San Francisco International Airport
8 reviews
Neighborhood: Financial District
"So, my passport expired and I had to get a new one. Well let me tell you, the ladies are at Travel Document Systems are like the Charlie's…" read more »
247 Reviews for San Francisco International Airport
Thought of some more:
7. Delish
8. "Hooked up"
9. Fab-u
10. "For reals"
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01/21/2008
I've flown out of SFO twice. Both flights were delayed. As a result of this I am reluctant to give… Read more »
I am so impressed with SFO airport but I would not expect anything less being that it is San Francisco. The restaurant choices can not be beat and are all healthy( for the most part). I believe there is one BK located back in the corner by the 70Gates. It is a trek to get there. That is the only fast food joint they have in the place. They have everything from Sushi, Pizza,(small personal pizza) Diner type food, Soups & Salads, Seafood restaurant, smoothies, Mexican, even a coffee and dessert area. This airport is not cheap but what is in SF? The airport is clean and artsy. They a lot of art on display around the 80 Gates. There is also a full size book store to kill some time in, a Brookstone shop and a Swatch Watch store..do people still wear those?!?
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The US Government is essentially cock blocking all of my romantic efforts.
How so?
According to every romantic comedy, there is a proven formula for guaranteed success when pursuing the opposite sex.
The formula is as follows...
When the girl is at her wits end and has had enough of the guy's antics, she decides to take that advertising job across the country. The guy, 10 minutes before her scheduled flight, has a moment of clarity and decides to chase her down.
That part is constant.
This next part is where a guy can pick the method in which he will earn his victory.
The guy can
A) Rush past security a la OJ Simpson Hertz commercial and catch his woman just as she is about to board the plane. Security catches up but stops short at the display of emotion. It's at this point everyone watching starts clapping in unison. The TSA officials and the guy look at each other and in pure Mentos fashion, all is forgiven.
B) Somehow sneak his way onto the plane by explaining to the gate agent this is a once in a lifetime "true love" circumstance. He will then be let on while for some reason the girl is in the lavatory. When she returns to her seat, broken hearted but with a fully relieved bladder, she sees the guy and once again, love conquers all. Of course, the gate agent, ground crew, pilots, and tower all know what is happening and are more than happy to hold up the flight.
C) Last, and my personal favorite, the guy can sneak his way onto the tarmac, chase down one of those little tug cars, and use that to chase down the already moving plane. The girl sitting in seat 22A looks out her window to see the guy frantically chasing her down. The girl then stands up and yells "STOP THE PLANE!!" All the passengers then realize what's happening and follow suit. The plane stops, some miracle stairs appear out of nowhere, and the two embrace happily ever after.
I am sure that if this was 1999 I would have used at least B & C by now. Of course, if I tried ANY of these options today, I would be send to Guantanamo or Abu Ghraib where a cute little female solider would be pointing at my wiener laughing while I had a glad bag over my head.
Even if I tried going LEGIT by say, buying a ticket to beat her to her destination by 10 minutes, I would most like lose her in baggage claim since I can't gloriously meet her as she steps off the plane.
I don't know who she was, but the chick that fucked over Uncle Sam sure screwed him up. He's so jealous he decides to take it out on normal chumps like me.
As for SFO? 4 stars. Big airport with decent lines, ramen, a clear lane, and a swatch store. What's not to like? Minus one star for the constant delays.
Punctual.
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The first time I ever flew on a plane, I landed at SFO. So it's a pretty sweet memory in itself.
Beautiful international terminal, spacious interior, clean, plenty of edible food options. Sephora, Coach, duty-free shopping to pick up mini cosmetics, spa facilities. Apparently also a MNG in Terminal 3.
I love this airport for the multiple times it has served as my point of departure: HKG, PEK, LIH, SEA, SAN, LAX, VYR-- but especially because it has always taken me back to JFK, the city where I grew up.
heart.
It's not as crazy as it used to be. There are many parking lots and they try to make it easy for you by colorcoding and lining everything. I like how Jetbue and Virgin are in the international terminals because it doesn't get too crowded. Minus one star because there's really nothing interesting to do while waiting for people to arrive. We were stuck there for three hours, bored outta our minds. The plane landed on time, but my parents (and a bunch of other people) had to change planes in China for some reason and we had no idea what was going on. Information wasn't very informative.
