Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is one of the largest airports in the world that is nearby Disneyland and Anaheim, California. Although there are airports that are closer to Disneyland, there are several advantages to flying through LAX, which is approximately 40 miles away from the park.
Because of LAX's sheer scale, nearly every airline flies into this airport, and you'll find a wide variety of flight options when booking through LAX. Because LAX offers flight options earlier and later in the day, it's a good choice if you want to enjoy a longer day at the park and leave later in the evening. You'll also find better rates at LAX than other airports near Disneyland, which can make the longer commute time to Disneyland down in Anaheim worth it.
To make sure your trip to Disneyland is a smooth and convenient process, keep reading and learn about the best transportation options from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Disneyland. We'll break down all considerations for flying into LAX, including travel services offered to get to Anaheim and which we'd recommend from shuttles, taxis, rideshare options, and more.
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What is the Best Option for Traveling from LAX to Disneyland?
There are several travel options to get from LAX to Disneyland, and which one is best for you depends on the needs of your party. Our top recommendation is utilizing a rideshare option to Disneyland (either an Uber or Lyft) from the airport if this is something your party is comfortable with. After your flight lands, you can see what options are available, and cars are often extremely close by.
However, we understand that rideshare is not always a comfortable option for everyone, and it can be complicated for parties with younger kids. If you’re not familiar with Lyft or Uber and would like to ensure the highest quality transportation, you can choose the Uber Comfort or Lyft Preferred option, which will be more expensive but ensure you have a quality experience and drivers with the best ratings.
For bigger parties or those who would like the option to schedule ahead, shuttles might be a better fit. These ensure that you’re traveling with enough space for your group, and you can secure reservations in advance so you don’t have to worry about spontaneously securing transportation when you get off the plane.
Navigating LAX Airport
LAX is currently under construction to introduce a people mover train, a multi-modal transit station, a new parking structure, and upgrades to its terminals. Because lanes are temporarily reduced in the central terminal area, taxi and rideshare pickup locations are moved to the LAX-it lot to reduce traffic.
LAX-it is within walking distance of Terminal 1, but for all other terminals, there will be an LAX-it shuttle that will transport guests. On the Lower/Arrivals Level outside of the Baggage Claim, there are green LAX-it signs that guests will wait under to catch the shuttle. Shuttles arrive about every 7 minutes, and the trip to LAX-it will be no more than 15-20 minutes. From here, you can access rideshare options and taxis.
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Rideshare Options
Rideshare tends to be less expensive than other travel options, making this our top choice for traveling from LAX to Disneyland. Rideshare options will typically take around 45 minutes to travel from LAX to Disneyland, though on days with particularly heavy traffic, it can take longer. Sadly, rideshare is slightly more complicated at LAX than it is when traveling from John Wayne Orange County Airport to Disneyland. At LAX if you want to utilize the standard rideshare option you'll have to walk or bus to a specific zone away from the terminal.
If you decide to utilize a rideshare option, make sure to account for the time it will take to claim your bags and take the shuttle to the pickup area in LAX-it. The LAX-it pickup area is located near Terminal 1.
If you flew into Terminal 1, 2, 7, 0r 8 and are able to walk a couple of hundred yards, we recommend walking to the pickup area to avoid waiting for the buses. If you flew into Terminal 2, 4, 5, or the Bradley International Terminal you are probably better off taking the shuttle over to the pickup zone.
Shuttles for LAX-it pick up guests on the Lower/Arrivals Level at the inner curb outside of Baggage Claim areas, and they are marked by green LAX-it signs. Once in LAX-it, rideshare pickup locations are marked at various curbs. There are different zones for Lyft and Uber. The pickup zone also has bathrooms and charging stations available.
Lyft
You can also use the Lyft app to request a ride to Disneyland from LAX. According to the Lyft website, a ride from LAX to Disneyland would be about $50-60 for a standard ride for up to 4 passengers and $86-98 via Lyft XL for up to 6 passengers. We mapped the route from LAX to one of the hotels on Harbor Boulevard in Anaheim for that pricing.
