Why some folks south of the border prefer to fly from Vancouver airport
Vancouver International Airport has won numerous awards, even being named the best airport in North America, but that’s not necessarily why folks south of the border prefer it over local options.
You might think that if you’re travelling from Washington State to a domestic destination, it would be preferable to fly out of a U.S. airport like Sea-Tac, but that isn’t the case for many Bellingham residents.
A recent Bellingham Reddit thread reveals why.
Washington State has several airports, the main ones being Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Spokane International Airport (GEG), and Bellingham International Airport (BLI). There’s also Paine Field Airport in Everett.
The original poster of the thread stated that they’d noticed that on some occasions, flights are actually cheaper out of Vancouver than out of Everett, Seattle, or Bellingham.
In response, many other Redditors agreed, sharing their own travel stories, which often involve crossing the border to fly from Vancouver International Airport. It’s worth noting that the drive from Bellingham to Vancouver airport is shorter than the drive to Seattle airport by about an hour. Of course, border wait times must also be considered, as one user pointed out.
“In our experience, the biggest variable is delays at the border, nothing to do with the airport. We have NEXUS but earlier this year got stuck waiting for a while on the US side when US border patrol was searching cars on their way to the border. (The actual border was quick, no wait).”
One person who responded said, “I travel internationally for work frequently and always opt for YVR.”
Some responses noted that YVR parking is more affordable compared to local options.
Many people had small complaints about Seattle’s airport compared to YVR.
“It’s a great airport, much smaller and easier to get around than SeaTac. Parking is easy. We made a trip out of there this past April, and everything was great, but it took nearly 3 hours to get across the border coming home,” one user responded.
“I do it often if I can’t find a reasonable price out of Bellingham. Anything is better than the drive to Seattle,” said another Bellinghamster.
Others confirmed what some users said about parking, suggesting that YVR offers cheaper options than their local counterparts.
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While the majority said they prefer YVR, other Bellinghamsters said they’ve found good deals travelling from Seattle.
In any case, it’s a good look for YVR, which has won several notable awards earlier this year.
YVR is home to one of the world’s best airport cafes, and it was also recently named the 13th best airport in the world and the best in North America. In comparison, Seattle-Tacoma airport was named the 38th best.
These are Vancouver International Airport’s six accolades in the 2025 Skytrax World Airport Awards:
- 13th best airport in the entire world
- Second-best airport in the world, with annual passenger volumes of between 20 million and 30 million
- Best airport in North America
- Fourth best airport hotel in the world (Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel)
- Second-best airport staff in North America
- Seventh-best airport in the world for art
With files from Kenneth Chan