Yesterday, a screenshot did the rounds comparing a flight from Portland to London, compared to the same journey taken from Seattle airport. The Portland flight cost $1,862 for a round trip, whereas the Seattle flight cost a mere $1,084 in comparison. Interestingly, the Seattle journey was also 10 minutes quicker as well!

In other words, by flying out of Seattle, you would save a whopping $778 in the process – a saving that many Portland natives claimed to have pursued over the years. Here, many claimed to take the train to Seattle before flying out, saving hundreds of dollars in the process. The average train journey from Portland, OR to Seattle, WA is roughly 3 hours and 30 minutes. This means you’d be saving roughly $200 per hour on the train.

Apparently, this is based on the competition of flights and supply and demand economics that have meant that Portland, OR is often more expensive compared to other airports around the country. Looking at the above screenshot, it also shows that whilst Portland prices are typical, the Seattle costs were considered lower than normal. So, even though I think we can all agree that Portland is a beautiful place to live when it comes to flight costs – it’s one of the only downsides if you like long-haul travel!