Seattle Airport

Not Verified | What a depressing place. There is no doubt I am at Tacoma airport. I don't know what hits you first. The grime or the smell. It is like an assault to all your senses. There is trash visable everywhere. I can count 8 coffee cups at gate B6 rigjt now. This airport always seems to be under construction, yet nothing ever seems to appear better. Added to this is the fact that all the store employees seem to be bothered when you have to interupt their conversations. If you have a connecting flight I recommend you avoid Tacoma Airport.

✅ Trip Verified | The slowest and most inefficient airport I've ever had to arrive at. If you are not a US citizen, do not, I repeat, do not make a transit at this airport, you will not make it in time. Of the 6 times, I've arrived here internationally, it took an average of 1.5 hours just to clear the immigration checkpoint each time, with a maximum of 3 hours from personal experience. After clearing customs, all other airports that I've been to have your checked luggage up and out on the carousel in 20 minutes max. Here, it's at least an hour's wait so it doesn't even matter if you've cleared the immigration checkpoint quickly. Finally when you exit to ground transport, do not use the bag conveyor belt to deliver your luggage separately before taking the transit train to Seattle exit and ground transportation else you'll have to wait another 10 minutes for your bags to arrive by the conveyor belt after you've arrived by the transit train. This airport is not just understaffed, it suffers from very visible underemployment and operation inefficiencies. For example, the airport management has in their infinite wisdom decided to station not one but two workers at each luggage carousel to arrange bags neatly on the carousel as they arrive by the conveyor belt so that they don't tip over. This task is absolutely pointless - I've still seen bags tip over and being rearranged by other passengers standing beside it. So now you have two persons being paid to just stand by the carousel chit-chatting and occasionally moving a bag or two when they could be doing something more useful like delivering the bags quickly. All in all, too much waiting and a poor experience every single time. Is it too much to ask for an airport to do its job quickly so I don't have to stand for another 3 hours after a 12-hour transpacific flight? I've arrived in the US from LA and San Fran and both are much, much faster.

✅ Trip Verified | My departure and arrival are here at Seattle-Tacoma airport were good. Starbucks was crowded by people but it is ok. In addition, the airport needs to increase duty-free shops.

Not Verified | Although it seems that every time we fly into SeaTac, it is under construction, we were very pleased with customer service at check in, and gates. And TSA line very short. 4 days after Thanksgiving, it took 20 min to get from check-in to gate, which is unheard of. Good experience, except construction caused the terminal to be very cold.

Not Verified | There was a security officer named Williston who was cheerful, humorous, kind and absolutely over the top with positive energy who made our trip to the airport at 7 am, memorable and delightful. If more employees enjoyed their jobs and made it a point to enrich passengers' lives as he did, the world would be a better place.

Not Verified | Curbside check-in was a snap. The security line was almost empty. My wife has PreCheck and has to walkway down from the rest of the security and it took her three times as long to clear bag check/body scan as I did without PreCheck. We walked down to the gate and I was shocked at the dirty carpets. All kinds of food debris are on the floor, all over. There is no one cleaning or vacuuming and it is late afternoon. My wife dropped her coat on the floor and I was grossed out. We moved to the other side of the building to wait at Gate B9 vs Gate B10. Otherwise, the experience was uneventful. Nice sunset with a good view of the mountains. Then I got my bag in San Diego and someone has been through it. It is not a TSA inspection. One side has been ransacked. The strap I always put around the bag is gone and the stupid expanding section is now bellowed out. Inside the contents are as if they were tossed in a blender. What a mess. I don't know who or why but this is really bad news. SWA runs a great organization and I doubt they were the source of something nefarious. But it happened there and could not have happened on arrival because it came out with everyone elses. Who does that? How cheesey and lame. And I lost a bag strap that has been around the world with me for years.

Not Verified | They re-did the airport and took out the water refill station so they can sell plastic bottles. A sales rep told me they removed the water fountains because the food court sells water? I'm very very disappointed. Seattle has been an environmental mainstay for decades and now - well!

✅ Trip Verified | No place to sit. Friendly and helpful workers. Limited food selection. While it looks fairly clean it's not, it's like a dog park in here. Who wants to eat food that's been prepared and cooked with pet dander and hair that has to be everywhere, not to mention the people with allergies. Disgusting. I love animals, just not in here.

Not Verified | Thanks, Seattle. You have managed to make this the most uncomfortable airport I’ve ever been in. It didn’t use to be this way but you have totally screwed it up. There is no comfortable place to sit down if you’re on a long layover.

✅ Trip Verified | I highly recommend skipping this airport! There is nowhere to sit. I am currently sitting on a bench down a hallway I found where employees take their breaks. They were kind enough to let me hang out. The bathroom was a mess. The layout is awful! It's crowded and hot. Lines to purchase food/drink are alarmingly long. Total chaos!