No matter where you stay, whether it be Anaheim or Los Angeles, or the surrounding area if you’re visiting California and not a native Californian or don’t have a car with you, it can be quite difficult navigating to Disneyland. Especially if you are traveling with a big group to Disneyland, or maybe you have kids who can’t handle public transportation, or maybe you’re a Disney fan who also needs to pay attention to their Disney budget.
Whatever your reason for trying to figure out the best way to get to Disneyland, it’s valid, and we are here to help! Trust we tried pretty much every form of transportation available to see what was the best form of transportation to Disneyland, and we think we know a thing or two now!
So, what’s the best way to get to Disneyland?
If you’re close by, then you can certainly walk to the parks. But if you’re not, then you can use a Ride Share service such as Uber or Lyft, drive a rental or take the bus or shuttle. We will put together the pros and cons of each transportation opportunity so you can decide what is best for you on your next trip to Disneyland.
Disneyland via Metrolink/AMTRAK Trains
The train station shuttles system is a series of trains that run through most of southwestern California. The trains run from as far North as Lancaster and as far south as Oceanside. The trains run as far west as Ventura and as far east as San Bernardino.
All in all, if you live in any of these surrounding areas, then taking the train is a great option, as you can simply hop on the train to Anaheim and then take a Free connection to the ART bus line to get you to Disneyland Resort.
Ticket types
Single day passes
- One Way ticket
- Round trip
- Weekend Day pass- for us on Saturdays or Sundays
Multi-Day passes
- 5-day flex- 5 days, does not have to be consecutive days, use within 30 days
- 7-day pass- consecutive seven days
- 10-day flex- 10 days, does not have to be consecutive days, use within 60 days
Monthly pass
Prices
Keep in mind that prices will vary based on the rider’s status:
- Senior/Disabled/Medicare
- Military Status
- Student/Youth
- Active Military
Prices will also vary based on the location and length of travel, number of trips, and whether or not it’s a weekend day.
Pros:
- Highly available to the surrounding areas of southwestern California
- Affordable
- A lot of free connections are offered
- Several types of tickets are offered at different prices
- Tickets are available for purchase instantly on the Metrolink Mobile App or at all Metrolink stations at ticket machines.
Cons:
- Tickets can only be used on one line unless purchased for multiple lines
- Tickets are a bit confusing at times
ART: For Disneyland Guests Who Don’t Want To Spend Time Walking To The Park
Art is a series of buses that travel through and around the Anaheim Resort District centered around Disneyland Resorts and its surrounding areas. The ART is a great way to travel to the parks if you’re staying in Anaheim, but it’s too long of a walk to the park, or if you have kids with you, so you get to the park faster and safer than walking.
The bus system runs seven days a week and begins operating one hour before Disneyland park opens and stays in operation until 30 minutes after park closes.
The only bad side to taking this bus system is that it most likely won’t get you to the parks early enough for rope drop. And you will need to leave before closing time to ensure that you get a spot on the bus since bus operation stops only 30 minutes after closing time.
ART passes offered
- One way pass
- 1 Day pass
- 3-day pass- Consecutive days
- 5-day pass- Consecutive days
- 15-day pass- Consecutive days
- 30-day pass- Consecutive days
Pros:
- Affordable
- Convenient
- Tickets can be used for any ART route
- Hop on, hop off, convenience
- Children 2 and under ride free
- Tickets can be purchased instantly on the “A-Way WeGo” app
Cons:
- Hours of operation
Hotel Shuttle: AKA Everyone’s First Choice To Disneyland
Anaheim resort district has so many hotels in the surrounding areas of Disneyland Resorts. Several of these hotels are called “Good Neighbor Hotels,” which basically means that these Hotels provide transportation to the Disneyland Resort Parks via a shuttle service. However, while some will provide transportation for free, most of the hotels will charge a fee for transportation to Disneyland. This is one of the things Disney world resort has over Disneyland!
If you have the funds, you could also stay at one of the Disneyland hotels, which are situated near or on the Disneyland resort property! Plus, they have cool perks like entering disney california adventure park directly from the hotel! That could be useful when you couple it with early access in the morning and a Disney park hopper.
There are three Disneyland hotels to be exact:
- Disney’s Grand Californian hotel (direct access to disney california adventure park)
- Disneys Paradise Pier hotel (direct access to disney california adventure park)
- Disneyland Hotel: Easy walking distance
Pros:
- Convenient travel to Disneyland straight from your hotel via a hotel shuttle service
Cons:
- The fee can be pricey
- They won’t always operate all hours of the park, and if you want to get to the park for a super early Disneyland Rope Drop, it can be difficult.
OCTA Bus Route: For The Price Conciceious Disney Travelers
Take the public city buses known as the Octa bus, which run through Anaheim, and the surrounding southern California areas and are a super simple and price-friendly option for Disney guests. This is a typical bus system with frequent stops. You can buy tickets online, through a mobile app, on the bus, or in person at several pass sales locations, which is extremely convenient, especially when you are tired and just trying to find a way back to your hotel after a long day at the parks.
