The Lost said:

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The Pilot said:

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I don't get why Denver gets the love it does. I live here and flying in/out of the airport is a pain. everyone gets funneled thru the same passageways. I prefer the separate terminals of DFW. Also the airport might as well be in Kansas.

I'll say the terminal you fly out of can really change airport experiences. LAX is a pain, but the international terminal is really nice.

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As a Denver consultant who flies out weekly agreed. It's far away, and takes forever to get from the plane out to car areas. This wasted time sucks when you do it weekly.

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you can get from plane to vehicle in parking garage in about a 5-10 minute walk, depending on terminal. Where are you parking that takes forever? The parking spot, with the once a year travelers?

You need to know where to get on the train and stand, first off, so you can get on escalator first. If you're in the middle of the train, you get stuck behind the 50 people on the escalator. So you need to be in the first or last car and stand on opposite side you boarded.. A frequent traveler would know this.

Then you go up escalator in terminal, and walk to your car in the garage is a few hundred feet away. Assuming you park there for work, why wouldn't you?

I traveled frequently a few years ago for work, and it was very efficient/quick.

I live 30 miles from DIA (25 miles on 470, 2 from my house to 470, then 3 on pena), and I used to leave exactly 60 minutes before my plane would take off, and I'd make it every time, with 5-10 minutes to spare. This is parking in garage and preTSA.

As a family, we've traveled using preTSA and every time, we walk right up and are first in line.


I think it's a really efficient airport, in all aspects.

The gate agents must have liked you, for me they slam the door 15 minutes prior to departure.

Pahdz said:

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62strat said:

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I think it's a really efficient airport, in all aspects.

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If you know all those "secrets of a local"

Airports should be graded on how easy they are for non locals. It's the first place most visitors see of a new city.

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I was responding to The Lost who says he flew out of Denver weekly. I wasn't speaking in regards to visitors.

I don't see how funneling EVERYONE through the same choke points is efficient. Again I look at DFW where the 5 different terminals eliminate these choke points.

Also I find it hard to believe you can get park, security, tram, walk to gate routinely in 20 min. Must just always get lucky and have a gate really close to the tram, no security line (rare) even with clear.

Quote:

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no security line (rare) even with clear.

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pre tsa.

Also, remember, I'm replying in regards to a frequent business traveler. Just as I was, I am talking about travel on tuesday mornings, wednesday at lunch, monday evening, etc, and it was not on holidays.

Have you ever parked in the garage at DEN? You walk right into the terminal. It 30 minutes of drive time (Using 470 to DEN is probably the most consistent drive of any airport in the US, something I really like about it, while most complain 'it's far').
That leaves 30 minutes to walk into airport, get through pre tsa which has rarely had more than a few people (again, this is business traveling times, not friday afternoon), and get to gate.

Yeh, a few times when flying to dickenson ND I had to walk swiftly because those small midwest United gates are way the eff at the end of the terminal, the ones that are on ground level.

Rio de janiero airport really sucks. Lounge is grubby and packed (and gross), airport is a socialist era dumpster, and getting there takes forever due to crazy traffic and the favela underclass literally standing in the middle of highways selling crap.

Marrakech - Menara was surprisingly really nice and well done. Easy to get in and out. Funny thing on passport control there: they were way more lenient on Americans than Moroccans. Moroccans got some questions but we just got a stamp and a smile that said "shut up and go spend some US American dollars"

Of all the airports I've flown out of, Denver's tsa pre check is probably consistently the worse. Pretty much always a line since (as previously mentioned) everyone has to go to the same terminal.

is pre tsa a new security screening process? Is that like pre check?

Nm

htxag09 said:

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Of all the airports I've flown out of, Denver's tsa pre check is probably consistently the worse. Pretty much always a line since (as previously mentioned) everyone has to go to the same terminal.

