SEAAirport Guide

Seattle airport to Pike Place Market: light rail, the walk and other options

Link light rail to Symphony or Westlake is $3 and 37 to 39 minutes, then 0.3 miles on foot. Uber, taxi, shuttle and night-bus options compared.

The market sign, green roof and red awnings of Pike Place Market from the street, with the harbour beyond.
Pike Place Market, Seattle

Link light rail to Symphony or Westlake is the best way to the Market, with a short walk at the end. The adult fare is $3.00, and Sound Transit’s timetable puts Symphony 37 minutes from SeaTac/Airport Station and Westlake 39. Pike Place Market’s own transit page lists both stations at 0.3 miles from the Market. No Link station sits at the Market itself, so you’ll walk the last part.

How the options compare

Option Cost Time Boards at
Link light rail $3.00 adult, free for 18 and under 37 minutes to Symphony, 39 to Westlake, then the walk SeaTac/Airport Station
UberX $69 average on Uber’s own route page 28 minutes over 15 miles, Uber’s average Garage Level 3, Ground Transportation Plaza
Taxi Metered, with a $20 minimum fare from SEA The Port lists no time Garage Level 3, north and south curbs
Premier door-to-door Varies with distance, passengers and service The Port lists no time Kiosk on garage Level 3, reached over Skybridge 4

Uber’s figures are averages for this exact route. Its Wait & Save tier averages $60 on the same page. The page also lists UberXL at $94 for up to six riders, Comfort at $79 and Black at $90.

Four adults on the train pay $12 in total, while one UberX seats four for $69. Anyone 18 or under rides Link free, so a family’s train bill drops further.

Travel Adventures with Eric B said Uber and Lyft fares fluctuate a lot. That video still calls the train cheaper and better, but says a big family may prefer a car to herding kids onto a train. Our light rail guide has the reduced fares and the full weekday frequency table.

From baggage claim to the platform

  1. At baggage claim, find carousel 16 and go up one floor to the skybridge level.
  2. Cross Skybridge 6 and turn left through the parking garage.
  3. Follow the Link signs to SeaTac/Airport Station.

Expect up to 10 minutes from baggage claim to the station entrance. Pike Place Market’s transit page says 5 to 10, and the Seattle Department of Transportation’s video says 10. Travel Adventures with Eric B called it a lot of walking, and a commenter under that video said the route is exposed to cold, rainy weather.

The free Train-to-Plane cart runs every day from 5 a.m. to midnight, carries anyone and has bag storage on the back. For help with the cart, the Port lists (206) 787-4069 and (206) 787-5906.

Paying and boarding

Tap a contactless card, a digital wallet or an ORCA card, or buy a ticket in the Transit GO Ticket app. The Seattle Department of Transportation says the ticket machines take cash, so you don’t need a card. Destination 4 Vacation found them on the mezzanine, below the platform, and saw lines at the most visible ones while others nearby sat empty.

Keep your ticket, because Destination 4 Vacation says fare checks happen on board now and then, though none came on its trip. A day pass costs twice the one-way fare, so $6.00 for an adult, and it saves money from the third ride.

Two tracks serve the platform. Board the train toward Lynnwood City Center, because that’s the direction into Seattle. Seattle Department of Transportation says the trains have space for luggage, and Destination 4 Vacation found plenty of room for an oversized suitcase. Escalators and elevators both reach the platform.

Day First train from SEA Last train toward downtown
Monday to Friday 4:51 a.m. 12:05 a.m.
Saturday 4:48 a.m. 12:06 a.m.
Sunday 5:58 a.m. 11:18 p.m.

On weekdays a train leaves every 8 or 10 minutes until 7:53 p.m., then every 12 or 16 minutes. Weekend trains come every 10 minutes from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., by Sound Transit’s approximate guide.

Symphony or Westlake?

Pick by your hotel, because little else separates them. Westlake is where Destination 4 Vacation says most downtown hotels cluster.

A bag doesn’t rule out Symphony. Destination 4 Vacation’s traveler wheeled a large suitcase up a two-block hill from Symphony to a hotel with no trouble.

To return to the airport, board at Symphony or Westlake toward Federal Way. Sound Transit puts the ride between downtown and SEA at 38 minutes.

The last stretch on foot

The Market’s own site lists its address as 85 Pike Street, so type that into your maps app.

The Market’s page gives no walking time. Destination 4 Vacation says you practically walk past the Market on the way from Westlake to Pier 66.

Where to catch a car or van

Rideshare pickup is at the Ground Transportation Plaza on garage Level 3, stalls 1 to 34, and it’s a different spot from the train. Cross a skybridge one level below ticketing, then go down one level. Our rideshare listing has the Port’s notes on premium rides and assisted pickup. Give the driver 85 Pike Street.

Taxis run 24 hours and use the meter. Travel Adventures with Eric B put the ride to downtown at around $40 to $50. The Port allows a $1 on-demand surcharge, and drivers take cash, cards and digital payments.

Premier’s shared van is the cheaper of its two services, by the Port’s description, and the other is a private non-stop van.

Landing after the last train

Sound Transit’s Night Bus, route 597, leaves SeaTac Station for downtown Seattle about every 30 minutes. The bus stops near the Link station on International Boulevard, across the pedestrian bridge.

Night Route 597 leaves for downtown
Monday to Friday 12:26 to 4:26 a.m.
Saturday 12:26 to 5:26 a.m.
Sunday From 11:26 p.m.

Rome2Rio lists the 597’s downtown stop as 3rd Ave and Pine St. King County Metro’s route 124 also serves the airport overnight, from about 1 a.m. to 5 a.m., and leaves toward downtown at about 1:22 and 2:35 a.m., a few minutes earlier on Sunday night. Its stop is on the airport access road where it meets International Boulevard, south of the terminal.

Cruise passengers

Pier 66, the Bell Street Cruise Terminal, sits near the Market, so the train works for it. Destination 4 Vacation rides to Westlake and walks from there. Pier 91 has no rail stop, and that video took an Uber from Westlake for the last leg. A commenter warns that the walk to Pier 91 runs through an industrial area beside a fast road.

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