World City Guide

Getting There By Air

Denver International Airport (DEN)
Tel: (303) 342 2000 or 342 8477, for a hotline to update travellers on changing conditions at the airport. Fax: (303) 342 2215.
Website: www.flydenver.com

Denver International Airport is 38km (24 miles) northeast of Downtown. Covering 137 sq kilometre (53 sq miles), an area twice the size of Manhattan, the airport opened in 1995, with five full-service runways. A sixth is under construction and will be completed in 2003. It has one terminal building with three concourses and services some 36 million passengers each year, travelling on international and domestic flights. It is currently the fifth busiest airport in the US and the tenth busiest in the world.

Major airlines: Denver is an important location, with links to most American cities and major international destinations. It is a major hub for United Airlines (tel: (800) 241 6522; website: www.unitedairlines.com) and for the domestic carrier, Frontier Airlines (tel: (800) 432 1359; website: www.frontierairlines.com). Twenty other airlines, including American Airlines, Air Canada, British Airways, Continental Airlines and US Airways provide daily, non-stop service to 120 American cities and international destinations.

Approximate flight times to Denver: From London is 9 hours 55 minutes; from New York is 3 hours 55 minutes; from Los Angeles is 2 hours; from Toronto is 4 hours 44 minutes and from Sydney is 19 hours 55 minutes.

Airport facilities: Facilities include 24-hour bureau de change, ATMs, 48 restaurants, snack bars, grills and an extensive selection of over 60 retail outlets, including food stores, book shops and brand-name outlets. Advantage, Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Hertz, National, Payless and Thrifty all provide car hire services.

Business facilities: The Qwest Business Centre (tel: (303) 317 0988), located on the Mezzanine level of Concourse B, offers a full range of facilities. It is open 24 hours, with an attendant on duty from Sunday to Friday 0800-1800. Use of the laptop workstations is free, dial-up charges start at US$0.50-2.95.

Arrival/departure tax: All taxes are included in the price of the ticket.

Transport to the city: The Ground Transportation Information Counter at the airport (tel: (303) 342 4059) provides information on the wide range of transport options available from the airport. RTD’s Skyride buses (tel: (303) 299 6000; website: www.rtd-denver.com) operate from the airport to Downtown and 28 other stops in the Metro Denver area. Tickets range in price from US$6 to US$10. The service operates on an hourly basis, approximately 0400-2400 (journey time – approximately 40 minutes). A number of shuttle buses also operate from the airport to Downtown, including Supershuttle Denver (tel: (303) 370 1300 or (800) 525 3177). The fare is US$18 one way or US$32 round trip, per person. Shuttles depart every 15 minutes, daily 0400-2400. There is a separate telephone number for Supershuttle Boulder (tel: (303) 777 7777).

Many of the major hotels operate complimentary shuttle buses and taxis can be hailed outside the baggage claim area. The flat-rate taxi fare to Downtown is US$45.50. Limousines can be pre-booked from a number of companies (see Getting Around).