With a population of 390,724, Oakland is a must-see destination in California, United States. It is among the most popular tourist destinations in the country. Oakland deserves at least 2 full days for you to see its main sights.
North Oakland is the neighborhood with the most restaurants in Oakland. These include popular favorites such as Belotti Ristorante e Bottega (5403 College Avenue), The Wolf - Oakland (3853 Piedmont Ave) and Pizzaiolo - Oakland (5008 Telegraph Ave). If you’re looking for affordable options, A Cote (5478 College Ave) and Scott's Seafood - Oakland (2 Broadway) are great picks. For delicious green meals, Low Bar Oakland (2300 Webster St) and Shakewell (3407 Lakeshore Ave) are recommended spots to get vegetarian or vegan food in Oakland.
Looking for warm weather? Then head to Oakland in August, when the average temperature is 66.2 °F, and the highest can go up to 73.4 °F. The coldest month, on the other hand, is January, when it can get as cold as 44.6 °F, with an average temperature of 51.8 °F. You’re likely to see more rain in January, when precipitation is around 4.8″. In contrast, July is usually the driest month of the year in Oakland, with an average rainfall of 0″.
Oakland is served by 2 airports: Oakland Airport (OAK) and San Francisco Airport (SFO). The closest to downtown Oakland is Oakland Airport, which is located 11 km from the city center. Further away is San Francisco Airport, 22 km from the center of Oakland. Oakland Airport is the most popular, with regular flights from Spirit Airlines, Southwest, American Airlines and other airlines departing from the United States. The shortest domestic flight to Oakland departs from Ontario and takes around 1h 20m.
Amtrak is the only carrier operating train routes to Oakland. The train journey from Oakland to Sacramento takes 1h 37m and costs around $29 for a one-way ticket. When coming by train from Fresno, expect to pay about $31 for a 3h 58m trip. Located 1.2 km from the city center, Oakland Jack London Square is the busiest station in Oakland. Another popular train station is Oakland Coliseum, located 9 km from the center.
Another option to get to Oakland is to pick up a car rental from San Francisco, which is about 13 km from Oakland. You’ll find branches of Kyte and Sixt, among others, in San Francisco.
You can travel by bus to Oakland using Greyhound or FlixBus. From Oakland, the bus ride to Oakland takes 40 km and will cost you around $9. From Sacramento, the ticket costs about $14 for a journey of 201 km. The most popular bus station is Oakland, located 0.8 km from downtown Oakland. Oakland Jack London is also a commonly used station, and is 0.8 km from the city center.
There are also lots of vacation rental options in Oakland, with prices from $13 to $886 per night. North Oakland is the neighborhood with the highest amount of rentals to choose from. On average, vacation rentals in Oakland are about 53% more expensive than a hotel room in the city.
North Oakland - Here you’ll find travelers’ favorites such as Westwind Lodge, Claremont Club and Spa A Fairmont Hotel and Imperial Inn Oakland. The average nightly price for a double room in North Oakland is $107.
Renting a car in Oakland costs $66 per day, on average, or $131 if you want to rent if for 2 days. Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Alamo and Europcar are the agencies with the best reviews in the city. The most popular location to rent a car in Oakland is the Fox branch at 7600 Earhart Road, which is 9 km from the city center.
It’s generally cheaper to rent your vehicle outside the airport: locations in the city are around 5% cheaper than airport locations in Oakland.
Expect to pay $3.90 per gallon in Oakland (average price from the past 30 days). Depending on the size of your rental car, filling up the tank will cost between $46.79 and $62.38. Full-size (Ford Explorer or similar) is the most popular car type to rent in Oakland, while also 79% cheaper than other types, on average.