How to get from SeaTac Airport to Downtown Seattle

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I know several friends and people from twitter are coming to PAX from different parts of the country. Some have asked how to get from point a to b, and I'm here to write up a rough guide on how to do so while I wait for my boyfriend's flight to arrive. Keep in my mind I am writing this on my iPad without a keyboard, so it might come out weird. Here goes!

Your options:

Rental Car: honestly, this is a waste of damn money. Downtown Seattle is very walkable and you do yourself a disservice by renting. There are parking fees, gas, and a slew of other things that I would personally not want to deal with.

Taxi: I believe ALL the taxi services offer a simple fee of $32 (thanks to @jediguybob for the correction!) for a trip from the airport to downtown Seatte. I have ridden some taxis here and the guys are usually very friendly and nice. You'll get to downtown anywhere from 20 – 45 depending on traffic. Give or take more or less depending on the prior condition or who your driver is.

Light Rail: this is by far your cheapest option. You should only have to pay $2.75, takes 40 – 50 minutes and you don't have to really worry about transferring from one place to another. I highly recommend this option.

If you choose the later option, here are some tips and directions on riding:

– You MUST pay your fare before you board. If the security happens to do rounds when you are on and you are without a ticket? Your fine is $124. The ticket machine is usually in an area above or below the platform you are to board on. In SeaTac, it is on the floor before you ride up to the station itself.

– If you still have the ORCA card I gave you for Sakura Con, you can preload your card online. Look up ORCA card and follow the directions on their website. Remember to tap before and after boarding the the Light Rail! Failure to do so, and you can expect to pay the $124 fine as well.

– Don't be stupid. Seriously. Watch your phones and small devices. There might be cameras and the random security checks, but that doesn't stop people from being jerks and taking your shit.

How to get to the station from SeaTac: from baggage claim, head all the way to the end of the baggage claim (if you are at baggage claim 1, you are on the wrong end!) and head up the stairs. Cross the sky bridge and turn left. Walk alongside the path until you get to a clearing with a floor above you. This is where you will board the rail. Purchase your ticket making sure you select that you are getting off at the West Lake Center station. Head up, board when they are ready, and keep your ticket!

From here enjoy the scenery until you find yourself going underground sometime after the Beacon Hill station. The electronic ticker signs are plastered almost everywhere so you can't really miss what stop is what. But what you are looking for is West Lake Center station. It is the last station, so you CAN’T go wrong! Get off of here and go to the set of stairs that is on the furthest left side or whatever brings you to the Nordstrom side of the area. If you find yourself peeking at Macy's and then McDonalds then you are on the wrong side.

If you are staying at the Grand Hyatt, go left and up the street about two or three blocks. The hotel is on the corner to your right. If you are staying elsewhere… You are on your own unless you leave a comment of pester me on twitter with your hotel name and I will do my best to help you out.