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It took me a trip to Africa to appreciate SFO. I mean, I knew Oakland was bad news (see my previous review), but after experiencing the old terminals at both Charles de Gaulle and Cairo International Airports, I was crying hard for home.
Duty-free is reasonable, and with the dollar in the shits like it is now, you better not even THINK about buying your duty-free booze and tobacco in Europe.
And how beautiful was it, after roasting in 40 degree (that's Celsius, go look it up) weather, to come home into the fog? I almost cried yet again. Also, no one stole my car from the long-term lot at Millbrae BART Station, further proof that nothing ever happens in Millbrae. Yay!
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I can't tell you how many times I've flown out of SFO....convenient long term and short term parking,very clean airport,nice selections of restaurants and lots of cool bar area to drink and catch a game.They also have plenty of great souvenirs shop for those non native Bay Arean's.
I have had some bad experiences with LAX for my international flights.So now I just fly into SFO and fly out of this airport to my int'l destination.They make the international check in as easy and convenient as possible.(not like LAX where I'm redirected to 3 different check points and then back to the original check in area before I can receive my boarding pass)
The only downfall is the arrivals(especially during Holidays).there's heavy congested traffics and you'll need to keep moving since the traffic police don't allowed you to park while waiting for passenger's pick up.They're usually pretty cool at directing traffic and allowed you enough time to stop and make the necessary pick up.
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Whoa. I don't know if this matters much, but I flew in and out of the international terminal, because I was on Virgin America. This airport is what flying should be like!
The entire terminal feels open and airy, with giant high domed ceilings and towering columns. Unlike other major airports that I'm familiar with (ORD, IAD, LGA, JFK) where I feel like passengers waiting for flights are crammed for space and have to virtually sit on top of each other in uncomfortable benches, this terminal was peaceful and quiet, and almost deserted! For an evening red-eye flight out around 2100 hours, there was nary a soul to be seen, so I could Yelp away on a day-pass for the wifi ($10) without distraction.
If you hit the food court in the international terminal prior to going through the security gates, there are a number of various Asian-themed restaurants that aren't so bad. I picked up some sushi and a Sapporo, and although the fish wasn't superb, it was decently edible. Solid, in terms of airport quality food.
Unlike the dreaded NYC airports, I definitely wouldn't mind repeated trips through SFO!
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Pretty convenient as airports go.
The best thing about it is how convenient it is to reach by BART. For the uninitiated, BART goes straight to the airport and drops you off at a monorail thingy, which in turn drops you off at your terminal.
Sure beats driving to here or Oakland Airport, paying a grip to park for a few days, getting stuck in traffic and murdering/get murdered after a road rage incident.
There are some decent restaurants relative to other airports I've been to. Nowhere I would eat outside of SFO, however.
So why only four stars? Because here we are in one of the great technology centers or the world and I'm paying T-Mobile's sorry ass $9.99 for a day pass of Internets. How does SFO not have free Wi-Fi? Oklahoma-fucking-City's Will Rogers Airport has free Wi-Fi!
Nice to get pwnt by the Okies, SFO.
It's nearly enough to bump the score down to three stars. But since I saw an ad I wrote plastered all over the ceiling, I'll leave it at four. Thanks for making me feel cool, SFO. Next time, don't sell your soul to T-Mobile.
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I hate to admit it I really use to hate SFO. Every time I'd fly in or out of the airport I'd end up delayed for what seemed like forever. At that point the airport really did suck no good eats or good shopping, no good anything to kill the time. I went five plus years not flying in or out of SFO because I could, OAK was much easier for me.
A few, more like a lot, of years ago I flew in to SFO for my big 30, a bunch of girls were meeting there to head off to Sonoma for a long weekend of wine and well more wine. Everything at SFO for that trip went well, arrival, departure and baggage.
A few years later back down to SFO for a bachelorette party that was taking place again in Sonoma for more wine and well more wine. Again everything with SFO for that trip went well, arrival, departure and baggage.
Last month GBF#1 and I headed down for our vacation. We arrived on time; baggage arrived in a reasonable amount of time. Clear signs pointing us in what directions to go to get to BART. Six days later we arrived to head home same thing easy peasy, smooth sailings our flight even left early, never have I had a flight leave SFO early ever.
One thing I didn't like was the drunk guy at the bar who was tore up from the floor up and not leaving until 10pm that night, it was around 8pm. He was harassing the other customers at the bar and yet they continued to feed him more beer instead of cutting him off. All I can say is I'm glad I wasn't on the flight to Puerto Rico with him!
