Last year was my first time flying to Anaheim to participate in the Inaugural Dumbo Double Dare race weekend. I watched the flights for that race for several months. I chose to fly into John Wayne Airport (SNA) because it was closer to Anaheim and LAX. Considering I was flying there alone and renting a car (for the first time at the age of 41), I didn’t want to have to drive from LA to Anaheim. I was lucky that all of my flights were on time.
I arrived on schedule to California and got off the plane (with carry ons only) and headed down to the car rental area. I learned a few lessons about car rentals. It is best to sign up for the Express check-out where you just have to find a car in your price level and then you can take it from the lot and sign out without having to go to the main car rental desk and the whole process of checking out a car. I also learned that you DON’T need all the extra insurance they offer to you.
Next, when you get into the car, set up your GPS ahead of time so you are all set to hit the road with the navigation system telling you where to go right away. As I drove out of the airport I was sitting on the entrance to a highway and I had NO idea where I was going. I pulled over and fumbled through my papers to get the address of the hotel and get my phone working with the GPS and the car charger and Bluetooth so that I could call home to my family while travelling to my destination. That’s another bad idea. Get settled and comfortable with where you are going before you start making your phone calls! I was sitting there sweating, in a little Fiat with huge airplanes flying over head while I was getting myself oriented.
Once I started driving it was ok, The route to Disneyland is pretty easy and quick. The trip back to the airport was even quicker. It felt more direct and was much less traffic on Sunday of Labor Day weekend as opposed to Friday at 5:00 on a holiday weekend. I planned on returning home the same day as the race so that I could spend the Labor Day holiday with my family. I took a 1:00 flight home so I had to rush back to my off-site hotel to shower, eat and finish packing up the last of my things. I did have enough time and plan on taking a flight home the same day of the race this year as well. I don’t have to rush as much because I will be staying on property at the Disneyland Hotel and my flight is also at 3:00 p.m. I wanted to have time after the race this year to shower and enjoy a meal with my friends before heading out.
I really enjoyed this race. Out of all the Disney races I think this was my favorite so far. I have done the marathon in 2013 as my first marathon, Dumbo Double Dare (2013), Tower of Terror (2013), The 10K and full marathon (2014), Glass Slipper Challenge (2014). Out of all of those races, I liked The Dumbo Race Weekend because of the race course. Out of all the races I did in Disneyland and Disney World these races had the most time in the park. I had awesome photo opportunities at these races and got to see the parks. I hadn’t purchased a park pass for this trip but was totally ok with that. I loved seeing what I had seen while in the parks for the races and enjoyed the races thoroughly (except for the last 4 miles of the half marathon because of the terrible heat and humidity).
Besides the heat, this event was a great time for me. I loved travelling alone to a far off city, having some quiet time to myself, venturing out to Downtown Disney and participating in several meetups. Hooking up with my friends Mandy and Kenn Remo and their two sons for dinners and the races. And I also enjoyed shopping for my family at Downtown Disney. Each runDisney event has its own unique characteristics. I would like to one day participate in the Tink, Avengers, or Star Wars races out West, but for now I’ll stick to Dumbo.
Thanks for the post. From a fellow blog hopper, this was good info. We are flying out there from SC into LAX on Friday! Luckily we have friends in LA to drive us from the airport to our hotel at Paradise Pier. Check out my post at doombuggyrunner.com on Disneyland Weekend Medals. Thanks
Having someone drive you is much easier. I really wanted to avoid going to LAX as much as possible. Thanks for the comments! I will check out your blog as well!
I prefer John Wayne Airport too! Much closer to Disneyland and it’s smaller and less stressful than LAX. I usually try to fly out of there when I can although sometimes I end up leaving from LAX if it’s cheaper. That’s neat that you were able to take a solo trip and get some alone time as well as participate in meetups! Sounds like a great experience! 🙂
Nerissa, It was a great experience. It was so much fun. I am looking forward to returning there again, and this time I am reuniting with many friends from Florida races along with the friends that I am rooming with. I don’t mind rooming alone either. As a mom of 2 small kids, it’s not a bad thing having some quiet time if you know what I mean! 🙂
Fellow blog hop here 🙂
Loved reading your post, glad you were able to find your way easily. I can only imagine how nerve wrecking it can be to fly into a different city on your own. Luckily for me, I’m in San Diego and frequent Disneyland so no airline worries for me!
Marina, I didn’t freak out, it was more of a comical event for me. Not a big deal, but the funniest part was driving the fiat and it has manual/automatic option so the RPMS were screaming while I was in traffic on the highway. I was wondering why so many people were looking at me!
I’ve always wanted to arrive via the John Wayne Airport (it’s such a COOL name), but the best fares for us (from Canada) have always been through LAX.
I’ll keep looking, though!
I have been watching the price for months and had to make a last minute decision. I didn’t get the best price but it wasn’t robbery either. To me the price was worth the convenience of arriving close to Anaheim and also a quick return back to the airport on Sunday.
I have only flown into LAX once…never again! We almost missed our flight home because there was so much traffic going back! So we fly into SNA almost exclusively now. Also, since we pretty much never leave Disney property, we take Super Shuttle to travel between the hotel and the airport…door to door service for a good price! Especially if you’re travelling alone! I hope you do get to do the other Disneyland races in the future! 🙂
Thanks for sharing some of your travel angst with us Pam- it not only put a smile on my face, but reminded me of many of my own “live and learn” moments! After flying into John Wayne Airport for 30 years I finally decided I could get a better rate flying into LAX for the inaugural Tinker Bell Half Marathon. What a mess! I now realize how lucky I was to avoid that airport for all those years. NEVER AGAIN is my motto; SNA rules!! Thank you for hopping with us again Pam. We love your style! 😀
Oh Pamela I’m applauding you for braving SoCal traffic on the Friday of a holiday weekend (a) by yourself and (b) for the first trip to Anaheim. Brave brave soul. I grew up in LA, and lived there for the first 34 years of my life (with a 3-year hiatus for law school) and the idea of that makes ME nervous. You are smart for flying to John Wayne. Avoid LAX like the plague. . If you ever need to fly to LAX, take a limo to Anaheim. You’ll need it.