# Is John Wayne Airport worth the extra money?



## EZ Ed (Aug 21, 2007)

I've got a Spring break trip planned to Anaheim, and I want to know if I should save money and fly into LAX, rather than pay more and fly into John Wayne Airport, closer to Anaheim?  What's your opinion?
Thanks,
EZ Ed in SC  (South Carolina, not Southern California)


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## ricoba (Aug 21, 2007)

I would fly into LAX.  

Yes, I know it's got more traffic/congestion etc.  

But if the price difference is substantial, I personally think it's worth the hassle.

Are you renting a car or taking a shuttle?  If it's a shuttle of course it's going to be easy either way.

But if you are renting, don't let LA traffic intimidate you.  Just take your time and not worry about us other nut case LA drivers who go speeding by you like there is no tomorrow!!


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## geoffb (Aug 21, 2007)

I'll disagree and say that SNA is worth some extra cost if your destination is Anaheim. It is a nicer airport and in general the lines are shorter at security.


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## Luanne (Aug 21, 2007)

I would do anything I could to avoid LAX.  Both the traffic in and out of the airport itself, plus the surrounding area, is enough to deter me.

Check Ontario.  That might be cheaper.  Still further than John Wayne though.


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## davesdog (Aug 21, 2007)

sna car rental taxes are some of the lowest I have seen.


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## nygiants11991 (Aug 21, 2007)

I  would agree on the John Wayne.  It is a smaller airport, hence less hassle.  Haaver fun in So Cal


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## jlee2070 (Aug 22, 2007)

Long Beach may be an option (if flying Jet Blue)...


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## spookykennedy (Aug 22, 2007)

We LOVE Long Beach..shhh...we think it's a great So Cal secret.  We avoid LAX like the plague...


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## UWSurfer (Aug 22, 2007)

To Disney from LAX or John Wayne is roughly the same distance.

Hassle factor at LAX is easily double that of John Wayne.  I often book out of LAX because the fares just aren't close at all most of the time.

Long Beach is a dream of an airport and closer to Disney than either John Wayne or LAX.  Jet Blue & American fly into Long Beach.  When I lived closer to L.B. I flew out of it as much as possible.


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## Luanne (Aug 22, 2007)

UWSurfer said:


> To Disney from LAX or John Wayne is roughly the same distance.



Per mapquest.  LAX to Disneyland is 33.51 miles, John Wayne to Disneyland is 16 miles.


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## Hoc (Aug 22, 2007)

geoffb said:


> I'll disagree and say that SNA is worth some extra cost if your destination is Anaheim. It is a nicer airport and in general the lines are shorter at security.



From your comment, I would guess that you have not stood on those one- to two-hour security lines at SNA on weekday mornings.

For the most part, I would say that SNA is worth a little extra money if you are leaving or arriving during peak traffic hours, and assuming that you can't get a nonstop flight into LAX.  Often, however, you can get a nonstop into LAX while you have to connect to get into or out of SNA.  That adds more than an hour to your trip right there.  LAX is a more interesting airport with more to do while you are waiting, but SNA is newer and more sterile.  If you are not leaving during peak hours, the drive to SNA vs. LAX from Anaheim is probably about 20 minutes' different at best.  So, the couple of hundred dollars you save by flying into and out of LAX is often the deciding factor.

My preferred airport is Long Beach (LGB), but very few carriers use that one anymore.  The proximity and lack of crowds are what make it better.


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## Phill12 (Aug 22, 2007)

Luanne said:


> Per mapquest.  LAX to Disneyland is 33.51 miles, John Wayne to Disneyland is 16 miles.



 We have flown into John Wayne airport from Oakland few times and had bus to Disney and this was great! Of coarse we have been to Disney many times so we didn't need the car to drive around because we have seen about everything there is to see!

 One thing about this area is miles just don't matter! I have taken over two hours to drive ten miles in LA so I would always fly into a different airport!

 Sorry but I don't remember paying more to land at JW Airport! It might be father for some and this is reason for higher rate.


