I will be staying at Fishermans Wharf for a conference. Should I fly to San Francisco International or Oakland?

I used SFI before, and my hotel was near there. The Conference is at the Moscone Center so the commute was awful!

This time, I made my plans in advance so I am much closer to the action. I'm told that SFI and Oakland airport are almost the same distance away.

Any thoughts for me? What about transportation from the airport to the Wharf? Any idea about taxi cost?

We use the Oakland airport often, because we visit Berkeley and we fly Southwest. We like that airport a lot, because it's so small and easy to navigate.

But, you would have to take a taxi across the Bay Bridge from OAK into S.F., which can be really jammed with traffic.

I think you'd be better off flying to SFI, if the commute is your biggest concern.

P.S. Of course, you could take BART, but that adds more steps to your transit plan.

Both airports are good options. I would choose which ever one can offer you the best flight times at the best price. Having 2 good airports gives a wonderful opportunity to price shop for flights.

Pick the airport that gives you a direct flight and / or cheaper (depending on importance).

Since you are staying at Fisherman's Wharf take a cab from the airport and don't mess with BART. It will be about 40 bucks.

First of all, the Wharf is not that close to Moscone Center. You can't walk to the conference - you'll have to take public transportation. There are lots of places to stay within walking distance of Moscone - and, IMO, these places are located in much more interesting areas than the Wharf. Better restaurants, better cafes, better picnic options, better shops, better people watching, better transportation, better everything.

There are many more "reliable" options for getting to the Wharf or Moscone from SFO. A taxi can get you to Moscone in 15 mins from SFO in non-rush hours (I live close to SFO). Less than 30 mins during normal rush hour. From Oakland, transportation is a lot more complicated, time consuming, and costly.

Whoever told you that SFO & Oakland are the same distance/time from Moscone or the Wharf, needs to get a new map.

You didn't mention the date of your conference, but BART is scheduled to go on strike this coming Monday.

Stu Dudley

Whichever offers the best rates.

I'd just go with the best schedule and rates, also. I don't understand what you are doing. Why would you stay at the Wharf for a conference at the Moscone Center? This doesn't make any sense, there are plenty of hotels near it.

I just flew into Oakland last month when I usually do SFO becuase I realized it didn't really make that much difference if I were going to use Bart. YOu need to take a shuttle bus to Bart at Oakland, but it turned out they had group shuttle vans which go right to your hotel and they say you won't have to wait more than 12 minutes or so for it to fill or they leave, and that was true. So I did that instead of Bart. They have a flat rate, I think it was $35 and I thought it was great. I don't understand why transportation from Oakland would be considered so complicated or expensive. It took about the same time as quoted above from SFO to where I as going, which was right near the Moscone Center.

You DO NOT want SFI -- since that is in Morocco!

either SFO or OAK would be fine - depending on routes/airfares. SFO would be slightly easier.

But I totally agree w/ Stu - the Wharf is not very convenient to your conference. Public transport from the Wharf to Moscone Center will take nearly as long as SFO to the Wharf.

I think OP went to a convention before at Moscone Center, not sure this one is there as well.

IF it is at the Moscone, I will suggest you check out The Mosser hotel. It is a short walk to Moscone Cntr and also very conveniently located near BART, Union Sq. Market St etc. We stayed at The Mosser in 2008 when my husband was at a conference at Moscone. themosser.com It is a small hotel, very clean, small rooms [some with private baths, some with hall showers]and great prices.

We fly Southwest to San Francisco. For us, we can get a non-stop to OAK and we like the convenience of nonstop. We flew to OAK this year, last year to SFO. Took BART both times and it was easier from SFO, but not a really big difference.

I would go with which ever airport has the better price and or schedule.

Personally, we would never stay in FW area, but especially if we needed to be at Moscone Cntr.

Deb

"I think OP went to a convention before at Moscone Center, not sure this one is there as well."

I wondered that too - but I read it essentially as >>The Conference is at the Moscone Center and last time when I stayed at the airport the commute was awful

Need the OP to chime in here with some clarifications, I think.

Deb

yep . . . .

OK -- OP here with my answers to your questions. I really appreciate the help! I do realize my typo SFI vs. SFO -- I'm not going to Morocco, I promise! Conference travel is so different than private travel.

The Conference I am attending is Oracle's OpenWorld Conference in October and it is an annual conference. I am told that this is the largest conference in San Francisco each year. A significant number of hotels are booked specifically for us.

As part of my extremely expensive registration fee, I can ride one of the numerous Oracle busses around town, and that includes several hotels in Fisherman's Wharf. I stayed at a Hyatt near the airport before, and that commute was about 45 minutes at peak time. While I enjoy these shuttles, they do not make any airport transportation available as part of this Conference.

The hotels that are close to Moscone are almost all booked already or remaining rooms are unreasonably priced for those of us on an expense account (think $350-400/night). It seemed that the Wharf might be a much better alternative than the airport area. Also, I have learned that I kind of like staying a short distance away from the main Conference if I want any downtime at all.

I think the taxi may be my best airport transportation since I will have quite a few items to carry.

Did I clear up the questions? I really enjoy reading your comments and appreciate your help.

What was the question? (just kidding).

If you can abide by staying in Fisherman's Wharf (as "touristy" as things come), then yes, it will definitely be closer by shuttle to Moscone than will the airport hotels.

A taxi from SFO to downtown (not Fisherman's Wharf) is about $40 all-in. Probably a little moreto Fisherman's Wharf. I don't know the cost of a tax from Oakland Airport. Getting a taxi at SFO is easy, I assume it is at Oakland, too.

Really, nothing has changed from the advice given, which is get the best airfare and take a taxi to your hotel.

What hotels are "close to Moscone" that are on the shuttle route? Do you have to/want to stay at an "official" hotel? If not, maybe we can cross off those that are too expensive, and recommend others in the Moscone/Union Square/Financial District?

Have you checked out The Mosser hotel? It is just a short walk from Moscone and they have reasonable rates. They offer some rooms with hall bathrooms [which are very clean and nice] and others with private bathrooms.

The hotel is a cross between funky/boutique/hostel.

We stayed there for a week last year for a conference and got a great rate for the week and really liked the location. The room was small but it was very clean.

themosser.com

Deb

If you are renting a car - either airport. If plan on taking a taxi or a shuttle - definitely SFO is cheaper. And faster too, as no need for the bridge.

Sorry, I don't understand why you want to stay at Fishermen's if the conference is at Moscone, the bus connection will be terrible, especially during peak times.

Flights to and from OAK are more often on time and it almost never gets fogged in. BART is easy to connect to from either OAK or SFO.

I would take BART (from either airport) if I had one rolling bag and maybe a backpack. It sounds like the OP will be toting quite a bit more, making the trek not so easy.

I just checked The Mosser. It is unavailable at that time. It is one of our "official" hotels, The "Official" conference hotel list is extensive, in addition to expensive!

I did love that they ordinarily have an Airport Shuttle. That seems to be out of the ordinary in San Francisco. Is my assumption right?