Traffic to John Wayne Airport in Orange County

[ilovelucydog]

Hi! I’m looking at a flight leaving OC at 7:45 p.m. How is traffic from Disneyland to the airport around 5:00 pm or so? I imagine it’s really busy with rush hour traffic. What would be a good time to leave Anaheim that day to make it to the airport? Or should I pick an earlier flight? I’m was hoping to squeeze more time in on our last day....

 

[TikiTroll]

According to Waze, a midweek drive from Disneyland to SNA at 5:00 pm is about 45 minutes. That’s pulling from historical data, but it’s probably a good average. Give yourself an hour and it’s probably not a bad call.

 

[SteveH]

I'd agree with TikiTroll, the two trips we had were about 30 minutes during not peak hours.

 

[DLgal]

It will take 30-45 minutes. The traffic going in that direction in the afternoons isn't bad. It's going the other way that is the nightmare at that time. The general area around SNA (Irvine/Newport Beach corporate park) is a HUGE hub for jobs and so most people are heading away from it in the evenings.

 

[ThisIsHowWeDo]

Right now at 5PM PST traffic is about 34 minutes. For myself, the toughest part isn't the traffic but rather walking out of the parks to the car. Always takes way longer than I anticipate with the trams, walking, last minute shopping etc...

 

[Indiana Scott]

To be safe, we always give it 60~75 minutes. You never know when someone will do something silly on the freeway and clog things up.

 

[Dr.Mickey]

To be safe, we always give it 60~75 minutes. You never know when someone will do something silly on the freeway and clog things up.

So my family laughs at me on flight days and they call me “airplane mode dad”. I freak out. It never bothers me to be late anywhere else, lol. So I see your 60 minutes and raise you another 60

 

[tarheelalum]

I'd pick an earlier flight. I would not tempt the freeway gods.

 

[momtohms]

This is super helpful. My flight leaves after 9pm, but I’m going to give myself plenty of time and leave earlier than I had planned.

 

[MillauFr]

45 minutes is more than enough time. Plus at Orange County I've never waited more than 5 minutes for security

 

[ilovelucydog]

I ended up gong with a 6:00 pm flight out so I think we will leave at 3:30.

 

[Rich M]

I was worried about the same thing so glad someone else asked. I just booked my first flight to SNA. I like Long Beach because you can take Ball Rd all the way to Long Beach airport and it takes about 30 mins.

 

[DLgal]

I ended up gong with a 6:00 pm flight out so I think we will leave at 3:30.

You will be absolutely fine to leave at 4. The airport is so efficient that you will be through bag check and security in well under 10 minutes, and the terminal is kinda boring.

People, this isn't LA. The traffic here is not bad at all. I just drove home from DL yesterday at 4:45pm and it took all of 20 minutes. The airport would have taken another 10 minutes if I had gone there instead. There is more than one way to get to SNA from Anaheim, so in the event of a crash on one route, there are plenty of other options. Just use a real time traffic navigation app.

There is also a carpool lane almost all the way, so as long as there are at least 2 people in the car, you can use that.

 

[SoCalDisneyFan2708]

It will take 30-45 minutes. The traffic going in that direction in the afternoons isn't bad. It's going the other way that is the nightmare at that time. The general area around SNA (Irvine/Newport Beach corporate park) is a HUGE hub for jobs and so most people are heading away from it in the evenings.

Absolutely right. But you always have to factor in the chances of there being an accident which would increase drive time significantly.

 

[Lumpy1106]

You will be absolutely fine to leave at 4. The airport is so efficient that you will be through bag check and security in well under 10 minutes, and the terminal is kinda boring.

People, this isn't LA. The traffic here is not bad at all. I just drove home from DL yesterday at 4:45pm and it took all of 20 minutes. The airport would have taken another 10 minutes if I had gone there instead. There is more than one way to get to SNA from Anaheim, so in the event of a crash on one route, there are plenty of other options. Just use a real time traffic navigation app.

There is also a carpool lane almost all the way, so as long as there are at least 2 people in the car, you can use that.

^ this. I did the drive yesterday around 5:30 - took 25 minutes including time to park. You don't need to be to SNA 2 hours early. 5:15 is plenty early to leave DL. Traffic is good that direction at that time of day and you will be in the carpool lane. Any traffic jams would just eat into your 2 hour cushion you don't need. Be prepared to use the airport WiFi to download a book or a movie because there's nothing to do in or around the airport.

Local tip; be sure and check Waze. The 5 to the 55 is the most direct route but the 22 to the 55 is often quicker. Both have carpool lanes the whole way.

 

[Erin M]

So my family laughs at me on flight days and they call me “airplane mode dad”. I freak out. It never bothers me to be late anywhere else, lol. So I see your 60 minutes and raise you another 60

Same. I would rather be there early than risk missing a flight. My husband begrudgingly allows this now because he knows if he makes me cut it too close I will freak out, which I can't help. With SNA though I'm happy with 1.5 hours early rather than my standard 2.