<p>Ok, so i am planning on attending CalSO on June 14th and 15th. I am from SoCal so the BART system will be entirely new for me. I will fly from Socal to Oakland Airport. I feel hesistant about using the BART system because this will be my first time. Can someone explain to me how simple it is to go from OAK to campus using the BART and how long it would take. I need as much detail as possible. Where do I make my stops? How much money would I need? What is the BART schedule? Can someone give me a step by step instruction on how to go about this. I am freaking out. Thanks.</p>
<p>get off at the airport then take the richmond bart.</p>
<p>If you go to [BART</a> - Bay Area Rapid Transit](<a href=“http://www.bart.gov/]BART”>http://www.bart.gov/)</p>
<p>Put start destination as Oakland Airport and final destination as downtown Berkeley, then plug in times it should be easy. It is simpler than most metro and subway systems. It should be one train, so you just find what time you get in from your flight (or conversely what time the train would arrive to plan when your flight would need to arrive).</p>
<p>There is a three dollar AirBART shuttle that takes you to the BART, then you get on the Richmond line and get off at Downtown Berkeley. You use a map and navigate your way to Unit 3 or wherever CalSO is held these days.</p>
<p>Once you arrive in Oakland Airport, you will want to walk out towards the drop off/pick up zones. You will (hopefully) see an area with taxis and buses. If not, ask around for where to get on AirBart. AirBart is a shuttle service that will take you to BART from OAK for 3 bucks (exact change only). Once you get to the BART station, go buy your ticket at a ticket station. It should be 2.35 I think to get from Coliseum/Oakland Airport station to Downtown Berkeley station. After you buy your ticket, and run it through that machine to get into the station, KEEP IT. You will need it to exit the station that you arrive in. Climb up some stairs and get to the station platform where you will wait for the Richmond train heading North. Get on the train, ride it to Downtown Berkeley BART station (right after Ashby). Use your ticket in the machine thingamabob to get out of the station. Work your way up and out into Berkeley.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for the immediate responses. How does the ticket system work? Do I have to use exact change to purchase tickets or is that only for airbart?</p>
<p>Cash, Credit, Debit, you name it. If you use cash, it will give you change.</p>
<p>And on the return trip. There should be an airbart that takes me from the oakland station to the airport right? And it should arrive every 10 to 15 mins?</p>
<p>Yup.</p>
<p>Everything is the same for the return trip except for which BART train you take to get to the Coliseum/Oakland Airport station. You will want to take Fremont bound train that heads south. Don’t take any random southbound train or you might end up in SF.</p>
<p>How long is the walk from the downtown berkeley station to campus?</p>
<p>Depends on what part of campus. Downtown Berkeley BART station is 2 blocks from the west entrance. But you will probably want to go to the south entrance which is near the dorms. The south entrance is about a 15 minute walk +/- a few minutes depending on how fast/slow you walk uphill.</p>
<p>jb u sound like ur familiar with the area…so i’m coming in from central cali, and i’m driving i’m pretty sure. i guess i should probly just fly now that i think about it, but if i drive, will i even find parking or will it be too much of a hassle? im pretty sure my mom said that it’s easier for ppl from LA to take the plane becuz they have planes flying out from their but if I take it, then i have to go to LA and then SF…but it would still probably be shorter? idk. </p>
<p>any advice?</p>
<p>I would not recommend driving because of the parking situation. I’m not too familiar with it. As far as I know, it is HARD to find free public parking. Especially overnight parking. Flying to LA then SF seems like a hassle (and expensive). What about public transportation? I’m sure there are trains you can take that might be cheaper. Where exactly are you coming from?</p>
<p>If my flight arrives at 7:15AM, it would be possible for me to get to campus by 8:45 right? Thanks jb for answering my questions so far :)</p>
<p>No prob! Oops I forgot to tally up the time it takes. 8:45 is cutting it close, but you might if you don’t end up waiting for AirBart and then waiting for the Richmond train, and so on. I’ve never actually calculated time for going from OAK to Berkeley. But I know that you need to leave 3 hours ahead of your flight time when you are going from Berkeley to OAK airport.</p>
<p>A 7:15 arrival is early enough if you know what you’re doing. Just take carry-on and once you get off the plane, go straight to AirBART and have $3 in cash ready. You’ll get to the Oakland station by 7:45 or so and then the train takes under 25 minutes. Accounting for waiting times, you’ll be at downtown Berkeley by 8:15 and have enough time to walk to campus.</p>
<p>Well looking at the bart schedule, I can catch the 7:41AM bart if I’m lucky. But if not then I can catch the 7:56AM bart if I was really late and arrive at downtown berkeley at 8:20. Walking to south of campus, I think I can make it by 8:45 for check in. What do you think?</p>
<p>25 minutes is enough to walk if you don’t get lost and walk at a reasonable pace. You won’t have to jog with your luggage at least =P</p>
<p>If the flight arrives late, you might have to be prepared to pay for a taxi to make up the lost time, assuming it isn’t really late.</p>
<p>BART like everyone recommends. And don’t worry, if you’re lost, try asking around. Strangers at Oakland/Berkeley are REALLY friendly. My mom and I got lost trying to get back to Oakland and we asked around (a lot) until we figured out the system 
I’m also from SoCal, so BART was really new to me too!</p>