The light rail isn't free but it is only $2.50 or so one way. The other problem is that, and this is solely based on research, not experience, the rail doesn't actually run to the airport. If someone can correct me on that point, I would be quite happy.
No, it doesn't run you right into the terminal, but it does take you to just outside the parking garage. From there, there's a covered walkway through the parking garage to the terminal.
The light rail is great! You just ride it all the way to the end of line, get off and then just a couple blocks walk to pike st. Although my husband did get a couple odd looks from the people he worked with last week calling it the light rail. Everyone else called it the Link.
Good to know Adias. Us folk from Arkansas don't have anything fancy like that to ride on... Lol (stereotypical southern accent intended) I will try riding it this year... The Uber ride to the hotel was $40. So sounds like the link is the best option from the airport eh?
Good to know Adias. Us folk from Arkansas don't have anything fancy like that to ride on... Lol (stereotypical southern accent intended) I will try riding it this year... The Uber ride to the hotel was $40. So sounds like the link is the best option from the airport eh?
Ha! Us either. I totally felt like this:
Any yea it really is the best way to get from the airport.
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sanovahNerd of the WestSan Diego, CaliforniaRegistered Userregular
Good to know Adias. Us folk from Arkansas don't have anything fancy like that to ride on... Lol (stereotypical southern accent intended) I will try riding it this year... The Uber ride to the hotel was $40. So sounds like the link is the best option from the airport eh?
Yeah it is/was like an hourish ride from the airport to the Westlake stop. My tip for riding it though would be to "baracade" yourself and just stand with your luggage in one of the corners. It can get crowded and last year I few people got bitchy about me and my luggage vy the seats.
Good to know Adias. Us folk from Arkansas don't have anything fancy like that to ride on... Lol (stereotypical southern accent intended) I will try riding it this year... The Uber ride to the hotel was $40. So sounds like the link is the best option from the airport eh?
Yeah it is/was like an hourish ride from the airport to the Westlake stop. My tip for riding it though would be to "baracade" yourself and just stand with your luggage in one of the corners. It can get crowded and last year I few people got bitchy about me and my luggage vy the seats.
Yea it is like any other public trans, it gets crowded. I just put my bag in my lap. And I looked at the schedule and it's a 40 minute ride.
well I bit the very expensive bullet after watching flights from Minnesota to Seattle, I've been watching the price for a few weeks and it has maintained its course, so I am dropping $500 on the flight to and from. I thought it would be closer to $300, but the cheapest I could find was $370, which involved really dumb and long layovers.
I blame bing travel because a few weeks ago it told me to wait, today it told me to buy D=
well I bit the very expensive bullet after watching flights from Minnesota to Seattle, I've been watching the price for a few weeks and it has maintained its course, so I am dropping $500 on the flight to and from. I thought it would be closer to $300, but the cheapest I could find was $370, which involved really dumb and long layovers.
I blame bing travel because a few weeks ago it told me to wait, today it told me to buy D=
Way too early man. I'm outta the MSP area too, but you can definitely get $300ish round trip tickets during the summer (late May through mid-July are the prime [no pun intended] spots) from MSP to SEA. I was able to snag a ticket for <$300 in 2011 and ~$330 last year.
What's the travel situation in downtown Seattle proper? I checked around online and the general consensus seems to be that Seattle absolutely sucks for taxi service. Can you flag a cab pretty easily in your experience or no? We're staying about a mile away from the WSCC, not a bad walk but sometimes you just want a quick ride.
What's the travel situation in downtown Seattle proper? I checked around online and the general consensus seems to be that Seattle absolutely sucks for taxi service. Can you flag a cab pretty easily in your experience or no? We're staying about a mile away from the WSCC, not a bad walk but sometimes you just want a quick ride.
Honestly the best thing to do in Seattle is to just walk.
Though this isn't PAX specific normally the best time to buy airline tickets is Wednesday late night, 8-12 weeks before the departure date. At least that's always been my experience. Do NOT buy on weekends, you can end up paying up to 50-100 dollars more for the exact same flight.
Though this isn't PAX specific normally the best time to buy airline tickets is Wednesday late night, 8-12 weeks before the departure date. At least that's always been my experience. Do NOT buy on weekends, you can end up paying up to 50-100 dollars more for the exact same flight.
It also depends on the size of the airport you are flying out of. We fly out of a small local airport so the flights fill up faster and prices go higher quick. I just booked our tickets today (instead of waiting for the normal 12 week window like last year) and saved $120 per ticket over last years price.
Though this isn't PAX specific normally the best time to buy airline tickets is Wednesday late night, 8-12 weeks before the departure date. At least that's always been my experience. Do NOT buy on weekends, you can end up paying up to 50-100 dollars more for the exact same flight.
