Why I'm Recommending Eagle County Airport to All My Friends Traveling to the Rockies

---

This is a post aimed at people considering vacationing to the Vail Valley, namely the resort towns of Vail, Breckenridge, Keystone and Beaver Creek. It’s also going to provide some useful information to travelers heading up to Aspen.

You see, for as long as I can remember, the best way to access these resort towns if you were flying in from out of state (or out of country), was to fly into Denver International (DIA) and then make ground transportation arrangements (shuttle service, car rental or bus) to continue the journey into the Rockies.

While there was an alternative option available with Eagle County Airport (EGE) , the logistics involved with this smaller regional airport just made it an unrealistic choice for most people. The number of flight carriers was very limited, there were hardly any flights available (again connecting airports were far and few), and not to mention that the airport had a sort of infamous reputation behind it. The History Channel actually put this airport in at #8 on their “most extreme airports in the world” documentary piece. And that’s hardly a reputation people are looking for when deciding where their airplane is going to land.

Yes, until quite recently, Eagle Airport Transportation Services might have been the last thing on Earth I would have recommended to my friends and family wishing to visit the Colorado Rocky Mountains, but now all of that has changed. In the last 5 years or so, Eagle County has been investing very serious resources into developing their airport, and Eagle Airport Transportation to be a serious contender to DIA, and it would seem like the project is working out just as envisioned.

The airport’s facilities have been completely renovated, the runway has been extended to be able to cater to larger aircraft, and the county has been putting considerable effort into promoting the airport across the nation. As a result more and more airlines are choosing to offer routes flying into EGE. Delta, United and American Airlines are now offering direct services to and from the airport, and there are rumors of Air Canada joining soon.

With over 12 airports (and growing) now offering direct service to Eagle and with all the new passenger facilities available at the airport, flying into EGE actually makes much more sense than going via DIA

After all, Eagle airport is right in the heart of the Rockies. The drive from Denver to Vail is an agonizing 2+ hours, going through the Vail Pass and Eisenhower tunnel which are both frequently closed off during Winter snow storms (of which there are plenty). Eagle is just 30 minutes away from Vail, 20 minutes away from Beaver creek, and about 50 minutes away from Breckenridge and Keystone.

Even people heading to Aspen might be better off flying into Eagle, and then commuting the 1.5 hours it takes to get to Aspen, simply because Pitkin Airport (Aspen’s closest) has such limited availability and flights are often canceled due to bad weather.

So there you have it. After being a firm skeptic for many years about both flying into Eagle Airport or recommending to my friends and readers, I’ve now completely changed my mind. If you’re heading into the Vail Valley or considering visiting some of Summit County’s resort towns, I would say there’s now no reason not to fly into Eagle instead. You’ll not only save lots of time, but also all the irritation of the long (and sometimes hazardous) drive of going through the Vail Pass into the Rockies.

If you have any questions about visiting the Vail Valley, flying into Eagle or anything related to skiing and vacationing in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, be sure to comment below.

So, until the next time my friends!

Safe travels to all of you!

---