Bellingham International Airport — Local services in Bellingham

There are trade-offs for flying out of a small airport like BLI. At one time we had direct flights to Seattle, Salt Lake City, Denver, Oakland, Las Vegas, one of the LA airports, and at least three Hawaiian destinations -- primarily supported by Canadians seeking cheaper air travel. Competitive pressures also also helped keep prices down, adding to the popularity of Bellingham as a gateway to the Puget Sound Northwest Interior and Vancouver, B.C. Canadian tariffs on air travel and a stronger U.S. dollar have whittled away at the number of city pairs available today -- significantly decreasing options for direct service and increasing prices.

Because it is a small station for each of the airlines that serve BLI, airline personnel are spread-thinner and wear more hats than the personnel at larger airports. Although Alaska Airlines -- the fifth largest airline in the country -- is one of two airline's that dominate BLI's schedule, the personnel at the counter when I check-in are the same people who greet the incoming flight; load and unload baggage; and handle boarding at the gate. This means that when the local personnel are greeting an incoming flight -- unloading and reloading baggage and handling subsequent boarding and ground crew departure procedures for each departing plane -- there is nobody at the counter to sell tickets, check-in passengers, handle baggage issues, or answer questions.

Even so, flying in and out of Bellingham had significant advantages: (1) TSA personnel are friendlier, lines are typically shorter and the hassle-factor is perceptibly simpler; (2) Passenger Pick-up and Drop-off are a breeze; (3) There are only five Gates and two Baggage Claim Carousels; (4) Parking is fast, close to the terminal and significantly cheaper than SeaTac or Vancouver (YVR); and finally, (5) Airport traffic is virtually...

Really like this airport! Landed and departed from this airport in July 2022 for our Southwest Airlines flight to/from Denver. We usually use SeaTac International Airport when we visit family/friends in Vancouver, but this airport gives SeaTac a good run for its money. Bellingham International Airport (BLI) is much smaller/compact, no huge crowds, and TSA/security was a breeze to get through - no long queues, no wait, no fuss. And they have TSA PreCheck too. There are only 5 gates, all at ground level, so you have to use a ramp to get on/off the plane, but it's all part of the fun of using a small airport. Luggage came out very quickly, and rentacar desks (Avis, Budget, etc.) are all located inside the terminal building, so no shuttle bus rides to a distant, off-site location. Southwest doesn't fly directly to BLI from Denver, so one can connect through Oakland or Las Vegas to use BLI, but it sure beats the long drive up from SeaTac on Interstate 5. BLI is only 20-30 minutes away from the Blaine/Pacific US/Canada border crossings. There's a Costco nearby too, if you need to get some eats and fill up the petrol for your car. Overall a great...

The TSA at this airport is a joke. Either they are completely undertrained, or they fail to follow their own policies and procedures. I pay for a premium service called TSA pre check. It allows me to go to the shortest line. To be able to do this I pay for a yearly subscription, and I’m held to a higher security clearance by doing a more strenuous background check. This allows me to walk through without taking my shoes, jacket or belt off. I proceed through the TSA pre check line where the agent made me take off my light check. He said it was poofy. It’s literally no thicker than a hoody. I walk threw the scanner and the alarm goes off and tells me to take off my belt because it’s metal. All belts are metal…then I get through and they rip apart my entire backpack. Spend about 15 minutes going through every item. At this point the entire regular line has passed me. When they give me back my backpack. All my items are just scattered all over the bin so I have to spend another 5 minutes repacking my bag. A premium I pay for, and this is how I was treated here and only here at the...