Tickets
Some regular fare tickets offered are:
- Regular fare Onboard Cash fare
- Regular fare Onboard One day Pass
- Regular fare Prepaid one day
- Regular fare Prepaid 30-day pass
Other special tickets are available for
- Seniors and disable people
- Youth and children
- Express fares
- OC Express fares
Pros:
- Convenient
- Cheap
- Several ticket types are offered, and it’s convenient to buy online, through the mobile app, or in person
Cons:
- Frequent stops and delays
- Tickets can be confusing
Rideshare: Love it or hate it, Disneyland Has A Great Rideshare Location right off Harbor Boulevard!
Rideshare apps like Lyft and Uber are very convenient means of travel but are sometimes not the most reliable. It’s nice to be able to ride in a car versus having to take public transportation or waiting out in the rain for the next bus.
But sometimes, the rides can be pricey and unreliable; word of advice? Pick your rideshare 20 minutes – 30 minutes before the park closing; the price will usually be lower. Also, make sure to leave the park 10 minutes earlier than your designated pick-up time because they almost always arrive super early. And the last thing you want to do is run with knees to chest at 11:55 pm. Trust me, it happened to us three times ?.
Pros:
- Typically very convenient as you just order your car when you’re ready to go.
- Less transactional feeling when compared to a taxi
- Easy and relaxed atmosphere
- Excellent tips about the area and Disneyland, It must be a requirement to know Disneyland like the back of their hand because we got some amazing tips from some of our Lyft and uber drivers.
Cons:
- When a car says it fits four people, this sometimes will not be true and will cause you to have to wait for another ride which can be inconvenient.
- Sometimes drivers will cancel on you with no warning after you’ve already been waiting 15 minutes which can be unreliable for you to get to your destination on time.
- The pick-up time is almost always a lie! Head over there early! Otherwise, if you miss the pickup time frame, you’ll get a fee for missing the ride.
- Sometimes, they don’t know how to read the room, well, car ?
Taxi: The Go-To Disneyland Transportation If Money Isn’t An Issue
Taxis have always been a good means of travel. But the downside of taxis is that they are usually super expensive, and it’s only ever really affordable if you split the ride with someone else. Taxis are a good option, though, if you want a private and not cringe situation where your driver keeps talking and ignoring the (please don’t talk to me; I’m tired and have a migraine vibe). Also, keep in mind they like their tips in cash! And we personally don’t carry cash with us, we know horrible.
Alas, If taxis are your go-to, we won’t argue; personally, we prefer utilizing other transportation methods and have only used a taxi once and felt kinda ripped off, but maybe we were just unlucky. The same can happen for rideshares, but at least the pricing is a little easier to get down, unlike taxis.
Pros:
- Convenient
- Ease of travel
Cons:
- Expensive
- Sometimes taxi drivers insist on taking cash payments or do not have working card readers to pay by card.
Rental Vehicle: The Most Flexibility For Disneyland Transport & Leave When You Want!
Rental vehicles are a great way to travel if you hate public transportation or if you have a lot to lug around, like a baby stroller and bags. Taking all of these things on the bus or train can be super inconvenient and tiring, so it’s nice to be able to toss this stuff in the trunk and hit the road.
One scary thing about rentals is that you are the responsible driver for this vehicle so you want to treat this vehicle with the utmost respect so you don’t damage the interior or exterior of the vehicle and have to pay extra fees.
A significant upside to using a rental vehicle is that you can go wherever you want whenever you want and don’t have to wait for buses or trains or deal with delays from constant stops.
Pros:
- Convenient
- Cleaner than public transport
- No constant stopping for other passengers
- You can make any stops you need if you don’t plan to hang around the Disney theme park all day. There is the anaheim convention center nearby, and visit other theme parks nearby; umm, hello, universal studios Hollywood! Plus, there are some cool beaches nearby, such as Huntington beach, and Santa Monica beach isn’t too far either.
Cons:
- Costly
- You may hit tons of traffic, especially when in the LA area.
- You have to be very careful with the vehicle so as not to damage it in any way
- Prices will vary based on the vehicle chosen for the size and number of people you have to fit in that vehicle.
- Hello expensive Disney Parking!
Walk: The Pricy Savvy Disney Traveler
Walking, of course, is the best exercise and it’s very convenient if you’re staying close to the Disneyland Resorts. You can walk to the parks and get there when you want because you don’t have to deal with delays from passenger traffic or stops on public transportation. The most you’ll deal with is foot traffic and bad weather when walking.
Pros:
- No waiting on anyone else; head out when you want
- It’s free!
Cons:
- Foot traffic
- Weather
- You’ll be walking all day, so this just adds extra walking for you
Disneyland Monorail: For The Disney Experience
Okay, not really a Disneyland transportation option if you are trying to get to the Disneyland resort from somewhere else. However, if you are fairly close to downtown Disney and would love to experience riding the Disneyland Monorail during one of your Disney magic days, then we totally recommend it! It’s kinda like a more modern Disneyland Railroad Ride.
Plus, if you’re familiar with Disney Worlds Monorail System, it will be fantastic to compare the two! Although Disney World is so big and its transportation system is so convenient that it’s hard even to mention Disneyland’s version against its Orlando version.
We went and had lunch at downtown Disney, then hopped on the Disneyland monorail, and it took us back to Tomorrowland super fast! Plus, for how busy the parks were, we were pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t busy at all! So if you are trying to get in as fast as possible, we definitely recommend trying out the monorail!
Pros:
- Instant access to Tomorrowland!
- Free!
- Not as packed as the main entrances
Cons:
- You already have to be on Disneyland resort property
- That is probably the biggest con ?