The RPG Duelling League
Social Forums => Discussion => Topic started by: Lady Door on April 30, 2015, 09:26:17 PM
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Arriving
Wednesday, July 29
9:08am - UA 1415 - Meeple
9:51am - UA 1950 - Soppy
2:05pm - DL 4806 - VSM
10:39pm - DL 64501 - Niu
10:56pm - JB 1475 - Jim +1
Thursday, July 30
10:00am - VA 67 - super
2:20pm - DL 2621 - CK
Returning
Sunday, August 2
9:40am - VA 84 - super
1:00pm - DL 2780 - Niu
1:05pm - DL 2621 - CK
11:59pm - JB 276 - Jim +1
Monday, August 3
8:04am - DL 4622 - VSM
6:50pm - AA 209 - Soppy
Tuesday, August 4
1:00pm - UA 1754 - Meeple
Blue = OAK. All others SFO.
FAQ
When should I get there?
The house will be open Wednesday, July 29 through Monday, August 3. If you arrive before or leave after, there are a few DLers in the area you can arrange to stay with (or hotel, obviously).
What time should I arrive/leave?
The biggest constraint is the BART timetable. The earliest trains leave at 4:20am and the latest trains drop off at ~1:20am, with even more limited times on Sundays. Give yourself at least an hour buffer on those times. BART is not renowned for being on time, though it's not terrible unless someone's committed suicide on the tracks or there's a riot in Oakland.
If absolutely necessary, I can drive. Accounting for traffic, it takes ~45-60 minutes to get to SFO, ~60-90 to get to SJC, and ~30 minutes to get to OAK. Less if it's the middle of the night, but I can't speed too much because cops set lots of speed traps around here. :P
What's the best airport to use?
You have three options: San Francisco (SFO), Oakland (OAK), or San Jose (SJC). Oakland is the closest, SF hosts the most international flights, and San Jose is often slightly cheaper than either. Both Oakland and SF have BART service directly to the house. San Jose requires additional transportation like a taxi to the train station or a ride from one of the South Bay DLers or the like.
I recommend Oakland and San Francisco, in that order.
How do I get to the house from the airport? And back again?
BART. Here's a map. (http://www.bart.gov/stations)
SJC is a whole 'nother animal. If you're flying into SJC, let me know so I can set something up for you.
From SFO
Follow the signs to the AirTrain/BART. Get on the AirTrain - Red Or Blue Line and get off at the BART stop.
Once you've gone through the fare gates and down the stairs, you are looking for Richmond (before 8pm) or Pittsburg/Bay Point. Pittsburg/Bay Point is probably the only train leaving the airport. DO NOT take Fremont or Dublin/Pleasanton - they do not easily transfer to the right trains and you'll just end up backtracking.
Richmond train is direct! Just get off at El Cerrito Plaza. It'll take about an hour.
Pittsburg/Bay Point is not direct. You will need to listen for MacArthur station; it'll be after you go under the bay. You can also transfer at Balboa Park. Once there, you need to find a Richmond train. You may need to walk to another platform (down the stairs, across, up the stairs), but I believe Richmond is a timed transfer meaning it should be at the station and easy to find.
From OAK
Once you exit from baggage claim, you'll be able to walk across the traffic lanes and head up to the tower where you climb a bunch of stairs, walk over some platforms, yadda yadda. You'll need to buy a ticket before you get on anything. Pay your $8.95, ticket goes in and comes back out, get on the tram thingy. The "automated people mover" (their words) will take you from the airport to the BART. Do more fare gate things to get into the station proper.
Since it will dump you out at MacArthur, you should simply need to find a Richmond train.
Back to SFO/OAK
Going back to the airport is easy: Take a train going to SFO.
OAK you need whatever southbound train you can find (basically, just avoid the Richmond train). Get off at MacArthur and find your way back to the AirBART automated people mover which only goes to the airport so you can't possibly get lost.
What is BART?
