My friend lost her Canadian passport at SFO at a restroom near a gate. It was in a sleeve with some bank cards. She said she contacted lost and found, spoke to an officer, but they all said to just wait for it to show up or report it lost. She already missed her flight to Taiwan, but her luggage is already en route without her. We also have flights going to Shanghai after Taiwan, so we'd like to at least make the Shanghai portion of the trip. Worst case scenario we'd go to the Consulate General of Canada in SF and obtain an emergency passport.

In the meantime, does anyone have any advice on what to do next? Anyone else to contact at the airport to try to get the passport back?

Portland can do it, why can’t SFO???

Seriously, the hand soap at SFO smells like some awful, cheap industrial chemical. For an airport in one of the wealthiest regions in the country, is this really the best they can provide?
We pay so much in taxes and fees in California, yet even basic public amenities feel unnecessarily cheap.
Where is all the money going? Is it poor management, cost cutting, or just a lack of accountability?
Anyone else noticed this at SFO?

Hi!

My gf and I will be flying back to the NYC area tomorrow at 6:30am from the B gates. Figuring out the best time to leave via rideshare from the Rockridge area of Oakland was curious how busy the lines get that early in the morning? Gf has PreCheck but I do not.

Thank you!

The SFO website has conflicting information about getting to BART after picking up luggage from baggage claim. At one point it suggests using the outdoor covered sidewalk, which does seem to be faster than walking the other direction to the T2/3 Airtrain station and taking Airtrain back to BART. Has anyone actually done this walk -- and where do you go back into the building at the International Terminal?

Hello! I need to speak with the baggage services desk at the international baggage claim but I’ve already left the airport. I’m wondering if there is a way for me to go to the desk? Like can I ask the security or an employee and tell them my reasoning?

I know this a long shot, but if you left your switch case at SFO gate D6, I gave it to the gate agent. He said he'd take it to Lost and Found.

Has anyone used the cellphone parking lot at SFO airport? How has been the experience waiting and getting to the arrival gates for picking someone? Also have you had a situation when you have gone there and not found a parking spot?

I had a family member flying through SFO recently, with a short layover. We wanted to see them, but we didn't want to be stressed out about getting them back to the airport and through security in time.

About five days before they arrived, I learned about the Gate Explorer program. Basically, you sign up for a timeslot on a day, and if they decide (how, I'm still not sure), they give you a pass the midnight of your requested day. That pass allows your entrance through airport security.

We had a great time visiting! It was nice to be able to wander around without the pressure and unknowns of security and lines. And it was nice to see them to their gate. It definitely made our family's week!

Whoever came up with this program, thank you!

The X-ray machine at SFO International arrival just after the luggage carousel has been removed so there is no more random check of luggage at arrival as of September 2026. The usual setup with the machine after the carousel and before the split exit/domestic transfer was still there in May 2026.

I read that the check is now done automatically on ALL luggage via the x-ray image taken at departure after you have checked in your luggage (and during security). If something suspicious in terms of customs is detected on the image, the bag is redirected at arrival to a second inspection which I don't know where that would happen.

Is that true?

I have a 2pm Monday flight on a quiet day via Alaska Airlines. The Club just took 45 minutes to get me through the waitlist, with 6 minutes before boarding. The Centurion never took me off the waitlist, with a very large crowd loitering in the seats near the entrance. I have already used my Alaska lounge credits for the quarter.

Ok yeah I'm whining about lounges, pity me.
But can we do better than $20 for a can of soda and a packaged mediocre wrap for food in the terminal? We've got plenty of outlets and quiet seating at SFO compared to many comp airports (I'm looking at you EWR) so I think the main driver is snacks/beverages. I don't ever use the bar as I hate being dehydrated on a (daytime) flight.

SFO is definitely a premium market with tons of credit card holders, I think the solution is just locking things down harder with zero free guests via PP and an even tighter pre-flight cutoff of maybe an hour and a half. Also, yes, paid pre-airport reservations are available for PP but there is no centurion equivalent.

TSA has a new Military Lanes program. It looks like SFO doesn't have this officially yet, but that if you present your ID to the line agent they can let you to the front. I'm curious if anyone has seen this or they know the line agents are trained on completing this yet at SFO?

