Kathysa

We're going to be flying in and out of SFO from the east coast, spending 1 night each way, and then flying to/from Hawaii. I can book the Hawaii flights either out of San Jose or Oakland. What would be easiest? We arrive into SFO around 8:30pm, and will not leave until the next morning around 11am. We'd probably take a cab/shuttle from SFO to a hotel near Oakland or San Jose airport for that night. The return is a little tighter. We'll arrive back to either Oakland/San Jose around 10pm and have to catch at 7am flight out of SFO the following morning. So we'd want to take a cab or shuttle from either Oakland/San Jose to spend the night at an airport hotel near SFO. I know Oakland is closer but think traffic can be an issue.
Any advice? Thanks.

tomfuller

This website should be useful to you: http://www.flyoakland.com/bart_airbart.shtml
I suspect that many more people come to and leave the airport by shuttlebus than by taxi.

DebitNM

BART between SFO and OAK is easy to use and it will let you stay in SF proper, rather than at motel near airport. You can take BART from SFO into the city for the night and then catch it out in the morning to get to OAK. Do the same in reverse. Economical too - under $10 a person.

Haven't used San Jose, so can't input on that choice.

spirobulldog

If you don't have any of this booked, it would be far easier to fly in and out of the same airport. These really aren't as close as you might think. I have flown in and out of all of them. BART is easy to use. It will take a while to ride it from one airport to the other(not sure exactly how long). San Jose has a brand new airport that doesn't seem to be that crowded or busy yet.

sf7307

I usually agree with Deb, but not in this case.

You arrive at SFO at 8:30 pm, which means you wouldn't get to the city and check into a hotel until 10-ish. As much as I would usually prefer the city to the airport, in this case the airport makes sense because you don't actually have any time in the city. The only way this makes sense is if you want to use BART, since BART to Oakland and Oakland airport hotels are definitely not recommended, especially late at night. Same for the return.

As for hotels, there are many more decent pchoices near San Jose Airport than there are near Oakland airport. The only decent hotel near OAK is the Hilton. Maybe they would pick you up at BART.

SFO-OAK - rental car, taxi, I guess shuttle, or BART (which requires a shuttle to the airport, or a taxi to the hotel at the Oakland end). I would NOT want to arrive at Oakland BART and have to find a taxi late at night.

SFO-SJC. - rental car, taxi, I guess shuttle, or Cal-train (which requires BART to the Millbrae Cal-train station, Cal-train to San Jose, and a taxi or shuttle to the airport or hotel at the San Jose end).

Bottom line, there is no very convenient way to do this, and some of the options will be very expensive. Personally, I'd opt for the change-of-plane elsewhere and fly to and from the airport you are using to fly to and from Hawaii.

janisj

I totally agree w/ sf7307. If at all possible, fly into Oakland or - preferably - San Jose.

StuDudley

I live close to SFO and worked near the Oakland airport for 7 years. I certainly would not want to get there by BART, then try to find a cab or wait for a hotel shuttle late at night. More murders/robberies there than about anyplace else in the US. A taxi to/from SFO would be the only way I would want to do it.

I would also take a taxi to SJC - not because of safety issues but because at 10 or 11 at night after a long flight I would not want to hassle with multiple public transit systems I'm not familiar with, and lots of "wait" time between them. The Millbrae station is essentually outside, so you are waiting in the cold also.

Stu Dudley

Kathysa

Thanks everyone. Aren't there shuttles between SFO and either Oakland or San Jose airports? We definitely don't want to rent a car and because we'll have kids in tow, most likely won't take BART. So either a cab or limo/shuttle service. The flights into SFO are already booked. (really wanted to take Virgin America) I'm leaning toward San Jose. We'd definitely just stay at an airport hotel since we're only staying overnight to break the long flight up a little.
Thanks again.

november_moon

Yes, there are shuttles. We take Supershuttle multiple times a year from SFO.

sf7307

Looked up supershuttle - they do private vans and cars for $100 to either San Jose Airport area or the Oakland Airport area from SFO.

DebitNM

ah, with kids, BART isn't a good idea. Listen to the others, they know better than I.

easytraveler

Bottom line, Oakland is closer to SFO than San Jose and a bit easier to get to from SFO than San Jose via public transportation and a bit cheaper if taking a taxi/shuttle.