Oh and the icing on the cake Alaska upgraded GBF#1 and I to first class for free on our way home how awesome is that?! Best vacation this year and last for that matter.
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My flight is delayed over 4 hours from SFO-JFK. I was thinking about going home, but I'm too tired.
First all, SFO needs to have free wifi. McCarran Airport in Vegas has free wifi. I just purchased a day pass via T-Mobile for $9.99 which is about the price of a large beer @ the airport including tip. I know, I had a large Anchor Steam Porter about four hours ago. I won't arrive into New York until 3am, therefore I don't need to be drinking any more beers. I'm drinking an americano from Peets in the United terminal while writing this review. BTW, my flight is on American...
I like how they have the plaques and bios of the athletes in the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame around the airport- so far, I've seen Jerry Rice, Summer Sanders, Jennifer Azzi, Jerry Coleman, Chris Mullin, and John Madden. There is also an exhibit on Catalina Island which I have yet to look @. I still have another 2 plus hours until my flight leaves.
The convenience of BART going directly to the airport is a plus.
And I almost feel as I'm near Ghirardelli Square since there is a Buena Vista Cafe in the United terminal. Actually, an irish coffee sounds good...
"Wait, hold that plane!" I shout, as I fly through the United boarding gate, zig-zag down the ramp, race onto the tarmac, and frantically wave my arm in the air like a beauty queen who mixes caffeine with diet pills.
How did I get to this point, you wonder? What events must have occurred to work me up into such a frenzy?
1) I decided to fly out of SFO at 8am on the Saturday of Memorial Day Weekend. Apparently, this is a high volume travel time. Good to know.
2) In true lazy Janney B. fashion, I opted to wait outside in the cold for the Easy Check-In Baggage Guys to take my bag in exchange for $2 + a kidney. This line STILL took an hour to get through. Not even a rare sighting of Nish and the Nishlet could speed up the line.
3) After waiting for 30 minutes in security, they insisted on giving me the head to toe. Which always happens. Come on, guys, I'm barefoot, wearing a white tanktop, jeans, and I left my firearms at home this time. What more do you want from me?
4) My gate assignment was at the very end of the terminal. Terrific. My flight was already boarding and the man who took my bags had told me to sprint. Channeling my inner Jackie Joyner Kersey, I bypassed the moving walkways and dashed down the middle. I was running so feverishly that little kids started crying for their mommies.
But here I am. I've made it just in time.
"We were waiting for you, --Insert Legal Family Name that I hate--," the flight attendant says. I am the last one on the spacious 32-seat plane. Fortunately, I've arrived in time to watch the flight attendant finish text-messaging her baby daddy and from the corner of my eye, can see her teasing her hair in the lavatory. I immediately wonder if her hairspray is flammable.
It doesn't matter how early or late I arrive, my little plane is almost always held for me. Now, that's great service!
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I usually make at least 4 trips out here a year, between my mom and Mary T, they travel a lot. The road design is good if other drivers are going the speed limit. The park garage has ample spaces. The check-in and pick up area huge and well kept. The airport dining is decent but overpriced.
This Airport puts LAX to shame! When oh when will they redo LAX? SFo is just sooooo beautiful, the entire airport is secure without you feeling it. they checkpoints are fast and flows well.
I hate LAX sooo much after seeing SFO
I've grown to like SFO, but it wasn't always like this. Back in the day, there was no BART nor Caltrain service so I always opted to fly into Oakland or San Jose instead. Also, Southwest didn't fly into this airport at the time. Thankfully, there's now regular flights from SD.
On the restaurants tip, it's also improved tremendously! It's not quite up to par as the Dallas/Fort Worth airport in TX, but it's catching up. In fact, there's a train that circles around the airport similar to the it's TX counterpart. Of course SFO doesn't quite advertise the food as it is done in Dallas.
Speaking of food, they have decent breakfast joints that serve omelets, pancakes and french toast. For lunch/dinner, there's a number of diners/grills available, and also several sushi/noodle places. There's also enough coffee joints sprinkled around so don't worry if you pass one up 'cause you certainly will have another chance to order a cup of joe.
