San Diego Airport

Security was quick and the walk to the gate is very short. However the airport is poorly designed. The gates are very crowded with little or no seating areas. The gate areas are not designed to handle the capacity of today's travel capacity. The gate areas are very dirty with trash everywhere. The airport is badly in need of a redesign and expansion.

Flew into T2 on BA. Terminal very quiet and we were through immigration in about 10 mins after leaving the plane. Baggage on the carousel within a further 10 mins. Passengers are then made to stand in line and have their hand and checked bags x-rayed and themselves scanned before being allowed to leave. Big queues by then as another flight had come in. What a shabby way to treat passengers.

SAN is very easy to get to your plane whatever time it is. I'm travel through this airport few times a year. The airport practically has to stop in order for British Airways B772ER to takeoff due to very small taxiways. Never had any problems with this airport. I agree T1 should be replaced soon.

Like many airports that have expanded in fits and starts over the years SAN is broken up between 3 terminals terminals one and two and the commuter terminal for short flights to Los Angeles. Terminal one is a bit older and cramped especially if you go in the morning rush or fly on Southwest. Terminal two is a bit nicer but currently undergoing expansion construction until 2013-2014. Parking is via shuttle and you have several choices between private and operators associated with the airport. The big plus is that the airport is located 5-10 minutes from downtown.

SAN airport is the most poorly designed airport. I live here and have to use that airport weekly which gives me the right to say this airport stinks. Terminal 1 is way too small sometimes so small that when Southwest has long check in lines you can't determine what is the check-in line versus the security line. The other thing is how long it takes to get your bags. I have no idea how places like DFW JFK and even O'Hare can have bags on the baggage claim carousels within 15 minutes of getting off of the plane but at SAN it takes an average of 25-30 minutes minimum - what the heck are they doing?

As others have commented SAN is a comfortably sized airport with a somewhat irritating need to go up over a bridge and down again to get from the baggage carousels to the shuttle buses. However a special warning to international travellers. We came in on the new Zoom service from London (8 hrs late but that's another story). The immigration staff at SAN have clearly not yet learned to handle the demands of diverse international passengers. We were on J-1 (exchange visitor) visas - not uncommon you would think for a city with a major international university and numerous high-tech research institutes. The officers appeared completely unfamiliar with this - we were asked if we were students (aged 60+!) sent off for secondary questioning returned waited while a second officer sought guidance from superiors on where to stamp the form.. at least 1/2 hour to our wait time. Another young man coming in on a student visa got similar treatment. I was also struck that the flight crew who have a dedicated desk and in my experience usually walk straight through immigration were waiting in line up to 40 minutes. Next time we'll return to the madhouse of LAX where at least they know what they're doing.

Arrived via AA. Terminal easy to negotiate but it would sure be nice if AA would advise its passengers as to which baggage carousel would be used. Because of SAN weather being pretty much VFR all the time flights are pretty much on time even though there is only one runway. Rental car shuttle vans are a bit of a walk but once you're in your car its a breeze getting into SAN downtown or onto I-5 or I-15 freeways. Great for cruise passengers as you can actually see the cruise ship (s) right outside baggage. AA has a small Admiral's Club with computer terminals and printers if needed.

Just travelled through SAN on my way to PHX. Terminal one must have been designed by a fool who has never been through an airport and has no regard for the needs of passengers. You have to use a sky bridge to get in and out and the terminal must still have the same look and design as when originally opened. Avoid this airport - at least terminal one - at all costs.

SAN is a hogde podge of up and down stairs evolutions. Access and egress with baggage is a pain. It has only one runway and is frequently affected by weather. The old style tunnel like concourses are cramped and the airside concessions are wedged in. Security is also wedged in forming narrow bottlenecks and is subject to frequent delays and back ups The airport authority and the city has resisted moving the airport for years and relied on a never ending series of short term fixes which make the facility ever the more dysfunctional. Not a bad connection if your destination is San Diego downtown but miserable if you are going anywhere else in the region. For one of the nations favorite tourist destinations and a tech hub to have such a poor airport is really a shame. Free wireless sound good though.

Travelled through SAN in September and contrary to the last post the airport does have Wifi and what's more it's free! A real bonus. This is a great airport and will be my preferred gateway into Southern California from now on. I previously used LAX which is dire. SAN is fairly small and clean with a good selection of shops and eateries. Parking is convenient and I found no problem using the car hire shuttles. What's more it has the bonus of being right in downtown.