Bay Area Rapid Transit. It's the local subway/train service connecting the East Bay and the Peninsula with San Francisco. It's extremely convenient. You'll probably only need it once or twice: trip to/from the airport and if you want to take a trip to SF. Note, because this can be confusing: if you have exact fare, the machine will not give you your ticket back once you've put it in the gate to exit. Just walk through the open gate.
The costs are based on station-to-station price points. The station closest to the house is El Cerrito Plaza, which is only a couple blocks away.
One-way ticket price (no discounts unless you want to buy $50 worth of fare):
SFO <-> El Cerrito Plaza: $9.45
OAK <-> El Cerrito Plaza*: $8.95
Downtown SF** <-> El Cerrito Plaza: $4.15
* OAK has two pay-gates. This is the total cost for both.
** Downtown SF is several stations that all cost the same. This gets you to Union Square, the Ferry Building/Pier 1, etc. You need a bus for the rest of the city.
Alternate transportation options for getting to where you want to go without a car or walking:
Buses. Ferries. Cabs. Lyft/Uber/Sidecar.
Buses
We are very close to a "highway" (just a particularly busy thoroughfare). The bus you most likely will want for local service is the 72 (or 72M, 72R). This'll get you from El Cerrito to Berkeley and Oakland. If you wanted to, but I very much do not recommend, you could also go up toward Richmond.
There is also a bus that will take you to San Francisco! Two buses, I guess. It will take just under an hour. You take the 72 to Oakland then get on the F. Once you're in SF you'll probably need to the local SF transport to get to where you want to go, including Japantown.
Basically, if you want to do things in SF on the weekend, expect to be there most of the day.
Fares:
Local, $2.10/ride ($5/day if you ask for it when you pay)
Transbay, $4.20/ride
Ferry
Get to downtown Oakland (via BART or bus), walk down to the water, take a ferry. This'll also take a while.
Fare:
$6.40/trip
$1.50 short hop (Oakland to Alameda or Pier 1 to Pier 41)
Uber, Lyft, Sidecar
The most direct, point-to-point trip. Hire a car! Expect to pay ~$30-35 per car. They can usually take 3ish people. There's also an option for a more expensive but bigger car.
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VTA's trip planner choked on coming up with directions from the San Jose airport to Fremont BART. It is possible to make it by public transit though quite time consuming. Here's how.
Board Line 10 towards the Metro Light Rail at the airport. Both terminals have stops. Take it to the Metro Light Rail. (it's at the end of the run).
Ride the Light Rail south to the Civic Center. Grab either a Santa Teresa or a Winchester train.
Transfer to Line 181 heading towards Fremont BART.
From Fremont BART, board a Richmond (or wherever the end point is these days) train to El Cerito Plaza.
Probably will take 3-4 hours total once wait times are factored in. Really better for sanity to arrive at Oakland or San Francisco. EDIT: I derped and forgot that taking the #10 the other way to the Santa Clara Caltrain is faster anyways.
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You could also take the Caltrain to Millbrae and then BART. Still gonna take forever.
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That route is insane. Do what Ashley said if you want to go to SJC and then head up to BART. It's still 2 hours, but it's not 3-4.
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I am using Delta Air from LAX to SFO, what's the best way to get to the house with below schedule? And yes, I am going to use the house.
Wed, 29 Jul 2015
9:05PM LAX to 10:39PM SFO
Flight# DL 64501
(This one is likely to have 30~min delay)
Sun, 02 Aug 2015
1:00PM SFO to 2:30PM LAX
Flight# DL 2780
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Posting flight info here juuuust in case. (Also because hey, if anyone else is getting into SFO at a similar time buddying up before taking the BART would be convenient or something).