Bing travel is very good at telling you when to buy, check them out.
3 of us who are going are flying down on 3 different flights and 2 different locations (Edmonton and Sydney, Australia [yes, a random mix]). I think all 3 of us are on the same plane back to Edmonton though.
it will be my 3rd PAX, so by this point I have a pretty decent idea of what I'm doing around the city. If you're flying in I highly recommend taking the light rail train from the airport downtown. it's a 30 minute trip that costs in the area of $5, and is super convenient. I like having the day on Thursday to do/see some of the Seattle things. Seattle Center is a beautiful park space, and if there's a good exhibit at the EMP museum I'll go to that. I also love love love the pike place market. I also use Thursday to make my requisite trip to Chipoltle.
The best thing about being in downtown Seattle is that almost everything you might want to do is within walking distance. I've never felt the need to grab a bus or a cab down there. The most I've ever had to walk to go to any one place is 30 minutes, which is nothnig.
What is the parking situation downtown? If we're carpooling do most hotels having parking where we could just leave it for the duration?
If you don't park in the downtown Seattle core area's, which the convention also is at, you are better off parking in either Belltown, First Hill, Capital Hill, Pioneer Square/International District and South Lake Union areas will get you plenty of spots and won't be more than $10.
If you park in the core downtown Seattle area, look at spending at least $30 a day and the possibility of the spots not available.
For those coming from the airport, Sea-Tac, take the light rail to downtown Seattle if your hotels are there. The light rail will stop in the lower downtown Seattle area so you will most likely have to hike 4-5 blocks if you're staying at the Sheraton, Red Lion or any place next to the convention hall. Seattle blocks are pretty small.
If you're doing the after parties of most of the PAX events, I suggest staying in the downtown Seattle or vicinity area's. Walking distance is key, plus walking is healthy for those individuals that are in need of an exercise.
What's the travel situation in downtown Seattle proper? I checked around online and the general consensus seems to be that Seattle absolutely sucks for taxi service. Can you flag a cab pretty easily in your experience or no? We're staying about a mile away from the WSCC, not a bad walk but sometimes you just want a quick ride.
UBER is your friend in Seattle. You download the app on your phone put in a pick up they use GPS to find you.. You get in the car drink free water. They drop you off where ever and the app on your phone charges your debit card. No tip no anything. Very comfy cars too. Way easier than getting a taxi, never waited more than 5 mins for a pick up.
This is going to be my first PAX and I plan on flying out of Houston.
I'm just curious if there are any other people on here who fly out from Houston and about how much they've paid in the past/the best time to buy.
I am flying from Arkansas to Dallas then to Seattle. I got my tickets for $300 with United back in March. I got the for $250 last year from Delta.
Stay away from buying on holiday weeks and never buy on weekends and you will get a decent price.
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StarYoshiGame Designer / Data ScientistUSARegistered Userregular
edited April 2013
I think I'll try out this light rail. I've used the shuttle in the past, but if the light rail takes me close to Crowne Plaza I'm game. (Cheaper than a $19 airport shuttle, too) I just need to figure out where exactly the route goes, as I don't know from the stop names themselves :P
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whypick1PAX [E] Info Booth Manager~2' from an LCDRegistered Userregular
I think I'll try out this light rail. I've used the shuttle in the past, but if the light rail takes me close to Crowne Plaza I'm game. (Cheaper than a $19 airport shuttle, too) I just need to figure out where exactly the route goes, as I don't know from the stop names themselves :P
You'll take it all the way to the final stop (Westlake.) You'll have to walk a bit from there, but it won't be too bad.
Edit: Pretty much get out of Westlake and either go down 5th or 6th heading East.
Got roundtrip flight tickets from Kansas City last year for $250/person, not as cheap this year though. Went ahead and snagged a roundtrip for myself for $366, though it's dropped a little today but w/e.
I was seriously considering driving the 30 hours nonstop with 3 other friends for a 4000 mile roundtrip in the car, lol.
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GeoffTanVancouver, British Columbia, CanadaRegistered Userregular
Anyone here travel from Vancouver? I always take the train but I'm wondering what other's experiences have been like!
Me and a bunch of my friends are traveling from the Fraser Valley (B.C.). We have drove our own vehicle down for the past 2 years and plan to do the same this year. We enjoy doing it that way, though we haven't tried any other way yet since we wanted to save costs. Keep in mind that parking around there costs about $30-$40/day (unless there is cheaper that I haven't found yet).
