Jennifer J.
Yelp
Imagine, if you will, arriving at the airport an hour before your flight, parking mere steps from the terminal, and sitting in front of a fireplace at your flight's gate just 8 minutes after leaving your car. This, my friends, is not a fantasy enjoyed by some wealthy person flying on their private jet. This is the reality of flying out of PAE.
Add to that the terrific bar featuring Beecher's cheese products (and a darn fine bloody mary) and this elevated airport experience gets even better. With its subdued colors, leather furnishings, and mellow vibe it's more like flying out of your own comfy living room, than a major metropolitan airport.
But PAE does have a few drawbacks which are going to keep it at 4 stars for moi:
1) The parking situation is annoying...and expensive. You can pay $30/day to park in the very attractive close-to-the-terminal spots. Or $20/day to park a little farther away in the "budget" area. Other than that, there are NO options as you would find at a larger airport. For whatever reason, independent parking operations have not yet started near PAE and this keeps prices high since the airport itself has a monopoly on parking.
2) While the food at the bar/Beecher's is delish, it's all served warm so it's inconvenient to take your leftovers on the plane. Or, for that matter, to even order a to-go sandwich for your flight. Would be nice if they had some grab-and-go options other than a few (expensive) options at the "Beechers store" in front of gate 1.
3) There just aren't a lot of flights out of PAE. So chances are you'll have to change planes, especially if you're flying across the country. Even though flights out of PAE tend to cost a little more, I'm willing to pay the premium NOT to have to drive to Sea Tac. Sadly, even with a premium it's not always possible/realistic to fly out of PAE. For my upcoming trip to the East coast I'll be flying out of SEA (and am already dreading the drama of it).
If you can find the right flight, and don't mind paying the parking premium, PAE is a winner for flying out of the Seattle area. Just remember to pack your own sandwich.