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Las Vegas → Cedar Rapids

LAS–CID · Harry Reid International Airport to The Eastern Iowa Airport

Best bet

Left side

Slight edgeEnough to break a tie, not enough to change seats over.

It is close. The left edges it, mostly on Canyonlands, but the right is not a bad seat.

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.

LAS to CID: 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.LASCIDLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE12345678910
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 68 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. Lake Mead

    Either sideEarly7 mi off the route

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

    Good possibility

  2. Zion National Park

    LeftEarly21 mi off the route

    Early in the flight, Zion National Park sits roughly 21 miles to the left.

    Good possibility

  3. Canyonlands

    LeftQuarter in15 mi off the route

    Look left about a quarter of the way in for Canyonlands, about 15 miles out.

    Good possibility

  4. Mount Elbert

    LeftHalfway14 mi off the route

    Look left around the halfway mark for Mount Elbert, about 14 miles out.

    Good possibility

  5. Pikes Peak

    RightHalfway29 mi off the route

    Pikes Peak is about 29 miles off the right, around the halfway mark.

    Good possibility

Show 5 more along the way (Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Lake Powell, San Juan Mountains, Maroon Bells)

Further off the route, closer to an airport, or both. Still in flight order, still numbered to match the diagram.

  1. Grand Canyon

    RightEarly68 mi off the route

    Look right early in the flight for Grand Canyon, about 68 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  2. Bryce Canyon

    LeftEarly31 mi off the route

    Bryce Canyon is about 31 miles off the left, early in the flight.

    Distant possibility

  3. Lake Powell

    RightQuarter in28 mi off the route

    About a quarter of the way in, Lake Powell sits roughly 28 miles to the right.

    Good possibility

  4. San Juan Mountains

    RightQuarter in34 mi off the route

    San Juan Mountains is about 34 miles off the right, about a quarter of the way in.

    Distant possibility

  5. Maroon Bells

    LeftHalfway20 mi off the route

    Around the halfway mark, Maroon Bells sits roughly 20 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

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

1,316 mi
Great-circle distance
9
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?

Cedar Rapids → Las VegasRight 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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