I've driven back and forth, taken the train and coach. But the most interesting experience that I've had getting from Vancouver to Seattle was by public transit. Takes about 10 hours but it's an experience...
3-7 weeks before your flight is the best time to book. Usually the best of the best prices are in the 4-6 weeks prior timeframe. Ticket sales get announced by some companies on monday, with some other airlines then matching or competing with those prices on tuesday, and now there are other companies who then try to beat the Tuesday prices on Wednesday... so generally, Tues-Wed are when online prices are the cheapest.
People who buy prior to 6-8 weeks out will often pay 20-30% more than people who wait.
BingTravel (formerly Farecast) is a better tool once you get into the 8 week period before the show. It assumes you're going to want to buy tickets in the next 2 weeks, so it gives you where it thinks prices will go in the next 2 weeks. It doesn't usually say "no no, it'll go down 3 months from now, you should wait." Basically, use it when you get closer to try to figure out whether the prices are going to keep going down in the immediate future.
Kayak has undergone a great revamp recently, and is now better than farecast/Bing for price searching. Also always remember to check JetBlue, Southwest, and Virgin America separately... sometimes their deals show up on other sites, sometimes they don't.
Miles! They're a thing! Even if you only fly once or twice a year, many airlines have miles that never expire, or expire only if you don't fly with them for over a year. It might not seem like much, but after 4 years of paying for flights, a free flight to PAX can feel like a gift from the gods. If you're using miles, you want to try to book your flight 7-10 weeks out, possibly slightly earlier, as these options can be more limited. However, the number of "miles" a flight costs can vary in relation to the actual retail price of that flight, so if you have the option to either use miles or pay money, you can wait and watch for a better deal.
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Oh, I didn't realize University Street station was that close to the hotels south/southeast of the convention center. Granted, I probably should've google map'd a bit harder.
Anyone here travel from Vancouver? I always take the train but I'm wondering what other's experiences have been like!
Me and a bunch of my friends are traveling from the Fraser Valley (B.C.). We have drove our own vehicle down for the past 2 years and plan to do the same this year. We enjoy doing it that way, though we haven't tried any other way yet since we wanted to save costs. Keep in mind that parking around there costs about $30-$40/day (unless there is cheaper that I haven't found yet).
I've driven back and forth, taken the train and coach. But the most interesting experience that I've had getting from Vancouver to Seattle was by public transit. Takes about 10 hours but it's an experience...
My boyfriend and I took Quick Coach from Vancouver last year. Round trip for the both of us cost a total of $100
3-7 weeks before your flight is the best time to book. Usually the best of the best prices are in the 4-6 weeks prior timeframe. Ticket sales get announced by some companies on monday, with some other airlines then matching or competing with those prices on tuesday, and now there are other companies who then try to beat the Tuesday prices on Wednesday... so generally, Tues-Wed are when online prices are the cheapest.
People who buy prior to 6-8 weeks out will often pay 20-30% more than people who wait.
BingTravel (formerly Farecast) is a better tool once you get into the 8 week period before the show. It assumes you're going to want to buy tickets in the next 2 weeks, so it gives you where it thinks prices will go in the next 2 weeks. It doesn't usually say "no no, it'll go down 3 months from now, you should wait." Basically, use it when you get closer to try to figure out whether the prices are going to keep going down in the immediate future.
Kayak has undergone a great revamp recently, and is now better than farecast/Bing for price searching. Also always remember to check JetBlue, Southwest, and Virgin America separately... sometimes their deals show up on other sites, sometimes they don't.
Miles! They're a thing! Even if you only fly once or twice a year, many airlines have miles that never expire, or expire only if you don't fly with them for over a year. It might not seem like much, but after 4 years of paying for flights, a free flight to PAX can feel like a gift from the gods. If you're using miles, you want to try to book your flight 7-10 weeks out, possibly slightly earlier, as these options can be more limited. However, the number of "miles" a flight costs can vary in relation to the actual retail price of that flight, so if you have the option to either use miles or pay money, you can wait and watch for a better deal.
Going to completely disagree with you on the time and those little predictor programs
Last year I flew out on a Thursday and back in on Monday. I waited the 3-7 weeks like everyone told me to and paid $450 which included my bags.
This year I bought tickets a month ago for a Saturday fly out (which is one of the busiest days of the week for flying) and I'll be flying back in on the Tuesday after PAX. By the time I post for my luggage I'll spend a little more than $300, $150 less than I spent waiting Last year.
There is also at least one story on here of a guy listening to the Bing predictor and spending 100 more than he would heave had he bought the ticket when he saw it.
Moral of the story: if you see a deal get it. There's no proof it'll get any cheaper an honestly it'll probably get more expensive.
