Going Over from Vancouver, BC to Seattle To Catch International Flight

I can speak for doing the opposite (US citizen flying from Vancouver). And there has been no issues at the border going in either direction. Having said that, it oftens depends on the agent themselves. As far as time, under ideal conditions, it is about a 2.5 hour drive. Factoring in the time at the border is a bit of a crapshoot in advance. But weekday afternoon maybe 30 minutes. The Seattle traffic is another thing. Going south at that time the express lanes are available until about 11am. After that, it is almost always a backup as you approach Seattle proper. Last year, on a Saturday afternoon, it took us 3 hours from Bellingham to Seatac. Granted it was the worst I have ever experienced but my advice is, and I am a better safe than sorry person, I would rather sit at the airport for a while than miss my flight. So, to me, at minimum, 2.5 hrs ideal drive time, .5 hours at the border, arrive 2.5 hours early, add an extra half hour cushion, total time is 6 hours. I would leave Vancouver about 10am.

Sure sounds like it would be easier to fly out of Vancover.

Do you have Nexus? If so, it should be a breeze, it will also help you get through US immigration faster on your return since you can use the Global Entry line. If you don't have Nexus, I believe you can use Mobile Passport Control as Canadian Citizens at both the land border and air border. When I went through the Peace Arch Border Crossing last September US CBP was encouraging the use of Mobile Passport Control. Not sure where the separate line would be at the land crossing. https://www.cbp.gov/travel/us-citizens/mobile-passport-control

Thanks for your responses.

No, I do not have Nexus. Also, when I checked the MPC link, none of the border crossings are mentioned there.

You mentioned that you crossed over recently; did you have luggage with you and thats why they would perfom the checks? We crossover several times in a year but on all occassions it has been for shopping etc. and without luggage; during these visits its been pretty quick - just regular questions - purpose of visit, for how long, where do you live.

I just looked and didn't see anything about Mobile Passport Control for land crossings either. So I guess you'll have to use the regular lanes. But you should still look into downloading the app for use upon your return to SeaTac. It will save you hours at US immigration.

I have indeed crossed the US Canada border with luggage. And the questions are the same as for a day trip: purpose, length, anything to declare. I've never been searched and the only time I was questioned closely was when I was traveling by myself - which I suspect made me more suspicious.

You will need to be at SeaTac by 1:00 PM for the international flight. I would leave Vancouver by 9:00 since traffic in Everett can be bad along with the entire I-5 corridor. And maybe even earlier if your traveling over a holiday weekend.

Thank you so much for all the info!

Luggage should not be an issue, When the Immigration Officer asks where you are going, just tell them you re on your way to Seatac for an International flight.

Basically you need to be at the airport by 1PM, so at the car park by 12:15 to assure you get to the terminal by 1 PM

That has you leaving the B'ham Costco about 9-930AM. How long does it take you to get to the Costco from home?

The wild card is how much, if any, extra scrutiny you get at the border because you have lots of luggage.

An accident blocking I-5 or the random bunch of crazies sitting on the freeway 'protesting' something also could ruin your plans.

Does using SEA vs YVR really save enough money to make the risks worthwhile?

Another wildcard: occasional unexpected traffic "events" in downtown Seattle. They're not frequent but they do happen and are part of the landscape.

Most recent example: protestors closed I-5 through downtown Seattle for most of a day one day last week. That's right, all day long, and deep into the evening, I-5 was essentially closed and blocked off - not surprisingly, traffic all over Seattle quickly went to complete gridlock. (As an aside...Note to protest organizers: No matter how righteous your cause might be, this is no way to win the hearts and minds of your neighbors; you might have felt good about it, but you probably made a lot more enemies that day than you did win over potential allies...).

Last year it was a truck-full of frozen salmon that flipped and spilled a smelly, slippery mess closing I-5 for hours (don't blame the salmon).

Woe to you if you had planned to drive through Seattle to catch your flight on those days. Tip from a local: Listen to local radio as you approach the city and check for unexpected traffic and other road disruptions. Alas, there are very, very few alternatives to I-5 - you've got Highway 99 to the west, and 405 to the east, but anytime there's a disruption to I-5, both immediately go gridlock, and you're left with surface streets (which quickly gridlock, too). No real viable options if your timing coincides with such events, so keep your fingers crossed. Good luck.

No trouble crossing the border with luggage. Just remember to roll both your front and rear windows down at the border to give them a good view. I would figure out my timing to SeaTac and then just add an hour cushion for unexpected events. You know how long it takes you to get to Bellingham. From Bellingham it is an hour 15 minutes to my house. From my house to SEA is between 30-60 minutes depending on traffic.

I was stuck downtown when those protesters ( may they be thrown in jail) shut down the freeway. Traffic came to a standstill. Ambulances couldn’t respond to calls. They did their cause way more harm than good. I was born in Seattle and even I struggled to make it to the alternate routes. Imagine the first time or occasional visitor struggling to make their way to the airport.

I haven't crossed the border as often in recent years since my mom passed away in BC, but through the years we've experienced border waits (returning to US) from a minute to a couple of hours, and we've been stuck in that I-5 traffic (almost any time of day). If I were headed down on the day of my flight, I'd probably want to leave no later than 7 (Vancouver is quite broad--downtown?Richmond? WhiteRock?) and would feel like that was cutting it close given the wildcards. (My husband says he'd leave by 8.)

It's often recommended to stay at an airport hotel (e.g. staying at Heathrow, rather than in London) the night before an international flight. Staying in a SEATAC hotel would take away any anxiety about any unexpected delays at the border, or on the freeway. (What if you got a flat tire?). Yes, I can be a worrywart. You don't say how many are traveling. Perhaps it would eat up any $avings on flights to book a hotel room or rooms. I think some of the airport hotels offer free parking while you travel.

