Proven Cheapest Way to Get From LAX To Disneyland for 2024

Looking for the cheapest way to get from LAX to Disneyland. As budget travelers, who go to Disneyland a lot, we have got you covered.

The cheapest way to get from LAX to Disneyland is to take public transportation. However, this journey completely by public transit takes over 2 hours. So we are going to recommend a hybrid route that saves you 50%-75% of the cost of taking a ride share the entire way and is a small fraction of the cost to rent a car. 

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Distance from LAX to Disneyland

If you are like us, flying into LAX is not only the most economical way to get to Disneyland, but it also is our only direct flight. However, if Disneyland is your destination, once you touch down at LAX you still have a ways to go.

Disneyland is nearly 35 miles from LAX. And if you have ever driven in Los Angeles…well, let’s just say traffic is a state of being. 

So how to go the distance?

Options to Travel from LAX to Disneyland

The Cost of a Car Rental in Southern California

You can, of course, rent a car. But here are 2 reasons why we never have. The first reason is the cost.

Rental cars in LA average about $75/day. So if you are planning a week-long stay at Disneyland that car rental will run you about $500. Not cheap.

But more than the cost, renting a car when you intend to spend every day at Disneyland just feels wasteful. Yes, you need the car to get to and from the airport, but once you arrive at your hotel, it just sits. Plus, you might also have to pay to park, adding additional expenses.

The Cost of a Shuttle from LAX to Disneyland

Shuttles can be a good option depending on the size of your party, and get you there a lot faster. However, while sites will tell you shuttles are a mere $15 per person, most shuttle services book you an individual car.

The cost is around $125 for a family of 3. Definitely much less expensive than car rentals. But at $40 per person for the economy vehicle, this is the most expensive way to travel.

The Cost to Ride Share from LAX to Disneyland

Here is the tricky option. Rideshares between LAX to Disneyland vary greatly depending of demand and traffic.

The prices for a ride share from LAX to Disneyland range from a mere $50 up to $150. Yikes! So if you are looking for a budget way to travel this COULD be a fairly cost-efficient way…or not.

The ride should take you around 40 minutes. Uber and Lyft are definitely a good option to save time, if you happen to request one when demand and traffic are down. Or if you are less focused on the amount. But if you are depending on this and the rates are high….well, you are stuck with a pretty big bill.

However, you should know that LAX banned rideshares from the airport in October of 2020. In order to grab your rideshare, you will need to take a bus to a pickup lot east of Terminal 1. Follow our instructions below on using the free LAX shuttles to get the bus to the rideshare area.

So now let’s get to the cheapest way to get from LAX to Disneyland.

Public Transit

If you follow us, you know we are always looking for ways to use public transit to both save money and travel more sustainably. Using public transit is just one of our many strategies to travel on a budget as a family.

In 2024, a one-way trip on public transit with 2 hours of free transfers cost $1.75.

However, you will need a TAP card to pay this small fee. You can either get a physical, reloadable TAP card, which will cost you $2 each – making the entire journey cost $3.75 a person -or if you have an iPhone, you can download the TAP app, link it to your Apple Wallet, and load your ride money there.

Did I mention that this journey entirely by public transit, though it is so affordable, will take you over 2 hours? The trip also involves 3 transfers: airport bus to metro and then from metro to bus.

But here is what we realize: at just 35 minutes, the bus to metro part of the journey is the reasonable part of the journey.

The second leg of the journey where you board a bus that has over 50 stops to get you to Disneyland is where the extra hour and a half of time comes in.

So here is our suggestion:

Use Public Transit + Rideshare to Get from LAX to Disneyland

Here is how we did it, and what it cost us in time and money. First, we boarded the free shuttle from LAX airport to the Green Line Metro stop. To get on the free shuttle bus, go to ground transportation and stand near any one of these pink signs.

There is at least 1 pink sign in every terminal. Wait there for the bus that says “Green Line Metro.”  Look also for the pink signs for buses to the rideshare lot for Uber/Lyft.

Once you get to the Metro stop, buy, and load your TAP at a kiosk like this. Or get the app in advance on your iPhone.

Go up the stairs or take the elevator to the platform. You want to take the metro in the direction of “Norwalk.” Do NOT go in the direction of Redondo Beach. 

You will stay on the Metro through all 8 stops, and exit at its last stop, which is Norwalk. It is as easy as that. The ride takes about 35 minutes. 

Now, when you exit Norwalk, you can catch the Line 460 bus using your TAP card as a free transfer pass. The Line 460 goes directly to the Disneyland Resort but has over 50 stops.

We also were staying at a two-bedroom near Disneyland about a mile from the park so our trip would have also required a 13-minute walk.

So here is where we opted for the hybrid plan: using rideshare from Norwalk Metro Station to our hotel.

At Norwalk Station, instead of riding the bus for nearly 1 hour and 30 minutes, we grabbed a ride share. The cost to get directly to our hotel from Norwalk station was $27, and took 20 minutes. 

The Cost of the Cheapest Way to Get from LAX to Disneyland

So what did we save and how long did it take? Our total trip cost us $32 (for all three of us) and took us roughly 70 minutes. It took us 30 minutes longer than if we had just grabbed a rideshare at LAX.

Now to the cost. Which is somewhat hard to say. If we had lucked out and were able to get a rideshare at one of those rare $50 rides, then we would have saved roughly 50% of what taking the rideshare the entire way would have cost.

But if we were more typical and the rideshare was higher…say $100, then our hybrid trick saved us $70.

And since you have not only the going but the return trip, even with a conservative estimate, we saved at least $100.

We also lost some time. But what we gained is once again teaching our son how to navigate a city on public transit. As a family, we have the privilege of traveling, and we know even the opportunity to go to Disneyland is an example of that privilege.

We would never pretend that riding the metro off-sets that privilege because it doesn’t. However, it does remind O that he, like everyone else, can and should use public transit whenever it is feasible. 

The entire trip on public transit was too much for us, but our hybrid trip let us live our philosophy to travel economically and sustainably whenever that choice is within reason. 

How to Use Public Transit In and Around Disneyland

ART is Anaheim’s regional public transit that has numerous lines that drop off at both good neighborhoods and independent hotels. Using ART is just one of our many budget-saving tips for Disneyland.

ART picks up and drops off at the Disneyland Transit Center. The area with all the buses is at the eastern end of the entryway plaza right before Disneyland security. If you come into Disneyland from Harbor Drive (instead of Downtown Disney), you can’t miss it.

And at roughly $5 per day, the cost to use ART is pretty inexpensive. Especially since using ART allows you to stay off-property, which comes a huge savings.

Frequently Asked Questions on the Cheapest Way to Get from LAX to Disneyland

Our tip for transportation is part of a larger post on planning a trip to Disneyland on a budget. Or maybe you want to see Disneyland at its most magical? Check out our guide to Disneyland’s Christmas decorations.