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Tampa → San Francisco

TPA–SFO · Tampa International Airport to San Francisco International 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 Grand Canyon, 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.

TPA to SFO: 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.TPASFOLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE1234567891011
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 50 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. Palo Duro Canyon

    RightHalfway29 mi off the route

    Palo Duro Canyon is about 29 miles off the right, around the halfway mark.

    Distant possibility

  2. Sandia Mountains

    LeftThree quarters24 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Sandia Mountains sits roughly 24 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  3. Canyon de Chelly

    Either sideThree quarters1 mi off the route

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

    Good possibility

  4. Lake Powell

    RightThree quarters32 mi off the route

    Lake Powell is about 32 miles off the right, about three quarters of the way.

    Distant possibility

  5. Grand Canyon

    LeftThree quarters31 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Grand Canyon sits roughly 31 miles to the left.

    Good possibility

  6. Zion National Park

    RightThree quarters35 mi off the route

    Look right about three quarters of the way for Zion National Park, about 35 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  7. Lake Mead

    LeftThree quarters42 mi off the route

    Lake Mead is about 42 miles off the left, about three quarters of the way.

    Distant possibility

  8. Death Valley

    LeftNear the end48 mi off the route

    Late in the flight, Death Valley sits roughly 48 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  9. Mount Whitney

    LeftNear the end50 mi off the route

    Look left late in the flight for Mount Whitney, about 50 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  10. Half Dome

    RightNear the end23 mi off the route

    Half Dome is about 23 miles off the right, late in the flight.

    Good possibility

  11. San Francisco Bay

    Either sideNear the end3 mi off the route

    San Francisco Bay sits close enough to SFO that the runway in use and the procedure of the day decide whether it shows up at all.

    Runway dependent

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

2,388 mi
Great-circle distance
297°
Course out of TPA
274°
Course into SFO
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?

San Francisco → TampaRight 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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