Sit on the Right side of the plane for the best views on flights from Anchorage to Denver. The right seat wins overall because the Front Range arrival view is one of the most dramatic in the continental US — a 200-mile wall of snow-capped peaks appearing on the horizon as you descend. The left seat at takeoff from Anchorage is excellent, but the right seat captures both the Chugach Mountains during the initial climb (as the plane banks) and the unmissable Rockies on arrival.

During takeoff from Ted Stevens Anchorage International (ANC), sit on the Left side for the best views. ANC typically departs south on runway 7L/7R or north on 33, but the most common departure toward Denver is a southeasterly turn after takeoff heading roughly east. A left/south-facing seat gives you Cook Inlet, the Kenai Peninsula, and the Alaska Range as the aircraft climbs and turns southeast. The right side faces north toward the Chugach Mountains initially but quickly loses the dramatic water-and-mountain combination. Notable sights include: Cook Inlet (broad tidal estuary directly below and to the south), Chugach Mountains (rising immediately east of Anchorage), Turnagain Arm (the narrow inlet fork southeast of the city), Knik Arm (the northern fork of Cook Inlet visible to the northwest).

When landing at Denver International (DEN), sit on the Right side for the best views. Denver International sits on the plains east of the Rockies, and aircraft typically approach from the east or southeast on runways oriented roughly north-south. A right/west-facing seat gives you the full panorama of the Front Range — the entire Rocky Mountain wall from Pikes Peak in the south to Longs Peak in the north — spread across the horizon as you descend. The left side faces east toward the featureless Great Plains. Notable sights include: Front Range of the Rocky Mountains (the entire wall from Pikes Peak to Longs Peak visible on the western horizon), Denver city grid (visible below and to the left during final approach), Chatfield Reservoir (south of Denver, visible as a distinct water body), DIA's distinctive white tent roof (visible from several miles out on approach).

The flight from Ted Stevens Anchorage International (ANC) to Denver International (DEN) takes Approximately 5 hours 30 minutes to 6 hours.

The route crosses the Alaska Range and Wrangell-St. Elias mountains shortly after departure, then tracks southeast over the Canadian Rockies in British Columbia and Alberta — including the broad Columbia Icefield visible on clear days. Over Montana and Wyoming the terrain flattens into the high plains. The Yellowstone plateau and Wind River Range in Wyoming are visible in the middle portion of the flight on clear days before the terrain opens into the Colorado plains.