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## geoffb (Aug 22, 2007)

When I travel in that area I usually come into SNA from MHT via LAS or another Southwest city so LAX offers no major price or non-stop advantage.

I have considered using JetBlue to LGB from BVT but the fares haven't been competitive.


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## Bill4728 (Aug 22, 2007)

Coming from Seattle, we can fly direct into any of the LA airports. 

Lax is almost always cheaper, often by $50/person. SNA is generally the most and Long Beach is a little cheaper than SNA. LB is by far our favorite. It is a little farther than SNA to our TS in Orange County but as was said earlier miles in LA just don't matter much. 

The lines at the other airports can be sooo looong that you'll wish you had paid a little extra to go to an airport without lines. I've waited for 2 hours to get a rental car at LAX. Never again!!


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## cr4909 (Aug 22, 2007)

Hoc said:


> From your comment, I would guess that you have not stood on those one- to two-hour security lines at SNA on weekday mornings.


It's no picnic if you're leaving late at night either.  It seems like their proportion of security staff to passengers just isn't nearly enough.  Maybe it's improved in the past year or so since I haven't personally used JWA recently.

Overall, yes, JWA is less "hassle" than LAX, however you want to define it.  During peak hours, though, the traffic is horrendous, around an hour to get to Anaheim during rush hour.  The car pool lanes may help a bit, but not by much. 

If you're flying from a smaller regional airport in S.C., I'm guessing you'll need one-stop to get to either LAX or John Wayne.  I personally don't find LAX that bad.  I'll agree with the general consensus that I'd pay a little more for JWA, but I'd choose LAX if there's a noticable price difference OR I can get a non-stop to LAX.


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## Hoc (Aug 22, 2007)

cr4909 said:


> Maybe it's improved in the past year or so . . . .



It hasn't.  On weekday mornings, when I am not flying American (where I can take advantage of elite security lines), I allot myself at least an extra hour for parking and security lines (arriving two hours before scheduled departure time), and just about three weeks ago still found myself running through the airport to get to the gate just before the doors closed.


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## labguides (Aug 22, 2007)

I don't know John Wayne airport, but I would pay more to avoid LAX.


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## ricoba (Aug 23, 2007)

cr4909 said:


> During peak hours, though, the traffic is horrendous, around an hour to get to Anaheim during rush hour.  The car pool lanes may help a bit, but not by much.



That's one factor that folks from outside our area are neglecting when they say avoid LAX.

If you hit the traffic around JW at rush hour it's just as bad as LA traffic.


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## UWSurfer (Aug 23, 2007)

Luanne said:


> Per mapquest.  LAX to Disneyland is 33.51 miles, John Wayne to Disneyland is 16 miles.



Probably true...but there's quite a bit of construction on the 22 frwy which mapquest probably routed you.  At the wrong time of day...either drive is no fun.


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## Hoc (Aug 23, 2007)

ricoba said:


> If you hit the traffic around JW at rush hour it's just as bad as LA traffic.



Point of fact: I was commuting home today (about 10 miles, starting from just about across the street from SNA), leaving work at about 6 pm.  It took nearly an hour and a half to go the 10 miles from SNA to my house in Huntington Beach, which normally takes about 10 minutes if there is no traffic.  It took nearly 20 minutes to get from one side of the Warner/Magnolia offramp to the other side alone, about 100 to 200 yards.  Very frustrating.  Although this evening's traffic was particularly bad, you never know when it's going to be like that.


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## Luanne (Aug 23, 2007)

ricoba said:


> That's one factor that folks from outside our area are neglecting when they say avoid LAX.
> 
> If you hit the traffic around JW at rush hour it's just as bad as LA traffic.



Right.  But I'd rather be in rush hour traffic for 16 miles than for 33.