Jul 30, 2015 - Departure Nonstop Total travel time:5 h 5 m
DTW 12:15pm Terminal EM
SFO 2:20pm Terminal 1
Delta 2621
Aug 2, 2015 - Return Nonstop Total travel time:4 h 41 m
SFO 1:05pm Terminal 1
DTW 8:46pm Terminal EM
Delta 2520
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BART will still be running at that hour, Niu, and there's a station directly in the airport itself. Take the first train you can going northbound to East Bay, and get off on El Cerrito Plaza. There's a few different lines marked by colors, just make sure the one you're on goes to El Cerrito. You can freely get off at any station and transfer to another line by waiting for the next train.
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Ooh, sorry I missed that -- thanks, Laggy! I'll edit the FAQ to reflect the BART trips to/from the airport.
Niu, follow Laggy's directions. You'll (most likely) be looking for the Pittsburg/Bay Point train at that hour; Richmond will have stopped leaving from SF. Important note: this is not a direct line! You will need to transfer to a Richmond train at MacArthur station.
Check out the map: http://www.bart.gov/stations
Maddeningly, they don't ever refer to the lines by color anywhere else. Trains are usually named by their final stop.
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Virgin America
Flight 67
5h 40m, 2412.0mi
Conf # MVXPFX From
Washington Dulles Intl Airport (IAD)
Washington, DC
07/30/2015 - 7:20 AM To
San Francisco Intl Airport (SFO)
San Francisco, CA
07/30/2015 - 10:00 AM Aircraft
Airbus A320
Economy Class
Returning Flight Information
Virgin America
Flight 84
5h 5m, 2412.0mi
Conf # MVXPFX From
San Francisco Intl Airport (SFO)
San Francisco, CA
08/02/2015 - 9:40 AM To
Washington Dulles Intl Airport (IAD)
Washington, DC
08/02/2015 - 5:45 PM Aircraft
Airbus A320
Economy Class
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For Nick and I:
Jetblue flight 1475
departs Boston, MA 7:25pm 7/29/15
arrives Oakland, CA 10:56pm 7/29/15
Jetblue flight 276
departs Oakland, CA 11:59pm 8/2/15
arrives Boston, MA 8:28am 8/3/15
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Leave
Wed, Jul 29
6:00 AM
Newark EWR
9:08 AM
San Francisco SFO
non-stop
6hr 8min
United Airlines 1415
Return
Tue, Aug 4
1:00 PM
San Francisco SFO
9:45 PM
Newark EWR
non-stop
5hr 45min
United Airlines 1754
Yeah, I'm there til Tuesday, so need to figure out what I'm doing the extra night there; if I have to do a Hotel, I'll go with it. Additionally, if any problems, please let me know ASAP so I can still cancel the flights if absolutely necessary (probably won't be an issue)
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Just so you know, Elfboy, Mage, Grefter, our friend, and I are all coming by car.
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OUTBOUND Wed, 29 Jul 2015
7:25AM LAN to 2:05PM OAK
RETURN Mon, 03 Aug 2015
8:04AM OAK to 10:40PM LAN
I thought I mentioned it somewhere, but I intend to stay at the house. Will give Approx $200 USCHC give or take depending on what my share actually shakes out to be.
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Arriving:
Wed, July 29th 9:51AM
SFO
United Flight 1950
Departing:
Mon, August 3rd 6:50PM
SFO
American Airlines 209 to LAX
American Airlines 162 from LAX to Orlando @ 10:15PM
Oh, I'm in, btw.
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I'm coming in on Wednesday, but I'll be staying with a friend that night. Then I'll take the BART on Thursday to El Cerrito sometime in the morning/early afternoon (Yay for SF transportation where both places I'm staying are just a few blocks from a BART station).
