California
 

Thinking of flying into Oakland and wondering about transportation to Fisherman's Wharf - anyone familiar with shuttle or taxi - how far and about how much? Thanks.

You will get more hits on this if you are more specific in your title. "California" is a bit broad. See "Hey Fodors Posters New and Old" for suggestions on how to get the most out of a post.
-Bill

Take the airtrain ($2) to the Bart Station and take the Bart to Union Square (Powell Station). You can then take the trolley to Fisherman's wharf.

hey applejack, i asked the same Q about a month ago. check out this site, http://www.bart.gov/guide/airport/airport.asp

Basically there is a shuttle that will take you to the subway station from the airport just like enjoylife says. pretty simple eh!

We did this and it took about an hour & 10 min but is easy if you don't have heavy luggage. You could also take a cab for the last mile after you get off the Bart subway, depends on where your hotel is located.

If you take BART into SF, you can take a cab or public transportation to your hotel from the BART station. If you want to do public transportation, I would suggest getting off the BART at Embarcadero and taking and F-Line street car. The F-Line runs along the Embarcadero to FW. I wouldn't go to Powell and then plan to take a cable car to FW. Cable cars are great, but they are small and can be crowded - not exactly convinient when you have luggage.

Are there no shuttles that run into SF without having to do the BART? Just thinking it would be easier to do a shuttle or taxi with luggage?

Supershuttle is probably about $35 per person from Oakland, each way. So you're talking about $140 roundtrip as opposed to $20 for 2 people. But if you've got lots of luggage...you gotta come up with the cash!

Check out www.flyoakland.com

Cabbies will happily take you from Oakland Airport to SF. Expect to pay about $50. If you're willing to pay it, it's the best option. BART from OAK, while doable, is a pain, and shuttles, in my experience, are scary and undependable. Yes, scary.

And the question isn't "How far?" but "How long?" Depending on the time of day, getting over the bridge can be a nightmare. The average is about an hour.

cher cher - why do you say shuttles are scary - I have taken airport shuttles in other cities and am wondering what is scary about Oakland shuttles - thanks for the info on taxi - I am just not sure with our luggage we can handle the Bart.

I don't think the shuttles out of OAK are particularly scary. I think ALL shuttles are scary. Like I said, they're unreliable. I have made appointments in the past -- to reputable companies -- and had no-shows. I have also feared my life while riding in a shuttle. I witnessed a fatal accident at the hands of a shuttle driver. The last time I took a shuttle -- out of O'Hare -- it took us over 30 minutes to get out of the white zone because the driver had to fill out some mandatory paperwork. I say splurge the extra $15.