The new PDX starts opening on August 14, 2024! We’re excited to show you what more than 30,000 locals came together to build. We can’t wait to see everyone looking up at the skylights, taking carpet selfies, admiring the view of the airfield, and relaxing around the new restaurants.
If we have one piece of advice for travelers visiting the new PDX, it’s this: Arrive earlier than usual for your flight.
Not just to admire the art and take a few photos. Adding extra time to your schedule will help you learn the flow of the new space.
You’ll see the most dramatic changes at PDX this August. However, because we’re rolling out the new designs in two phases, some construction will continue until early 2026. During the next 18 months, you’ll still come across construction walls and detours. (That said, the baggage claim area and the four concourses — that’s to say, where you board your flight — won’t change!)
Here are five things to know about the new PDX — and some accessibility tips for folks who may need a little extra help getting around the airport:
PDX’s new airline check-in stations are perpendicular to the old ticketing counter.PDX tip #1
PDX’s airline check-in counters are moving onto four “islands.”
How to navigate this: From the entrance, follow the signs on the departures level to find your airline’s counter. If you’re flying Alaska, take a few minutes to get familiar with Alaska’s new automatic bag drop on island 1.
Alaska Airlines’ new automatic bag dropAccessibility tip: For wheelchair assistance to your gate, notify your airline in advance. Once you check in at your airline’s counter, you’ll meet your wheelchair passenger assistant at the end of the same island. If you have questions, you can reach all the airline wheelchair dispatchers at (503) 460-4300.
At the new security checkpoints, three travelers can load their belongings into bins for screening at the same time. PDX tip #2
To help the security lines move more quickly, three people can load their belongings onto each TSA checkpoint at the same time.
How to navigate this: Not only will there be more screening lanes, each of the curvy new checkpoint stations has three spots where travelers can load their belongings into bins and onto the belt. (Coming soon: displays estimating the time to get through security.)
Accessibility tip: If you need extra help going through screening, contact the “TSA Cares” program online or by telephone at (855) 787-2227. An agent will arrange to meet you.
PDX tip #3
If you're flying through Concourses B and E, your walk will be longer — for another 18 months.
To safely guide travelers around the phase 2 construction work between now and early 2026, we’ve reversed the construction bypasses. Sorry — we know this one hurts.
How to navigate this: Plan extra time to get to or from gates in Concourses B and E. (However, if you’re flying Delta or long-range Alaska flights, you’ll now have shorter commutes to Concourses C and D.)
Accessibility tip: We’re adding extra chairs and benches for travelers to rest along the way. And please don’t hesitate to request wheelchair assistance!
Designer Sara Schmidt’s bathroom mosaics all feature tiles made by Portland’s own Pratt + Larson.PDX tip #4
We’ve moved the bathrooms. Find them near the stadium seats at the heart of the terminal.
How to navigate this: For the men's and women's restrooms, stay on the main floor. For our new private, all-user bathrooms, head up to the mezzanine level. We'll add even more bathrooms when the next phase opens in 2026!
Accessibility tip: The elevator to the upper bathrooms is north of the stadium seats. (That’s to the right, if you’re coming from the ticket lobby.)
PDX tip #5
For the next 18 months, arriving passengers will use temporary exit lanes.
In 2026, we’ll open permanent exit lanes on both the north and south ends of the main terminal. In the meantime, however, you’ll exit through the center of the building — into the same area departing travelers are passing through. (It could get crowded, but just remember it’s temporary!)
How to navigate this: Once your plane lands and you walk from your gate to the main terminal, follow the signs directing you to baggage claim until you reach the security-area exit.
Accessibility tip: If you need extra help getting to baggage claim and ground transportation, flag one of the PDX workers wearing blue jackets.
One last piece of advice as you explore the new PDX
Feel free to look up! Look down! Just be sure to look around, too — to avoid bumping into all the other travelers doing the same thing. (We’re speaking from experience here.)
Tom Strong - Chief Executive Officer, Skokomish Indian Tribe, Skokomish Washington
"We're foresters in that we're stewards," says Tom Strong, Chief Executive Officer of the Skokomish Indian Tribe, which manages 2,000 acres of Washington forests for its 800 tribal members. "We're not cutting and planting, seeking to develop our lands into a commodity. Instead, we're doing it to restore the forest."
Over the past 100 years, the two dams on the North Fork Skokomish River have had a major impact on the entire ecosystem of Skokomish land. "We want to restore the entire Hood Canal watershed," Tom says. The forests are just one part.
Selling wood from Douglas fir trees the tribe selectively thinned will help fund this restoration. "We don't have an endless amount of money," Tom says. "But we would like to think we've got an endless amount of time."
Ben Hayes - Co-owner, Hyla Woods, Cherry Grove, Oregon
Ben Hayes is a sixth-generation forester who manages Hyla Woods, outside Cherry Grove, Oregon, with his father, Peter. He is also a sustainable-forestry consultant. At Hyla Woods, the Hayes experiment with selective thinning and patch cutting, instead of clear-cutting, to foster diversity of tree species, ages, and sizes.
"When you look 100 years out, having greater complexity in terms of species and the structure of the forest, you can increase the forest's resilience in the face of extreme weather and drought," he says.
"We're working toward a model of forestry that you could practice for the perpetual future,” Ben says. “It's a model that lifts up both rural and urban communities and the ecosystems we rely on."
