Traveling through Sea-Tac this week? What to know about flight delays, parking and traffic

Shaun Goodwin
·3 min read

With parts of Washington state already experiencing and anticipating more snow this week, travelers are asking what types of delays and cancellations they should expect at Sea-Tac Airport.

We’ve assembled a list of Sea-Tac-specific travel tips, including the best places to find the most updated information about flights and parking.

SEA-TAC UPDATES

You can check Sea-Tac’s social media accounts, such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, for general updates about the conditions of runways and what the airport is doing to fight back against winter weather.

The airport also offers an Airport Traveler Updates page, which provides links to interactive maps of the airport, updates on traffic and roadway construction around the airport and weather impacts, among other things.

Sea-Tac recommends checking with your airline for specific information about delays and cancellations.

PARKING

Sea-Tac offers parking deals on an hourly, daily and weekly basis. The Terminal Direct parking, located on the 4th floor, is the shortest walk to the terminal and has the highest rates, starting at $7 per hour. General parking is also available starting at $6 per hour.

The airport also has a monthly parking program for $425 per month.

The airport also offers accessible parking on the 4th and 5th floors, over-height parking for vehicles over 6-foot-10 on a first-come, first-served basis, and 48 electric vehicle spaces.

FLIGHT INFORMATION

You can check the status of your flight on Sea-Tac’s flight status page by inputting the flight’s date, airline, origin and flight number. If you know the flight number, you can also search for it directly on Google, which will tell you the estimated departure and arrival times.

For more general information about airports and airlines, the website FlightAware lists nationwide which airports and airlines are seeing the most delays and cancellations for that particular day.

Over 30 airlines fly in and out of Sea-Tac, including major airlines such as United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and Alaska Airlines.

Alaska, which is based in Seattle, provides a list of tips on its website for making your trip through the airport easier. Some suggestions include downloading the airline’s app, which provides information on your flight status and stores your digital boarding pass, arriving at the airport early to give yourself plenty of time, and getting a REAL ID.

By May 3, 2023, United States citizens must have a REAL ID, an upgrade to your driver’s license, to fly domestically.

TRAFFIC

Sea-Tac warns travelers on its website that airport drives may be congested around peak times in the mornings for passenger drop off and evenings for passenger pick up.

Fortunately, the airport has publicly available traffic cameras on its website to check road conditions before you arrive. The Washington State Department of Transportation also has a live traffic map showing traffic conditions around Sea-Tac and the rest of the state.

Once at the airport, Sea-Tac warns drivers not to park on the shoulders of the Airport Expressway because it is both illegal and dangerous. If you need temporary and free parking, you can park at the cell phone waiting lot for up to 20 minutes.

ALTERNATIVES TO DRIVING

Don’t want to drive to the airport or ask a friend or family member to take you? You can take the Link Light Rail from downtown Seattle to the airport.

Depending on the stop you get on the rail, prices range from $2.25 to $3.50. Tickets can be purchased from ticket machines at each stop, using an ORCA card or by downloading the Transit GO Ticket app.