Got Back From SFO: What's With Everyones Beef With SFO?
 

So I just got back from SFO which was my first time ever flying into San Francisco. Driven and taken the train but this weekend was my first time flying into SFO. On this forum, we will get people saying SFO this and SFO that not in a good way. I went to the end of ALL of United's Concourse and back including the International Section. Also, I went inside all three of the domestic United Clubs there. Except for the United Club across from gate Gate 71A which while clean and nicely stocked, was deep inside the building without any natural lights, kind of was depressing. The other two were fine. The terminal concourse were all bright and clean with a variety of food options. The staff in the lounges were all pleasant as well.

My flight back home was oversold so as a VOLUNTARY bump, I was offered $400.00 voucher plus I told them I wanted first class on the alternative flight to which they agreed to. The supervisor even offered up $20.00 dollars food voucher. With 4 hours to kill till my next flight, I explored every corner of UA's concourse. No nasty lounge dragons were around. The gate staff were excellent. The only issue was with a passenger in FC who security had to be called on once we landed but other than that it was smooth sailing.

SFO's a great airport. Unless you want a seat in a UC during the morning, afternoon, or evening rush. And until you get caught up in an ATC nightmare due to visibility below 1000 feet.

SNA -> SFO is my favorite route to get bumped at. It's almost guaranteed around the holidays :) Last year I flew it three times just to get voluntarily bumped 3 times. This is what I do in my holidays LOL.

Maybe you just caught it at a good time. Like @Kacee said, the UC's are overcrowded since the Polaris club construction. Oh and with winter coming around, Karl will be making an almost daily appearance along with some rain. Then the magic happens.

I've had more trouble with Karl during the summer months when trying to fly into SFO from SEA, PDX, LAX, or LAS in the mid-afternoon, when the winds are whipping up strong off the ocean. Most the time those flights seem to get delayed 2-4 hours. If in a place like LAS it's great; lots of options to pass the time. But SEA and PDX and LAX ... not so great.

SFO is a great airport. Could be better if the runways 28L & R were a bit more separated to allow them to operate in parallel during bad weather. Or if BART ran 24/7 into The City.

SFO is a good airport, I’ve transited through it hundreds of times (today again, in fact) and I’ve been delayed but never stranded. Yes, the UC’s can be crowded at times but United is trying to make that better. I can think of many airports that are worse.

Sfo is a great airport, TBIT to anywhere is my peeve

IAD's miserable C/D "temporary" concourse, for starters.

A long answer
 

Or you are not in the front on international flights and must trek back to the domestic clubs.

One drop of rain falls and it's ground holds for flights into SFO system wide,
Been there done that numerous times. One week ago 3 hour ground hold LAS-SFO and over 3 hour delay to HKG due to weather. Mis-connected in HKG and barely made the next flight to BKK. The ground crew in HKG were exceptional, and as we departed our aircraft,we were personally directed to our next protected flights.

You won't find one res agent or flight crew that recommends going to/through SFO with a hint of inclement weather.

I will never go through there again, EVER!https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/images/icons/icon13.gif

I feel like you're comparing more domestic vs international service. What airport in the US has the level of service you describe above? I've never seen it unless you're GS. Most of the time it's "A representative will meet you at the gate" and half the time there is no representative at the gate and you either call or go to a customer service desk.
Was the ground staff in HKG United Airlines staff?

SFO as an airport is quite pleasant... good food options, nice lounges (including the Centurian Club), but as other have mentioned, it's the delays that come with ATC and runway construction that makes it less than desirable. As I often transit through SFO from LA, flights from LAX are some of the first to get delayed/cancelled, often times just under the 3 hour maximum tarmac time before they have to head back to the gate. Despite giving myself a buffer of over 4 hours for a connection (LAX-SFO-HKG) I barely made my flight in SFO to HKG.

It's the stress, unknown and what ifs of flying THROUGH SFO which gives me heart palpitations, so I tried to avoid it whenever possible.

Same here. I cannot count how many flights I have missed while being routed through SFO. On top of it my domestic flights always seem to arrive at the farthest gate away from
the International departure gate and it is a heck of trek to make it (especially when UA does not hold a plane to accommodate late connecting pax ) . Easy for a teenager, those
days are long gone for me. Personally I prefer LAX going to Asia, but I am aware that's against the prevailing thinking. Unfortunately UA's options here are pretty small other
than NRT and SIN, though at least it gets me home. Not much going to Europe either. I avoid SFO unless I have at least six hours to spare ( and at one time that was not enough ).

My WC gateways for TPACS:
1. YVR
2. LAX
3. SFO, arriving night before and staying at the Marriott.

I echo this. The airport facilities themselves are pretty good, and if the weather is clear, everything is wonderful. But a drop of rain, a hint of fog, and operations, not just for United but for all airlines can be thrown out of whack. Earlier this year when they were doing some runway construction these problems compounded together.

This may be less of a problem with UA given their dominance, but flying AC for example, I have also experienced a lot of gate constraint issues over the past couple of years where we arrive on time, but our gate is occupied due to another delayed aircraft and there is no where for us to go. Does SFO not have remote stands/buses available in these situations?

Weather, Weather, and Weather. Because the main runways are too close together, they often can't do simultaneous landings and well when you cut a busy's airports landings by 50%, delays happen quickly.

But when it is is clear it is really cool to be able to look out your window on final and wave at passengers on the parallel landing!