San Francisco flight time and a couple of other questions

I thought this would be one of those questions that has been answered often, but my search was fruitless.

What's a reasonable time for a departing flight out of SFO? The ship is supposed to "arrive" at 8 am. I never know if that means "docked" or "hope-to-start-disembarking" by 8.

What's the nearest BART stop to the port? And if I decide to wait around for the red-eye flight, any suggestions what to do with luggage?

Thanks!

If this is a ship repositioning from Cascadia... leave yourself some extra contingency....

My 2013 arrival was 3 hours late in San Fran from strong waves off the Oregon coast. Lots of complaints for the late arrival, despite the ship running at full power.

Good point from xlxo - weather can be a big factor in fall repos. Depending on your route you may also have to clear customs/immigration in SF (some of the short cruises from Vancouver don't stop anywhere in the US except SF, like ours this Spring, so you board here without seeing CBP and do it at the end instead).

There's also just so much to see & do around SF that I'd be inclined to book the latest flight possible anyway!

Thanks for the info. The repo stops in Astoria, so I wasn't worried about immigration. But the weather... yikes. I haven't even booked the cruise yet. I like to check out everything first.

Nearest BART station is Embarcadero.

The Embarcadero BART stop is a bit of a walk, especially if you have bags. Call it a 15-20 minute walk from Pier 27 east to the Ferry Building...then turn right onto Market Street. The entrance to the Embarcadero station is opposite the Hyatt Regency.

If you've never spent time in SF, leaving on disembarkation day is a tremendous waste of your airfare.

As to your ship arriving on time, this is San Francisco: multiple microclimates, sometimes congested shipping traffic, the list goes on...

Plan on staying a couple of days and enjoy the "49 square miles surrounded by reality."

I would not book a flight before noon.

Sometimes ships arrival into San Francisco are delayed and other times it just takes longer getting the ship cleared and then there can be long lines at SFO airport.

Keith