Utah Pete and someone who travels a lot by plane, traveling question.

[wyliec]

Utah Pete,

What is the closest major airport near the Arches National Park?

For someone that flies a lot, have you ever purchased tickets where your inbound and outbound flight were in different cities/states, and did you find it more expensive that way? Any tricks to saving money, other than don't go?

Here's my little predicament: My gf wants to go to Arches National Park in Utah, and visit her brother in LA. I checked and it is 11 hrs by car to the Arches, which means another 11 hrs back. That's to much wasted time in the car. So, my thought is fly in to the closest major airport to the Arches, and then drive to LA, and fly out, all dependent on pricing. We are in Syracuse NY.

 

[UtahPete]

Utah Pete, What is the closest major airport near the Arches National Park?

For someone that flies a lot, have you ever purchased tickets where your inbound and outbound flight were in different cities/states, and did you find it more expensive that way? Any tricks to saving money, other than don't go?

I think your best bet is to fly into Grand Junction, Colorado and drive from there to Moab. Most of that trip is going to be beautiful, particularly the last 50 miles or so through the canyon along the Colorado River. From there, the fastest way to LA is going to be I-70, then I-15. But, if you have the time and you haven't previously driven around the south-eastern part of Utah, definitely want to go a more scenic route (and there are several).

I can't help you with air fares and connections; I stopped flying for pleasure after TSA started all their nonsense, and haven't flown for business in 9 years.

 

[UtahPete]

What time of year is this planned trip? That will influence your driving decisions should you want to see a little more of scenic Utah.

 

[wyliec]

What time of year is this planned trip? That will influence your driving decisions should you want to see a little more of scenic Utah.

My gf had the idea to leave on Dec 25, 2017.

We've visited Bryce Canyon previously. When there, I somehow chose a hiking trail that no one else was on, and we ran out of water. It wasn't an easy, lazy trail either. We've also been to Zion in Utah.

 

[Rob Rodriguez]

I've flown into one airport and out of another many times during trips. You just purchase one way tickets instead of round trip. I find the costs to be about the same. The difference usually is the difference of the airport. Typically larger, more traveled air ports (like LA) will have a lower ticket price than a smaller less traveled airport (like Grand Junction). So it may cost more to do a one way to Grand Junction and a one way from LA than a round trip from LA but that's because of the airports you are using. A one way into Denver or Salt Lake and one way from LA might cost the same as a round trip to/from LA.

Airline ticket pricing is all a game anyway...the prices can vary quite a bit from day to day and time of day.

 

[UtahPete]

My gf had the idea to leave on Dec 25, 2017. We've visited Bryce Canyon previously. When there, I somehow chose a hiking trail that no one else was on, and we ran out of water. It wasn't an easy, lazy trail either. We've also been to Zion in Utah.

That might be a good travel day; I'm not sure. I guess now you have a destination (Grand Junction) you can start checking into it.

Bryce and Zion were good choices for that part of the state. The southeastern part has its own collection of national and state parks (other than Arches) and of course national monuments that are worth at least driving through. They have the advantage of being lesser-known and not crowded. If you're interested in a driving route, let me know and I can make some suggestions.

 

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

From the nps.gov website for Arches.

Winter
Winter is a peaceful time, without the crowds and scorching heat of summer. Temperatures are cold, with highs averaging 30° to 50° F (-1° to 10° C).
We do not offer ranger programs in winter.
The visitor center is open daily throughout the winter, except for December 25.

 

[RinconRyder]

Commercial aircraft are usually pretty empty on Christmas Day. Fares should also be cheaper.