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Uber
There are a few different options for the type of Uber you can utilize when traveling from LAX to Disneyland. When you pull up the Uber app, you will see the available cars for pickup nearby and which level of service they provide. Each of these tiers varies in price and provides different offerings, and we'll break down our recommended ones below.
Uber X offers rides for up to four people and is the cheapest option out of the offerings. According to the Uber site, the average route price to get from LAX to Disneyland is $73 and takes around 45 minutes.
Uber XL accommodates larger groups of up to 6 passengers. This costs roughly $107 for a ride to Disneyland from LAX.
What about Uber Black and Lyft LUX?
Both Uber and Lyft offer upscale transportation services where drivers have the proper permits to pick up directly in front of the terminal buildings. If you are interested in these slightly more expensive options, select them within the rideshare apps.
Shuttle Services from LAX to Disneyland
There are a number of shuttles that provide services from LAX to Disneyland, and this is the second choice that we would recommend behind rideshare if you have a larger party and want the security of scheduling ahead.
Karmel
Karmel Shuttle is a reservation-only service that runs from 6am-7pm, providing transportation to Disneyland from LAX. It accommodates a party of up to 5 people, and you'll pay a flat fee for the entire car rather than a ticket price. Karmel offers a shuttle directly to Disneyland or to hotels in the Anaheim area.
Separately, also be sure to check out our breakdown of hotels near Disneyland that offer shuttle services if you want to avoid walking to the theme parks.
Karmel tracks your flight, so when you arrive, you'll receive a text with a “Ready to Go” link that you can open when you have your luggage. Karmel will let you know the vehicle number and where to stand to meet your driver.
If your flight arrives before or after the 6am-7pm timeframe, you will need to purchase the Private Van service option to utilize Karmel's services. Reservations are required at least 48 hours in advance, and you can make these by calling 1-888-995-7433.
Get Away Today also offers discount prices for Karmel, so be sure to check these out! This is the best way to book this shuttle.
Lanksy
Lanksy is a luxury transportation service that offers private airport specials from LAX to Disneyland and hotels in the surrounding area, operating Monday-Sunday from 6am-11:30pm. Their Disneyland specials offer $180 for a one-way trip from LAX and $355 for a round trip for up to 6 passengers. With a seventh passenger, there is an additional $20 fee both ways.
As an added bonus if time allows, they provide a complimentary 30-minute grocery store stop or drive-thru fast food stop, as well as booster/car seats for toddlers. The advantage of this option is that you'll have plenty of space for a larger party with the car all to yourself (with no extra stops on the way to your destination), but the cost is higher than other options.
Lanksy is only offering curbside pickup currently during LAX’s construction. For this, guests will come out of baggage claim and cross to the island curbside under the passenger pickup zone sign. Then, they will let Lanksy know the number of the pole number, and a shuttle meets them within 10 minutes.
Other shuttles that take guests from LAX to Disneyland
There are other options for shuttles that take guests from LAX to Disneyland, including Prime Time Shuttle, LAX Airport Shuttle, Mickey's Space Ship Shuttle, Disneyland Express Shuttle (the service in the large branded buses was discontinued 3 years ago), Anaheim Town Car Services, and more. You can explore the different shuttle options and decide what works best for your party depending on how many people are in your group and how much luggage you have. Keep in mind that you might be sharing a shuttle with other guests depending on what option you choose, and space can be limited inside the vans. If you are traveling as a smaller party with lighter luggage, rideshare is typically the less expensive option.
