Sara

We will be staying in the Union Square area of San Francisco, and need to get to the Oakland Airport to catch our flight home. There will be four of us, and we will each have a fairly good-sized suitcase. I'm worried that we won't be able to fit all four of us and our luggage into a cab. Can anyone suggest the best way for us to get to the Oakland airport ? Also, approximately how long does it take to get there from Union Square? Thanks for any help.

Spokaneman

BART! I believe there is a shuttle from the Airport stop to OAK. Cheap, fast and you look like a Bay Areaite.

Mel

The best way for 4 people is probably a cab. There are plenty of minivan cabs that should be able to accomadate your group and its luggage, just ask your hotel to call one for you. An aiport shuttle could also handle the group, but you would end up paying about the same as a private cab.

If it's not rush hour, it's about 30 minutes to Oakland airport. If it is rush hour, I don't know how long it would take. I'm one of those people that can't stand sitting traffic that doesn't move, so I always take BART, even on business, if I have to cross the bridge at rush hour. BART takes about an hour and would be a pain with the suitcases but it might be worth considering if you have to leave SF between 4 and 6 on a weekday. Someone else might be able to advise you about how long a cab would take at that time.

FainaAgain

Look up BART and connecting shuttle webs - they DO NOT run 24/7 so it depends on the time and day of the week.

Commercial shuttles, look up Oakland airport ground transportation section, run 24/7, if BART is not available, but they may be expensive. You can find the rate on the web.

Sara

Thanks for this helpful information, Our flight leaves at 10:20 AM on a Monday morning, so I guess that we'll be traveling at rush hour. Is the traffic heading from SF to Oakland likely to be as heavy as that coming into SF?

BayArea

sadly, yes, morning traffic west to east is often just as heavy as the cars crawling into SF.

If traffic is heavy I'd guesstimate 45 minutes to an hour travel time.

alg

From Union Square, the nearest BART station (Powell) is three blocks. The ride takes 30 minutes to the Oakland airport station and costs less than $5, then you catch the Air BART shuttle right outside to the airport for $2. The whole trip can take 45 minutes to an hour. On her last visit, my mom used a shuttle service from SF to the Oakland airport and I believe it was $25, but they picked her up 4 hours before her flight! She was at the airport very, very early.

FainaAgain

Sara, don't worry about traffic on BART on Monday morning, you will have a seat.
ALG's description is very good!

jgman3

Took a shuttle (van) from Fishermans Wharf. No stops on the way and dropped us off a few hours before takeoff. It was great look in the internet for these services. They give discounts and pickup at the airport. It cost $35.00 and was hassle free!