True, you have to use your best judgment, but that doesn't mean that there's no truth at all in the statistics. If you find a good deal, take it. But if you've still got months to go and you're looking at prices thinking "Hmm, this is $200 more than I've spent before" then there's a substantial chance they'll go down.
I've been using farecast for years, and I'd say they're about 70% accurate. I've saved more than I've gotten screwed, though I have gotten screwed at least once.
Actually, statistics say (and my experience shows) that Saturday, Wedneday, and Tuesday are the cheapest days to fly. Flying out Thursday and back Monday is always going to be one of the more expensive options. So it could just be the days you picked to fly this year are just inherently cheaper.
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StarYoshiGame Designer / Data ScientistUSARegistered Userregular
I actually got what I consider to be a pretty good price on my flight, about $250 round trip out of Denver. I would not have saved much had I waited. One axiom that's generally true is that it's better to purchase plane tickets during the middle of the week than on the weekends as demand is typically lower at that time, I believe.
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sanovahNerd of the WestSan Diego, CaliforniaRegistered Userregular
True, you have to use your best judgment, but that doesn't mean that there's no truth at all in the statistics. If you find a good deal, take it. But if you've still got months to go and you're looking at prices thinking "Hmm, this is $200 more than I've spent before" then there's a substantial chance they'll go down.
I've been using farecast for years, and I'd say they're about 70% accurate. I've saved more than I've gotten screwed, though I have gotten screwed at least once.
Actually, statistics say (and my experience shows) that Saturday, Wedneday, and Tuesday are the cheapest days to fly. Flying out Thursday and back Monday is always going to be one of the more expensive options. So it could just be the days you picked to fly this year are just inherently cheaper.
Well for awhile I wasn't sure whether I'd be coming to Seattle for an extended stay so I checked prices for what I have and the Thursday right before. It was only like $10 more than the Saturday in flying out on. So honestly I'd say the earlier you can get a ticket the better regardless of day.
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The light rail is great! You just ride it all the way to the end of line, get off and then just a couple blocks walk to pike st. Although my husband did get a couple odd looks from the people he worked with last week calling it the light rail. Everyone else called it the Link.
Ha! Us either. I totally felt like this:
Any yea it really is the best way to get from the airport.
Yeah it is/was like an hourish ride from the airport to the Westlake stop. My tip for riding it though would be to "baracade" yourself and just stand with your luggage in one of the corners. It can get crowded and last year I few people got bitchy about me and my luggage vy the seats.
Yea it is like any other public trans, it gets crowded. I just put my bag in my lap. And I looked at the schedule and it's a 40 minute ride.
edit: there *is* the separate monorail, but that's an unrelated thing http://www.seattlemonorail.com/
Awesome. Now I know an easy way to get up to the area by the Space Needle.
I blame bing travel because a few weeks ago it told me to wait, today it told me to buy D=
I'm just curious if there are any other people on here who fly out from Houston and about how much they've paid in the past/the best time to buy.
It also depends on the size of the airport you are flying out of. We fly out of a small local airport so the flights fill up faster and prices go higher quick. I just booked our tickets today (instead of waiting for the normal 12 week window like last year) and saved $120 per ticket over last years price.
Bing travel is very good at telling you when to buy, check them out.
it will be my 3rd PAX, so by this point I have a pretty decent idea of what I'm doing around the city. If you're flying in I highly recommend taking the light rail train from the airport downtown. it's a 30 minute trip that costs in the area of $5, and is super convenient. I like having the day on Thursday to do/see some of the Seattle things. Seattle Center is a beautiful park space, and if there's a good exhibit at the EMP museum I'll go to that. I also love love love the pike place market. I also use Thursday to make my requisite trip to Chipoltle.
The best thing about being in downtown Seattle is that almost everything you might want to do is within walking distance. I've never felt the need to grab a bus or a cab down there. The most I've ever had to walk to go to any one place is 30 minutes, which is nothnig.
If you don't park in the downtown Seattle core area's, which the convention also is at, you are better off parking in either Belltown, First Hill, Capital Hill, Pioneer Square/International District and South Lake Union areas will get you plenty of spots and won't be more than $10.
If you park in the core downtown Seattle area, look at spending at least $30 a day and the possibility of the spots not available.
For those coming from the airport, Sea-Tac, take the light rail to downtown Seattle if your hotels are there. The light rail will stop in the lower downtown Seattle area so you will most likely have to hike 4-5 blocks if you're staying at the Sheraton, Red Lion or any place next to the convention hall. Seattle blocks are pretty small.
If you're doing the after parties of most of the PAX events, I suggest staying in the downtown Seattle or vicinity area's. Walking distance is key, plus walking is healthy for those individuals that are in need of an exercise.
