Disneyland Uber & Lyft 2024: Dropoff, Pickup, Tips, Cost (2024)

Using Uber and Lyft at Disneyland is extremely easy and convenient. Renting a car on your Disneyland trip can be costly especially when paying for parking at the hotels and theme parks. You can use Uber and Lyft to get to Disneyland from the airport or to get to the park from your hotel.

Keep reading for tips on using Uber and Lyft at Disneyland including price estimates, tips on Disneyland’s drop-off and pick-up for Lyft and Uber, and how to use rideshare.

How to Use Lyft and Uber in Disneyland

Follow our easy step-by-step guide to using Uber and Lyft at Disneyland. The below is a getting started checklist for the two services if you have never used rideshare before. In the sections after this we will discuss the Disneyland Uber and Lyft pickup and dropoff locations, costs, and our tips.

1. Download the Lyft or Uber app and sign up for an account.
2. Get $10 off your Lyft! Use Disneyland Lyft discount code GAVIN341751 or click here and get $5 off your first two rides if you’re a first-time user. If you’ve already used Lyft, perhaps someone in your group hasn’t so make sure to ask. Unfortunately, Uber is not using any discounts currently.
3. After you sign up for an account, you will see a place to input your destination, and your phone will automatically know where you’re located to be picked up from. Make sure you are outside in the spot you will be picked up from.
4. There are different types of cars and services which vary based on whether it’s a luxury car, a regular car that can fit four people, or a larger vehicle to fit 6-8, along with the ability to select higher-rated drivers.
5. Once you pressed the button to call the driver, you will see a time show up on the screen, and information on the Uber or Lyft driver appears in the bottom third of the screen.
6. You can track the car as it approaches on the map and contact the driver via the contact button below their name if they get lost or are taking longer than expected.
7. At the end of your ride, you will be billed for the trip and will have the option to rate the driver and leave a tip.

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Where to Get Dropped Off at Disneyland Using Uber/Lyft

Disneyland has a dedicated spot right near the entrance on Harbor Blvd. for Disneyland Uber and Lyft drop-offs and pick-ups. There are benches and enough space for rows of cars to drive up to pick up guests or drop them off. This Disneyland Uber and Lyft drop-off area is used by both rideshare and regular drop-offs.

When coming from Harbor Boulevard, you can find this area just to the left before you enter the pathway into Disneyland where the busses line up. You can see on our map below of where the Uber and Lyft pick up at Disneyland that the drop-off area is just outside the main Harbor Boulevard security entrance to the Disneyland Resort. This is a short walk.

The only downside to this parking area is it’s quite small to fit the needs of a theme park and at the end of the night, the line for rideshare drivers to enter can be very long and will stretch out on Harbor. The line will be the worst just after the fireworks end as many guests tend to leave around the same time. You will be able to see if your driver is caught in this line on the app and you’ll know to just wait it out.

The mornings are much smoother as many guests all arrive at different times so you won’t experience a long line to enter the drop-off area. This seems to only apply to the evening after the fireworks end. You can also get picked up at the Downtown Disney passenger pickup area that is down near the Disneyland Hotel.

Can I Uber / Lyft to Grand Californian Hotel, Disneyland Hotel, or Paradise Pier?

The official rule from Disney is that you can only be picked up from the main Uber and Lyft drop-off and pickup area that we shared above or the Downtown Disney pickup area.

If you are enjoying the amenities of the hotels, can also typically be picked up from any of the three Disneyland Resort Hotels – Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel, the Disneyland Hotel, and the soon-to-be rethemed Paradise Pier Hotel to Disney’s Pixar Place Hotel. Though we have never had an issue being picked up at any of these three hotels, guests are discouraged from being dropped off at the hotels unless they are hotel guests, are attending specific events hosted at those hotels, or have a reservation for dining at one of the restaurants within that specific hotel. The same can be said for being picked up here, so your experiences may vary.

Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel is particularly strict and will not let Ubers and Lyfts drop off here unless the passengers are hotel guests, are dining, or have a specific event they are attending at the hotel. We have seen rideshare cars literally turned away at the gate of Disney’s Grand Californian. In one interesting experience, we were headed to a dinner reservation at one of the restaurants in the Grand Californian and our Lyft driver asked us if we were guests of the hotel because otherwise they would turn us away. Clearly, our Lyft driver had experienced being turned from Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel with another passenger.

