Seattle Airport Arrivals (SEA)

Flight Arrivals at Seattle Airport

Sea-Tac is building a new International Arrivals Facility (IAF) to meet growing demand regionally for international flights and to allow more international airlines to make Seattle Tacoma Airport their home. The new IAF is scheduled to open in 2020.

International passengers arriving at Sea-Tac don't have to worry if they don't speak English fluently: Passenger Service Ambassadors are at hand to assist with translation and interpretation, as are Pathfinders, who are bilingual and equipped with Language Line phones on iPads that link to linguists speaking, between them, over 150 languages.

All international passengers arrive at South Satellite, which is linked to the Central Terminal via a people mover system that runs underground. It takes a minimum of 60 minutes to clear US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), longer still during peak periods when several flights arrive at once. CBP officers also have access to Language Line phones at their booths.

Passengers should exit the arrivals corridor via an escalator or elevator. There are three different processing areas, depending on your citizenship and purpose of travel. The processing areas are:

Self-Serve Automated Passport Control Kiosks, which are for US citizens, lawful US permanent residents and Canadian citizens in transit.

Passport Control Booths with CBP officers. These are for ESTA or first time passengers to the USA or people travelling on a new passport, or passengers travelling on B1 Travel/B2 Business Visas or general US visas.

Finally, there are dedicated kiosks for travelers arriving via the International Trusted Traveler Programs: global entry members and NEXUS members can skip the other processing kiosks and go directly to their passport control area. These are generally passengers with pre-approved visas obtained online, before their departure from their home country.

Satellite terminals and Gates concourses have shops, dining facilities and coffee bars, as well as ATM's and currency exchange facilities. Some have Duty Free shopping as well (Central Terminal and S Gates concourse).

The Airport Lost and Found Office can be contacted on +1 206 787 5312. Central Terminal has a Dufry Duty Free shopping outlet, as does the S Gates concourse. The Baggage Claim area typically has US Bank ATM's and ICE Currency Exchange at Concourses. C Gates offers passengers the Terminal Getaway Spa for relaxation and pampering. Only the N Gates concourse has no ATM's or other services.

Ground Transportation to Seattle and Tacoma

Red Line of the Link Light Rail connects Sea-Tac with Downtown Seattle. Buses for the city centers stop along the International Boulevard, linked to Central Terminal via Skywalk. Taxis, flat fare and metered cabs, pick up and drop off on Level 3 or the parking garage. Free shuttles run to the Car Rental Facility, where Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, EZ, Fox, Firefly, Hertz, National, Payless, Sixt and Thrifty have their counters.

Taking a taxi into Seattle or Tacoma city center costs between US$40 and US$45.00. A single fare on Red Line costs ca US$3.25 per person.