Transfer to/from - San Diego airport (SAN)

Transportation

COVID-19 - Due to the current Coronavirus pandemic, services and schedules of the different transportation options may be subject to change as well as the limit of available capacity could be reduced. In turn, due to the changing situation, some services may even be temporarily canceled.

Ride-sharing

Vehicles pick passengers up outside the baggage recollection area of both terminals.

Bus

Line 992 from Metropolitan Transit System (Tel +1 619 233 3004) travels to downtown San Diego, America Plaza and City College from 5:00 am to 0:15 am. It operates every 15 minutes on weekdays and every 30 min. on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. The fare is USD2.50 and journey time is 20-30 min. In the city centre, you can make connections to other bus, trolley and train routes.

On the other hand, a shuttle service connects the enclosure with Middletown Station, where you can board the Green Line trolley heading for the city centre (50 min.; USD2.50), Seaport Village, Old Town, Fashion Valley, Mission Valley Center, Rio Vista, Qualcomm Stadium, Grantville, Grossmont, El Cajon and Santee.

The free San Diego Flyer service (Tel +1 619 694 7427) links the terminals with Old Town Transit Center from 4:45 am to 0:30 am, departing every 20-30 min.

Across from the terminals, you can hire shared services to different locations in the area: EZ Ride (Tel +1 800 777 0585 / 858 531 8171), Sea Breeze Shuttle (Tel +1 619 297 7463), VanGo.com.

Car rental search

Train

From the station located in the city centre depart trains from Coaster (Tel +1 760 966 6500) to Old Town, Sorrento Valley, Solana Beach, Encinitas, Carlsbad and Oceanside. The trip takes approximately 1 hour and fares vary from USD2.50 to USD5.00.

There are also Amtrak services (Tel +1 800 872 7245) to Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo.

Taxi

Ranks are situated in front of both terminals and the journey to the city centre takes 10-15 minutes. Official operators are Airport Yellow Cab of San Diego (Tel +1 619 444 4444 / 858 444 4444), American Cab (Tel +1 619 234 1111), Orange Cab (Tel +1 619 291 3333), San Diego Cab (Tel +1 619 226 8294 / 800 368 2947) and USA Cab (Tel +1 619 231 1144).

More information

While there are issues that seem more than obvious, it is always advisable to take into account when moving from or to the airport, and especially if you go on some public transport.  1- To the airport - It is convenient to go out with a little more anticipation than you would commonly suggest. If you choose a taxi or a private car service, always keep in mind peak transit times, demonstrations, strikes or events that may take more or less the trip to the airport from where you are. It is always good to be informed about what happens in the place where you find yourself.
If you have a shared transfer service, please have a contact Tel in case of any delay on the part of the company. In these cases, a scheduled collection schedule is already in tenter.
If you are using public transport (bus, train), have the schedules (weekends and holidays usually have fewer frequencies), if you have to transfer and also how to board (if you need a card or boarding pass or paying at the moment to the driver or rider). These are details that seem obvious, but it is advisable to know not to have surprises and suffer a delay that could bring complications.
If you rent a car to get to the airport check well, where you must leave the vehicles. In some airports, there is an exclusive parking lot for rental cars.  2 -From the airport- here is a little less stressful as you don't have the pressure to miss the flight. In the worst case you will arrive later to the place where you are going to stay or to the meeting point where you try to arrive. Once you get out of the plane, pick up your suitcase and finish with the required arrival procedures. Then you have to look for the public transport signs or consult the airport staff. It is very useful to inform the timetables of the buses in case you arrive late at night. Not all of them work 24 hours a day. The same goes for taxis. If you have hired a private car service, keep ready the mobile app to contact the driver. Some transport services hired, have a person waiting for you, identified with a sign.
If you rent a car to go from the airport to your final destination, for more peace of mind it is recommended to reserve it earlier. Rental counters are usually available at arrivals hall.