Traveling in Washington for the upcoming holiday? Here's what to know

The busiest travel days in the U.S. are typically the ones just before the Christmas holiday, and despite being in the middle of a global pandemic, that appears to be true this year as well.

The state Department of Transportation, Washington State Ferries and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport are asking travelers to plan ahead before heading to their destination.

Below, we’ve compiled a guide for journeyers that’s split into sections depending on their mode of transportation. So, keep reading if your travel plans involve driving, sailing or flying in Washington.

Driving

Any seasoned Washington motorist knows that are three chokepoints on state highways that are busy no matter when you travel, but are always the busiest just before a holiday: Interstate 90 between North Bend and Cle Elum, Interstate 5 between Tacoma and Lacey, and Highway 2 between Stevens Pass and Skykomish.

On I-90, traffic will be busiest in the eastbound lanes early in the week as people head from the populous west side of the state to the more rural east side. Then, traffic will be busiest in the westbound lanes early next week as those people return home.

If your travel plans involve heading over Snoqualmie Pass on I-90, your best bet is to leave early in the morning — around 7 a.m. — or later in the evening, after 7 p.m.

According to the state Department of Transportation, eastbound lanes will be the busiest on Thursday between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. and on Sunday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Westbound lanes will be the busiest Sunday between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. and Monday between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Congestion forecast charts from the state predict that I-5 between Tacoma and Lacey will be a disaster regardless of when you leave or what direction you’re heading. If you really want to skip the traffic, your best bet is to leave very early in the morning — around 5 or 6 a.m. — or very late in the evening, around 9 p.m.

Highway 2 looks to be the least traveled of the three popular thoroughfares over the next few days, but its also the smallest, which means you’ll see congestion despite the lower volume of motorists on the road.

Both eastbound and westbound lanes will be busiest on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. If you’re heading east early in the week, you can skip the traffic by leaving Thursday or Friday afternoon around 3 p.m. If you’re heading west, you should leave Thursday after 6 p.m. or Friday after 3 p.m.

Detailed congestion forecasts for these three routes are available here.

Flying

SeaTac Airport expects to see hundreds of thousands of travelers over the next few days. It’s predicting to see 132,000 travelers on Sunday alone. That’s nearly the number of travelers it saw on that date, Dec. 26, pre-pandemic.

A number of factors — including pandemic-related closures and construction — have reduced the number of parking stalls in and around the airport. Without a reservation, the airport estimates you could wait 30 minutes or more to find an open space.

Officials recommend taking the Link light rail — Sound Transit recently added three new stations at the airport’s north end — or utilizing a ride share service to get to the airport.

If you’re picking someone up, the airport recommends using its cell phone lot, a parking lot with 200 spaces directly across from the S. 170th St. exit of the Airport Expressway. You can also balance the flow of traffic by using the departure drive for pickups at night and the arrivals drive for pickups in the morning.

Expect to see long lines at security checkpoints. You can use the airport’s SEA Spot Saver program to get a reservation at a special TSA screening hub, which allows you to skip the long general-screening lines.

In general, you should get to the airport at least two hours before domestic flights and three hours before international flights. Masks are to be worn inside the airport at all times unless actively eating or drinking.   

Sailing

Washington State Ferries are expecting Thursday, Friday and Sunday to be their busiest travel days this week. Delays are possible in both directions on several routes. To reduce or waiting times, riders should consider taking an early morning or late-night sailing.

Stay up to date with sailing schedules here.

Only the Fauntleroy/Vashon/Southworth route will have holiday schedule changes for Friday. All other runs are operating on their current Friday schedules. The busy Seattle/Bainbridge Island, Edmonds/Kingston and Mukilteo/Clinton routes remain on one-boat service, with a second boat added daily as crewing availability allows.

Masks are required in all indoor areas of vessels and terminals.