dhuey

Flying into wine country or elsewhere within the counties just north of San Francisco (Marin, Mendocino, Lake, Sonoma, Napa)? Consider Charles M. Schulz–Sonoma County Airport (STS is the airport code).

Service from STS is greatly expanding:

Bay Area’s smallest airport adding new direct flights and destinations
https://www.sfchronicle.com/travel/a...s-18682343.php

"Avelo announced Wednesday new direct flights out of Sonoma County Airport to Boise, Idaho; Kalispell, Mont.; Pasco, Wash.; and Salem, Ore., starting at the beginning of May. The airline, which started in 2021, already operates nonstop flights out of Sonoma County Airport to Burbank and Las Vegas with seasonal flights to Palm Springs and Bend, Ore."

"Sonoma County Airport also has nonstop flights to and from Burbank, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Portland, Ore., and Seattle on Alaska Airlines. American Airlines has direct service from Sonoma County to Dallas and Phoenix."

I've never actually flown out of STS, but I think it's worth considering if you're heading somewhere a bit north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Traffic can be horrible here, so there's a huge plus in choosing the airport closest to your destination.

HSaxa

I’ve used STS when headed to northern Sonoma and Mendocino. Super small airport. Works great as long as no delays or cancellations. 5 stars. Would fly again.

chrisl137

I've flown in and out of STS a number of times on AS. It's tiny and super easy to deal with. It's basically a small building for check-in and a tent for the gate areas.

Eastbay1K

The SMART train has a station which appears to be about a mile from the airport. It is currently the "north end" of the line, but you can ride down as far as Larkspur, right by the ferry terminal to SF. I'm not suggesting this as an efficient way to get between STS and SF Just explaining the transit options should one not want to get a car, and also, for those who have 101 corridor travels. https://sonomamarintrain.org/stations

SPN Lifer

The SMART Connect microtransit shuttle connects train passengers to the Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport (STS) and the surrounding business corridor. The shuttle operates 8 AM – 6 PM, 7 days per week, excluding holidays.

https://www.sonomamarintrain.org/connect

The one-way fare is $1.50 for adults and
75 cents for youth, seniors, and persons with
disabilities.

https://www.sonomamarintrain.org/sit...-revised-1.pdf

squeakr

We are considering staying a few days in Sonoma and then flying out of STS to Portland for a couple of weeks. Anyone have experiences with the Santa Rosa airport good or bad? We likely be taking an AS flight to PDX in mid June or so.
Reading the posts - any info on how often the flights are delayed? I know from SFO, the smaller planes are often delayed or cancelled in foggy weather. Are there similar issues mat STS?

TIA

SPN Lifer

Santa Rosa is not known for its foggy weather, being so far from the ocean and the Bay. Driving north on U.S. 101 from San Francisco, there is often a 10-degree temperature difference, and a cessation of fog, at the peak of the ridge (through which the Alto Tunnel passed) separating Mill Valley and Corte Madera (east of Camino Alto Road).

TWA884

STS has only 5-6 departures and corresponding arrivals a day, so ATC reduced arrival and departure rates due to weather conditions should not be an issue.

Eastbay1K

No expert on the topic - but does STS support the most advanced categories of ILS? If not, that would be the choke point at times. No intersecting runways, no material airplane congestion otherwise.

TWA884

As far back as 2011 - I can't readily find any newer data - Sonoma County Airport Runway 32 had Special Category II ILS which enables landings when visibility is at least 1,800 feet and a ceiling of no less than 200 feet. (PDF source)