One of the world's busiest airports gets a $2 billion upgrade
The look
A distinctive multi-peaked roof mimics Colorado's Rocky Mountains with 34 Teflon fibreglass 'tents' housing Denver's unique passenger terminal complex. The design has won numerous architectural awards and still dazzles from where it sits at the adventure gateway to the Rockies, despite clocking its 30th birthday in 2025. Inside, the pavilion-like roof utilises sustainable heating systems and gives a spacious, airy feeling alongside walls of glass to let natural light in and break up hours of claustrophobic, temperature-controlled travel. Small portions are currently boarded up – but don't feel obtrusive – as the airport undergoes a $US1.3 billion refurbishment known as the 'Great Hall Program' to be completed in 2027.
Check in
It's the age of unmanned check-in kiosks and a few self-service screens are stalled by a 'loading' death spiral. I soon ask for human assistance anyway, because the 23-kilogram baggage limit on United Airlines won't compute with the 30-kilogram limit I've been allocated by booking Denver-Sydney through Qantas as a Silver Frequent Flyer. A gruff employee quickly overrides the $US200 overweight charge, and my haul of heavy ski jackets and snow boots trundle off into the airport's belly.
Security
Denver is the third-busiest airport in the US, serving more than 82.4 million passengers in 2024. The security lines, until recently, were notorious. Fortunately, the most important upgrades of the Great Hall Program are 17 new security screening lanes – all operating at rapid pace when I go through West Security Checkpoint. There's a five-minute wait before I remove my coat, shoes, belt and a newly acquired cowgirl hat to go through. The most time-consuming process is getting to the actual gates - Denver airport has the largest land footprint in the US and it's a 2.3-kilometre walk to the furthest gate. But the journey is straightforward via an automated underground train transporting passengers to A, B and C concourses.
Food + drink
I pop out at Concourse B where there's a plethora of options with quick eats led by American juggernauts Chick-fil-A, Jamba Juice, Shake Shack, SmashBurger and Starbucks. Modern Market appears to be the healthiest option with salads, soups and sandwiches. Local Colorado brewery New Belgium Brewing keeps the boys on a buck's weekend watered, while Denver's legendary brunch diner Snooze A.M. Eatery serves all-day breakfast to the time-zone-addled.
Retail therapy
Duty free includes the usual perfumes, makeup and alcohol stores alongside knickknacks and convenience items. The independent Denver bookstore chain of Tattered Cover Book Stores vies for my remaining American dollars. Alas, those end up going to a $US20 neck pillow after kicking myself when I realise I left mine in the hotel.
Passing time
Having arrived at the rental car drop-off three hours before my flight, the meandering journey to my gate leaves little time before boarding. I'd otherwise check out the golf simulator on Concourse A, the express day spa on Concourse C, or make friends with the Canine Airport Therapy Squad (CATS) team of happy pooches and one feline trotting around. But for 20 minutes I'm fully content to log into the airport's free Wi-Fi, sink into rows of padded seating in front of floor-to-ceiling glass and watch the sun set over the Rocky Mountains.
The verdict
Loading
My worst airport experience ever was in this very terminal 10 years ago on a public holiday, when I waited in a snaking security queue that filled the entrance hall and extended out the automatic doors into the snow. Today, recent upgrades make it one of the best. Security screening is no longer the Wild West and accessing Colorado's four national parks and 28 ski resorts just got easier.
Our rating out of five
★★★★½
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Most Australians aren't ‘good with money'. It's time that changed
Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, Mexico, Japan and South Africa, women's literacy on all things money isn't just as good as the gents, it's better. But what was easily the most concerning finding was that among those aged 15 to 24, the score out of five was just 2.9. That, my friends, is a seriously mediocre C-grade. Perhaps 50 years ago, when the choices were between a couple of basic bank products and a superannuation account, these numbers wouldn't have been so concerning. But in a world of countless different types of specialised bank loans, HECS debt, credit cards, buy now pay later schemes, online gambling, cryptocurrency, ETFs, salary negotiations, bonus structures, stock options, and self-managed versus industry or corporate super funds, it's never been more important to ensure that everyone, especially young people, is literate when it comes to money. Though the Australian curriculum does include financial literacy content, the way in which it is being taught and the detail within that vary greatly, leaving much room for improvement. One country leading the way in this field is, believe it or not, the United States. According to the US' Council for Economic Education, as of 2024, 35 of the country's 50 states now require high school students to attend personal finance classes before they graduate. Loading That's more than two-thirds of teenagers across America having a basic understanding of money and finance before they leave home and enter the world of adulthood and employment. The trend is also taking off at American universities, where a growing number of public and private institutions are offering personal finance courses for students as electives. These courses teach the basics, but some go further and cover the principles of investing, taxes, how to understand job offers and salary packages, as well as the psychology of why people make certain financial decisions. As much fun as those 101 literature or psychology electives can be, this seems like a much more useful course to be aiming for an easy A in. Aside from the fact that we live in much more financially complicated times, there are other reasons we need to care about making sure our kids understand money. For starters, research consistently shows that the better financially educated someone is, the more likely they are to make good decisions and better judgements about their money. We also know that the cost of being totally financially illiterate or having a poor understanding of money can have devastating long-term effects. People who are 'bad with money' are consistently shown to have a lower standard of living, and we see the wealth gap widening between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots'. So easily, one high-interest credit card or personal loan can follow someone around for decades and impact their credit scores, their ability to make career or relationship choices, create extra stress, and make it harder to meet their basic needs. And yet, we see it happen every day, often affecting people you'd least expect. Having a solid grasp on finances isn't just about us as individuals, either. Ensuring everyone knows the basics, especially those who are the least financially literate, is actually great for the economy broadly. That's because it allows people to carry less debt, improves their job opportunities and earning potential, and creates new jobs in the process. To quote former assistant RBA governor Keith Hall all the way back in 2008: 'Money spent on financial education would be money very well spent.' And while it's not as if we're doing nothing, we certainly need to be doing so much more. Because the more people who can hold their head high and say they're 'good with money', the better. Victoria Devine is an award-winning retired financial adviser, bestselling author and host of Australia's No.1 finance podcast, She's on the Money. She is also founder and director of Zella Money.
