Renting a car is a must in Southern California. We have some public transportation but not much. A

There are a lot of airports in the Southern California area.  You can fly into any of them and be in Orange County within 0-120 minutes.  If you’re looking for a cheap flight, check all of them, but Orange custom cruising pegs County or LAX will be the most likely choices.  Times listed assume you’re not driving in rush hour traffic (this is most important for LAX – you may double the time in traffic).
Tips: Check out AA and Delta. Note, SNA has special noise restrictions custom cruising pegs – planes cannot depart between 10:00PM and 7:00AM (8:00AM on Sundays) or arrive between 11:00PM and 7:00AM (8:00AM on Sundays) – try not to fly into the airport past about 9:30 pm because if there’s any delay you may be flown into LAX instead, which is a pain (it has happened custom cruising pegs to me).  Also note, because of the noise restriction, the plane makes a steeper climb/descent.  I don’t even notice it, but it may be uncomfortable for first timers.
Tips: Despite what you may have been led to believe by rappers, there’s a nice, cute downtown.  If you fly in here, stop for dinner or check out the Long Beach Aquarium.  If you’re going through downtown, beware of the 22 Fwy, they’re doing construction near there.
Renting a car is a must in Southern California.  We have some public transportation but not much.  Although I’ve never rented a car here, I did it often in Philly.  I would highly recommend trying out Priceline and naming your own price.   If you’re going to do this, start early and at a low price.  I would start at $10 or $15/day.  I usually got a car in Philly for about $15-$20/day.  If you’re rejected you’ll either have to change information (travel dates, etc) or wait 24 hrs to rebid.  That’s why I would suggest starting early, so you can bid over the course of a few days.  You can really save a lot of money on a car rental this way.
Insurance Add On: I never do this.  Talk to your own car insurance provider, but you often already get Collision and Liability covered custom cruising pegs for a rental.  One thing you may not get is coverage for the rental’s time out of service during repair (i.e. you might have to continue to rent it while it’s being repaired).  Check with your insurance provider to see if you can add on to your personal insurance for $10/year or something custom cruising pegs that covers this – that’s better than $10/day.
Fast Track Add On: Not necessary here.  Unlike the East Coast, toll roads are completely optional in So Cal and most likely unnecessary for you to use.  They come in handy for rush hour traffic and to get to certain areas a little bit quicker – you might never even come across one.