Seattle airport to Vancouver, BC: shuttle, train or car
SEA to Vancouver, BC: Quick Shuttle boards at Door 02, the train starts downtown after a $3 Link ride, and travelers describe the border steps.
The airport lists one Vancouver bus, Quick Shuttle, and it boards at the curb outside Door 02 on the baggage claim level. The train is the other way north. It leaves from King Street Station in Seattle, and a $3 Link ride gets you toward it. The Port doesn’t publish a Vancouver fare or timetable, so those come from Quick Shuttle and Amtrak.
Quick Shuttle starts at the airport, so you skip the Link ride and the station queue. The train adds that ride to King Street Station.
The options side by side
| Option | Where it starts at SEA | Fare and times |
|---|---|---|
| Quick Shuttle | Curb on the Arrivals Drive outside Door 02, with a check-in counter inside near Door 00 | Book through Quick Shuttle’s own site |
| Link, then Amtrak Cascades | SeaTac/Airport Link station, then King Street Station | Amtrak sets its own fare. The Roaming Twins paid about $100 each for business class, bought months ahead |
| Rental car or a ride from a friend | Off-site rental facility, or the Arrivals Drive | Rome2Rio’s drive estimate is about three hours before any border wait |
| Fly | Your airline’s check-in counter and concourse | The Roaming Twins said the flight would have cost double or triple the train fare |
Quick Shuttle: the curb outside Door 02
Go to the south end of the baggage claim level. Our directory puts the curb past Carousel 1, under the Airporters sign.
Two other airporters, Premier and the Bellevue shuttle, board on garage Level 3 instead. Quick Shuttle isn’t one of them, so ignore the Level 3 signs. Our shared shuttles guide and the scheduled airporters page show the curb and the operators that use it.
Rome2Rio says Quick Shuttle runs three times a day and takes about 5 hours 10 minutes. If you can’t find the curb, call the Ground Transportation Booth at (206) 787-5906.
Link, then Amtrak Cascades
The airport’s ground transportation list has no train to Vancouver. The Amtrak train leaves from King Street Station, so the first leg is Link light rail from the airport. The timetable puts Pioneer Square 36 minutes from SeaTac/Airport and International District/Chinatown 34. Our Link guide covers the walk from carousel 16 and how to pay.
VonMeetsWorld, a solo-travel channel, filmed the station routine:
- Arrive at least 45 minutes early, because boarding closes about 15 minutes before departure.
- Have the ticket on the Amtrak app and the passport open at the passport checkpoint. Staff check documents there and hand out a boarding slip.
- Eat before you get there. King Street Station has no food inside, per VonMeetsWorld.
- Seats aren’t assigned. Queue 30 to 45 minutes ahead for the left side heading north, which faces the water.
- Steep steps lead onto the train, so VonMeetsWorld suggests checking a big bag at the station.
VonMeetsWorld says only two trains a day run Seattle to Vancouver and the other departures are buses. Busy & Healthy put the ride at about three and a half hours.
The Roaming Twins reported free Wi-Fi on board, while VonMeetsWorld warned it might drop after the border.
The border, as travelers describe it
The Port’s pages don’t cover the border or entry documents. These are the steps travelers on the train reported.
- Fill out the Canadian arrivals form before the border, per VonMeetsWorld. Stay seated while Amtrak officers check your passport and form.
- The Roaming Twins had a passport check on board at the last stop before Canada.
- At Pacific Central Station in Vancouver, collect your bags before you go through customs. The Roaming Twins said anyone who skipped that waited until everyone else cleared.
- Expect a wait at the platform. The Roaming Twins’ train backed into the station and held everyone while crew unloaded about 150 bags. Business class got off first.
- VonMeetsWorld warns against overdoing the bistro car, because Canadian officials won’t admit travelers who are intoxicated.
Driving
Every rental company serving SEA is off-site, and a free shuttle runs from the baggage claim level all day and night. Our rental car guide has the shuttle stops and the facility address. Ask the rental company whether the car may enter Canada and whether a one-way drop in Vancouver is possible.
If a friend is driving you instead, the private vehicle page has the pickup rules and the cell phone lot where a driver can wait.
Flying instead
Our Alaska Airlines and Delta pages show where each airline checks in and departs.
When things go wrong
Amtrak doesn’t own the tracks, so VonMeetsWorld says freight trains sometimes make it wait, and the Roaming Twins sat through a stop for a southbound train. Book nothing tight on the Vancouver end: Busy & Healthy’s train arrived late at night, and their cruise left the next morning.
Sources
This site:
- Scheduled airporters
- Shared shuttles from Seattle airport
- Link light rail from SEA into Seattle
- Baggage claim at Seattle airport
- Rental cars at SEA
- Private vehicle drop-off and pickup
- Alaska Airlines and Delta
Official:
- Quick Shuttle, Quick Coach
- Sound Transit’s 1 Line timetable
Traveler videos:
- VonMeetsWorld, Taking the Amtrak Cascades, Seattle to Vancouver
- The Roaming Twins, We Took Amtrak to Canada
- Busy & Healthy, We Took the Amtrak Cascades Scenic Train