Marin Airporter

Love the Marin Airporter but first time having a bad experience. Waited till I saw the bus to walk down the stars from Larkspur Landing as its super hot outside and no shade at bustop. Guy pulls up early at 2:26p and immediately takes off while Im coming down the stairs, another woman just got out of her car and is running too. Luckily my husband knows how to do a really loud whistle and the guy finally stops. Then tells me its cash only. I said no its not and showed him my QR code purchase, he struggled to get his machine to scan it so maybe doesnt like to deal - too bad. The next stop he told another guy "cash only" the poor guy only had $20 so he didnt get on. WTF! Fyi tickets are now $29/one way so no longer a good deal compared to overnight parking for a one day trip.

On time and price is not bad
Driver was very friendly and helpful. It felt good because his driving was very good. He helped with everyone's luggage

I have had great service with wonderful, friendly drivers, but the driver that just picked us up at 10:00 a.m. on June 2, 2024 at Hamilton is very rude. I'm even afraid to ask his name. The young man doesn't belong in the business. I would fire him!

Update: I'm still on this bus ride and this driver is not even willing to help people scan their tickets and has not announced any of the stops!!

Warning to Marin frequent flyers who often arrive after 10 pm (what the hell, all the less frequent flyers, too)! The Marin Airporter you once knew and depended on to get to and from SFO is no longer. Like everything else in the county that was once so "marvy" this essential service has deteriorated seemingly in months to a system that operates according to who knows what kind of schedule and, more serious, has discontinued some services you likely depended on from previous experience. These simply don't happen.

The day shift guy who answers your questions is pretty professional, does what he can to find out if he doesn't already know, and is about as polite as you can get from a bus dispatcher. But sometime later when the sun begins sinking down in the sky, along comes some guy who apparently feels his job is beneath his capabilities. So instead of inquiring to check what he thinks is the case, he just repeats what he said and that's the end of it. My plane arrived about 20 minutes after the half hour, last gate in terminal 1. This means it's a long way to the airporters outside, but worth a hustle to avoid getting home after midnight.

So I began to hustle, but as the clock got past the half hour it became important to know if the bus had left terminal 1 yet. It may well have moved on to the other terminals, perhaps even left the airport entirely If so I'd stay inside security and have a drink, which you can't do once outside security. So I called the Airporter office to ask the guy there to call the driver and ask him his location. The dispatcher is often in communication with the drivers, and I've asked for this before. But it was different now, because the conversation went something like this: "I'm at terminal 1, can you find out if the bus has moved on or even left the airport?" The dispatch guy says in a voice belonging more to someone in the business of cleaning toilets than working with customers, "Terminal 1 is the second stop after the International terminal." "Yeah, I know that but can you find out if he has gone on to terminal 2 now?" "Terminal 2 is after Terminal 1." "Yes yes but has he gone on to terminal 2? I don't want to run to catch that bus if he's not even in this terminal anymore." "Sir, I think I answered your questions." and with that he simply hung up on me.

So I sat at a bar and drank a couple of chocolate milks, waiting for the next half hour bus to show up. When that finally came it was now half an hour to midnight, so I was only too grateful to see the damn rainbow bus lumbering up to the loading area. I told the driver where I was going and that I needed a cab. "We don't do that no more," he replied. "What d'ya mean don't do that, I just rode this bus a few months ago and you called the cab companies then, why not now?" "Them Uber drivers put the cabbies outa business," the driver said. "There are only a couple of cab companies left here and this time of night they won't have any drivers. You'll need to find another way home."

And that was that. I didn't see walking home at midnight after being in an airplane 6 hours earlier that evening. But what else was there to do, nobody else around and I didn't want to wake up my neighbor? except there was a woman who got off at my stop, and seemed to have car keys in hand. With my finest impersonation of a little boy lost in the woods I asked her if she'd help, and it turned out, deus ex machina, she was driving within a block of my house and was only too glad to drive me home. So problem solved and we made a date to get together later that week for a drink. All good.

But the main point is you may not be so lucky. But fortunately for you, you've been warned. You can get seriously stranded after 1 am if you aren't already sure what's happening to you once you step off that Marin Airporter. Of course if you have someone at home to call, that's great but some of us don't. And Uber is great, but my app that evening didn't work, corrupted somehow and battery strength wasn't enough to reinstall the app and get it to recognize my account. Just remember, NO cabs and no help from these bus drivers. You're better off just making a deal with uber or a cab at the airport to get home for about $120, in today's dollars anyway. Sometime in 2024 that price will be higher. That's today's Marvy Marin for ya.

This service has gone so far down it hard to believe. Meanwhile, ticket prices are up frequency remains half of what it used to be. Drivers fail to make announcements to tell people not to sit there chatting for an hour on their cell phone. Disturbing everybody around. It's a real mismanaged enterprise with no attention to detail, I avoid it like the plagueand spend extra on Lyft and Uber. Tonight was my last ride. I actually planned on taking g the Marin Airporter and counted on it being late. I was not disappointed- exactly 50 min late! The problem is they run a stupid double ring around SFO airport which can take over 20 minutes. So they can never stay on schedule with 45 min drive time and double circle around airport WITHOUT Traffic. I guess there is no management and this is a side hustle family business - the website and payment app look designed by a 5th grader

The driver said he called a taxi for me and left me standing alone in larkspur at 12:30 am and didn't. The number he gave me to call for a taxi, when I pressed him about where the taxi was knew nothing about it and wasn't helpful. Leaving a solo lady, alone when a taxi should have been waiting is poor judgment and terrible customer service.

May miss my flight this morning because first bus was a no-show. Naturally they don't have anyone picking up the phone early, so I had no way to check if bus was even enroute.
So I hopped on bus #2; 30 minutes later...after freezing my ass off sitting in the cold for 40 minutes.
Drivers response was " what do you expect, this early in the morning, some people fall asleep. Not me, but some of the other drivers do"
So evidently no dispatch or communication between buses in the morning. Generally I've had good luck with Marin Airporter, but obviously there are some pretty big gaps in the "service."

More convenient when they were located near Larkspur Century theater, but thanks to SMART, they had to move to Andersen. IMHO, not very smart if the train doesn't go into SF, most commuters work in the city.

Just wish the Marin Airporter takes riders to OAK, maybe one day. Glad we have something that takes us to SFO, so I'm grateful. You never see homeless peeps around their main terminals, pretty immaculate. They're doing something right! You can also book them as private charter buses for company events.

'Til next time ~ safe travels & see you on Yelp (SYOY)!

Marin Airporter was the way to get to SFO from Marin county but prices have been going up and past timing is not very reliable are used to be every half hour now it's every hour but that's not reliable either. I bought a ticket in advance then I read the fine print saying that it's only good for seven days so my return trip was not going to work so I wasted the $27, I guess if at least two people are going to the airport it cost the same to take an Uber and you don't have to make all the stops or stand around waiting for the bus

I waited 45 minutes to catch the bus. The driver at the airport didn't pull up to the curb as he was supposed to do. He drove right past me despite me being right in front of the airporter sign. He SAW me waiting. He then drove far up into the middle lane and put on his blinkers as I tried to run with my suitcase. He took off before I could reach him.
I called then and again the next morning and each time their "customer service" made no effort to apologize or understand what happened. They make it the customer's fault and are very rude.
I've taken the airporter for over 25 years and never had a problem.
This was the driver's error and not mine.
Their website says they are a local company and care.
They don't.
I ended up taking a cab for a little over $100 and what a difference it was to have someone appreciate the business.
Bad job all around Marin Airporter. This is how you lose customers and damage your community good will after 25 years.