Transportation to and from Portland
Ground Transportation Options from Portland International Airport (PDX)
Prepare for your trip to Portland and familiarize yourself with how to get around. Transportation from PDX (17 miles from downtown) is plentiful. Please review the options below and determine what will work best for you before you leave for Portland.
MAX Light Rail
Portland International Airport (PDX) boasts an easy light rail connection to downtown.
There are several ways to get to and from Portland’s airport. The most popular is the MAX Light Rail, which has a station on the airport’s lower level The MAX station and ticket machines are located on the lower level, next to the south baggage claim area (turn right at the base of the escalator). View the airport’s map for more detail.
- The trip between Portland International Airport and downtown takes about 45 minutes.
- An adult ticket costs $2.80 to ride for 2.5 hours; $5.60 for a day pass. Get the latest ticket and pricing information on the TriMet website.
- The first train of the day arrives at PDX at 4:50 a.m. The last train departs PDX at 12:30 a.m.
- For complete schedules and more information, visit the Red Line page on the TriMet website.
If you’re trying to get to the PDX airport from outside of Portland, you can connect to Portland’s Trimet system through other transit agencies or hire an Oregon shuttle service.
Taxi
On average, the taxi fare from the airport to downtown Portland is about $50 before gratuity (note that this can vary widely depending on traffic and time of day). The one-way trip takes 20–40 minutes. You can find taxis waiting in the center section of the airport terminal’s lower roadway outside of baggage claim; to get back to the airport from the city center, you can order a cab through the city’s main operators or from a hotel with a dedicated taxi stand.
Rideshare
Uber and Lyft both offer drop-off and pick-up services at Portland International Airport. The fares are calculated based on a number of factors, including distance, time, base rate, and vehicle option. Both ride-share services offer fare estimator tools on their websites and mobile apps.
Shuttles
When leaving the airport, you will find the shuttles at the bottom entrance of the terminal (outside the baggage claim area) on the other side of the second strip (“Island 2”) near the parking garage.