** **The situation in Orange County is typical of most areas in Southern California, you need a car to get around. Public transportation is a foreign concept: the county does have public buses but they are infrequent, far from efficient and do not travel many routes of any interest to visitors. Taxis are not readily available and most often need to be booked in advance. Due to the suburban sprawl that characterizes Orange County, if you do find a cab to take you to your destination, the fare can be exorbitant. Shuttle services run from the Orange County/John Wayne Airport to destinations in the area but again, this does need to be booked in advance of your arrival. Hotels in Anaheim are better geared for visitors without vehicles but beware that their “shuttle service” is only really intended for visiting the Disneyland Resort.
Even getting to pedestrian friendly zones requires use of a car. Several of the beach cities such as Laguna Beach and San Clemente have charming and “walkable” downtown villages but unless you are staying in the immediate vicinity, you will need to arrive by car. The county’s extensive (and infamous) shopping malls such as South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa or Fashion Island in Newport Beach are, quite expectedly, pedestrian havens but also necessitate arrival by car.
The bottom line is this: if you want to explore Orange County, you need a car and a good map of the freeways. The traffic pales in comparison with that of Los Angeles, but you should avoid the freeways between 8 and 9 in the morning and 4:30 and 6 in the evening if at all possible.