Andrew Hyde lives in Boulder, Colorado and travels frequently.

Denver (DEN) Travel Tips

If you follow me on Twitter or BrightKite, you will notice I travel quite a bit.  Here are some travel tips I wish someone had told me at the beginning of my travel:

  • Fly One Airline
    WindowUnited of Frontier.  As much as I pick on Frontier, they are consistently the best airline out of DEN.
  • Pack One Bag
    Not one bag plus a carry on, but one bag.  This makes you very mobile wherever you go.  The more mobile, the more opportunity.
  • Check In Online
    This is a gimme for quite a few of you, but I still see an astonishing amount of travelers checking in at the kiosk.  If you don’t have a bag, you can check in 24 hours before your flight, confirm your seat and print it out.  You can then just walk to the gate, avoiding some lines.
  • Pack a Water Bottle
    I have a SIGG bottle (trying to not use a plastic water bottle this year).  For me, hydration helps my health while flying.  When I leave my house, I have a somewhat full SIGG, and I drink it before I get to security.  After that, I fill it up again for the flight.
  • Park on the West Side of DIA
    $9 a day for the economy lot ($4 a day more than the Pikes Peak lot, but I find it worth it to be able to walk to and from your car).  The east lot makes you walk further.  I would love to take the bus, but it adds 2.5 hours to my trip time, which over the year would mean I would waste 2 days on the bus.
  • Walk to The Gate
    The trains are really annoying to me and tend to cause waiting.  If you fly Frontier, you can walk from your car over the runway to your gate.  I love getting off the plane, walking 10 minutes and being on the road.
  • I 70 Is Horrible
    If you are flying into DEN to then drive up to the mountains (Vail, Copper, Aspen) don’t underestimate how bad it can be up there.  Really consider flying.
  • DEN not DIA
    Yes, you are flying into Denver International Airport, but you are flying out of an airport with a code of DEN.  You can call it by both names, but there is a difference.
  • Security Speed
    My strategy for security is to be as simple as possible.  If you are wearing a jacket, put everything in your pockets in the jacket.  When you get through the metal detector, put on your jacket, put your laptop back in your backpack, slip your shoes on and start walking.
  • Be Nice
    No matter how much you feel you have been wronged or feel the situation you are in traveling is wrong, it won’t be fixed by being an ass.  Be nice, and if you feel like having the situation ‘righted’ call their support line.  Or set up a website out of love.

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Andrew Hyde

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7 responses to “Denver (DEN) Travel Tips”

  1. Aaron Bailey Avatar
    Aaron Bailey

    I fly out of DEN once a month and find that the price of the Clear Card (flyclear.com) is well worth it. I usually save 15-30 minutes each time I go through security and feel much less stress.

  2. andrewhyde Avatar
    andrewhyde

    In the last year I have not had a single line at DEN. When it came out I was excited, but really have never needed it.

    If you fly one airline, you will be in their frequent flier club, in no time, and will bypass the line.

  3. David Simmons Avatar
    David Simmons

    I'm trying to wrap my head around this whole “walk to the gate thing”. I can't help but think that there must be some important aspect of DIA geography that I've been oblivious to all these years — probably this pedestrian bridge between the terminal and Concourse A that I'm just now noticing on the web site.

    I had this vision of me somehow sneaking onto the tarmac from the parking lot, and banging on the door at the gate until someone let me in. 🙂

  4. Marion Rossi Avatar
    Marion Rossi

    Thanks for the quality tip you post on your blog about travel I really admire your articles and informative information you share. Keep up the good work. I am looking for more from you

  5. dennisyu Avatar
    dennisyu

    Andrew– thanks for the great travel tips! The other benefit of flying a hub airline is that you have flexibility when you miss the flight or need to leave earlier– there are many other options during the day. Plus you get to go direct. I used to work for American Airlines. The downside is that flying one airline doesn't always give you the lowest price, but the premium tier benefits might make up for it!

  6. dennisyu Avatar
    dennisyu

    Andrew– thanks for the great travel tips! The other benefit of flying a hub airline is that you have flexibility when you miss the flight or need to leave earlier– there are many other options during the day. Plus you get to go direct. I used to work for American Airlines. The downside is that flying one airline doesn't always give you the lowest price, but the premium tier benefits might make up for it!

  7. dennisyu Avatar
    dennisyu

    Andrew– thanks for the great travel tips! The other benefit of flying a hub airline is that you have flexibility when you miss the flight or need to leave earlier– there are many other options during the day. Plus you get to go direct. I used to work for American Airlines. The downside is that flying one airline doesn't always give you the lowest price, but the premium tier benefits might make up for it!

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