (take advantage of that time). Traffic didn't really start building up till after 6am.

Also factor in that where you drop off your Enterprise rental car is about 15 minutes from the airport and you have to wait for the shuttle service from the car rental facility to drop you at the airport.

Also since this is your first time visiting Disneyland, I've linked a Planning and Information thread below. I haven't updated it over a month but has all you basic info, especially how to get boarding groups for Rise of the Resistance and Web Slingers....

https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...ing-disneyland-trip-report-7-28-8-05.3848213/

Thank you so much!