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there are 3 separate security areas at DEN. North, south and the bridge which goes directly into A.
I just flew wed evening before thanksgiving and there were 3 people in front of me.

Tsa pre-check jock.

Best: Singapore Changi

Worst: Caracas, Venezuela

Best - John Wayne Orange County - why suffer thru LAX when you can breeze through here
IAH - no complaints, lots of United Clubs
Reagan
Austin

Worst - MCO Orlando- huge lines, too many kids and cheer teams
LAX - dirty, crappy restaurants- see above
DFW - airport is fine but add 20-30 minutes for the rental car shuttle - takes forever
Turks and Caicos - it is horrid - third world garbage dump but you suck it up since the island is great

Big Al 1992 said:

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Best - John Wayne Orange County - why suffer thru LAX when you can breeze through here
IAH - no complaints, lots of United Clubs
Reagan
Austin

Worst - MCO Orlando- huge lines, too many kids and cheer teams
LAX - dirty, crappy restaurants- see above
DFW - airport is fine but add 20-30 minutes for the rental car shuttle - takes forever
Turks and Caicos - it is horrid - third world garbage dump but you suck it up since the island is great

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If you're EVER going to have to go through MCO, CLEAR is worth it for just that trip alone...those lines are an absolute beat down.

62strat said:

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The Lost said:

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The Pilot said:

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I don't get why Denver gets the love it does. I live here and flying in/out of the airport is a pain. everyone gets funneled thru the same passageways. I prefer the separate terminals of DFW. Also the airport might as well be in Kansas.

I'll say the terminal you fly out of can really change airport experiences. LAX is a pain, but the international terminal is really nice.

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As a Denver consultant who flies out weekly agreed. It's far away, and takes forever to get from the plane out to car areas. This wasted time sucks when you do it weekly.

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you can get from plane to vehicle in parking garage in about a 5-10 minute walk, depending on terminal. Where are you parking that takes forever? The parking spot, with the once a year travelers?

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5-10 minutes is utterly impossible. Even if you landed at a46 or whatever Is exactly in the middle to get you to the bridge.

My sfo flight routinely gets in at b17. Its at least a 5-10 minute walk to the train. Park in economy lot you walk to just out of parking garage. Only Dulles and their people mover sucks more than getting out of DIA of places I've been.

I don't get people complaining about den precheck though, it's incredibly efficient.

Just here to say the best (it's tiny) is Jackson Hole. You can't beat the views and the huge fireplace in the middle of the terminal.

Quick facts about that airport. It's the only commercial airport in the country that's inside a national park. The size of planes allowed to fly in is limited due to noise restrictions because grouse breed in the fields around it. Grand Teton national park, which is where the airport is, limited the height of the airport to Max 18ft. Even when it's -20 outside you still have to walk across the tarmac to board or deplane. Moose are known to meander through the parking lot.

Flew out of Jackson in early spring and I was astonished at this airport. It was so nice. Felt like the lobby of an upscale hotel.

Best: Edward Bodden Airfield on Little Cayman, B.W.I.


Pros: One terminal, one gate (with a helpful "Terminal A Gate 1" sign hanging off of it).
Short walk from the entrance to the check-in counter (about 10 steps) and short walk to the boarding ramp (about 30 steps)
Easy access to the best diving in the Caribbean

Cons: I don't get to go there often enough.

Worst: Miami

Pros: None
Cons: Too many to list

Kyiv Boryspil was bad since you need to basically take a 30 minutes bus just to get to a metro stop. Think they added a train connection now from the main train station.

Echoing others, Gurion was a complete pain in the ass to leave.

Frankfurt is 99% great except a few gates where the security is right in front of the gate, meaning you're stuck in a box if you go in too early. These are only on short routes like FRA-TXL though.

Another interesting one if anyone remembers: Liberia Costa Rica before it was renovated/modernized. It was basically some open air metal barns.

I like grand cayman because the airplanes just pull right up to the gate where you wait outside.