The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
Most Australians aren't ‘good with money'. It's time that changed
Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, Mexico, Japan and South Africa, women's literacy on all things money isn't just as good as the gents, it's better. But what was easily the most concerning finding was that among those aged 15 to 24, the score out of five was just 2.9. That, my friends, is a seriously mediocre C-grade. Perhaps 50 years ago, when the choices were between a couple of basic bank products and a superannuation account, these numbers wouldn't have been so concerning. But in a world of countless different types of specialised bank loans, HECS debt, credit cards, buy now pay later schemes, online gambling, cryptocurrency, ETFs, salary negotiations, bonus structures, stock options, and self-managed versus industry or corporate super funds, it's never been more important to ensure that everyone, especially young people, is literate when it comes to money. Though the Australian curriculum does include financial literacy content, the way in which it is being taught and the detail within that vary greatly, leaving much room for improvement. One country leading the way in this field is, believe it or not, the United States. According to the US' Council for Economic Education, as of 2024, 35 of the country's 50 states now require high school students to attend personal finance classes before they graduate. Loading That's more than two-thirds of teenagers across America having a basic understanding of money and finance before they leave home and enter the world of adulthood and employment. The trend is also taking off at American universities, where a growing number of public and private institutions are offering personal finance courses for students as electives. These courses teach the basics, but some go further and cover the principles of investing, taxes, how to understand job offers and salary packages, as well as the psychology of why people make certain financial decisions. As much fun as those 101 literature or psychology electives can be, this seems like a much more useful course to be aiming for an easy A in. Aside from the fact that we live in much more financially complicated times, there are other reasons we need to care about making sure our kids understand money. For starters, research consistently shows that the better financially educated someone is, the more likely they are to make good decisions and better judgements about their money. We also know that the cost of being totally financially illiterate or having a poor understanding of money can have devastating long-term effects. People who are 'bad with money' are consistently shown to have a lower standard of living, and we see the wealth gap widening between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots'. So easily, one high-interest credit card or personal loan can follow someone around for decades and impact their credit scores, their ability to make career or relationship choices, create extra stress, and make it harder to meet their basic needs. And yet, we see it happen every day, often affecting people you'd least expect. Having a solid grasp on finances isn't just about us as individuals, either. Ensuring everyone knows the basics, especially those who are the least financially literate, is actually great for the economy broadly. That's because it allows people to carry less debt, improves their job opportunities and earning potential, and creates new jobs in the process. To quote former assistant RBA governor Keith Hall all the way back in 2008: 'Money spent on financial education would be money very well spent.' And while it's not as if we're doing nothing, we certainly need to be doing so much more. Because the more people who can hold their head high and say they're 'good with money', the better. Victoria Devine is an award-winning retired financial adviser, bestselling author and host of Australia's No.1 finance podcast, She's on the Money. She is also founder and director of Zella Money.
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Good ideas strangled by red tape: Treasurer to crack down on bureaucracy
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has admitted left-leaning governments are strangling their own good intentions with bureaucracy, arguing it is time to deliver supply side solutions to problems ranging from housing to renewable energy. In his first extended sit-down newspaper interview since May's federal election, Chalmers has demanded regulators overseeing everything from the banking sector to consumer law identify regulations that can be axed or simplified to reduce costs and increase the pace at which the economy can grow. Chalmers revealed the recently released book Abundance, which argues progressives need to re-think their overly rules-based approach to making the change they want, had been a wake-up call for the left of politics. The book, by American journalists Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, was 'doing the rounds' of the ministry and senior MPs keen take on board the authors' insights which include trying to strip red tape from scientific research and housing construction. Chalmers said the upcoming productivity roundtable would tap into the ideas outlined in Abundance. Loading 'I mean the fascinating thing I found about Abundance was basically, even if you have quite a progressive outlook, we've got to stop getting in our own way,' he said. 'We want good things to happen, we've got to stop strangling good things from happening. I think that's very, very compelling for us. 'It's confronting for us because it's a kind of a – the term 'wake-up call' gets used a bit too easily – but there's a sense of at what point do we start getting in our own way, preventing good things from happening because of an abundance of good intentions.'
