City: Boulder, CO

Category: Getting Here, Getting Around

Telephone: (303) 342-2200, (800) 247-2336

Address: 8400 Peña Boulevard

Description: Opened in 1995, Denver International Airport is the biggest in the nation and one of the biggest in the world. Twenty-three carriers service the airport: United Airlines dominates, with some 60 percent of the flights out of DIA, but American, American West, Continental, Delta, Frontier, Northwest, TWA, and US Airways also serve the airport. Others include Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, British Airways, Lufthansa, Mexicana, and Sky West.DIA is posh, with polished granite floors, $7.5 million worth of artwork, and an expansive main lobby roofed with 34 translucent, Teflon-coated fiberglass tent canopies designed to invoke snow-covered peaks and cast light like stylized, billowy clouds. Those canopies were canted in different directions for structural efficiency in the wind and heavy weather. Despite its monumental 5-million-square-foot interior, walks are short. The ticket counters are a short way from passenger drop-offs on both sides of the main terminal. Common carriers (i.e., buses and vans) use a separate level, off-limits to private cars. There are three concourses. You have the option of walking to Concourse A via an air bridge over a taxiway, but a swift subway whisks you to all concourses. Stand near the front windows if you want to see the little propellers along the walls whirl as the train passes.DIA has excellent shops, including some not usually found in airports: Images of Nature, a national wildlife photographer’s store; Hudson Booksellers, a well-stocked bookstore; and a Body Shop are among the stores in the airport. You can also find a travel agency and a massage therapist at DIA. An interfaith airport chapel opened in 1996. Restaurant offerings include McDonald’s, Einstein Bros. Bagels, the Cantina Grill Express, specialty pizza, croissant, and coffee shops (including Seattle’s Best Coffee), and Schlotzskys, just to name a few. The popular Denver Chophouse & Brewery has a restaurant planned for Concourse A at the end of 2008. Most of these establishments are open daily from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m.If you need information on Denver International Airport’s ground transportation, call (303) 342-4059; for parking information, call (303) 342-7275; for luggage storage and lost and found, call (303) 342-4062.Driving time between DIA and Boulder takes about 45 minutes. The quick and easy route is the Northwest Parkway (a toll road), which opened in 2003.