When Northern California families are planning vacations down to Anaheim to see Mickey Mouse, the first big trip planning question many face is how to get there. To drive or to fly? That is the question!
Los Angeles and San Francisco are approximately 380 miles apart. It's a 6 hour drive (without traffic) from the San Francisco Bay Area to Disneyland or a 1 hour and 15 minute flight. What should you choose?
My family is certainly a bit biased in favor of flying. We enjoy air travel and love being able to do it on the cheap with our frequent flyer mile addiction. For quite some time, we were a family of three, meaning that we only had to purchase 3 airline tickets (and, in fact, we only purchased 2 seats on our daughter's first Disneyland trip at 22 month when she flew as a lap child). Now that we are a family of four, however, the calculus changes a bit.
When Disney invited me on fairly short notice for a family blogger weekend special event, we decided it was time to join the ranks of families driving down I-5 from the Bay Area to Disneyland. I dreaded having to strap a newly toddling 14 month old in a car seat for that length of time. I worried we would hit terrible traffic as we approached Los Angeles on a Friday evening not long after rush hour. I lamented a missed chance to earn frequently flyer miles (well, not really).

It turns out that our drive from San Francisco to Disneyland was quite successful. We managed to make only one stop at the midpoint of the trip on the way there and the way back, and the kids listened to Disney songs and slept a large portion of the trip. It's a boring drive, but it's an experience that I would have no qualms recommending to others, including frequent flyers.
But how do you decide whether to drive or fly on a trip-by-trip basis? I've put together some factors to help you make that decision for your next trip.
San Francisco to Disneyland Drive vs. Fly Factors to Consider
1) Cost
Everyone assumes that road trips are substantially cheaper than air travel, but that is not always the case, even for families. You have to consider not only gas, but also wear and tear on your car, insurance costs, and the like. At the current IRS standard mileage reimbursement rate of 56 cents per mile, driving from San Francisco to Disneyland will "cost" your family $448 round trip.
What about air travel? During fare sales, I've regularly been able to snag roundtrip airfare from the Bay Area into a number of Los Angeles area airports for $120-140. If you have 3 members of your family who need tickets, a $130 airfare totals $390 for your family -- actually a bit cheaper than driving. Of course, if you are booking a trip at the last minute or have a larger family, the balance begins to shift towards driving.
Before you make your cost assessment, also don't forget about parking. You'll likely have to pay for parking at the airport if you fly, but you'll probably have to pay for parking at most hotels near Disneyland if you drive.
2) Convenience & Airport Accessibility

Most casual travelers heading from the Bay Area to Disneyland check SFO to LAX flights and call it a day. Those are both busy airports. I can see why many families hate to fly that route and instead opt to drive.
This approach may not make sense at all, however, depending on where you live in the Bay Area. With a little knowledge of all the airport and airline choices, air travel from the Bay Area to Anaheim can be quite convenient.
The most convenient airport to Disneyland is actually the John Wayne/Santa Ana airport (SNA) and it is only a 20 minute drive from the Disneyland gates. It is also a small airport that is exceptionally easy to navigate with kids. Long Beach is another smart option that is about 30 minutes away from Disneyland. It's also quite compact and has an increasing number of flight choices. Flying into LAX, on the other hand, can subject your family to some gnarly traffic just getting to and from Anaheim after you land. LAX can also be a travel nightmare for families with kids.
So which airlines and routes are best? Southwest Airlines (my favorite airline for family travel these days) flies from all three Bay Area airports (SFO, OAK, and SJC) to SNA non-stop many times a day. Southwest flights are not available to search through online travel search engines, so be sure to check the Southwest website directly. Southwest has also recently expanded in LGB, flying 4 routes daily from OAK and 4 routes from SJC.
For additional Long Beach travel options, JetBlue offers two non-stop flights a day from OAK to LGB and two more a day from SFO to LGB. United also offers a couple of daily non-stop flights from SFO to SNA. Check for these airlines and airports to find the most convenient option before discarding the idea of flying out of hand.
SFO to LAX is not the only option and probably isn't even the best one! Be sure not to miss my complete guide to flying to Disneyland for even more tips and details.
3) Traffic

Even though the drive from San Francisco to the Los Angeles area is about 6 hours, traffic can be a major wildcard that may not make it worth the risk for some family trips. You will avoid a substantial amount of gridlock by taking Interstate 5 (instead of Highway 101), but there is still the chance for major traffic jams leaving the Bay Area and approaching Los Angeles. It is crucial that you time your drive to miss rush hour windows in both places.
Related: Check out 510 Families's guide and tips for I-5 road tripping, with lots of fun kid-friendly stops to make the drive easier!
And it is also important to do your research about major events in either city to determine if those events would cause substantially greater traffic issues. Sitting in an unmoving car with young kids for hours on end is a recipe for family travel disaster. An airline flight might be looking much easier in comparison.

