Public transport San Diego/Anaheim/La

[dreamofmagic]

In the very very early planning stages and wondering if we should bother with car hire it’s only my husband that can drive, we would be looking at 2 week in total prob do 5 days San Diego, then 4 in Anaheim and then finish up in LA for universal is it possible/easy enough to get around using public transport and any advice on this thanks

[KarenG]

Is it possible - yes. Is it convenient in terms of getting around - definitely not.

If you are determined to not rent a car we can help with suggestions, but honestly, it will be much easier if you do.

[keith1973]

Tbh it’s really a place where you need a car in my opinion public transportation is not the best

[Bad Pink Tink]

I don't drive and I use public transport in LA.

I have a TAP Card - similar system to Oyster Card in London. Its valid for use on buses and underground in LA.

The area of LA is extremely spread out, journeys take far longer than you expect. Most of the time I allow 1 hour between point A and point B.

Also you may find places you want to go are not on bus or underground routes.

You should thoroughly research routes and the areas of LA you travel through as public transport is not generally used by tourists, so you may inadvertently mark yourselves as targets. Generally I find travel during the day is fine but I don't use public transport once it gets dark.

There are very limited public transport options at LAX, other than Uber / Lyft and private car services, there are just 2 shuttle bus companies - Karmel and FlyAway.

[zoemoo]

Not sure about travel in San Diego, but you can easily get from there to Anaheim by train.
Key is location of hotel... we stayed near Disneyland and simply relaxed in Anaheim so didn’t get about too much.
We moved into LA ‘proper’ and stayed in Hollywood so we could easily get about. We used subway to universal and the HOHO to get to all tourist spots including Beverly Hills, Farmer Market and Santa Monica.
It wasn’t quick, but we didn’t feel we missed anything and since it’s a tour bus it was easy and relaxed.
Hope this helps...

[dreamofmagic]

Thanks everyone for your advice, will investigate some more, for Anaheim would be staying as close as we could afford to Disney and also the same for universal, it’s mainly the San Diego part I’m unsure of and also the getting to universal from Anaheim, will investigate thanks for your help

[Bad Pink Tink]

Originally Posted by dreamofmagic

Thanks everyone for your advice, will investigate some more, for Anaheim would be staying as close as we could afford to Disney and also the same for universal, it’s mainly the San Diego part I’m unsure of and also the getting to universal from Anaheim, will investigate thanks for your help

See more...

For Disneyland, there are 2 options without a car

Stay walking distance, the many properties on Harbour Boulevard down to Katella Avenue are less than 15 minutes walk to the pedestrian entrance on Harbour Boulevard.

Or stay a bit further away and use the local bus network called ART which has a pick up / drop off point at the Harbour Boulevard bag check area.

For Universal Studios you have 2 options, stay "onsite" at Hilton or Sheridan
or stay somewhere in Hollywood and use the red line metro to get to Universal. Many people recommend Lowes Hotel which is located behind The Chinese Theatre and Hollywood and Highland Mall, right in the main part of Hollywood Boulevard / Walk of Fame.

The route to Disneyland from Universal.
For example sake I'm going to assume you are staying "onsite" at Hilton or Sheridan

1. Take the free shuttle from Universal City Walk down to Universal City Metro Stop
2. Cross the street and go down to the underground platform
3. Take the red line metro all the way to Union Station
4. Come up from the underground platform to the main train station concourse
5. Walk to the Pacific Surfliner platform
6. Take the Pacific Surfliner train to Anaheim Artic train Satation
7. Take the number 15 ART Bus to Disneyland Area
8. Walk to your hotel.

You need to be able to haul your luggage between the various transport modes and be able to walk short distances with your luggage.

I do this route almost every year on my summer trip to LA / Disneyland.

I am solo and I have 1 23kg rolling case and a back pack.

There are lifts at the various stations but you should also be capable of hauling your luggage on the escalators in the event that the lifts are not working.

[dreamofmagic]

Originally Posted by Bad Pink Tink

For Disneyland, there are 2 options without a car

Stay walking distance, the many properties on Harbour Boulevard down to Katella Avenue are less than 15 minutes walk to the pedestrian entrance on Harbour Boulevard.

Or stay a bit further away and use the local bus network called ART which has a pick up / drop off point at the Harbour Boulevard bag check area.

For Universal Studios you have 2 options, stay "onsite" at Hilton or Sheridan
or stay somewhere in Hollywood and use the red line metro to get to Universal. Many people recommend Lowes Hotel which is located behind The Chinese Theatre and Hollywood and Highland Mall, right in the main part of Hollywood Boulevard / Walk of Fame.

The route to Disneyland from Universal.
For example sake I'm going to assume you are staying "onsite" at Hilton or Sheridan

1. Take the free shuttle from Universal City Walk down to Universal City Metro Stop
2. Cross the street and go down to the underground platform
3. Take the red line metro all the way to Union Station
4. Come up from the underground platform to the main train station concourse
5. Walk to the Pacific Surfliner platform
6. Take the Pacific Surfliner train to Anaheim Artic train Satation
7. Take the number 15 ART Bus to Disneyland Area
8. Walk to your hotel.

You need to be able to haul your luggage between the various transport modes and be able to walk short distances with your luggage.

I do this route almost every year on my summer trip to LA / Disneyland.

I am solo and I have 1 23kg rolling case and a back pack.

There are lifts at the various stations but you should also be capable of hauling your luggage on the escalators in the event that the lifts are not working.

See more...

Great advice! Thanks very much for your help, I’ve been looking at the Howard Johnson hotel near Disneyland as think my son will enjoy the water park too, think we might be better hiring a car as my son will only be 9 when we go and I hadn’t even thought about our cases!

[mrsdjh]

Disney Wishing has done a couple of trip reports on her trips to California using only public transport including the areas you’re thinking of. They’re very informative.

[marypoppins38]

San Diego is really easy to get around without a car. We spent 8 days there without one. Its a compact city so Uber is really cheap to get to wherever you need to go. We worked out that it would have been much more expensive to rent a car and then pay for parking (which like most cities, is expensive).