Flight In
July 29 (Wednesday)
LAX->SFO
3:05->4:25
Delta 2768
Flight Out
August 2nd (Sunday)
OAK->LAX
4:33->6:05
Delta 4856
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YOUR FLIGHT
Outbound
Thu, Jul 30
Arrive
11:54 AM
Oakland, California
Metropolitan Oak Intl (OAK)
Terminal 1
Delta Airlines Delta Air Lines 4765 CRJ 900
Economy
338 mi 1hr 29min
Flight 4765 Operated by SKYWEST DBA DELTA CONNECTION
Return
Depart
6:47 PM
Sun, Aug 2
Oakland, California
Metropolitan Oak Intl (OAK)
Terminal 1
Flight 4832 Operated by SKYWEST DBA DELTA CONNECTION
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Yaaaaaay~
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Because life cannot be easy:
BART will not be running between East Bay and San Francisco on August 1st and 2nd, so we will have to arrange rides for people going that direction on those days.
EDIT: To be specific, arrange rides means "with me." I do have a car and all. This is more a personal annoyance than anything since I'll have to shuttle people.
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Will that affect Oakland or only SFO?
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Should be just SFO. They're closing the Transbay Tube for repairs.
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Haha! I avoid inconveniencing the Andybro.
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So question: I'm staying a day later than most it seems. Is there going to be someone available to bunk me for the night, or will I have to go up in a hotel for the night? If the latter, can someone recommend me a good place to stay at a combination of cost and location convenience? Something I'd like sorted out sooner rather than later.
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Oh, y'all need my flight numbers.
DELTA 4806 from LA 2:05pm
DELTA 4622 to LA 8:04am
Somehow during my ticket buying process I never noticed my SECOND LAYOVER over in LAX. Whatever. Probably saved me about 150 dollars and I'm unemployed and the state of Michigan seems to really not want to ACTUALLY GIVE ME my unemployment.
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Transbay Tube Closure
To be explicit, August 1 and August 2 are Saturday and Sunday. If y'all wanted to sightsee those days, we'd need to arrange things (ferry, cars). Just FYI.
People leaving on Sunday: We will likely go in 3 driving trips.
Meeple: PM'd
VSM: So noted. And much sympathy for LAX layovers.
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Alternate transportation options for getting to where you want to go without a car or walking:
Buses. Ferries. Cabs. Lyft/Uber/Sidecar.
Buses
We are very close to a "highway" (just a particularly busy thoroughfare). The bus you most likely will want for local service is the 72 (or 72M, 72R). This'll get you from El Cerrito to Berkeley and Oakland. If you wanted to, but I very much do not recommend, you could also go up toward Richmond.
There is also a bus that will take you to San Francisco! Two buses, I guess. It will take just under an hour. You take the 72 to Oakland then get on the F. Once you're in SF you'll probably need to the local SF transport to get to where you want to go, including Japantown.
Basically, if you want to do things in SF on the weekend, expect to be there most of the day.
Fares:
Local, $2.10/ride ($5/day if you ask for it when you pay)
Transbay, $4.20/ride
Ferry
Get to downtown Oakland (via BART or bus), walk down to the water, take a ferry. This'll also take a while.
Fare:
$6.40/trip
$1.50 short hop (Oakland to Alameda or Pier 1 to Pier 41)
Uber, Lyft, Sidecar
The most direct, point-to-point trip. Hire a car! Expect to pay ~$30-35 per car. They can usually take 3ish people. There's also an option for a more expensive but bigger car.
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Arriving Friday. Family will drop me off late morning sometime after 10, most likely before noon.
Departing Monday: Will hike on over to the BART station when I'm ready to go so there isn't a fixed time I need to leave by.
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Thanks, DK0!
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The house should be open ~9am tomorrow morning. I am intending to be there all day and, again, feel free to call me at 510-730-2665 if you get lost or need directions to the nearest In-N-Out.
If you drivers find yourself showing up early (like, tonight - I will leave you standing outside if you come before 7am tomorrow), you're welcome to come to my place and pull up some slate floor. (Actually, we have 1 queen airbed, 1 double futon, and a couch. Also a Pomeranian-sized dog bed.) Let me know so I can give you my address. Or, again, hotels. We have a lot of them in roughly a 5 mile radius.