I am one of those who don’t mind doing airport drop offs and pickups. Often I will actually park and walk the person to security or meet them when they come out. I miss the days when you could go through security with the person, walk them to their gate, and wave to their plane as it pushed back. Or welcome them with a smile at the gate as they deplaned. Most drop offs today are about speed and efficiency; the driver will barely roll to a stop, people rush out of the vehicle, bags are thrown to the curb, there are a few quick goodbyes, and then everyone skedaddles before being yelled at by the authorities.
Back in 2018, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) initiated a new program called the SEA Visitor Pass Program. This free program essentially lets you travel back in time to when a non-flying visitor could go through security. I have been wanting to try the program first-hand, but an opportunity never came up… until recently. I had a friend flying in from Montana and I decided to give it a shot. I didn’t let them know my game plan and my hope was to surprise them at the gate.
I would say that for the most part things went pretty smoothly and it was worth the experience. However, I am not sure this will become a regular thing for me.
To participate, you need to do a little planning and receive authorization before heading to the airport, but it’s easy enough. Here are the basics that you need to know:
1) Apply Online
- Fill out the application. It has very basic questions such as name, email, dob, date of visit, etc. It took me less than a minute to fill out.
- Note that there is a limit of only 300 visitors per day. Normally not an issue except during the summer and holidays, but it is always best to sign up sooner rather than later.
- Make sure to read all the rules and restrictions as they could change.
2) Wait for TSA’s Approval
- If approved, you will get an email with a QR code, after midnight the day of your visit.
- If you’re denied for some reason, you might want to follow up with the TSA to make sure you do not run into future issues.
3) Go Through Security
- You can only go through Checkpoint 4, which can be lame if it’s backed up and others are not.
- You will need a form of valid REAL ID, just like if you were a flying passenger.
- Your Pre-Check or CLEAR does you no good here… you have to go through the “normal” process.
I will say that this experience made me miss my Pre-Check (yea, yea, I know I am spoiled). When I went, Checkpoint 4 was backed up and passengers were being sent to one of the other locations with shorter lines. When I explained that I had a SEA Visitor Pass, at first they didn’t seem to understand, but they finally let me in. It took about 45min to get through and when I finally reached the TSA agent, she looked at me blankly when I showed my QR code and explained it was for the SEA Visitor Pass… confidence was sinking. However, it turned out she was new and called over a supervisor and with a few clicks of the keyboard, I was authorized… yeehaw!
I ended up making getting through security harder on myself because I decided to wear cowboy boots. They looked awesome, but having to take them off to be scanned was a pain… even with having no luggage. Speaking of luggage… one thing that was really weird throughout my entire experience was not having any. My brain would have these little panic moments: “Omg, where is my bag? I must have lost it,” before remembering my mission.
After my friend landed, I told a little white lie that I would pick them up outside of baggage claim. Instead, I stood off to the side of the gate as passengers started to deplane. I started to wonder if my friend would even notice me. I hoped that I wouldn’t have to end up running after them yelling their name like a crazy person. Luckily, it ended up working out pretty well.
Pretty quickly my friend looked at me, but then looked away, not really comprehending it was me. “Nah, David wouldn’t be at my gate,” was the look on their face. Then they looked back and started smiling and were obviously entertained that I somehow managed my way to the gate. My biggest regret of this whole thing was not saying “I got to the gate because I am Airport Batman!” Oh well, there’s always next time!
The SEA Visitor Pass is not only for surprising people at the gate, it can also be great for people who are dropping off or picking up children, an older family member, or anyone who might need some extra assistance. Also, people can use it to enjoy the shops or restaurants on the airside. And of course AvGeeks might just want to go hang out for a few hours and look at the pretty airplanes.
BONUS: Our friend Harriet Baskas recently published a story on The Points Guy that details offerings at other airports that is worth checking out.
Curious to learn a bit more about the program, I reached out to Perry Cooper, Media Relations Manager at SEA. I asked if there was any talk of expanding the program to additional check points or allowing folks to use Pre-Check or CLEAR in the future. Unfortunately he said that neither is in the works. I asked how many people use the program and I was told that in 2024, SEA saw almost 50,000 requests and about 14,800 people actually followed through. And through August of this year, there have been about 48,000 requests and 18,125 used. I was pleasantly surprised by the popularity!
Between trying to find parking and hitting a few snags with security (the cowboy boot holdup was on me), I was a bit flustered by the time I reached the gate. I will say it was totally worth it to surprise my friend and I think this is a great program, but I will likely only use it for special occasions!
Have you used a similar program before? How did it go?
Note: Before using this program, or any other similar ones, please review their website to see if any changes have been made. You don’t want to get your hand slapped by the TSA!
Great article! I’ve used this program a couple of times — most recently to meet one of my cousins who was visiting me here in Seattle from Ireland. I plan to is it again next month to meet my oldest daughter next month who’ll be here for a short visit from Geneva. Coincidentally, she’ll be arriving on the same Aer Lingus flight that my cousin took when he visited
Hey Brian! That is pretty slick that she is going to be taking the same flight… at least you know where you need to go :). I hope you all have a nice visit!
David
That’s really cool! I remember as a kid back in the day always waiting at the gate side for dad to get off Delta’s 727 from Florida. Or running though Boston’s terminal E racing my nana’s Alitalia DC-10 as it rolled on runway 22 bound for Rome. Back in 2019 I requested and received a gate pass at Boston’s Delta terminal to walk my (then a minor) son to his flight to NYC. I was also able to obtain a pass to meet him at the gate because he was under 18 and a minor. There was no procedure to follow, just had to show my ID and his flight information. Talking about the weird feeling of clearing TSA without a bag… I went through with my keys still in my pocket! LOL Anyhow, would love to see this as a “thing” at all airports. I’d love to be able to meet people at their gate!
Isn’t that crazy that you have all this security infrastructure setup and then something like going with a minor, they sort of wing it?! :). I would just love to see this program open to Pre-Check of CLEAR. But that is just me being spoiled!
David
We didn’t know how good we had it back in the day, when people sometimes people went to the airport just to go!
I have to admit with getting older and with many airports changing, it can feel less like an adventure and more like a chore. It just seems to depend on the timing, the airport, the airline, and of course my mood :)!
David
I grew up near the airport and walking people to the gate, and meeting them there was just expected. When I was a kid we’d go out with my Boeing dad and identify all the planes. (“Connies” are still my favorite). It was one of our hangouts in high school and I even went to prom dinner at the Carvery. I sold Girl Scout cookies in the big open lobby. It makes me sad to go there now; hard to find any remnants of the old place. I will definitely try to get a pass so I can explore to my heart’s content again. And surprise someone at the gate.
It is great to have those memories and it sounds like SEA is going to keep and changing to meet the demands. Back in the 90s I would visit my dad and fly Harbor Air from Oak Harbor to SEA and often have a few hours to burn, so I would head out to S-Concourse to watch the aircraft come and go… it was highly entertaining. No Connies :(… but my grandfather used to fly them for EAL!
David