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Personally, I don't know why they called it the San Francisco International Airport (SFO)... it should have been called the "San Bruno International Airport," as it's actually located in San Bruno.... but anyhow, it's a great International Airport. For me, the location is perfect as geographically, it's in the center of the whole Bay Area (which consists of 9 counties). SFO is accessible by BART & it connects to the Caltrain rail system at the Millbrae Station, if you're coming from the south bay. For Fastrak owners, you will have the option to use your FasTrak toll tags to pay at the long-term open parking at the SFO parking facilities, without the cash or credit card.
I believe SFO is the best International Airport in the whole California. It's also one of the world's 30 busiest world-class Airport & is also known as the "gateway to the Pacific."
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(My love letter to SFO)
SFO,
I love you.
I really do.
I love your clean bathrooms.
I love your friendly attendants (especially over at Virgin America).
I love your well-lit waiting areas, and your contemporary design.
I love your food court in the main ticketing area.
I also love that you have a BART station right there at the International arrival terminal.
I've never had to wait too long in your security lines, and I love you for that.
But most of all I love that you facilitate my safe departure, back to the love of my life, Los Angeles.
Thanks,
Aunny
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I flew out of the international recently with Virgin to NYC and its all nice and new and open. Bathrooms clean, security fairly easy. Food choices ok. Though when we got to the area to wait for Virgin the overhead paging was loud and echoing, you couldn't understand the pages ( and I'm not talking about the ones in foreign languages ) and it was every 5 minutes which made it very annoying if you wanted to read or just zone out for a few zzzz's. Other than that its pretty nice inside though more food services on the inside of the security would be nice.
Food-wise, SFO has just about the best selection of food at just about any airport I've been to. In this age of no free meals on-board, its a Godsend.
Take O'Hare for example, its either McDonalds, a bagel sandwich place or Quiznos. Bleech!
SFO has sushi, Subway, dim sum, Greek just to name a few. I hope others appreciate how good they got it.
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You know, I want to give this 4 stars. It'd be nice if there was free WiFi. It'd be nice if the non-international terminals were spruced up a bit more. It'd be nice if the airport wasn't attached to that awful friggin US 101.
But I have to give it 5. I am in love with the international terminal, and I don't even know if I can describe why. I mean, it's clean, open and airy, modern, and rarely crowded. In my mind, it shimmers. *_* It's attached to that funky monorail. The BART link seems awesome, but I've never actually used it.
Once I'm through the gates, I've got bars and a good little pizzeria to hang out at. There's quite a bit of shopping (the most I can recall in a US airport). And even if I'm just waiting to pick people up, I show up early, head to the int'l terminal and grab some japanese...or chinese, or hit the diner, or get american. I mean there's tons of (for an airport) pretty good eateries.
And the artwork! I've never even been in the museum (it seems like most times I'm there, the museum is closed), but there is tons of art on display in the terminals. Last time I was there, there were tons of crowned Buddhas. Before that, it was cartoon art. Even the domestic terminals get in on the act--I saw a sweet display on free stuff the airlines used to give out back in the day, naugahyde bags and stuff like that. And there are historical/informational displays in the international terminal as well. Sadly I missed the display describing prohibited items that had been brought to the airport. Allegedly my buddy's chainsaw was in that one.
To sum up, at what other airport can you get educated, get culture, and get your grub on? And feeling calm and comfortable all the while.
Rock on, SFO. I show up 90 minutes early when picking people up, just so we can reacquaint ourselves. I look forward to seeing you in November, if not sooner.
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I love SFO! I never thought that I would ever say that, but I do. I do a lot of traveling to visit friends and the bf in Southern CA. I'd say that I've been here enough times to give a proper rating.
Domestic terminal: Never takes me longer than 10 minutes to check in for a flight and get through security. I hope it stays that way.
International terminal: The recently updated international terminal is amazing. I've used it for both international and domestic travel (on Virgin America) and I like the fact that it's spacious and clean. The old international terminal always felt so cramped. Check-in is also speedy here.
So far, it's been no-hassle for me at SFO. I'm a happy camper.
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Though I love this marvelous airport, it needs to take a page out of the Vancouver "podunk" airport handbook:
FREE WI-FI.
Come'on SFO, get with the times. If Vancouver can do it, SO CAN YOU!