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## EZ Ed (Aug 23, 2007)

*Thanks for all your help!*

Folks,
     As always, I'm amazed by your responses and your helpfulness.  It also helps me to compare your ideas of traffic with my own.  I never go wrong when I ask for help from fellow Tuggers.  I'm leaning towards avoiding LAX, even though some of you would find it foolish perhaps.  Different strokes for...you know the rest.
EZ Ed in SC


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## toxicesq (Aug 27, 2007)

One other thing. Car rental offices (at least the ones for major companies) are located across the road from the terminals at SNA and LGB.  Just roll your suitcases across the street.  No lifting heavy bags up and down the stairs of a shuttle bus to get to the rental center.

LGB is considerably smaller than SNA and there are no jetways  to get you on the plane.  You have to climb up stairs from the tarmac to the plane.  That can be a factor if you are traveling with a heavy carry-on bag.  But I have never encountered more than a five minute wait to go through security at LGB.


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## JohnnyO (Aug 28, 2007)

The 22 is great now that most of the construction is done.  Most of the rest of the needed work is cosmetic and all lanes are open every time I drive it.  It is even beter if you can use the car pool lane.

I always try to stay off the 55 during rush hour especially when headed into central OC....there are many side thoroughfares that are faster.

I always try to avoid LAX unless the price difference is substantial.  I prefer Long Beach and then John Wayne Orange County.



UWSurfer said:


> Probably true...but there's quite a bit of construction on the 22 frwy which mapquest probably routed you.  At the wrong time of day...either drive is no fun.


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## chemist562 (Aug 30, 2007)

UWSurfer said:


> I often book out of LAX because the fares just aren't close at all most of the time.
> 
> Long Beach is a dream of an airport and closer to Disney than either John Wayne or LAX.  Jet Blue & American fly into Long Beach.  When I lived closer to L.B. I flew out of it as much as possible.



AA hasn't flown into LGB for at least a year. Only a few airlines go into LGB. 
Most flights are with Jet Blue. American West & Alaska have flights. I live <3 miles from LGB, yet most of my flights are out of LAX. SNA is usually alot more $ to fly & LGB is more limited. I do rent alot of cars out of LGB for road trips. convenient. If I can fly jet blue cheaply, I would go out of LGB. My next few flights are on Southwest from LAX. Paid about $100 average for each RT for long hauls obtained on DING fares.

I usually can find parking deals at LAX. For my upcoming trip to DTW, I am paying $17 for 4 days of parking near LAX. I would pay almost that much for just one day parking at John Wayne.


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## John Cummings (Aug 30, 2007)

I have used all of the airports in the LA area except for Long Beach. My home airport is Ontario which I consider to be the best depending on your final destination. If you are traveling to Palm Springs, Escondido ( LW resort etc. ), or anywhere else on the east side then Ontario is great. Ontario has great parking, easy access and security check is very quick. Ontario is generally not good for Anaheim as it is quite a distance and the traffic can be horrendous.

I always used Burbank instead of LAX for traveling into downtown LA or points north.

I try to avoid LAX at all costs but often it is the only airport where I can get direct non-stop flights which is very important to me. Non-stop and flight schedule is more important to me than cost. However I have to weigh in the ease of dealing with the airport which is where Ontario shines. There are many non-stop flights into Ontario from select cities such as Seattle.

I used to use John Wayne quite often when we lived in San Diego but haven't used it for the last couple of years. It was definitely easier to navigate than LAX but not as easy as Ontario.

If we have a morning flight out of LAX then we will stay at an airport hotel the night before rather than deal with the morning commute traffic. Of course you have to consider the cost of the hotel room ( $150+ ) if cost is a factor.

In summary, I would look at both LAX and SNA for Anaheim. Check the schedules, non-stop flights, commute traffic, cost, and then make a decision based on your priorities.


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## Bill4728 (Aug 30, 2007)

One more thing:

If Disneyland is your final stop, then both SNA and LB are both close and either would be a good choice.

But if Marriott's Newport Coast is your resort, SNA is so very close it hard not to choose it. You don't even need to go on the freeway to get to the resort from the airport. ( although for our Dec 2007 trip the extra $175/ ticket for the four of us, had me buying at Long Beach)


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