I go the other way most of the time--it's worth it to me because my dog sitter lives in the Skagit Valley which is about 1.5 hours from each Seattle and Vancouver so I'm driving three hours round trip regardless, and I have nexus so the border wait isn't a consideration.

The luggage is a non-issue, especially if you tell the border agent that the purpose of your trip is to catch a flight from Seatac. It would be weirder at the point if you didn't have luggage! I would leave by 9:00 if you can; that gives up an hour of wiggle room for unexpectedly bad traffic, a long border wait, or just a restroom/Starbucks break.

If your trip is on a normal day and not a holiday weekend or something unusual, I'd start tracking the border/traffic times about a month in advance on the same day of the week and rough time that you're thinking of departing. So if your trip leaves on a Saturday, start looking at how long it normally takes on a Saturday at 9:00 (or whatever), and adjust accordingly.

Should be fine leaving 9-10am.

I can see why you are driving - flights YVR-SEA and back can at times be quite pricey for a short hop. Multiply by a family and driving can make a lot of sense.

Luggage in the car should not make any difference. We always have luggage, plus maybe ski or camping gear in our car when we cross the border. Apart from asking the purpose of our visit, they do not ask about the luggage or gear we are carrying (they do ask about guns when going INTO Canada).

What the US Customs inspector at the border will ask about is food items like fruits and vegetables. Just don’t bring any.

Traffic on I-5 can be bad going into Seattle, as others have mentioned. We often use I-405 instead. It crosses I-5 at Tukwila and goes right into the airport as I-518.. You can check which freeway to use for better traffic flow around Everett, well before you reach the interchange.

https://wsdot.com/Travel/Real-time/Map/

Google driving directions will tell you the better route as well.

You must have got quite a deal on airfare to undertake such an excursion. I'd make sure you have your long term parking situation worked out (and reserved) in advance and be sure to factor the time to get from parking to the terminal. I personally would investigate using a park and fly hotel if there is one that suits your schedule - I simply do not trust drivers/traffic/etc. in Seattle. I would also check if there are any events going on that weekend (concerts, ballgames, etc.) that would predictably affect traffic. You can also check border wait times online.

Also, since you don't have Nexus you won't be able to skip the line for security at Seatac and those lines can be epic. Depending on the day you're leaving I'd add some cushion for that. You can also check typical TSA wait times using the MyTSA app. Best of luck.

They can reserve a spot in the TSA line at the appropriate time with SpotSaver.

https://www.portseattle.org/SEAspotsaver

You must have got quite a deal on airfare to undertake such an
excursion.

One round trip ticket YVR to SEA can easily cost $350. It can also be quite cheap, but if it's not cheap around the time these folks want to fly then it might not make sense. What if they're a family of six? Could be a couple grand US, which I think is about $300,000 Canadian? ;)

Anyway, And someone who lives in Seattle and occasionally chooses to fly out of Vancouver when there's a better value, can tell you that this is not an uncommon practice, nor particularly a cheapskate thing ....

Also, it's remarkable the price variance between flights out of Vancouver and flights out of Seattle to the same or similar destinations. It can be a lot more from one place or the other. Different countries I suppose serving different markets ....

For those who are curious about the price difference and the reason for us to take our flight from SeaTac instead of YVR, for our travel, the price differential is upwards of approx.$500 per ticket. When looking at the overall commercials, including drive to and from Seatac, parking for 18 days and any other incidentals, it would be much cheaper than taking the flight from YVR.

Reason for expensive flights from YVR is because of the Ukraine war, the Canadian carriers can no longer fly above Russia, as a result, there aren't many direct flights from YVR to my destination and the only one available is super expensive. As a result, even indirect flights from YVR are unnecessarily expensive.

I appreciate everybody taking time to help me with my queries. Thanks a lot for your generosity with you inputs.

I do the opposite most times going to Europe. I drive from Detroit to Toronto and save upwards of $1000 a flight. I haven't had any problems coming or going when I do this. Just tell the border agent you're flying out of SeaTac.

About that airspace: Of course, US-based airlines are subject to the same restrictions as Canada regarding flying in Russian airspace. This has actually thrown a wrench into some (but not all) airlines on longhaul routes, those most often impacted (for us) are US routes to Asia - anywhere from Japan to the Middle East. For Japan & Korea, the "detour" around Russian airspace my be relatively minor (especially from SEA or YVR); from airports in the eastern US/Canada, it'll be greater. Some of the worst impacts are from Scaninavia - Finland in particular, used to have a straight shot to Southeast Asia, right across a lot of Russia - Bankok has been a popular destination for them for years. Now that requires an inconvenient and significant detour.

So US, Canadian and many other airlines are steering clear of Russian airspace, either because they're required to or they're just being cautious. If there's a mechanical issue or medical emergency, lots of us would rather avoid an unplanned landing in Russia. But some foreign airlines (including the big three Middle East carriers, Qatar, Emirates, Ethiad) continue to operate over Russia, including on long flights from the USA. Flights to India from the US west coast are also impacted...in fact, putting US airlines at a competitive disadvantage.

I'm guessing the OP's flights are on a non-US/non-Canadian flagged carrier, as the airspace issue should be no different for YVR and SEA, it's probably just a question of getting on an airline that serves SEA but doesn't currently serve YVR.

The things we used to take for granted...(like not worrying about what country our flight was passing over, and what might happen to us if they had to make an unplanned stop there...).