Budget Travel queried hundreds of pilots and FAs to formulate a list of the best scenic airport approaches. As they recommend, reserve a window seat if you are flying to one of the following cities:
- Philipsburg, St. Maarten
- Mammoth Lakes, CA
- Hong Kong
- Queenstown, New Zealand
- Jackson, WY
- London
- St. George’s Parish, Bermuda
- Aspen
- New York City
- Oranjestad, Aruba
Not bad choices. I have not flown to all of those cities, but my top-ten list is below:
- San Diego (maybe it’s more of an emotional reaction to my fond childhood memories of traveling to San Diego, but I think the views are spectacular)
- Sydney, Australia
- Washington National
- New York LaGuardia
- Hong Kong
- London
- Antigua
- Johannesburg (to see the Soweto and other areas of poverty contrasted with bustling central JNB is both memorable and humbling)
- Berlin Tempelhof (sadly, the airport is now closed to commercial air traffic)
- Tel Aviv
- Buenos Aires Aeroparque
Anything I left out?
Aspen. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mnPomo_mRw
I quite like Boston. And San Francisco if you’re approaching from the north & fly past the golden gate & downtown.
YTZ – Toronto Island airport. The approach is along Lake Ontario, parallel to the waterfront skyline.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYEKq-iEAB8 (start at about 1:45)
Lisbon, when landing on runway 03: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQgH1GvS6Eg