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Denver → Seattle

DEN–SEA · Denver International Airport to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport

Best bet

Left side

Good betA real difference, not a rounding error.

Mount Rainier leads it, with 2 more on the same side.

Flight paths move around. Treat this as the better bet, not a promise.

What you might see

In flight order, with distance measured from the representative route.

DEN to SEA: where each landmark sits relative to the routeA diagram of the representative route running left to right, with the departure airport at the left and the arrival airport at the right. Landmarks on the left side of the aircraft are plotted above the route line and landmarks on the right side below it, each at its distance from the route. The numbered list below this diagram carries the same information as text.DENSEALEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE1234567
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 62 miles); the shaded ends are the 40-mile zones around each airport where the runway in use decides the view. Numbers match the list below. Hollow markers didn't count toward the recommendation.

  1. Longs Peak

    Either sideEarly8 mi off the route

    Longs Peak passes almost directly beneath early in the flight, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Good possibility

  2. Wind River Range

    RightQuarter in40 mi off the route

    About a quarter of the way in, Wind River Range sits roughly 40 miles to the right.

    Distant possibility

  3. Grand Teton

    RightHalfway41 mi off the route

    Look right around the halfway mark for Grand Teton, about 41 miles out.

    Good possibility

  4. Hells Canyon

    Either sideThree quarters8 mi off the route

    Hells Canyon passes almost directly beneath about three quarters of the way, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Good possibility

  5. Wallowa Mountains

    LeftThree quarters34 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Wallowa Mountains sits roughly 34 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  6. Mount Adams

    LeftNear the end62 mi off the route

    Look left late in the flight for Mount Adams, about 62 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  7. Mount Rainier

    LeftNear the end27 mi off the route

    Mount Rainier is about 27 miles off the left, late in the flight.

    Strong candidate

The sun

Flying soon? Add your date and departure time and we'll work out where the sun should be, and which side gets less of it.

Airport codes or city names. SEA, Seattle, and Seattle-Tacoma all work.

Skip the date and you still get the landmark answer. Add it and we work out where the sun will be, using the departure airport's local time.

The route we used

1,022 mi
Great-circle distance
307°
Course out of DEN
294°
Course into SEA
5
Landmarks that counted

That is the shortest path between the two airports, used as a representative corridor rather than a flight plan. The first and last 40 miles are treated as uncertain, because that part of the flight is shaped by the runway in use and the published departure or arrival procedure. Anything in those zones is listed and marked, never counted toward the recommendation.

Left and right, from where?

Left and right are from your perspective sitting in the cabin, facing the front of the aircraft. Seat letters are not a reliable guide to which side you are on, because aircraft are configured differently.

Why this isn't guaranteed

Flights don't follow the same path every day. Runway configuration, weather deviations, traffic, and air traffic control all move the track around, and none of it is knowable in advance. We also have nothing to say about cloud cover, which is the other thing standing between you and Mount Rainier. The full method.

Flying the other way?

Seattle → DenverRight side

Calculated from scratch, not by flipping this one. The landmarks arrive in the opposite order, the sun is somewhere else entirely, and the answer changes with them.

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