San Francisco International Airport
Parking for SFO, and how long the shuttle leg really takes
One airport, one corridor, and a number that decides everything: the drive plus the shuttle wait plus the shuttle ride. Most people budget for the first and forget the other two.
The corridor
The lots this desk books with sit between the southern edge of the city and the airport, in a band running through Millbrae, San Bruno, South San Francisco and Burlingame. Nothing we book is more than about six miles from the terminals.
Driving from the city to a lot in that band takes twenty to forty minutes depending on the hour. Driving from a lot to the terminals takes eight to eighteen. The shuttle then adds the interval you happen to arrive on.
The three legs, with real numbers
| Leg | Off peak | Bad hour |
|---|---|---|
| City to the lot | 20 to 25 minutes | 40 minutes and up |
| Waiting for the shuttle | 5 to 10 minutes | 20 minutes late at night |
| Lot to the terminal | 8 to 12 minutes | 18 minutes |
| Total, lot to gate side | About 35 minutes | An hour |
Those are honest averages rather than best cases. Add them to whatever time you want to be at the terminal and work backwards; the note on how early to leave does the arithmetic in full.
The hours that hurt
Weekday mornings between six and nine, southbound, are the worst of it. Sunday evenings northbound are the second worst, which matters on collection rather than on drop off.
Late at night is the opposite problem. The drive is empty and the shuttle interval stretches to twenty minutes or more, so a two in the morning arrival is fast on the road and slow at the stand.
Gate hours
Most lots along this corridor are staffed through the day and gated overnight with a code. A few are staffed at every hour of the night. The difference matters on a late collection, and it is named in the quote rather than discovered at one in the morning.
If your return lands after midnight, say so when you reserve. It changes which operators can take the booking at all.
Terminals
SFO has four, and which one you fly from changes the shuttle route rather than the timing by much. The shuttles along this corridor run a loop of all of them, which means the terminal you want may be the third stop rather than the first.
Allow for that on departure. On arrival it does not matter, because you are getting on wherever you come out.
What this page does not do
Name a carrier, quote an airport fee that is not ours to quote, or tell you which terminal is nicer. Those are the airport's business, and this desk deals with the ground between the city and the curb.
Reserve for SFO
Send the dates through the reservation form and we come back with what is open and the daily rate, or call +1 (415) 906-2431 and speak to a specialist. Monday to Thursday 7:00 am to 7:00 pm, Friday 7:00 am to 4:00 pm, Pacific Time.