San Francisco Airport Passenger Reviews and San Francisco Airport Traveller Reports

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Good airport but not so spacious, everywhere is quite cramped. They've improved the baggage recovery area a bit but the immigration counters continue to be a chaos. There's the serpentine long queues and so many counters are vacant but very few staff. Even at 12:30 in the afternoon, when 3 international flights arrived together, they only had 4 Immigration counters open for the visitors so it took almost an hour to get across. However the immigration (DHS) officers are quite polite and courteous. The customs officers were friendly too this time!

TSA for the international flights lived up to their reputation. Seemed like a dysfunctional family. They were rude and unorganized. Someone needs to tell them passengers do not like going through them just like they showed they don't like dealing with passengers. Nobody forced them to choose their job. If a customer service company had employees like TSA at SFO, they'd go out of business. To all TSA employees: Passengers will always be a pain. They will whine, complain, and get unruly at times. Don't lower yourself to those standards. Don't take out your frustrations on the passengers. You are serving your country. Be professional. Be courteous. Be understanding.

Connected from US Airways to United, so, although our bags were transferred directly, we had to exit one terminal, take the airport train to another terminal, go through security there, and then walk a fair distance to our gate. Other than that, no problems. Airport appeared to be in good condition. Decent array of stores and restaurants/bars. It was raining but we experienced no delays.

SFO is a nice, recently renovated airport. The food options are good (specifically for domestic flights, not in the international terminal, which doesn't have so many choices). Also, in general, the flights are on time. My only complaint is with security. I am not comfortable using the new airport body scanners, but if you decide to use the metal detectors, you are subjected to a pat down. Also, as I was passing through security, I heard many complaints about the pat downs (specifically, people felt like they were being harassed by airport security personnel).

This is my home airport. I will admit I hate to pass through immigration control here and not because of the immigration officials who can be severe at times. It's the customs part of it all where if one declares food even if it's one tiny pack of biscuits it begins a whole chain of distrust. It has happen loads of times where I was only bringing in some pastries and biscuits both in hand and checked luggage where we got treated badly. The agents always feel when one admits to bringing in food-any sort of food-it'll be something illegal, thus, the chances of having one's luggage searched before exiting is quite certain. That is perhaps the only issue I've got with SFO. Thus, I will advise anyone to declare that you're bringing in food of any sort. If it's edible it's considered to be food. Otherwise, as stated earlier, the SFO immigration officers can be gruff though some are fair. As a US citizen I think I've been quite fortunate as from what I've read from foreign visitors' experiences they have been given the third degree or more. However, I think that's typical as visitors to the UK (and other countries). For instance, I've been treated quite rudely, unfairly, and unprofessionally as well by their entry clearance officers. It must be a sign of the travel times. SFO itself I do not care for as for a major international airport it is quite small and lack good dining choices. It can be quite confusing as well if one is driving into and out of it with its confusing signage at times.

The immigration officials were extremely aggressive and intimidating, to the point I honestly felt I was being harassed. I agree with the below UK reviewer that it does give a very poor impression to an otherwise amazing city. I'd previously come into Chicago and there also was processed very sternly, that was my first trip to the US and I was then unprepared for all the personal questions about how much money I had, what I did for a living etc. But this was something else, the official asked me 3 times if I was in the country on business, in a sarcastic, unpleasant manner, as if he were trying to catch me out. Each time I politely told him I was on holiday. It was genuinely distressing. I'd just come off an 11 hour flight and had waited an hour in line. I was then subjected to a bag search, of both my hold and hand luggage, by 2 different officials. Again, this was done in a confrontational, aggressive manner. A horrible ordeal, prepare yourself.

SFO terminals 2 and 3 are fine. Terminal 1 is an insane nightmare. The security staff are rude, obnoxious and inefficient. They refuse to open up the metal scanners when the naked body scanners are backed up for over an hour. Customers naturally grow impatient as even an hour early to your flight is no guarantee that you will make it.

A very pleasant surprise! The new international terminal is functional, clean, and efficient. It's actually a pleasure to use this particular US airport. Check in was smooth. The place was not crowded. Security - yes, the TSA - was pleasant, efficient, without any pressure of being rushed, and the area beyond security provided adequate shops and facilities to entertain anyone waiting for his flight.

Staff in immigration are extremely rude and aggressive - treat people like cattle. One example - As we were going through they opened up the US Citizen lines to non-residents. An elderly lady got a bit confused and simply asked if she should go in this line - he barked at her "I don't know how else to explain this lady - go in the shortest line". I travel extensively through Europe and Asia and I have never come across behaviour like this before - long queues yes- but rudeness to senior citizens no. Real shame as it gives a poor first impression to an otherwise wonderful city.

International arrival with transfer to international departure (Terminal G). Unfortunately, FCO uses buses into which pax are crammed for transport to the terminal. Not a pleasant experience. Poor directional signs for transfers and an airport that has non-existent climate control. Arrived in the morning with an early afternoon departure. It is not an airport where one wants to spend too much time especially when the AC is not effective. There are absolutely no clocks anywhere in the G structure. Not on the flight info directory and not on a wall. No functioning free wifi either. It makes it difficult if one relies on a mobile device and not a watch. On the upside, the facility was relatively clean and well organized.

Good airport, though I was a bit surprised at the superlative reviews some give it. I hasten to add we used it just for one departure recently. Facilities were fairly modern and clean, though not spacious. We saw the moderate line for security and entered the special line for first class and other priority passengers, though it merely took us through a few twists and turns and then back to the end of the regular line (bizarre). Gate area was average in space and seating.

