Are you looking to explore the historic streets of Boston or take in the breathtaking landscapes of Denver?

Boston and Denver are two wonderful travel destinations you can visit within the United States. Boston is steeped in rich history and culture, with famous landmarks such as the Freedom Trail and Fenway Park. Meanwhile, Denver is a gateway to the Rocky Mountains, offering unmatched natural beauty and a laid-back atmosphere. Whether you're a hiking enthusiast, a sports lover, or an art enthusiast, both cities have something to offer every traveler.

Regardless of if you're planning a business trip or a well-deserved vacation, selecting the right flight is crucial to enhance your overall experience between these two cities. With so many airlines and flights to choose from, it can be difficult to determine which one offers the best value for your money and preferences. The journey between Boston and Denver may seem simple, but with countless airlines and flight options available, the choice can quickly become overwhelming.

But don't worry - we've done the hard work for you! In this article, we'll explore the best airlines and round-trip direct flights between Boston and Denver. We've researched across key factors that make a flight experience exceptional, including price, convenience, reliability, and overall ease of travel. By the end of this article, you'll have a good understanding of the BOS-DEN flight options available, helping you to choose the perfect journey to suit your needs.

Now that we’ve set the context, let’s jump into the list:

The Best Flights Between Boston and Denver

To start, if you want to fly between Denver and Boston, there are only four airlines that operate the route directly:

Delta, United, JetBlue, and Southwest

While you could take a flight with a connection, every stop in your travel increases the chance of missing a flight or having the airline lose your bag. Therefore, we always recommend flying directly whenever possible! However, with these four airlines being the only ones with direct flights between Denver and Boston, it dramatically narrows down the possible options.

If you’re a major frequent flier/have status with any of these particular airlines, feel free to ignore this list and fly on the airline on which you have added benefits. However, for everyone else, these are the best flights that you can take between Boston and Denver:

1. Delta Air Lines DL499

Our overall best round-trip flight between Boston and Denver is on DL499. To start, Delta is one of the best airlines to fly from Boston, regardless of end destination, largely due to the impressive variety of routes and positive overall flight experience. Not only does Delta cover a huge number of destinations from Boston, but it also practically owns all of Boston Logan’s terminal A and operates an extremely nice Delta Skyclub lounge, which can make your travel experience all the easier.

However, the main reason that we recommend the specific DL499 flight on Delta, and the reason that it occupies the top spot in this list, is the balance of price to amenities. Round trip tickets on DL499 (same airline code in both directions) can go for as low as $300 for main cabin tickets, which includes a bag and seat selection!

If you want to travel as cheaply as possible, you can get a round-trip ticket for only $228 on economy basic—that’s only $114 for a 4.5-hour flight! Those prices are bordering on budget airline level, but with all the typical amenities that you would expect from a Delta flight.

Prices for using Delta SkyMiles to book flights are also good across these two particular routes. For main cabin round-trip tickets, flights will cost you as low as 23,000 SkyMiles, working out to ~1.3 cents per SkyMile. SkyMiles aren’t generally considered the most valuable airline points out there, so this is typically a good redemption value for Delta flights.

Interestingly, the value of your points booking decreases as you increase your experience to Comfort+ and first class for this flight, so we recommend staying away from using miles for any non-economy seats. If you’re running low on Delta SkyMiles, make sure to transfer your American Express Membership Reward points to Delta to save some cash! However, if you’re set on using points for your travel, you may want to check out some of our other recommendations on this list.

Both of these flights are excellent from a timing perspective, as on the way from Boston to Denver you take off at 8 a.m. and land at 10:40 a.m. Not only is 8 a.m. one of the less crowded times at Boston-Logan International Airport, but the early landing time means you still get the full day to spend in Denver! There is nothing worse than missing an entire day to travel, especially if you’re using any vacation time; therefore, we always recommend flying early or late whenever possible. Sadly, on the way back there is no way to overcome the time zone change, but luckily you depart mid-day on this Delta flight, allowing you to spend at least the morning in Denver and get back to Boston before it gets late!

