Seattle to Anchorage: Alaska Airlines, Ted Stevens Airport, REAL ID and Other Ways to Arrive

On a gray Seattle morning, with the cloud ceiling sitting low over Puget Sound, plenty of travelers are already picturing Anchorage and the mountains behind it. The two cities are tied together most clearly by Alaska Airlines, which keeps a hub at each end.

Which airlines fly from Seattle to Anchorage?

Few airlines can say they are at home at both ends of one trip. For a traveler leaving Seattle, that means booking with an airline whose whole operation is built around the West Coast and Alaska.

Alaska Airlines and its two hubs

Seattle–Tacoma International Airport is the airline’s primary hub, and Anchorage is one of its other hubs, alongside Los Angeles, Portland, San Diego and San Francisco. The network focuses on cities along the West Coast, including Alaska and Hawaii, and reaches more than 100 destinations in the contiguous United States, North America, Asia, Oceania and Europe. A trip north from Seattle therefore starts at the center of that system.

The airline’s history also points toward Anchorage. Its precursor, McGee Airways, flew its first service between Anchorage and Bristol Bay, and in the 1940s the company’s headquarters were in Anchorage itself. Flying it today means riding with a name that grew up on Alaska routes.

Atmos Rewards and the Oneworld alliance

Alaska Airlines’ frequent-flyer program is called Atmos Rewards, and the airline belongs to Oneworld, the third-largest airline alliance in the world. If you already collect miles with an airline in that alliance, it is worth looking at how your account connects before you buy. The program matters most to people who make the Seattle and Anchorage trip more than once.

Seattle itself is a pleasant place to begin. The city sits on an isthmus between Puget Sound and Lake Washington, and it is known for cloud-heavy days, so a gray departure is not unusual. Travelers use the wait for the flight to pick up a coffee, since the first Starbucks opened at Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle.

Landing at Ted Stevens Anchorage International

Flights arrive at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, which sits southwest of downtown Anchorage. It has two terminals. The South Terminal handles domestic traffic, and Alaska Airlines uses it, while the North Terminal serves international arrivals, seasonal charters and military flights. A traveler coming from Seattle belongs in the South Terminal.

The airport is also a working freight hub. Alaska Airlines, Atlas Air, FedEx Express, Polar Air Cargo and UPS Airlines all use it as a hub, and the cargo operation is part of why the runways are so long. Beside the main field lies the Lake Hood Seaplane Base, the busiest seaplane base in the world, so you may see small floatplanes lifting off near the jets.

How else can you get from Seattle to Anchorage?

Air Canada, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Sun Country Airlines and United Airlines all operate from that terminal, so the choice of carrier is wider than one name.

The other airlines in the South Terminal

Condor and Discover Airlines also appear in the South Terminal, but only for departures. Their arrivals are handled differently, with Condor arrivals going through the North Terminal. That detail matters if you are meeting someone, because the right terminal depends on the airline and the direction of the flight.

You can compare airlines on schedule and fare without worrying that the arrival changes.

Floatplanes at Lake Hood

Next to the airport, the Lake Hood Seaplane Base shows another side of how Alaska moves. This is a place where small planes on floats are part of everyday travel, and watching them from the edge of the field is one of the more Alaskan things you can do while waiting for a bag or a ride. It is a sight rather than a route between Seattle and Anchorage, but it tells you what kind of state you have landed in.

Seattle gives you its own small reminder of how far you are going. The city lies about 100 miles south of the Canadian border, and the flight north leaves that border behind. Both ends of the trip are cities shaped by water, one on the sound and one beside the mountains and inlet.

What do you need for the trip?

You need acceptable photo identification, and in practice that means a REAL ID or a passport. Anchorage is in the United States, so a flight from Seattle is domestic, and the identification rules are the ones used at every American airport checkpoint.

REAL ID and the passport alternative

REAL ID enforcement began on May 7, 2025, and since then U.S. travelers must be REAL ID compliant to board domestic flights and enter certain federal facilities. Look at your driver’s license or ID card. A star or flag on it, or the word Enhanced, shows that it is ready. The REAL ID Act, passed by Congress in 2005, sets minimum security standards for how licenses are issued and produced.

A passport is an acceptable form of identification and can be used instead of a REAL ID license to board a domestic flight. Travelers whose license lacks the star can simply carry the passport. Anchorage’s airport also reminds travelers to check that they have a REAL ID or other acceptable ID before they arrive.

At the checkpoint

Adult passengers 18 and older must show valid identification at the checkpoint in order to travel. A temporary driver’s license is not an acceptable form of identification, which matters for anyone who has just renewed a license and is holding only the paper copy.

Travelers without an acceptable ID may be able to go through the TSA ConfirmID program, which charges a $45 fee. The list of acceptable IDs is subject to change without notice, so it is worth confirming your document with the TSA before the day you fly.

Good to know before you go

Carry your documents in hand rather than in a checked bag, since the checkpoint is where they are asked for. Seattle averages 150 days a year with some precipitation, so a rain layer is a natural thing to wear on departure day, and it will not be out of place in Anchorage. Allow time to find the South Terminal if you come from a rental car or a ride, because the airport has two terminals and the domestic airlines use the larger one.