Why Use Rideshare at Disneyland?

Using Uber or Lyft at Disneyland is convenient if you are in a hotel that’s not in close walking distance to the park. Whether you want to save your energy for the parks or cannot physically handle the walk, using Uber or Lyft at Disneyland is the most convenient way to get back and forth.

There is a high concentration of Uber and Lyft drivers around Disneyland so you can always find a ride without hassle even if you are only going a few blocks away. The pickup time for a Uber or Lyft was usually never more than 5 minutes each time we used it to get to the parks from our hotel or vice versa. We have not had issues getting Ubers and Lyfts from our close hotels to the Disneyland Resort.

Using Uber or Lyft at Disneyland is also much more convenient than using the ART bus to get to the parks. The ART bus is a transportation system that offers rides from guest hotels to Disneyland every 30 minutes from opening to close. You simply find the bus stop closest to your hotel, usually they’re right out front or just a few steps away, and take the bus to Disneyland. Using rideshare is much more convenient as the wait times for Uber or Lyft is never as long as the ART bus and you do not have to wait for the bus to make multiple stops on the way.

When it comes to price, a one-way trip from a nearby hotel (let’s say within a five-minute driving distance of Disneyland) to Disneyland is roughly $7 per ride. This is for a standard ride that can fit up to four people. Now if we compare that with the price of ART, a one-way pass is $4 per adult or $1.50 per child under 9. So the cost may be a bit less or come out to the same. But you’re ultimately picking convenience with rideshare.

Is Uber Safe to Use at Disneyland?

Uber and Lyft both complete background checks for all their drivers. In addition to that, both apps have a five-star rating system along with a record of how many rides a driver has completed.Drivers risk being dropped from the system if their rating falls below 4.5 stars so that means they’re held to a 90% positive rating.

Also based on my personal experience of using rideshare frequently to get to and from Disneyland, I have had positive experiences with all my drivers. I even had the same Uber driver three times on a trip once which was a fun scenario as he remembered us and we chatted the whole time. I have always felt comfortable using Uber or Lyft near Disneyland since all the drivers have high ratings and many drive full-time.

Do Uber and Lyft Have Car Seats Available in the Disneyland Area?

Though there are special offerings from Uber and Lyft with cars that carry car seats, it is not a good idea to be dependent on waiting for an Uber or Lyft with a car seat option near Disneyland. You do not want to be stranded waiting for an Uber or Lyft at the end of the night that does not have a car seat waiting for you. Ubers and Lyfts with car seats near Disneyland are not guaranteed.

To avoid carrying around a clunky car seat at Disneyland, we recommend the inflatable bubble bum car seat which you can easily deflate and put into a backpack or stroller to carry with you in the parks. Our friend’s little ones really like these and have even gotten into the routine of helping to get them inflated for use riding from the hotel to the parks.

Cons of Using Lyft and Uber at Disneyland

One con of Uber/Lyft is surge pricing near Disneyland which is enabled when drivers are being used near capacity. If there aren’t enough drivers to keep up with current demand, surge pricing comes into play and the price of rides can skyrocket up to twice the normal cost.

The app will notify you right before you book if surge pricing is active and you can also have it notify you when surge pricing ends.

However, I have never personally experienced surge pricing at Disneyland even when calling for a ride when the park is closing and the pickup area is swarmed with people. This is not something that seems to happen too often at Disneyland as there are plenty of drivers in the Anaheim area.

Another con is the cost of using Uber or Lyft to get to Disneyland can add up depending on how many trips you want to take to and from the park in a day. If you are only going to the park in the morning and coming back at the end of the day, you’ll be paying roughly around $14-18 per day. But if you want to come back to your hotel for a break, that adds to more trips and you’d be paying closer to $40 per day. In that scenario, using the ART bus will work best if you are looking for a more cost-effective method.

We also recommend utilizing rideshare to get from the airport to Disneyland. You can read our guides to getting to Disneyland from LAX, getting to Disneyland from John Wayne SNA, and getting to Disneyland from Long Beach here. It is also a great way to get from Disneyland to Universal Studios Hollywood.