Colorado Review

I’m thrilled that this week’s Project Blog challenge is to expand on that puny post I put up last week.

Indeed, I do tend to write succinctly, but 50 words to describe how to kill time at Denver International Airport…. well, it just doesn’t do the airport justice.

DIA, which is today the country’s largest international airport (by land size) and voted the best airport in North America by Business Traveler readers, actually had an inauspicious start.

It was besieged by major problems with its automated baggage system and other construction delays. Originally set to replace the old Stapleton Airport in the fall of 1993, DIA actually officially debuted in February 1995.

Since, then, however, the kinks have certainly been worked out. I find it an incredibly easy airport to navigate, and I’ve never had baggage problems when flying in and out (or via) DIA. (And I’ve find myself in the airport at least twice a year for the past 10 years.)

When I drive to this international airport in the Mile-High City from my home in the mountains, I can’t help but grin when I get my first view of its white “circus tent” roof. The 34 peaks, reminiscent of the mountain range surrounding the airport, are actually made of fiberglass coated with Teflon, though they resemble fabric.

Photo courtesy Denver International Airport

And I really do have a routine that I carry out in the B concourse if I have an hour or more to spend at DIA before my flight. (Especially if I’m traveling alone, sans young kids, and can be indulgent with my time!)

I head immediately to A Massage on the Mezzanine level. This is a no-frills, “storefront” massage center (i.e. you’re on display to passersby if you choose a chair massage). Treatments range from a 10-minute, neck/shoulders/back chair massage ($15) to a 90-minute table massage ($117) — yes, table massages are behind a private curtain. I’ve never been disappointed with the rubdowns I’ve received here. I’m typically tense from carrying bags and this seems to put me in a good frame of mind before boarding a plane.

Then, if it’s mealtime (or even if it’s not — since you don’t get freebie meals on domestic flights anymore; better fuel up), I scoot over to Que Bueno! near gate 50 also in Concourse B. Here, for about $7 you can get a Grande Burrito–and it is indeed grande. I always opt for the grilled veggie, which comes with white rice, beans, lettuce, cheese and salsa (sour cream and guac are extra). It’s a tiny restaurant and often hard to find a seat. Get yours to go and eat it near your gate, where you have more elbow room. (Don’t forget a fork and extra napkins.)

Another nifty feature of the airport is its Public Art Program and Art Exhibition Program. There is permanent art displayed throughout the main (Jeppesen) terminal and the concourses, as well as the concourses. A main rotating exhibit gallery is on the connecting bridge between Jeppesen Terminal, Level 6 and the security checkpoints leading to Concourse A.

Basically, this art program consists of 26 site-specific and permanent works of art, ranging from whimsical installations (Kinetic Air Light Curtain, a.k.a. the cool propellers in the underground-train tunnels) to controversial murals (In Peace and Harmony with Nature, which shows children in caskets). One piece is “auditory art�: listen for the tribal chanting and Native American music and as you arrive at an international gate and make your way across the pedestrian bridge to Customs & Immigration.

Pick up a self-guided art tour brochure at the Ambassadors’ booth in the main terminal (ask any helpful Ambassador sporting a white cowboy hat).

If your travels do bring you to DIA, I highly recommend you check out www.flydenver.com to find out what other restaurants (many bars for sampling Colorado microbrews!), services and shops (think last-minute holiday gifts this time of year, or the omnipresent Crocs made here in Colorado) there are at DIA. Or you can always email me for advice!

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Did you like the information found in this post? If so, vote for me in this week’s Project Blog challenge. Links to other contestants are found here. But you can just skip on down to my button below, click on it and “Vote”!