Sleigh the Lines at SEA Airport for the Holidays

Travel tips for three key lines

SEATTLE – The winter holidays are here. Travelers, are you ready to beat the lines? Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) is offering the secrets to get ahead in three key lines you might see — getting to the airport, check-in, and security checkpoints. Forecasts anticipate an increase of 10%-11% over last year, which would bring passenger volumes near pre-pandemic levels.

First, the numbers

Volumes will be highest ahead of the weekends and the following Sundays. The busiest days are expected to be Friday, Dec. 22, with 174,000 total passengers going through the airport (arriving, departing, and connecting), followed by Friday, Dec. 15 (168,000); Thursday, Dec. 21 (164,000); and Thursday, Dec. 14 (161,000). These reflect a 10%-11% increase from 2022, while still being just short of pre-pandemic levels from 2019. The annual projection for total passenger volume for 2023 is expected to be 1%-2% under record 2019 levels, with 2024 exceeding records by 3%.

Heads up, early birds and night owls. More than one-third of SEA’s daily passenger volume arrives at the airport before 9:00 a.m., causing busy conditions at TSA security checkpoints and on the drives. Two more peak periods occur from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. and from 9:00 to 11:00 p.m.

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport

Operated by the Port of Seattle, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) serves the people of the Pacific Northwest with essential services, access to hundreds of domestic and global destinations, and economic activity that supports tens of thousands of jobs and produces $20 billion in economic activity. SEA earned the travel industry’s prestigious 4-Star Skytrax Airport Rating and designation as Best Airport in North America for the past two years, focused on customer-centered travel with better services, facilities, and amenities.  SEA totaled 45.9 million passengers in 2022 – down just 11% from 2019 – with a forecast to reach pre-pandemic traveler volumes in 2024.

For more information about our U.S. Top 12 airport and Top 20 Global airport, visit www.flysea.org and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Every day. Elevate.