MSC Launches Remote Cruise Check-In at Sea-Tac for Alaska Sailings
At the pier, eligible guests move directly to security screening and boarding, bypassing traditional check-in desks after airport document verification.
Geneva-based MSC Cruises has launched Digital Remote Check-In at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport for guests using the line’s official airport transfers during the 2,550-passenger MSC Poesia’s inaugural Alaska season. The process lets eligible passengers complete cruise check-in before they reach the terminal. Document verification and other required formalities are handled at the airport.
Once at the cruise terminal, those guests proceed to security screening and boarding, bypassing the traditional check-in desks at the pier.
Airport processing moves a terminal step upstream
At launch, eligibility is tied to MSC Cruises’ official airport-transfer product. MSC said the service is intended to shorten the time between terminal arrival and boarding by completing required check-in steps earlier in the journey.
In Seattle, cruise passengers typically transfer from SEA to one of two cruise terminals. Travel time from the airport is about 25 minutes to Bell Street Cruise Terminal at Pier 66 and about 35 minutes to Smith Cove Cruise Terminal at Pier 91.
Seattle’s cruise business has been growing. The Port of Seattle handled 1,778,193 revenue passengers across 291 cruises in 2023, representing 907,572 individual travelers, and preliminary schedules for 2026 call for 330 ship calls and an estimated 2.1 million revenue passengers from 15 cruise brands operating 26 ships.
Hotels and more ports to follow
MSC plans to expand Digital Remote Check-In to airport arrivals areas, hotels and other selected locations where guests begin their journeys, followed by additional ports in its global network. The company has not named the next port or provided a launch calendar for further deployments.
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