2. JetBlue B6 493/B6 494

If you prefer evening or night flights from Boston to Denver and from Denver to Boston, then JetBlue has the best options for you with flights B6 493 and B6 494.

These flights are excellent options for any JetBlue frequent fliers or anyone who prefers sleeping on flights/taking later flights. On the way from Boston to Denver, you take off at 8 p.m. EST and land at 10:45 p.m. MT, while on the way back you have a red-eye that leaves just before midnight. In terms of efficiency, this is definitely the best option; by taking a red-eye flight, you save money and don’t miss out on any days in either Denver or Boston.

However, we know that some people hate red-eye flights and avoid them at all costs (to be fair, they are called “red-eye flights” for a reason), so if this is you, you’re in luck! Jetblue has several other direct options each day going both directions for similar prices, so you’re able to customize your selections are you see fit without a substantial change in price.

To fly round-trip in the main cabin (which includes a checked bag), these flights will cost you as little as $308 or 19,600 JetBlue Miles. You will probably notice that this is the exact same cash price as the Delta flight, but 4,000 fewer airline miles. Therefore, we strongly using your miles/points for this flight instead of the Delta one, as you’ll get a great redemption value of 1.6 cents per mile—a definite upgrade over the Delta SkyMiles booking we discussed earlier.

However, JetBlue’s system has some quirks when booking with points, and for this option, you will have to book both directions of this itinerary as two one-way bookings in order to book with points. We’re not sure why booking this doesn’t work as a round-trip, but regardless, it’s a small price to pay for getting such great value! If you’re low on JetBlue TrueBlue Miles, you can transfer both your American Express Membership Reward points and your Chase Ultimate Rewards points to JetBlue! This is one of the best ways to combine your AmEx points and Chase points together for a single booking.

Overall, this combination of JetBlue flights is one of our favorite means of getting between Boston and Denver, and may be our outright favorite route for booking with points!

3. United UA 647/UA 329

Our third and final recommendation for round-trip flights between Boston and Denver is United flights UA 647 and UA 329. This option is ideal for business travelers, as these flights have excellent on-time percentages and operate on the new 737MAX 9 aircraft, which boasts top-of-the-line amenities and comfort. While slightly pricier than other options, you can expect working screens and the latest seats for a stress-free and enjoyable flight experience.

However, as we hinted at, the biggest downside of these flight options is the price. Not only is this the most expensive economy-cabin flight of the three options we suggest in cash, but the point redemption rate is also dreadful at just 1 cent per mile. Usually, United Mile redemptions are good for economy flights, so it’s disappointing that these flights don’t have that going for them. United points

Overall, we still think this is a great option if you’re willing to pay the slight premium (which is hardly a premium for economy seats at only an extra $20) for the consistency of departure/arrival and the amenities that come with the new planes, but we wouldn’t recommend using any points or miles (even though Chase points transfer to United miles at a 1:1 ratio).

Summary

The trip between Boston and Denver can be extremely quick and painless or long and difficult, and your choice of airline and flight is one of the biggest factors in determining which! We have suggested three main flight options in this article; all three of these are great options for direct flights, and can get you between the two cities for cheap prices largely year-round.

To summarize:

Best Morning Flight: Delta Air Lines DL499

Best Night Flights: JetBlue B6 493/B6 494

Best Points Redemption: JetBlue B6 493/B6 494

Best Amenities: United UA 647/UA 329

These recommendations are based on our personal experience traveling between Denver and Boston and may not necessarily be the best option for you, depending on your priorities and the time of year you plan to fly. We always search for the best deals on airline calendars, but during peak travel times, such as holidays, prices may be higher. In such cases, you may need to consider whether paying extra for a direct flight is worth it. However, keep in mind that as airports become more crowded during busy seasons, the likelihood of issues arising increases, and each layover on your itinerary increases the chance of delays.

We hope this article was helpful in making your next travel decision! If you’re a frequent traveler, make sure to check out our list of the best credit cards for airline miles that don’t have an annual fee! And if you travel from Boston frequently, we have a list of the best destinations from Boston and the best flights between Boston and Austin.

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