[rconti]

Tangential; I took a Kenmore Air seaplane flight from Seattle (South Lake Union) to Victoria this summer, and it was absolutely amazing. I loved every second of it, and can't recommend it highly enough. 45 minutes flying time, so quick and convenient. We walked to and from hotels on both end.

When I lived in the northwest, it was trivial to drive+ferry to Victoria, even though it was very slow. I always thought the Clipper hydrofoil, let alone flying, were unfathomably expensive luxuries.

But as a tourist without a car and on a limited schedule, suddenly the Clipper (hydrofoil passenger-only ferry from downtown) and flying seem like reasonable options versus having to rent a car, pay for fuel, take a car ferry, drive a bunch on both ends, pay for parking, etc.

In the end, I think Kenmore cost less than 2x what the Clipper would have cost us. Not cheap, but absolutely worth it for a novel one-time experience. One passenger even remarked that the seaplane flight was cheaper than flying from Sea-Tac to Victoria airport, before even factoring in the fact that neither airport is near the major city you're coming from or going to.