Skip to content
WanderNerd
Check a flight

Window Seat

Bentonville → Las Vegas

XNA–LAS · Northwest Arkansas National Airport to Harry Reid 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.

XNA to LAS: 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.XNALASLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE1234567
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 40 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. Rio Grande Gorge

    LeftHalfway10 mi off the route

    Rio Grande Gorge is about 10 miles off the left, around the halfway mark.

    Distant possibility

  2. Shiprock

    RightThree quarters11 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Shiprock sits roughly 11 miles to the right.

    Good possibility

  3. Canyon de Chelly

    LeftThree quarters24 mi off the route

    Look left about three quarters of the way for Canyon de Chelly, about 24 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  4. Monument Valley

    RightThree quarters36 mi off the route

    Monument Valley is about 36 miles off the right, about three quarters of the way.

    Distant possibility

  5. Lake Powell

    RightThree quarters38 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Lake Powell sits roughly 38 miles to the right.

    Distant possibility

  6. Grand Canyon

    LeftNear the end17 mi off the route

    Look left late in the flight for Grand Canyon, about 17 miles out.

    Strong candidate

  7. Lake Mead

    Either sideNear the end7 mi off the route

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

    Good 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

1,160 mi
Great-circle distance
276°
Course out of XNA
263°
Course into LAS
6
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?

Las Vegas → BentonvilleRight 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.

Keep nerding