There's really no easy way to get from SFO to SJC by public transportation without several changes of transportation OR pay a bigger fee for taxi/shuttle to and from SFO to SJC, because the distance is greater.

Another separate problem is that Oakland, as several of the posters have mentioned, isn't exactly a safe place to stay. Best place to stay is near SFO.

if you are not leaving for Hawaii until 11 am the next morning, then I'd suggest that you stay in a hotel near SFO. Then get up early the next morning and take public transportation/shuttle to Oakland. DON'T try to drive to Oakland Airport on your own, if you have not done this before.

There is no need to go into San Francisco itself. The easiest way is to go south of SFO, cross on the San Mateo Bridge and then go up north towards Oakland Airport. That'll probably be the way the shuttle will take you, unless they have to pick up someone else in San Francisco itself.

On the return from Hawaii, take a taxi/shuttle from Oakland back to a hotel near SFO. Next morning take the hotel shuttle to the airport.

If you know how to bid on Priceline, the hotels near SFO are a real bargain. Right now, the SFO 4* Hilton or Marriott are going for $69 a night plus taxes and fees. You don't have to go lower than a 4*.

If you have never bid on Priceline before, please come back and ask. Fodorites are very experienced in bidding on Priceline and can help you.

DebitNM

kathy - Alaska Air has fares of $149/ow from San Jose to Kona [certain days of the week]in Jan and Feb. In case you are interested. This is for non-stop flight!

Kathysa

Thanks everyone. I'm leaning toward using SuperShuttle to/from San Jose airport instead of Oakland even though it's further. We're looking at Alaska Air to Kauai. Is Alaska Air decent? Have never flown that airline before.

sf7307

We flew Alaska Air (from Oakland and to San Jose) to Kauai in October - the flights were unremarkable. They were smooth sailing, comfortable enough (I don't really even remember the seats). Perfectly fine, but then I would only remember if something were bad.

DebitNM

We just booked the above trip to Kona for $149 each way, non stop. It sounds like Alaska Air is pretty much the same as Southwest, except you have to pay for checked bags - same planes etc. For 5 hours, at that price, I can pretty much endure anything.

isabel

What is it that is so bad about Oakland airport? Is it safety? traffic? difficulty with public transportation? I am about to book flights to San Francisco and can fly into any of the airports. Car rentals are cheapest (by about $150) at OAK versus SFO (for pick up). For the return flight I would be using BART to get to whatever airport and it would be late evening. I'd appreciate knowing if OAK is to be avoided, which seems to be what you are advising. Thanks

sf7307

Oakland Airport is great, but the surrounding area is not. I personally would not take BART to Oakland Airport late at night, and BART doesn't go anywhere near San Jose airport. So if BART is critical to your plans, I'd fly out of SFO. Flying into Oakland, and returning the car there (and taking BART from there into the city?) during the day is absolutely fine.

easytraveler

Isabel: the main question is: what do you need a car for?

You don't need a car in San Francisco, so if you're flying into Oakland to save the car rental expense by $150, it doesn't make sense, because you'll be paying about $30/$40 a day to park that car in San Francisco.

If, OTOH, you're not going into SF, then flying into Oakland and picking up a car makes sense.

We fly out of all three airports. Oakland has Southwest and Hawaii-bound airlines, so it's a very popular airport. The area around Oakland Airport is not the best, but it's not the worst either.

In your case, your choice of airport should be based on your overall savings first.

Second to consider is where you want to go after arrival at the airport. If San Francisco is the destination, then SFO is the easiest; Oakland the second easiest; and San Jose not very easy. You cannot use BART to get from San Jose Airport to San Francisco.

Actually, we'll need to know a lot more about your itinerary to be able to gage which would be the best airport for your purposes.

succulent

Have flown Alaska Air numerous times. It is a good airline as far as domestic carriers go. Alaska Air's 737s that they fly to Hawaii are nice planes. The economy legroom on any of Alaska's planes far exceeds that of United and some other domestic airlines.(Think United's Economy Plus). On the narrow body planes like the above 737s, my DH and I book aisle seats across from each other. I remember the old cattle car days of ATA and Suntrips from the San Fran area on those old DC-10s and L1011s and this is better than that.