Aspen: Where the Beer Flows Like Wine, and Significant Airport Challenges

The beauty and world class skiing of Aspen, Colorado draws people from around the world to this amazing mountain town. With the increased interest in travel to this city, many airlines have capitalized on the demand for frequent travel to Aspen Pitkin County Airport (ASE), right next to the town and slopes. You can find nonstop flights daily into Aspen from one of many cities around the US, but expect to pay a premium for direct access. Flying into ASE is a great way to get there, as long as you can make the landing.

As you can imagine, world class skiing requires mountains, big ones, and a lot of snow. Aspen has both of these things which makes skiing there so incredible. For the same reasons, the small valley that runs between Aspen's high peaks is not an ideal location for an airport. The runway at ASE was built on as little ground as was safely possible to allow commercial aircraft to take off and land. (in ideal conditions) The approach type that the aircraft takes to get into and out of ASE is also specialized to that airport. Most pilots who fly the route do ASE flights exclusively.

If you find yourself flying into ASE in late spring or mid fall then you will probably have no trouble getting into ASE. The weather during those times of year is usually great! But odds are, you probably want to head up there in the Winter when there is tons of fresh powder on the mountains, if there is a storm in the area then you may be out of luck. Lots of flights to ASE get canceled or diverted due to the weather conditions in the area.

ASE as seen from Aspen Highlands Ski Area (Notice the Surrounding Peaks)

In my experience of working for an airline ASE was by far the airport that encountered the most cancellations and long delays due to weather conditions. On bad weather days in ASE we would be stuck answering the same questions about the weather and referring people to ground shuttle services that would drive passengers to Aspen (at their expense) from Denver. "When will the weather clear out?" "I have no idea." There would be some times when hopeful Aspen passengers would be waiting more than a day for the weather to clear enough for the next flights to head that way. In my opinion, it's not worth the hassle.

If I am ever going to Aspen in the winter months I always drive. Flying there is far too unpredictable, and if you have checked your ski gear then you never know when you might see that again. Bags often get separated from passengers and sent up on trucks to ASE long after the flights finally get cleared to take off.

Waiting to Depart at ASE

If you are planning a vacation to Aspen in the future then you may want to consider another option besides flying direct into ASE to avoid long weather related delays.

Either rent a car in Denver (DEN) or hire a driver to take you up there. Drive time is about 4 hours. The cost is likely less than the cost of flying into ASE and should be more reliable. Yes, the weather can also affect car traffic into ASE too, so it's not a fail safe. Other airport options that are closer to Aspen are Eagle County Airport (EGE) near Vail, CO, and Grand Junction Airport (GJT) in western Colorado. Each of these airports is about a 2 hour drive to Aspen on a good day. Weather delays are less common at these two airports since they are both much larger than ASE, have longer runways, and do not require highly specialized takeoff and landing maneuvers. GJT and EGE can also accommodate larger aircraft than ASE can.

Maroon Bells near Aspen. Truly Spectacular!

If you are dead-set on flying into ASE then you will want to keep a close eye on weather conditions as your trip approaches. If it looks like you may not be able to make it to ASE the you can contact your air-carrier and see if they can arrange an alternate airport for you to fly into and drive to Aspen from there. It is always better to prepare for a delay if you can anticipate it. Waiting too long can get you stuck in an airport you don't want to be in for a long time. Be proactive and you will always have better results. It is also a good idea to have a backup plan if things just don't go your way.

Have you ever had experience with flying into ASE? Were there any weather issues or did everything go smoothly? Aspen is a great place to visit with lots to do. I hope that everyone makes it up there without significant delays! Book smart, watch the weather and always have a contingency wherever you travel.