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Food-wise and shopping-wise, I think SFO is top-rate. I had a burger and fries at Lori's Diner, which was pretty solid. What I found a little odd, though not surprising, is that the entire staff during that shift was Chinese, from the cook to the cashier who took my order. In fact, during my 180 minutes in the airport, I think I saw mostly Chinese people or some form of Asian walking through the airport. I can't imagine the size of the airport because I stayed in Terminal 3 throughout my layover, but I imagine it's pretty big. Lots of shops to bide your time there in Terminal 3.
The one major problem I have with SFO (and I suspect it's a common one with many people) is this: Its flight delays. The location of the airport makes it next to impossible to expect that a flight will make it to the gate on time. That's what you get for building a frakking airport next to the Bay. When we landed, I could already see that the proximity to the water would present problems. Sure enough, when I checked for my flight to San Diego that day, which was only supposed to keep me at SFO for about an hour, already listed the flight with an hourlong delay. The hourlong delay turned into 90 minutes. I was supposed to land in San Diego at 3:30. I got home at 4:45 that day. Ridiculous. Weather-related delays... it plagues SFO.
SFO gets 5 stars because I'm ALWAYS ridiculously happy and excited to be here! Because duh, it means I'm getting the hell out of here. I love the Bay, but I LOVE love LOVE love to travel! It's embedded in my Sagittarian ways.
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LOL, I can't believe I'm writing a review for the AIRPORT. Sh*t, what can I say? My uncle works there? I usually fly either on Southwest, US Airways, or Virgin America? If I leave the country, it'll probably be on Philippine Airlines? Yeah..
Background: Male Bonding Trip (uhhh, you mean gambling and strip clubs?)
Location: SFO --2-- Vegas
Situation: 6 guys drank their share of beers before flight @ SFO bar
30 minutes before boarding: 2 guys have to hit the head (Sounds nasty. But it just means that they gotta go do #1).
Drill? You know the drill fellas. At least you SHOULD KNOW THE DRILL!
Me? I like to take care of my bidness in private. So, I take urinal #6 (really there's many, many more @ SFO. But for the sake of education,
I'll make it simple) since I'm by myself.
Friend from another country (so he may plead ignorance, I think)? Baby boy inexplicably takes #5 right next to me! Moroni starts talking about everything under the sun. "Hey, Baron Davis had a great game last night...heard it's 35 degrees celsius
down there...Is this a 747 that we're flying"
ME: Uuhhh. Uhhhh. Ummmm...STFU?
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Bathroom etiquitte 101 for men:
Situation #1
| -1- | Occupied | -3- | Occupied | -5- | -6- |: (Urinals 2 and 4 are occupied. Which one do you take?) Easy! Take urinal 6!
Every guy should knows this by now. It's apart from the other men and it's next to an inanimate object like a wall or a stall. Plus!
DON"T TURN YOUR HEAD (the one on your shoulder, pervs) EVEN THE SLIGHTEST BIT TO THE SIDE OR BELOW THE IMAGINARY LINE WHERE YOUR CHIN
IS LOCATED!
Sitauation #2
| Occupied | -2- | -3- | -4- | -5- | -6- |: (Urinal 1 is occupied. Which one do you take?) Although urinal #6 is the optimal choice,
#5 is still acceptable. #4 is getting a bit sketch. #3 is a no-no. And #2 is death. Plus! DON"T TURN YOUR HEAD (the one on your shoulder, pervs) EVEN THE SLIGHTEST BIT TO THE SIDE OR BELOW THE IMAGINARY LINE WHERE YOUR CHIN IS LOCATED!
Situation #3
| -1- | -2- | -3- | -4- | -5- || -6- |: (All urinals are available. Which one do you take?) Safest choices are #1 and #6; if you take #2,#3,#4,or #5, there's a good chance that someone will occupy the urinal right next to you in the middle of you doing your bidness. I don't care
if you're by yourself. REMEMBER! DON"T TURN YOUR HEAD (the one on your shoulder, pervs) EVEN THE SLIGHTEST BIT TO THE SIDE OR BELOW THE IMAGINARY LINE WHERE YOUR CHIN IS LOCATED!
Situation #4
| -1- | Occupied | -3- | Occupied | -5- | Occupied |: (Urinals 2, 4 and 6 are occupied. Which one do you take?) If you really, really have to go and the stalls are avaialble, go into one of the stalls (No need to close or lock the door, either). But if stalls are unavailable, take #1!
