Local’s Tips for a Seattle to Portland Road Trip + Other Ways to Get There
I’ve had to make the Seattle to Portland trek many times. Living in Seattle and with family and friends in Portland, I’m always looking for an excuse to do a Seattle to Portland road trip and head down south for a few days.
When traveling from Seattle to Portland you have a few options for how to get there: driving, train, bus, and air. I’ll cover all three below so you can figure out which method works best for your journey between these two popular Pacific Northwest cities.
Tips for Driving on a Seattle to Portland Road Trip
Driving from Seattle to Portland is the most common way to make the journey. The two iconic Pacific Northwest cities are only 175 miles apart, and it takes about three and a half hours to drive.
BUT and this is a big but, the traffic of the PNW is starting to rival California for its surprise traffic jams at seemingly random times of the day. And during normal rush hour times, just expect to encounter gridlock along I-5.
If you do get stuck in rush hour or a surprise traffic jam when leaving Seattle, it should usually ease up after Tacoma.
Detour Suggestion: Tacoma is also where you can detour over to Mt. Rainier National Park, one of Washington’s three incredible national parks, via Hwy 7.
The tiny town of Castle Rock is a good stopping point for a Seattle to Portland road trip since it is a little over half-way between the two if you need a bathroom break since it has gas stations and fast food restaurants right off the freeway. There’s a gas station connected to a McDonald’s that has a multi-stall bathroom and lots of snacks.
Another good stopping point is Olympia in Washington, where you can find a cute café for a longer break or a little coffee shop for a quick stop. You can also take a walk to stretch your legs around the scenic lake in town, which has views of the Washington State Capitol.
The stretch between Castle Rock and Portland is nice since I-5 is a three-lane highway for a lot of the way and goes along Three Rivers for part of it, too.
Depending where you’re staying in Portland you’ll take either I-5 or I-205 down, the latter of which is split into from I-5 about 25 miles from Portland. Take I-5 for downtown and I-205 for east Portland neighborhoods.
Taking the Train from Seattle to Portland
The train that runs between Seattle and Portland is the Amtrak and it runs daily. The Amtrak station in Seattle (King Street Station) is located in Pioneer Square. There are parking garages nearby, but it’s probably easier and more cost-effective (depending where you’e coming from) just to take an Uber or cab to King Street Station.
You’ll end your journey at the Amtrak station in Portland, which is located in the Old Town Chinatown district close to the west bank of the Willamette River, which flows through Portland.
Along the way between the two stations you can enjoy the little luxuries of train travel, most of which is time. Since you won’t be driving, you can catch up on work or that must-read novel while in transit instead of keeping an eye on the speedometer or cursing traffic.
Seattle to Portland Road Trip via Bus
The bus between Seattle and Portland may not be as comfortable as the train, but it will be cheaper and it will also be easier to get exactly where you’ll want to get to once you arrive in Portland, helping you to save additional dollars by not having to worry about cab fares to and from the train station.
Bus lines that run daily from Seattle to Portland include Greyhound and Flixbus. Tickets generally start around $15 and you’ll typically find several departure times each day.
Flying From Seattle to Portland
Another way to get between Portland and Seattle is to fly. With security lines being the way they are nowadays and the potential for flight delays, my vote for getting to Seattle is driving or taking the train or bus since it probably won’t be much faster to fly if you include time in the airport, though I suppose if you have status and can fly first class and enjoy shorter security lines and free Champagne along the way, then why not!
The flight time is roughly 90 minutes. To fly out of Seattle to Portland, you’ll need to get to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, which is located about 20 minutes south of downtown Seattle. SEA-TAC can get very busy during peak travel times so be sure to give yourself extra time for security lines – if you don’t have TSA Precheck or Clear plan on getting there at least two hours before your flight departure time to be on the safe side.
Experience the Culture of the PNW when Traveling from Seattle to Portland
When it comes to traveling between Seattle and Portland, you have many options for how to get there. Whether you decide to turn it into a Seattle to Portland road trip or do one of the other transportation methods to get there, you’ll find that best of all is the fact that you’ll get to experience the sights and tastes that make these two cities such impressive strongholds of the Pacific Northwest culture.