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Seattle → San Diego

SEA–SAN · Seattle–Tacoma International Airport to San Diego International Airport

Best bet

Right side

Slight edgeEnough to break a tie, not enough to change seats over.

It is close. The right edges it, mostly on Mount Hood, but the left is not a bad seat.

Flight paths move around. Treat this as the better bet, not a promise.

What you might see

In flight order, with distance measured from the representative route.

SEA to SAN: where each landmark sits relative to the routeA diagram of the representative route running left to right, with the departure airport at the left and the arrival airport at the right. Landmarks on the left side of the aircraft are plotted above the route line and landmarks on the right side below it, each at its distance from the route. The numbered list below this diagram carries the same information as text.SEASANLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE123456789101112
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 47 miles); the shaded ends are the 40-mile zones around each airport where the runway in use decides the view. Numbers match the list below. Hollow markers didn't count toward the recommendation.

  1. Mount Rainier

    LeftEarly13 mi off the route

    Mount Rainier is about 13 miles off the left, early in the flight.

    Strong candidate

  2. Mount St. Helens

    RightEarly19 mi off the route

    Early in the flight, Mount St. Helens sits roughly 19 miles to the right.

    Good possibility

  3. Mount Adams

    LeftEarly13 mi off the route

    Look left early in the flight for Mount Adams, about 13 miles out.

    Good possibility

  4. Columbia River Gorge

    RightEarly10 mi off the route

    Columbia River Gorge is about 10 miles off the right, early in the flight.

    Good possibility

  5. Mount Hood

    RightEarly12 mi off the route

    Early in the flight, Mount Hood sits roughly 12 miles to the right.

    Strong candidate

  6. Mount Jefferson

    RightQuarter in31 mi off the route

    Look right about a quarter of the way in for Mount Jefferson, about 31 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  7. Three Sisters

    RightQuarter in40 mi off the route

    Three Sisters is about 40 miles off the right, about a quarter of the way in.

    Distant possibility

  8. Lake Tahoe

    RightHalfway47 mi off the route

    Around the halfway mark, Lake Tahoe sits roughly 47 miles to the right.

    Distant possibility

  9. Mono Lake

    RightThree quarters12 mi off the route

    Look right about three quarters of the way for Mono Lake, about 12 miles out.

    Good possibility

  10. Mount Whitney

    Either sideThree quarters2 mi off the route

    Mount Whitney passes almost directly beneath about three quarters of the way, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Strong candidate

  11. San Gorgonio Mountain

    LeftNear the end42 mi off the route

    Late in the flight, San Gorgonio Mountain sits roughly 42 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  12. San Jacinto Peak

    LeftNear the end46 mi off the route

    Look left late in the flight for San Jacinto Peak, about 46 miles out.

    Distant possibility

The sun

Flying soon? Add your date and departure time and we'll work out where the sun should be, and which side gets less of it.

Airport codes or city names. SEA, Seattle, and Seattle-Tacoma all work.

Skip the date and you still get the landmark answer. Add it and we work out where the sun will be, using the departure airport's local time.

The route we used

1,051 mi
Great-circle distance
163°
Course out of SEA
167°
Course into SAN
11
Landmarks that counted

That is the shortest path between the two airports, used as a representative corridor rather than a flight plan. The first and last 40 miles are treated as uncertain, because that part of the flight is shaped by the runway in use and the published departure or arrival procedure. Anything in those zones is listed and marked, never counted toward the recommendation.

Left and right, from where?

Left and right are from your perspective sitting in the cabin, facing the front of the aircraft. Seat letters are not a reliable guide to which side you are on, because aircraft are configured differently.

Why this isn't guaranteed

Flights don't follow the same path every day. Runway configuration, weather deviations, traffic, and air traffic control all move the track around, and none of it is knowable in advance. We also have nothing to say about cloud cover, which is the other thing standing between you and Mount Rainier. The full method.

Flying the other way?

San Diego → SeattleLeft side

Calculated from scratch, not by flipping this one. The landmarks arrive in the opposite order, the sun is somewhere else entirely, and the answer changes with them.

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