You're next to a wall which minimizes 50% of the contact. Plus! DON"T TURN YOUR HEAD (the one on your shoulder, pervs) EVEN THE SLIGHTEST BIT TO THE SIDE OR BELOW THE IMAGINARY LINE WHERE YOUR CHIN IS LOCATED!
Situation #5
|Occupied | Occupied | -3- | Occupied | Occupied | Occupied |: (1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 are occupied. Which one do you take?) This is where it gets tricky. If you're at a game, by all means, take #3. Guys are lazy. They wait for a break in the action before they go. So during halftime for example, all urinals are fair game--as long as you DON"T TURN YOUR HEAD (the one on your shoulder, pervs) EVEN THE SLIGHTEST BIT TO THE SIDE OR BELOW THE
IMAGINARY LINE WHERE YOUR CHIN IS LOCATED!
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*These rules do not apply to anyone attending sporting events--DURING HIGH TRAFFIC periods(i.e- halftime, when 'the other team is batting,'right after Barry Bonds finishes his at bat, etc.). Again, the lazy guy rule.
*They do not apply to Larry Craig or George Michael. I don't quite know what kinds of bathrooms these guys frequent....
*They do not apply to the women who use our restroom to avoid their long lines @ the club. Ususally, these women are obnoxiously funny and they're there to do one thing-- hurl all of the lemon drop shots that they had that night.
*These rules are not applicable in restaurants that have less than or equal to 2 urinals. If you gotta to go, you gotta go.
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Oh! SFO, you ask? Great airport. Great international terminal. I love to eat here (Firewood! Drink! Peet's Coffee! Parking? Sucks (read: $$$$). But it's wider, user friendly, and overall great piece of architecture.
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Not so familiar with the airport. It is pretty clean and big. Okay, not as big as LAX but I like the airport.
NOT a 5 stars airport though. Hmmmmm, no wifi.
Ease of accesibility from San Francisco (yay BART), organized security lines and easy parking make SFO one of my favorite airports to fly in and out of.
The check-in lines here can be really long and move really slowly, and flights still do get cancelled or delayed out of here, but the food selection is good enough so that you can deal with the delay.
I love the Airtrain here that takes you from terminal to terminal.
-1 star for the Alaska/American share flights to San Diego. I always get on at the wrong terminal, and it's not clear when you're booking which terminal the plane will be at.
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SFO is the best, most convenient airport I think I've yet to deal with. Not to mention that it's less than 8 miles from my home.
The International Terminal here is awesome...AWESOME I TELL YOU. Large and spread out, there are virtually no security lines, it feels luxurious with nice shops and a great selection of good eats. I hope Virgin America stays in the Int'l Terminal so I get to enjoy it for a long time to come.
The circular layout of the airport just seems incredibly intelligent to me. Never felt like I had to walk very far to get anywhere.
Since Southwest decided to move back into SFO I now never have to go to Oakland or SJC again.
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Pretty airport w/ easy BART access!
I hate driving here b/c it's confusing as heck w/ the lack of space for lane changes!
It's nice to know that SFO is always busy, even for red eye flights! If there is trouble though, you will find cops on their bikes zipping through foot traffice. They were arresting a young man when I was waiting for a flight, but eh, oh well.
Baggage claim was easy though, relatively close. Sucks that there aren't any freebie carts around, I'm cheap and don't want to pay for a cart but it's my fault I pack too much crap.
Exiting from dropping off/picking up passengers is a cinch and super easy to get back on 101!
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We all know what a hassle flying has become since 911 so we can appreciate a well organized airport with ample parking, BART access, and organized security lines. Be sure to get there early since check-in lines can be long, especially for those of you who want a live person instead of the self check-in kiosk. There's plenty of places to eat and drink also which is important since we all know airplane food tastes like plastic.
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ah my lovely little sfo..... you are the gateway to my wanderlust. the airport of my life.... The one I always return to no matter where I go. So many wonderful memories between us. And some not so wonderful I guess. Lets take a stroll down memory lane, shall we?