4) Time
Time is money. If you are trying to make a short weekend trip down to Anaheim, it often doesn't make sense to factor 12+ hours of driving time into your vacation. People largely assume that flying is substantially quicker than driving. While it is quicker, just how much quicker? I did the math for my family's particular situation and you should do the same for yours. Simply calculate the following and compare it to a (roughly) 6-7 hour drive:
Drive to airport + time to arrive before flight + flight time + bag collection time (if needed) + drive to Anaheim hotel = Total travel time
Here is how my family's options stack up: (Note: I live just 12 minutes door-to-door from the Oakland airport, but I have to allow 1 hour drive time for SFO due to potential traffic.)
OAK to SNA:
- 15 mins (drive to OAK) + 1 hr 15 mins arrive before flight + 1 hr 15 mins flight time + 30 mins bag collection time + 15 mins ride to Disneyland = 3 hrs 30 mins
SFO to LAX:
- 1 hr (drive to SFO) + 1 hr 15 mins arrive before flight + 1 hr 15 mins flight time + 30 mins bag collection time + 1 hr ride to Disneyland = 5 hrs
You can see that SFO to LAX for me is not a substantial time savings over driving. When I can snag a flight from OAK to SNA at a reasonable price, it is still my preferred choice if the price is (remotely) right!
How does your family prefer to travel from the Bay Area to Disneyland? Do you drive or fly? What have been your challenges and successes with either choice?

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Disclosure: Disneyland graciously hosted my family for three days and two nights at a family blogger weekend during our recent road trip to Anaheim. My family regularly takes other Disneyland visits at our own expense. As always, all opinions are my own.
This post was last updated and is factually current as of May 18, 2019.
Amy, Using Our Words says
Great post! Since we have family (and lived in) So Cal, driving is a no brainer for us. We know the stops, we can drive by to see family/friends on the way to/from. There's a bit more feeling of control to me in driving too. Our movies/space/snacks/etc. But the two times I have flown, SJC (San Jose) to SNA (Orange County) has been cost effective (for two or one vs. five) for me. Very thoughtful info. Thanks!
Amy Ruiz Fritz says
I'm a road trip gal mostly I think because we used to drive down to LA when I was a kid. Where did you stop? We usually stopped right before the Grapevine to get lunch. I remember when there wasn't much there or anywhere else along I-5 for that matter.
tripswithtykes says
We stopped a little earlier in the trip - about 45 minutes or so before the Grapevine. That's a desolate stretch, but there are exits with fast food places every 15-20 minutes or so. I think we will definitely drive more in the future. I love to fly, but the drive just wasn't that bad and will only get easier as kids get older. Thanks for stopping by to comment!
agirlandaboy says
My mother-in-law lives in Orange County, and I can't remember the last time we flew to visit her. Our routine is to load up the car and the kids (and the caffeine) after dinner and drive through the night (so the kids sleep and never complain they're bored!). We make one stop for gas and bathrooms and usually get to the Disneyland vicinity around 1 or 2 in the morning. The traffic can't be beat in the middle of the night. One reason this plan works is that because we're staying with family, the adults can sleep in the next day while the kids run wild with Grandma. If I had to get up the next morning for a full Disneyland day, this would obviously not be a great plan. (Hooray for grandmas!)
Amanda says
I was apprehensive, but our three kiddos (1, 3, and 6) did really well for our first road trip from Alameda to Santa Ana (where we stayed for a work conference prior to the Disney Day.) We didn't leave quite early enough that morning and so we experienced some slow moving rush hour LA traffic which added about 90 minutes to the total trip Thankfully, we kept moving and weren't stopped for hours in gridlock. It helped to know to stop for gas fill-up and food before the Grapevine Area and have realistic expectations about LA traffic because it could have been much, much worse!
Fly Or Drive Support (@FlyDriveSupport) says
I actually just released an iPhone app that can help with scenarios just like this! The app is called Fly or Drive! (Unique name I know) This app is designed to aid travelers who want to travel on a budget. Simply input your car make and model, your destination, and the departure date and Fly or Drive will help you decide if a flight or a road trip will be a better deal.
tripswithtykes says
Great concept - thanks for coming by to comment! Looking forward to checking it out.