Taxis From LAX to Disneyland
You can also use a taxi service to get from LAX to Disneyland. Taxis can be picked up at LAX-it (next to Terminal 1), inside Parking Structure 3 between Tom Bradley International Terminal (Terminal B) and Terminal 3, and at the end of Terminal 7 outside of baggage claim. The following taxi services are offered at LAX:
- Bell Cab Company
- Beverly Hills Cab Company
- City Cab
- Independent Taxi
- United Checker Cab
- United Independent Taxi Drivers (UITD)
- United Taxi of San Fernando Valley (UTSFV)
- Yellow Cab
The average cost of a taxi service from LAX to Disneyland is $100 or above, so we would recommend a rideshare option over this, as it is significantly cheaper.
Rental Cars at LAX
Rental cars are available at LAX, but these are not necessary unless you are planning on traveling to places other than Disneyland in the LA area. If you do want to rent a car, there will be shuttles from rental car companies picking guests up from the airline terminals. These shuttles meet guests under the purple Rental Car Shuttles sign on the Lower/Arrivals Level islands outside Baggage Claim. The following companies are authorized to pick up and drop off guests at the airport terminal:
- Alamo
- Avis
- Budget
- Dollar
- Enterprise
- Fox
- Hertz
- National
- Sixt
- Thrifty
- Zipcar
Other rental car companies are available, and guests must go to the Remote Rental Car Depot located at the intersection of Century and Airport Boulevards to access these. Wait under the pink LAX shuttle sign on the Lower/Arrivals Level in front of the terminals and board the “Metro Connector” Shuttle for transportation to the Remote Rental Car Depot. The following companies offer services there:
- Able Car Rental/Allied Rent A Car
- Ace Rent A Car
- Airport Van Rental
- Green Motion Car Rental
- Midway
- Next Car of Los Angeles
- Priceless of Los Angeles
- State Van Rental
- U-Save Car & Truck Rental
Los Angeles Metro System from LAX to Disneyland
Another option is traveling via the Los Angeles Metro System, which offers connected bus routes and rail lines. This option is by far the cheapest but also the most time consuming, taking a few hours. If you’re traveling with luggage or with small children, this is probably not the most convenient way to get from LAX to Disneyland, as there are multiple connections to make. We do not recommend taking public transportation from LAX to Disneyland.
After exiting Baggage Claim at LAX, wait under a pink LAX Shuttle sign on the Lower/Arrival Level islands, and you can take a shuttle from your airport terminal to the Aviation Station. After purchasing a TAP card at a kiosk to ride the train, you can board the Metro Rail Green line (headed east towards Norwalk), and once at Norwalk Station, board the Line 460 bus that goes to Disneyland.
A TAP card is $2 (plus fare) and includes transfers to Metro rail and bus. The regular fare is $1.75 for two hours of unlimited transfers in one direction.
Keep in mind that both the metro and the bus will have various stops, and this is what makes this option rather time-consuming. While it saves money, it can be an exhausting process, so it isn't our top recommendation for traveling from LAX to Disneyland.
Frequently Asked Questions About Disneyland Airport Transportation
How far is LAX from Disneyland?
LAX is about 40 miles from the Disneyland Resort. There are some options for airports that are closer, which you can read about in our guide to flying to Disneyland, but LAX offers flight options earlier and later in the day and often better rates.
How much is Uber and Lyft from LAX to Disneyland?
Uber prices vary from the airport to Disneyland but are usually about $73 for a standard ride, and Lyft ranges between $50-60 for a standard ride. Be sure to check both Uber and Lyft for the best price.
How much is a taxi from LAX to Disneyland?
A taxi from LAX to Disneyland typically costs around $100 plus tip.
Do you have to use LAX-it?
Due to LAX's construction, rideshare and taxi pickups have been moved to the LAX-it lot. While there are a few other pickup areas for taxis depending on which terminal you are coming out of, if you want to utilize a rideshare option, you need to go to LAX-it to be picked up.
How long is the average drive from LAX to Disneyland?
The average drive time is about 45 minutes but can take longer if the LA traffic is intense.
Can you take public transportation from LAX to Disneyland?
You can take public transportation to Disneyland from LAX, but the experience takes hours and is not pleasant with lots of stops and multiple transfers.
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