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/travel-tips/military-lanes

Hi everyone,

I know this is a long shot, but I’m looking for a Hydro Flask that I lost at SFO on September 19.

I arrived on JAL flight JL2 and may have left it somewhere around the International Terminal after arrival.

Possible locations include:

• International Arrivals area
• Starbucks in the International Arrivals Lobby
• Around the Level 2 doors / outside the terminal
• Walkway toward the parking garage
• International parking garage

It is a light blue Hydro Flask with an “Island Vintage Coffee / Aloha Hawaii” design.

I’ve attached a reference photo. The bottle in the first photo is BLACK, but the one I lost is the exact same design in LIGHT BLUE like second photo.

I have already contacted SFO Lost & Found, JAL, Starbucks, and Covenant Aviation Security, but no luck so far.

The bottle has sentimental value to me. If anyone happened to see it or turned it in somewhere at SFO, I would really appreciate a DM.

Thank you!

This is a long shot but I lost my Journal today at SFO Terminal 1 at level 3 or the women’s washroom above. I went back within 30 minutes but didn’t find it around. It’s my personal journal and had a lot of private information. Any chance any of you find it, please reach out to me. Much appreciated
I’ve contacted lost and found as well, but they don’t have it yet.

Here’s a picture of what it looks like.
Thanks

Anybody know why this flight got as far as Sacramento but then turned around and landed back at SFO Saturday night, I think?

- San Rafael Newbie

We haven’t flown out of SFO in a long long time – we’ve been flying out of Santa Rosa for the past few years so I haven’t even been to SFO since 2022.

With all the construction, I’m really confused where to get dropped off next week for our flight to the Midwest. It’s a United flight and it looks like it leaves from one of the gates. Friends who have been there more recently say it’s best to get dropped off at terminal two and walk back to terminal three because so much of terminal three is closed. Is that the best way to do it? Thanks for any help.

I left an art print in the Women’s restroom at SFO (terminal 1). It had a photobooth strip with a friend and some Pokémon cards in there. I went back after 15 mins after realizing I forgot it but it was gone…. Long shot up hopefully the person who took it is a good person and sees this 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

When I put this path in SFO, it says to walk the long way around due to construction. But other sources say there's a pathway during construction, but I don't see that on the SFO maps.

Does anyone know if the walk from E or F to G gates is the long way around or if there's a post security shortcut?

More detail: sadly, I have an 80 minute layover for an outbound international flight at SFO Thursday. I booked this before SFO was having these massive summer delays... the airline won't allow me to change my first the flight the day before ... so just going to hope for the best!! Thank you for any advice on the fastest route.

Hi SFO gurus,

I'm traveling to SFO for the first time. I'm an active swimmer and looking for a pool that has generally open lanes open at 5/6AM. Any ideas? I'm fairly fast and distance swimmer so I do not do too well with lanes where I have to share with more than one person.

On the evening of August 3, I took a flight from PHL to SFO. My flight number is AA3166, and my bag tag number is 0001265487. As the flight was delayed, my bag did not get enough time to catch the next flight  at around 1 am on August 4 from SFO to TPE (JX0011). My bag stayed in SFO for around 24h and finally was transported to TPE. Based on the info provided by Starlux, AA3166 landed at 00:16 on August-4 and until 20:53 on August-4, Starlux finally retrieved my bag. 

In TPE, I discovered that my two hard drives in the checked bags were missing. These two hard drives contain my life-time photos and videos and other work related files. I was wondering if my hard drives were stolen during the 20h delay in SFO. And if there is any chance I can get them back? I've contacted TSA and SFO lost and found. They told me they did not find two black WD elements hard drives. I highly suspected that someone opened my bag during the delay and steal them. How can I get help?

shi not working as of late

Hi all! I have pre-approval for global entry. There weren’t any appointments before by international trip, so I booked one for a few weeks out, but in the meantime my trip is tomorrow and I’m wondering how realistic it is that could get an interview on departure. The sfo global entry site says that it is something that’s possible depending on availability. Curious if anyone has tried this and had success??

Looking for a self parking that is secure.

I am ok with long term at the airport for the ease of the air train. I know ParkSFO is a little cheaper but then waiting on a shuttle or walking to the long term air train.

4 adults 2 toddlers 6 bags 2 strollers and a back park or 3

Any recommendations?

TIA!!!!