Can You See Crater Lake From a Plane? Best Seat Side Guide

91 flight routes pass within 60 km of Crater Lake. Find out which side of the plane has the best views.

The deepest lake in the US fills the caldera of a collapsed volcano in the Oregon Cascades. Its intensely blue water and Wizard Island are visible on Pacific Northwest routes.

Routes that pass it91

SEA SJC Seattle to San Jose · 1 km Both SJC SEA San Jose to Seattle · 1 km Both DXB SFO Dubai to San Francisco · 2 km Both SFO DXB San Francisco to Dubai · 2 km Both DWC SFO Dubai(Jebel Ali) to San Francisco · 4 km Both PDX SAC Portland to Sacramento · 4 km Both SAC PDX Sacramento to Portland · 4 km Both SMF YVR Sacramento to Vancouver · 5 km Both YVR SMF Vancouver to Sacramento · 5 km Both PDX SBP Portland to San Luis Obispo · 6 km Both PDX SMF Portland to Sacramento · 6 km Both SBP PDX San Luis Obispo to Portland · 6 km Both SMF PDX Sacramento to Portland · 6 km Both BOI BWI Boise to Baltimore · 8 km Both BWI BOI Baltimore to Boise · 8 km Both MHR YVR Sacramento to Vancouver · 9 km Left YVR MHR Vancouver to Sacramento · 9 km Right MAJ PHL Majuro to Philadelphia · 13 km Right OAK SEA Oakland to Seattle · 13 km Right PHL MAJ Philadelphia to Majuro · 13 km Left SEA OAK Seattle to Oakland · 13 km Left DCA BOI Washington to Boise · 14 km Left EUG LAS Eugene to Las Vegas · 16 km Right LAS EUG Las Vegas to Eugene · 16 km Left SEA SMF Seattle to Sacramento · 16 km Right SMF BFI Sacramento to Seattle · 16 km Left SMF SEA Sacramento to Seattle · 16 km Left PAE SFO Everett to San Francisco · 18 km Left SFO PAE San Francisco to Everett · 18 km Right BFI SFO Seattle to San Francisco · 19 km Left SEA SFO Seattle to San Francisco · 19 km Left SFO BFI San Francisco to Seattle · 19 km Right SFO SEA San Francisco to Seattle · 19 km Right PDX SBA Portland to Santa Barbara · 20 km Right SAC SEA Sacramento to Seattle · 20 km Left SBA PDX Santa Barbara to Portland · 20 km Left SEA SAC Seattle to Sacramento · 20 km Right PDX SJC Portland to San Jose · 21 km Left SJC PDX San Jose to Portland · 21 km Right FCO YYC Rome to Calgary · 23 km Left FRA YYC Frankfurt to Calgary · 23 km Right YYC FCO Calgary to Rome · 23 km Right YYC FRA Calgary to Frankfurt · 23 km Left MCC SEA Sacramento to Seattle · 24 km Left SEA MCC Seattle to Sacramento · 24 km Right BOI JFK Boise to New York · 28 km Left JFK BOI New York to Boise · 28 km Right SAN EUG San Diego to Eugene · 28 km Right DEL LAX Delhi to Los Angeles · 29 km Right LAX DEL Los Angeles to Delhi · 29 km Left OAK PDX Oakland to Portland · 29 km Right PDX OAK Portland to Oakland · 29 km Left PDX SFO Portland to San Francisco · 33 km Left SFO PDX San Francisco to Portland · 33 km Right BFI DXB Seattle to Dubai · 35 km Right DXB BFI Dubai to Seattle · 35 km Left EUG LAX Eugene to Los Angeles · 35 km Left LAX EUG Los Angeles to Eugene · 35 km Right DXB SEA Dubai to Seattle · 36 km Left CDC HND Cedar City to Tokyo · 38 km Right LAX MLE Los Angeles to Male · 38 km Right SEA STS Seattle to Santa Rosa · 38 km Left STS SEA Santa Rosa to Seattle · 38 km Right MUC YYC Munich to Calgary · 40 km Right JNU LAX Juneau to Los Angeles · 41 km Left LAX JNU Los Angeles to Juneau · 41 km Right PEK PHX Beijing to Phoenix · 41 km Right PHX PEK Phoenix to Beijing · 41 km Left DOH SFO Doha to San Francisco · 42 km Right SFO DOH San Francisco to Doha · 42 km Left DXB YXX Dubai to Abbotsford · 46 km Left YXX DXB Abbotsford to Dubai · 46 km Right BKK PHX Bangkok to Phoenix · 47 km Left LAX PDX Los Angeles to Portland · 47 km Left PDX LAX Portland to Los Angeles · 47 km Right PDX STS Portland to Santa Rosa · 47 km Left PHX BKK Phoenix to Bangkok · 47 km Right SFO YVR San Francisco to Vancouver · 49 km Right YVR SFO Vancouver to San Francisco · 49 km Left BUR PDX Burbank to Portland · 50 km Left PDX BUR Portland to Burbank · 50 km Right DEL PDX Delhi to Portland · 52 km Right CDG YYC Paris to Calgary · 54 km Left YYC CDG Calgary to Paris · 54 km Right PDX SNA Portland to Santa Ana · 56 km Right SFO RDM San Francisco to Redmond · 56 km Left SNA PDX Santa Ana to Portland · 56 km Left MFR SEA Medford to Seattle · 57 km Right SEA MFR Seattle to Medford · 57 km Left MFR PDX Medford to Portland · 58 km Right PDX MFR Portland to Medford · 58 km Left

Tip: Visibility depends on cloud cover, time of day, and how close the flight path comes. Sit on the listed side for the best chance of a view. Morning and evening flights often offer the best lighting.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you see Crater Lake from a plane?

Yes — 91 flight routes pass within 60 km of Crater Lake. The closest routes include Seattle to San Jose, San Jose to Seattle, Dubai to San Francisco. Sit on the Both side, with the landmark passing about 1 km away.

Which side of the plane is best for viewing Crater Lake?

The best side varies by route. For the most common routes near Crater Lake: on a Seattle to San Jose flight, sit on the Both side; on a San Jose to Seattle flight, sit on the Both side; on a Dubai to San Francisco flight, sit on the Both side.