UBER is your friend in Seattle. You download the app on your phone put in a pick up they use GPS to find you.. You get in the car drink free water. They drop you off where ever and the app on your phone charges your debit card. No tip no anything. Very comfy cars too. Way easier than getting a taxi, never waited more than 5 mins for a pick up.
I am flying from Arkansas to Dallas then to Seattle. I got my tickets for $300 with United back in March. I got the for $250 last year from Delta.
Stay away from buying on holiday weeks and never buy on weekends and you will get a decent price.
PAX Prime / PAX Dev 2014
PAX Prime 2013
PAX Prime 2009
Edit: Pretty much get out of Westlake and either go down 5th or 6th heading East.
PAX Prime / PAX Dev 2014
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PAX Prime 2009
The light rail station at the airport is connected by walkway from the airport http://www.portseattle.org/Sea-Tac/Maps-and-Directions/Pages/Terminal-to-Link-Light-Rail.aspx
I was seriously considering driving the 30 hours nonstop with 3 other friends for a 4000 mile roundtrip in the car, lol.
I've driven back and forth, taken the train and coach. But the most interesting experience that I've had getting from Vancouver to Seattle was by public transit. Takes about 10 hours but it's an experience...
3-7 weeks before your flight is the best time to book. Usually the best of the best prices are in the 4-6 weeks prior timeframe. Ticket sales get announced by some companies on monday, with some other airlines then matching or competing with those prices on tuesday, and now there are other companies who then try to beat the Tuesday prices on Wednesday... so generally, Tues-Wed are when online prices are the cheapest.
People who buy prior to 6-8 weeks out will often pay 20-30% more than people who wait.
BingTravel (formerly Farecast) is a better tool once you get into the 8 week period before the show. It assumes you're going to want to buy tickets in the next 2 weeks, so it gives you where it thinks prices will go in the next 2 weeks. It doesn't usually say "no no, it'll go down 3 months from now, you should wait." Basically, use it when you get closer to try to figure out whether the prices are going to keep going down in the immediate future.
Kayak has undergone a great revamp recently, and is now better than farecast/Bing for price searching. Also always remember to check JetBlue, Southwest, and Virgin America separately... sometimes their deals show up on other sites, sometimes they don't.
Miles! They're a thing! Even if you only fly once or twice a year, many airlines have miles that never expire, or expire only if you don't fly with them for over a year. It might not seem like much, but after 4 years of paying for flights, a free flight to PAX can feel like a gift from the gods. If you're using miles, you want to try to book your flight 7-10 weeks out, possibly slightly earlier, as these options can be more limited. However, the number of "miles" a flight costs can vary in relation to the actual retail price of that flight, so if you have the option to either use miles or pay money, you can wait and watch for a better deal.
Triwizard Drinking Tournament - '09 !Hufflepuff unofficial conscript, '10 !Gryffindor
Nerd blog at culturalgeekgirl.com
My boyfriend and I took Quick Coach from Vancouver last year. Round trip for the both of us cost a total of $100
Going to completely disagree with you on the time and those little predictor programs
Last year I flew out on a Thursday and back in on Monday. I waited the 3-7 weeks like everyone told me to and paid $450 which included my bags.
This year I bought tickets a month ago for a Saturday fly out (which is one of the busiest days of the week for flying) and I'll be flying back in on the Tuesday after PAX. By the time I post for my luggage I'll spend a little more than $300, $150 less than I spent waiting Last year.
There is also at least one story on here of a guy listening to the Bing predictor and spending 100 more than he would heave had he bought the ticket when he saw it.
Moral of the story: if you see a deal get it. There's no proof it'll get any cheaper an honestly it'll probably get more expensive.
I've been using farecast for years, and I'd say they're about 70% accurate. I've saved more than I've gotten screwed, though I have gotten screwed at least once.
Actually, statistics say (and my experience shows) that Saturday, Wedneday, and Tuesday are the cheapest days to fly. Flying out Thursday and back Monday is always going to be one of the more expensive options. So it could just be the days you picked to fly this year are just inherently cheaper.
Triwizard Drinking Tournament - '09 !Hufflepuff unofficial conscript, '10 !Gryffindor
Nerd blog at culturalgeekgirl.com
PAX Prime / PAX Dev 2014
PAX Prime 2013
PAX Prime 2009
Well for awhile I wasn't sure whether I'd be coming to Seattle for an extended stay so I checked prices for what I have and the Thursday right before. It was only like $10 more than the Saturday in flying out on. So honestly I'd say the earlier you can get a ticket the better regardless of day.