Well, maybe “pleasant” is pushing it… How about “less daunting”?

I thought it had something to do with how busy these airports are. But Newark Liberty is only a little busier than Seatac: 32.8 – 35.4 million passangers passing through Newark Liberty in 2008 (depending upon which figures you look at), versus about 32.2 million passangers passing through SeaTac in the same year.

Could it be the... Read more »»]]> Why is the SeaTac airport experience so much more pleasant than the Newark Liberty airport experience?

Well, maybe “pleasant” is pushing it… How about “less daunting”?

I thought it had something to do with how busy these airports are. But Newark Liberty is only a little busier than Seatac: 32.8 – 35.4 million passangers passing through Newark Liberty in 2008 (depending upon which figures you look at), versus about 32.2 million passangers passing through SeaTac in the same year.

Could it be the size of the airports? Well, SeaTac may actually have a slightly greater runway length: Almost 30,000 feet, versus almost 28,000 in Newark Liberty (though the figures I found for Newark Liberty seemed a little suspicious, or at least a little incomplete).

Maybe it’s the manners of airport staff! For that matter, maybe manners on the West Coast in general (versus “manners” on the East Coast), make the general experience at each of these airports so different. Maybe the same can be said about interacting with people in general on the West Coast versus the East Coast.

Whatever the case, we are already missing NY, but the pleasantness of home softens many blows.