I have been to numerous airports in the US and I found that SFO is the best one. I have used this airport multiples times and always found them to be pleasant. The signage is very clear and the security lines are never long. It's a very efficient airport.

Flew American Airlines to and from SFO (domestic) via superb Terminal 2. Good choice of shopping and dining in a modern, wide open, clean and clear departure lounge. Luggage claim area with carpet and sofas, which were unnecessary as baggage was already in conveyor when I got there. Multi-company rental car facilities can be easily accessed via monorail, which literally delivers you righ in front of the rental counters. But attention: on my way back to the airport from San Mateo bridge I could not easily find a gas station close to the highway in order to have the car refuelled, so allow extra time for not missing your flight.

I live 50 miles from the airport. I have used SFO for over 30 years for primarily international, Hawaii, and East Coast travel. The airport keeps getting better. Currently, most of my flights are in and out of the refurbished Terminal 2. Clean, bright, open. Good food, shops, and a couple of good bars. Wished security was a bit quicker, but it is a lot better than some places. SFO has good connections with downtown San Francisco and the East Bay via BART (expensive though). For locals, it has good freeway access and a lot of different parking options. The problem with SFO is the weather.

Arrival after a 13 hour flight and one is greeted by serpentine queues at immigration counters - awful lack of staff to handle sea of passengers. No staff to channel/expedite the process. Took us more than an hour to get through. Better experience with other US airports including ORD. Similar problem with getting through security on departure. Free wi-fi is a farce - poor connectivity - gave up after several attempts on my smartphone.

Nice enough terminal but everything shuts at 10 or 11! Bar and restaurant staff quite happily tell you they are closing early! There are about 6 busy flights leaving after 1120, no wonder there is a recession in the USA!

This is another dreadful airport - all too common in the US west. The facilities were good, but it was so busy that there were no seats to use in any of the bars and restaurants. The WiFi was too slow to use - no doubt because the terminal was overcrowded. My international flight used another adjoining terminal. Absolutely nothing to eat and drink airside - I stocked up on chips knowing that United Airlines were going to serve me muck.

The earlier reviewer who stated one cannot move from one terminal to the next without exiting the secured area and re-entering through security is incorrect. There are clearly marked walkways which direct you to other terminals within the security zone. Having said that, if SFO is your first port of entry to the U.S. from an international point of origin, and you are connecting to a domestic flight, after exiting immigration and customs, you are out of the secured area and will need to go through security to board your connecting flight.

I flew through the International Terminal at the SFO airport twice on my trip to Asia. This airport is a typical big city US airport with gates far apart. Unlike airports in Asia and Europe, there are no smoking rooms inside the terminal, but, rather, smokers are forced to go outside. Outside smoking areas can be far from toilets and other facilities inside the terminal, making it difficult for those of us who cannot walk very much. Prices at the food establishments are very high, although the food was at least good. I found wheelchair service to be variable, ranging from ok to good. Overall, I would prefer to avoid this airport in the future.

This is the only airport I've been in where if you land here to transit to another flight you have to exit security and then go back through security at each terminal you visit. It's a TSA nightmare if you have a tight connection. When I landed, the TV information monitors that inform you what gate your flight is at - well in the terminal I was in those screens only showed flight numbers for flights leaving in that terminal, so I had no way of knowing what terminal, much less what gate my next flight was at. I ran around looking all over, finally asked some cleaning lady for directions. I walked up to a TSA agent and to my horror he explained I had to exit TSA to get to other terminals. That ended up being the first flight I ever missed.

Great art/culture exhibits in the terminals. There was one showing the history of turntables when we arrived - we stayed to look before picking up our car! Good food options for the vegetarian, which is unusual. Frozen yoghurt too! The monorail is fast, frequent and clean. It's not a far drive into the city (20 minutes or so) and the BART is also very convenient to downtown. Nice, newly renovated buildings with good light. Clean, nice bathrooms. We had no delays.

Unlike most big airports in America such as LAX, O'Hare, Dulles, Logan, Reagan, or from what I've heard JFK, this airport is not a nightmare to navigate. The signage is plentiful, which is a great help when locating the otherwise hidden baggage claim. The terminals (especially the new one that houses Virgin America and the International one) are very nice, though the restaurants are fairly pricey. The staff are helpful, but a little no- nonsense which can be irritating. Commuting is a breeze thanks to being located right off the highway and the metro. Customs is done without hassle. On the downside, the process of checking in and getting through security can be abysmal at the wrong time, the majority of flights are United and flights are often slightly delayed because of fog. Because of this, I prefer using the smaller airport in Oakland across the bay when I can. Regardless, this airport is what all big airports should be.

I flew UA to SFO and was surprised how good it was. UA check-in chaotic, was getting directed to go to the Continental (pre-merger) self check-in machines when I was on UA. United T3 very nice. Moving Sidewalk efficient.

Upon arrival from Seoul Incheon, TSA immigration and customs officials were rude and curt. They yelled at us for going the wrong way, without giving us a polite explanation or directions to other passengers who were confused to the ambiguous instructions about where to queue. None smiled and the staff that were there looked like they hated their jobs. Baggage staff also were observed throwing baggage around and looked like they did did not exercise care with other passengers belongings. While SFO International terminal is clean and well-designed, the amenities are wanting since everything is so expensive. With the rudeness of TSA and immigration staff, SFO is not my choice for flight needs. Even then, it's still a step beyond LAX but that isn't saying much.

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