Richard and Ann Hanschu - Owners, Doneen, Forest Grove, Oregon
Ann Hanschu's father first bought land outside Forest Grove, Oregon, in 1956. Ann grew up trailing her father around the forest, learning from him. The Hanschus now have three children, four grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.
Richard says, "We're planting trees that our grandchildren will see the profits from — not even our children. It's long-range thinking."
"A lot of the timber is older,” Ann adds. “We're laddering it with trees of different age groups — some 30-40 years old, some 10-20 years old — so the land can continue to produce a sustainable amount of wood."
Herman Flamenco - Central Cascades Conservation Forester, The Nature Conservancy, Cle Elum, Washington
"We know historically that the stands we're working on were overstocked," says Herman Flamenco, Central Cascades conservation forester for the Nature Conservancy, of the 50,000 acres outside Cle Elum, Washington, the organization manages. Thinning the trees welcomes in light and biodiversity.
Some loggers in the region worry that this low-impact approach to forestry yields less lumber, and less profit, than clear-cutting. One local outfit took on this labor-intensive challenge, selectively harvesting Doug fir trees from steep slopes.
"Western Washington is wetter. In our dry climate, there's less moisture and increased fire risk," Herman says. "As we look at climate change, it's just going to get dryer. We want to make sure we can keep our forests around."
In the 1950s, back when people wore fancy hats to the airport, PDX’s main terminal had brown terrazzo floors.
By the 1970s, blue carpet sporting the old Port of Portland logo replaced the terrazzo. The airport was so concerned about keeping the carpet clean that we banned gum-chewing indoors.
In the 1980s, PDX replaced the ski-chalet paneling in the Clocktower Plaza with high ceilings and skylights, but kept the blue carpet.
SRG Partnership, a Portland-based architecture firm, designed the pattern for the now-iconic carpet on the layout of the airport runways.
The Clocktower Plaza, post-1988, with the iconic carpet.
The Clocktower Plaza (before its demolition in 2021-22) with the new carpet.
The flexible interior spaces were designed with the future of travel in mind — and to give you plenty of comfortable spots to recharge before your next flight.
Two permanent installations from acclaimed contemporary artist Jacob Hashimoto hang like clouds above the concourse’s common areas.
Shops and restaurants are clustered together like city blocks, with a pedestrian-friendly scale and lots of room to spread out.
PDX’s swanky new bar, Juliett, honors women in aviation with mid-20th-century style, top-class cocktails, and local wines and beers.
Sky-high windows fill the interior with daylight while maximizing the concourse extension’s energy efficiency.
At the east end of the concourse, a wall of windows opens up this epic view of Mt. Hood, where you’ll definitely want to pose for a photo before takeoff.
The Concourse E extension project is the dedicated home for Southwest Airlines at PDX, with six new gates.
Remember the view of Mt. Hood on Concourse E? It’s coming back, brighter than ever.
Tillamook’s menu includes the best of the classics with fried cheese curds and a signature grilled cheese.
Calliope takes its name from one of Oregon’s native hummingbirds and showcases creative and playful keepsakes.
Grab your favorite book, magazine or newspaper at Your Northwest Travel Mart.
Concourse B's 38-foot-high ceilings and 6,900 square feet of windows don't just let light in. They let you watch the airport in action. "I think this airport gave us a chance to celebrate the romance of flight," says Gene Sandoval of ZGF, the architecture firm that designed the new concourse.
ZGF Architects was inspired to bring the Pacific Northwest’s natural world indoors. You can contemplate the plants hanging from the ceiling and the Oregon white-oak walls as you relax in B’s comfy new seats. (Bonus: More power adapters!)
RYAN! Feddersen’s art installation, which fills the concourse, is made up of three interconnected pieces. The “Sentinel” landscapes and abstract “Habitat Tiles” are pictured here.
RYAN! is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. She draws inspiration from the region’s traditions and landscape for these pieces, which include the gently rolling “Cloud Walk” overhead.
Nicole and David Mouton, in partnership with HMSHost, opened an outpost of Portland’s beloved Screen Door Restaurant on Concourse B. Find Screen Door’s legendary fried chicken and waffles here from breakfast until dinnertime.
Sam and Nick Purvis, the brothers behind Good Coffee, source fresh coffee beans and teas from all over the world. Pick up a pastry or a bag of beans, too!
Our new rental car center opened in November 2021.
All rental car brands are now on-site at PDX – no more shuttles to pick up your car.
Perez Westbrooks' colorful digital mural celebrates Northwest flora.
Ben Butler's swirling wood sculpture is made from reclaimed Douglas fir.
The new facility also adds 30 ADA parking spots, more than 30 electric vehicle charging stations, and 2,200 long-term parking spaces to the airport.
Adding more lanes to our new, relocated exit toll plaza helps you leave PDX more quickly.
Every design decision we make is about keeping the heart and soul of PDX intact. You’ll see homages to all the things you love about our city and region in the new airport designs.
You’ll notice subtle nods to the Pacific Northwest landscape throughout the space. Natural light, living trees, and native Oregon foliage may give you the feeling of walking through a park.
The new terminal’s wooden ceiling, made from sustainably grown, local Doug fir, might remind you of daylight filtering through forest canopies.
This will be your new view when entering the spacious ticket lobby at PDX. The nine-acre wood roof is so distinctive you’ll be able to spot it from the air.
The ripples and currents of pristine Northwest rivers inspired the new terminal’s curvy profile.
Expanding the heart of PDX creates more space for our beloved local shops and restaurants — not to mention local humans (and visitors, too).