Ahhh, like that first time mom and dad packed me up and shipped me off solo to spend the summer in Wisconsin with the relatives. Yes, I was only 9 years old at the time, but I still remember the rush I got as I walked proudly onto the plane by myself feeling like a grown up. I was so excited. A great airport moment. Or, when I was 18 years old. I had just arrived back from Hawaii with all my friends where we celebrated our high school graduation.... And there, waiting at the gate was my then-boyfriend. I had no idea he was going to be there, with flowers. He ran over when he saw me, lifted me up in the air and gave me that really dramatic kiss in front of everyone at the gate. Just like out of a movie.... all those people around us started clapping and cheering. That was one of my favorite airport moments ever. Or, *long sigh* we could talk about that other time, (just over a year ago) when I was chosen randomly out of line to get a full-on strip search. I really wish I was joking about that humiliating day. It was 6am for chrissakes and those 2 mean and scary female officers brought me into a private curtained-off booth and had me remove all my clothes to do a full search on me. Scared me to fucking death I tell ya. The worst part being, when I walked back out escorted by those female officers everyone in line was totally staring at me. Yes people, I'm a terrorist so stand back! um, not a great airport moment.
So my dear Sfo, we've had some good and bad memories together but I still love you.
Even though your female security guards have traumatized me for life, your security lines are long and unorganized, your baggage claim a nightmare, your bathrooms deplorable..... I'll always return to you, my love. Always.
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Even though this airport lies way outside of the city, when you drive in, you still get the feeling you're in San Francisco.
It's so -- vertical.
It's so -- delayed.
It's so -- compact.
I've never really been delayed out of here, but know quite a few people that have. For the most part, this is one of my favorite airports because it brings me to one of my favorite cities, and it's always been very easy to get in and out of (read: not San Jose).
It's also very convenient to the city, either by BART or by cab. By the way, if you are staying in the city, I really recommend BART -- it drops you off right in the airport, and it's not less than 10 minutes more time than taking a cab, and much, much cheaper!
The only real hassle is the tram that you have to take to get to the rental cars (which by the way, are an absolute waste of money in the city), but for the most part, it's a very easy airport to use.
If you're going to have a layover at an airport, it really helps when there is a Gucci boutique, Erin Pearl, Swatch store, Sephora, Coach and Tumi.
Minus one star for having staff who are not completely fluent in english. I was lost for a bit...
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SFO has improved over the years, better food, quick parking, revamped inside and out. They change the art work inside - especially in the United Airlines terminal when you jump onto the moving sidewalk - they always have cases with new art or artifacts inside.
Complaints about SFO has been they are slow to man the gates to get people off an arriving plane late at night - around midnight or later. I've consistently sat on planes for 30 minutes to an hour waiting for staff to come and maneuver and open the gates for us. There can be lots of traffic into SFO and fog can cause planes to be late or cancelled. But, the weather is better than flying into or out of Denver, Dallas, Chicago, or DC.
Finally, it doesn't matter what airport I'm in - WTF is wrong with lazy people riding the moving sidewalk instead of walking on it??!?! This ain't no Disney Ride folks! And, if you're going to be a lazy ass - move your fat ass to the side to let other people walk by you!!
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Love SFO! Back in the early 1980's my friends and I would enjoy adult beverages and then people watch at the airport (okay, we were young, and there was no Yelp or Google or 90% of the crap that we have at our disposal today, k?). This was pre-OBL (9/11) when one could stroll unchecked.
I love planes and airports and jet fuel and flying in general. I've never had an issue at SFO, pre- or post-9/11; have flown through security at all hours without delay.
Got to hang out at Air Traffic Control one day and was practically tinkling my pants with excitement. I *really* like airplanes! It was so cool to be in the tower.
Looking forward to the old American terminal being finished, tho. Terminal 2, right?
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Since I fly all the time and go almost everywhere, I've seen my fair share of airports. San Francisco International (SFO) is definitely one of the best and here's why:
-Accessibility: The airport is very easy to travel to/from San Francisco. Taking BART is by far the easiest way to travel to and from the city and it takes just about 30 minutes (and it's cheap since it's less than $6.00). The ride is convenient, fairly clean and very reliable. If you take a car it takes about 20 minutes and there usually isn't heavy traffic to/from the city.
-Layout/User-friendliness: Upon arrival to the airport it's very easy to navigate to your appropriate destination; whether you're looking for restrooms, food courts, airline departure/arrival information or gate stations, clear signs are posted everywhere to help get you where you want to be.
-Decor: SFO is one of the few airports that really takes pride in being aesthetically pleasing. The International Terminal, the newest portion of the airport, is amazing: it's sleek, modern and upscale...you actually feel like you're in a futuristic space station waiting for your intergalactic flight to somewhere in the cosmos. Even though the rest of the airport isn't that new, it feels like it since it's