Rent car at SNA or Pixar Place?

[tissandtully]

Hey there, doing our first DL trip as a family of WDW veterans this summer.

We'll be staying at DLH Villas and will eventually rent a car so we can drive to Universal Hollywood for a day. But just out of the circumstances of airfares being cheaper the day before our DLH stay, we'll be staying at the Courtyard Anaheim/Convention Center the day we get in. I was wondering if it's easier to rent a car at SNA airport or would it make more sense to rent at the Enterprise that's at Pixar Place hotel? Looks like the Courtyard Marriott charges $25 a night for parking. I guess just wondering how much of a hassle is it to do the rental at Pixar Place after we check-in at DLH?

 

[TP2000]

John Wayne Airport likely has better rates than a standalone hotel location would, I imagine. John Wayne has all the normal rent-a-car options near baggage claim, and it would be easier to just get the car there.

I suppose you could price things out online and see if it's really worth saving 25 or 50 bucks overall, but I would just rather get the car at the airport and call it done.

Rental Cars

On- and off-site car rentals are available for Airport guests.

www.ocair.com

 

[tissandtully]

John Wayne Airport likely has better rates than a standalone hotel location would, I imagine. John Wayne has all the normal rent-a-car options near baggage claim, and it would be easier to just get the car there.

I suppose you could price things out online and see if it's really worth saving 25 or 50 bucks overall, but I would just rather get the car at the airport and call it done.

Rental Cars

On- and off-site car rentals are available for Airport guests.

www.ocair.com

Yeah that probably makes the most sense. Luckily DVC doesn’t charge for parking at DLH so I can have the car longer than I normally would need.

 

[TP2000]

Okay, wait, I stand corrected. I just checked Enterprise.com and it's actually cheaper to rent at the Paradise Pier Pixar Place Hotel. A Chevy Malibu is 25 bucks cheaper per day at the hotel vs. John Wayne. Who knew?!?

So maybe you should just take an Uber to the hotel and rent the car when you check into Pixar Place? Still, I would price it out for your dates because who knows if things go wonky closer to summer tourist season than February.

It's a 5 minute walk from the DLH to Pixar Place, so the hassle is just walking over there across the parking lot.

 

[tissandtully]

It's a 5 minute walk from the DLH to Pixar Place, so the hassle is just walking over there across the parking lot

Ah ok, that’s what I needed to know as well, thanks! I can look at the map, but reality on the ground is sometimes a lot different.

 

[TP2000]

Ah ok, that’s what I needed to know as well, thanks! I can look at the map, but reality on the ground is sometimes a lot different.

I just looked for fun on Google Earth. If you are walking from the middle of the DLH Villas building to the Enterprise desk at Pixar Place Hotel, and you cut through the lobby of the Frontier Tower of the DLH, it's a 1,200 foot walk.

If you go through the rose garden area west of the Frontier Tower it's a 1,200 foot walk too, but often they'll be doing a wedding in that garden area and it's easier/safer to just cut through the lobby of the Frontier Tower. There's no stoplights or walk signals to wait for in that area, you are just walking along relatively quiet pathways and sidewalks.

 

[StuntBoss]

I rented from SNA once, and it was super quick in and out, way easier than LAX. If your plan’s to stay mostly in the parks and not drive much, you might not even need a rental the whole time.

We ended up using Miami Limo for part of our trip to save the hassle of parking and it worked out better than trying to deal with the rental every day.

 

[tissandtully]

I picked up at SNA before and it was super quick—car was ready and I was on the road fast. Return was easy too, just followed the signs and dropped the keys.

Yeah, this is what we ended up doing, though none of the rental car places were using the counters inside the airport building, they were all at the garage locations underneath, which made it a bit confusing