Flights from the West Coast to Switzerland will soon be easier – what you should know

Edelweiss, a Swiss-based airline owned by Lufthansa, recently announced new twice-weekly flights from Seattle's SeaTac Airport to Zurich Airport.

The flights will operate every Monday and Saturday, departing Seattle at 4:25 p.m. and arriving in Zurich at 11:45 a.m. the next day. Return flights will also operate from Zurich to Seattle on Mondays and Saturdays. The Seattle route complements Edelweiss' existing routes in Denver, Las Vegas and Tampa Bay, Florida.

Flights will begin on June 2, 2025, offering west coast travelers the opportunity to enjoy the hiking opportunities and beauty of Switzerland and surrounding areas during the summer. From Zurich, passengers can either stay and enjoy Switzerland's largest city or take a connecting flight to over 90 destinations Edelweiss flies to, including Agadir, Morocco, or Bari, Italy. The airline also flies to Croatia, France, Greece, Ireland, Spain, and Turkey.

On July 3, 2025, the airline will also launch a new route from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Zurich. Tickets for both routes were initially not available for purchase on the Edelweiss website.

“This nonstop service offers a convenient connection to Zurich in the heart of Europe while also bringing a significant number of Swiss travelers to Seattle and the Pacific Northwest,” Edelweiss CEO Bernd Bauer said in the press release.

Edelweiss is considered the Swiss leisure airline and offers a variety of flight experiences including Business Class, Economy Max and Economy Class. On the new routes from Seattle to Zurich, Edelweiss will operate the flight with an Airbus A340-300, which has a passenger capacity of 214 people, of which 27 seats are in Business Class. The Economy cabin is equipped with an 11.1-inch high-definition touchscreen entertainment system that offers over 250 content to watch.

Edelweiss is part of the Lufthansa Group and is described as a “sister airline” of Swiss International Airlines, which is also owned by the German company. Edelweiss continues to grow as international travel demand hits new records. The airline carried 2.7 million passengers in 2023, up from 2.2 million passengers in 2022.