Luubert

Hello All,
I'm planning to fly into either San Francisco Int', Oakland Int', or San Jose Int', Oakland I found was the cheapest to fly into. But as "biase" and such things cause Oakland is "ghetto, druggies" you konw and the murder rate of California comes mostly from Oakland. Would you reccommend flying to OAK?

hoddys2

Actually the Oakland airport isn't really in "oakland". I mean technically it is but it's on the outskirts more in Alameda. You should be fine there it's no where near the city there isn't any housing close by either so pretty much a business area. The surrounding area is pretty safe.

I avoid oakland at all costs as well, scarry place I don't blame you for the paranoia. It's a small airport and a lot less hectic than SFO.

kikahead

Yup, if it is cheaper, fly into Oakland. I just got back from a trip and flew in and out of Oakland no problem. We took a shuttle this time (our outbound was too early for BART) and paid $30 for two people plus tip.

We have taken BART multiple times to/from Oakland airport from San Francisco with no problem. Safety would not be a concern for me. The only thing I would double check is the flight times (if you are not taking BART) because if you fall during communte, the drive to San Francisco may be pretty slow.

FainaAgain

How can an airport with all that security be unsafe? What do you think, anybody sells drugs in the airport? Ever heard of an airport murder by criminals? I haven't.

PamSF

I'd say it depends on where you are going to out here more than the druggies and murders. Oakland is a far easier airport to get in and out of imo than SFO. I must say I've never heard Oakland spoken of in such harsh terms since Gertrude Stein proclaimed there was "no there there".

martytravels

The murder rate in California comes mostly from Oakland? Did Los Angeles secede from the state?
There are druggies in San Fran and San Jose too. There are 400,000 or so people in Oakland and most of them manage not to get killed, so it really couldn't be that bad!

bluestar

"There is no there there," is not a slam on Oakland.

Those words are ripped out of context. Stein grew up on a bucolic, 10-acre scrap of land when there actually were fruit trees out on Fruitvale. Returning after a 40-year absence in 1936, she found her pastoral childhood home transformed into an urban housing project.

She missed the whole idyllic setting. When she said "there's no there there," it meant everything she remembered as a girl was no longer there, in that sense, that's all.

Along those same lines, people constantly refer to Mark Twain having said "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco", even though he NEVER wrote or said that.

razzledazzle

Troll, me thinks.
R5

soquel

We live in Santa Cruz and have flown out of San Jose, Oakland, and San Francisco. We haven't had a problem at any of these airports, we just pick the one that has the right flights for our situation. Oakland Airport did not make us feel uncomfortable at all.

bluestructure

Perhaps he wasnt talking about the OAK airport itself but rather the area he must go thru and/or take the subway & transfers through. Everyone is different, I myself dont find the ride from SFO to downtown SF very comforting.

traveltitan

"Ghetto" sounds like a code word.

PamSF

Hey Bluestar~thanks. I never knew. Gertrude Stein might be happy to know Fruitvale is making a comeback.

OaktownTraveler

I did not chime in in August because my blood was boiling, I was shocked and thought the post would be pulled by Fodors... and I KNEW this OP to be a troll.

Today, I am warmed by the positive truths that have been graciously offered on Oakland's behalf.

The area that you go through from OUR airport is not as one might think. The area is clean, holds our sports arenas where the A's , Warriors and Raiders play and is busy with folks trying to get inexpensive gas(it was a secret...oops) and good bugers from the Frosty Freeze.

Bluestar: beautifully explained...

I am a multi-generational Oakland, California native who travels the world.
While I do live very near Oakland, I consider Oakland my lovely home.

I have not witnessed such vile comments about Oakland/ Oakland Airport on these boards and was amazed that Fodors "let it ride".

A previous post about this topic(click on my moniker and scroll down) did not have the "tones" of this one.

Thanks...I was beginning to think that no one cared...smile.

Oaktown Traveler

Barbara_in_CT

OAK would be my airport of choice when flying to the bay area. It is safe and far less hectic than SFO. My daughter picks me up curbside, 45 minutes after my scheduled arrival and away we go. I find Oakland to be "up and coming" and not ghetto or scary.