Travel time from Coronado Island to Disneyland

[AndreAggie]

We're going to be visiting family stationed on Coronado Island (San Diego) the weekend before our trip to Disneyland. Our planned travel day is Monday, January 26, 2015. How long should we allow and is there a better time to try to leave? We have nothing planned when we get to Anaheim...probably run some errands and get some snacks for the week to take in the parks , return the rental car since we won't need it for the week, then dinner that evening.

 

[wdwrich]

We're going to be visiting family stationed on Coronado Island (San Diego) the weekend before our trip to Disneyland. Our planned travel day is Monday, January 26, 2015. How long should we allow and is there a better time to try to leave? We have nothing planned when we get to Anaheim...probably run some errands and get some snacks for the week to take in the parks , return the rental car since we won't need it for the week, then dinner that evening.

During non-rush hours, the drive from Coronado to Anaheim should take about two hours. We live in north San Diego, and the drive from our house to DLR takes about 1.5 hours. From our house to Coronado is just under 30 minutes.
Hope this helps.

 

[AndreAggie]

I'm thinking if we leave right after lunch, we should be ok. This allows us to beat rush hour, but avoid the morning rush and any accidents could clear up by the time we're ready to leave.

Do you have a suggested route?

 

[wdwrich]

I'm thinking if we leave right after lunch, we should be ok. This allows us to beat rush hour, but avoid the morning rush and any accidents could clear up by the time we're ready to leave.

Do you have a suggested route?

Cross over the Coronado bridge to San Diego, and get right on I-5 north. Stay on I-5 all the way to Anaheim, exit at Disney Way.

There is a car-pool lane much of the way on I-5. If you use it, you can exit onto Disney Way from that lane- no need to get out of that lane to get off for DLR.

 

[grnflash]

I'm thinking if we leave right after lunch, we should be ok. This allows us to beat rush hour, but avoid the morning rush and any accidents could clear up by the time we're ready to leave.

Do you have a suggested route?

Hi. If by right after lunch you mean by 1pm, then yes, you should be fine. But if that gets pushed to even 2pm, then prepare for heavier and heavier traffic as you go North.

3:00 is like the witching hour and the freeways suddenly fill up, with major congestion by 4. So while you'll fairly skip through SD, by the time you hit the split (Irvine) you run a high risk of being in for some heavy traffic. If you look at Irvine on a map you might think no biggie, Irvine's so close - but I kid you not that the last 10 miles to DL has taken us 45min - an hour more than once at that time of day. Even in the carpool lane which we're always in.

Personally, I would have an early lunch and be on the road by noon.

**We live by downtown, you can see the Coronado bridge from our front porch, so I'm very familiar with the exact drive you'll be making. We've left for DL at all times of the day (except peak rush hour - we know better!) And late mornings are great, very early afternoons are ok, and we avoid mid-afternoons now altogether.

 

[TheLanes]

FYI: Coronado isn't an island! Yes, leave before 2pm and you'll be fine. Use the carpool lane as soon as you can in Orange County the rest of the way, using the carpool exit for Disney.

 

[AndreAggie]

We can likely leave earlier than 1:00 anyway. The biggest issue would be checking in to the hotel. It is supposed to have a rooftop pool, so we figured we can kill some time swimming too. The hardest part will be convincing our son that we won't be going to Disneyland until the next day when we're SO CLOSE!

 

[GatorChris]

Are you staying at the Del (inspiration for WDW's Grand Floridian), or just having some fun?

And yes, try to time it to where you get to Anaheim by 3. Any earlier, and you may have to wait on a hotel room. Any later, and you'll hit some traffic.

 

[AndreAggie]

We're staying with family...they were stationed in Germany and now back in the states at Coronado.

 

[samserena]

I love Coronado! We got married at the Del!!

Would love to spend an anniversary at the Grand Floridian - wedding reminiscing plus disney! Probably won't happen until like our 10th anniversary though!!!!!!

But traffic can be horrible so just be sure to give yourself even an hour more than you estimate, plus a little stop in La Jolla is always nice!

 

[jerseygal]

We're going to be visiting family stationed on Coronado Island (San Diego) the weekend before our trip to Disneyland. Our planned travel day is Monday, January 26, 2015. How long should we allow and is there a better time to try to leave? We have nothing planned when we get to Anaheim...probably run some errands and get some snacks for the week to take in the parks , return the rental car since we won't need it for the week, then dinner that evening.

We flew into San Diego, stayed in Coronado Island for a few days, then drove to DL, 5 summers ago...If I can recall, it was about 2 to 1/2 hours. Was our first trip and we LOVED IT!

 

[whoever]

I made it from teh M&F parking structure to the 8 and 805 in San Diego in about an hour on a Saturday night last time I made the trip. 2 hours with any real traffic is probably a safe bet, but anywhere between 1 and 2 hours is probably average. Take it with a grain of salt though because I can do central Phoenix to DLR in 5 hours flat with a fuel and food stop.

 

[tarheelalum]

From Coronado it should not take more than an hour and a half to get to Anaheim if you go with the flow of traffic which is usually around 75 to 80 miles per hour on the 5 in non rush hour traffic.