Buses to and from Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEA)

Seattle Tacoma International Airport is a large airport in the United States of America. It is found to the north-west of the country, in the area of SeaTac, Washington, and is therefore also often referred to as the Sea-Tac Airport. The airport is the sixteenth busiest by passenger traffic in the U.S. with approximately 32 million passengers per annum, and is also significantly large in terms of aircraft movements. The airport is known by its code of SEA. Ground transport options are plentiful for arriving and departing passengers. There are a large number of Seattle Tacoma International Airport buses available, as well as trains. Although trains are often considered as more convenient, many passengers take a bus to the airport, or to their following destinations.

The SEA airport is located between the cities of Seattle and Tacoma, just west of the Interstate 5, which is one its main roads for access. It is particularly nearby to Normandy Park, McMicken Heights and Burien, and nearby to the North SeaTac Park and Angle Lake as well. The airport offers plenty of opportunities for parking a private vehicle, however, many passengers find it easier to travel by public transport, or to arrange transport with a private shuttle company. There are a large number of private shuttle buses that serve the airport, and a few public buses as well. In general, passengers will go the Central Terminal first, to check-in, and will then move on to one of the four concourses of the airport, to access their departure gates. There are also two satellite terminals, known as the South and North Terminals, which are reached by a people mover system. Passengers who have arrived at the airport can go to the Ground Transportation Centre to find their bus, which is within walking distance of the baggage reclaim areas. Many of the door-to-door shuttle services leave from level 3 of the parking garage in the Ground Transportation Centre.

Public bus services

King County Metro and Sound Transit are the two companies offering public bus services to and from the airport. Public buses are usually the cheapest form of ground transport available, and are convenient for many passengers. The Metro bus stops are located on International Boulevard, or the State Highway 99, and on South 176th Street nearby to the Link Light Rail Station. Arriving passengers can reach the buses by following the walkway through the north end of the parking garage’s fourth floor which leads to the Sound Transit Link Light Rail Station. At the station, passengers will exit to International Boulevard. Further details regarding bus schedules are posted at the bus stops, or timetables can be collected from the Ground Transportation Information Booth on the baggage claim level (nearby door 16). Details can be obtained online as well, from http://www.metro.kingcounty.gov. The Sound Transit buses collect passengers from the main terminal bus stop and are known as routes 560 and 574.

Shared ride van and scheduled airporter bus services

The following companies provide private bus services to and from Seattle Tacoma International Airport: Airporter Shuttle (360-380-8800 / 1-866-235-5247 http://www.airporter.com), Bremerton-Kitsap Airporter (360-876-1737 / 1-800-562-7948 http://www.kitsapairporter.com), Capital Aeroporter (Seattle: 253-838-7431, Olympia: 360-754-7113, Tacoma: 253-927-6179, Outside Western WA: 1-800-962-3579 http://www.capair.com), Downtown Airporter (855-566-3300 http://www.downtownairporter.hudsonltd.net), Island Airporter (360-378-7438 http://www.islandairporter.com), Olympic Bus Lines (360-417-0700 / 1-800-457-4492 http://www.olympicbuslines.com), Quick Shuttle (604-940-4428 / 1-800-665-2122 http://www.quickcoach.com), Shuttle Express (425-981-7000 http://www.shuttleexpress.com), Vashon Shuttle (206-463-2664 http://www.vashonshuttle.com) and the Whidbey-SeaTac Shuttle (360-679-4003 / 1-877-679-4003 http://www.seatacshuttle.com). These bus companies usually require an advanced reservation for their services.

The Airporter Shuttle has eleven-round trips per day to SeaTac, Blaine, Birch Bay, Ferndale, Lynden, Bellingham, Burlington, Stanwood and Marysville, and five round-trips per day to Yakima, CleElum and Ellensburg. A number of journeys are also available every day to Anacortes and the San Juan Ferry Terminal. The bus leaves from outside of Door 00 on the baggage claim level, and just past carousel #1. Passengers will also find an Airporter Check-In Counter in the same area. This counter is used for most of the airport shuttle services.

Bremerton-Kitsap Airporter takes passengers to and from the Bangor Submarine Base, Bremerton, Port Orchard, the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Silverdale, Northwest Tacoma and various other locations, that include Madigan Hospital and the McChord Air Force Base. The Capital Aeroporter serves a large number of destinations as well, such as Tacoma, Lakewater, Centralia, Hoodsport, Lacey and Olympia, and has provided transport to Seattle Tacoma Airport for forty years. The company offers shared van services, direct van services, private van services and cruise transfers.

The Downtown Airporter is convenient for passengers travelling to or from downtown, and serves many of Seattle’s major hotels, including the Crowne Plaza, Fairmont Olympic, Grand Hyatt, Seattle Hilton, Warwich and the Sheraton. Check-in for this shuttle is at Island 2 on the third floor of the airport parking garage (nearby the purple elevator banks). Buses leave every half an hour between 04:00am and 08:30pm. Passengers may also ride this shuttle without a reservation.

The Island Airporter serves Roche Harbor and Friday Harbor once a day. The journey to or from Roche Harbor will cost $59.99 and the journey to or from Friday Harbor will cost $49.99. Olympic Bus Lines offers two trips per day to Port Angeles, Sequim, Port-Townsend, Discovery Bay and Kingston, and Quick Shuttle is the connection between Seattle Tacoma Airport and Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. Shuttle Express offers door-to-door services to Auburn, Bellevue, Kent, Lakewood, Mercer Island, Redmond, Renton, Seattle, Totem Lake and other destinations, while Vashon Shuttle is the company to contact when travelling to Vashon Island. The last shuttle on the list, the Whidbey-SeaTac Shuttle, offers transport to all communities on Whidbey Island.

Furthermore, passengers of Seattle Tacoma International Airport can travel for free if their hotel or motel offers airport transportation. Quite a large number of hotels in the area run courtesy shuttles for their airport passengers. It is best to make enquiries regarding this service at the time of booking a hotel room. The courtesy buses pick up and drop off passengers on the parking garage’s third floor, at Islands 1 and 3.

The Seattle Tacoma International Airport buses are considered as quick and convenient, as well as cost effective. Contact the Ground Transport Information Centre for all further details regarding the airport buses.