San Francisco International Airport is only 13 miles south of downtown San Francisco. An average taxi ride, however, will cost about $40-$45 plus tip, depending upon traffic and the exact destination. When traveling alone, there are ways to cut this spend in half or even less.
Shared vans
SuperShuttle is one of about a dozen shared ride vans which hold up to nine passengers. Reservations are made online in advance. Upon arrival passengers report to a dispatcher who calls the next van up, generally within ten minutes. At $20-$23 including tip this is not the quickest way to get to your destination, as other passengers will be picked up and dropped off. At times one does get lucky, of course, and it is half the price of a taxi for one.
BART
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is a public rail transportation option. The station is located at the departure level in the International Terminal, which one can reach via the free AirTrain at the airport. BART weekday service hours begin at 4:09 a.m., on Saturdays from 5:54 a.m., on Sundays the first train is at 8:00 a.m. Service is until 11:45 p.m. seven days a week. BART connects at Millbrae Station for journeys into the city and elsewhere, including Caltrain. Trains depart every 15 minutes for the half-hour journey which costs $8.25. Bike racks are available at most BART stations.
Caltrain
Caltrain commuter trains travel south, providing a service to get travelers to towns between San Francisco and San Jose, such as Menlo Park, Redwood City, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Sunnyvale. There is limited weekday service to Gilroy.
SamTrans
SamTrans is a public bus service to San Mateo County. Fares run $2 to $5 for adults, depending on the destination.
Airporters
This term applies to private scheduled bus services to places other than San Francisco, such as Sonoma, Napa, Marin, Santa Cruz, Monterey. These services should be pre-booked so passengers are met at curbside upon arrival.
Rental cars from Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Fox, Hertz, National, and Thrifty are another option. The free AirTrain blue line shuttle delivers travelers to the rental car locations 14 hours a day.
Comments