Kalispell, Missoula or Spokane?

[jstbcuz]

My daughter is doing an internship in Kalispell, MT next semester. We thought we would take a trip up there to check things out like where she will live, check out the town, etc. I'm not sure where the best place to fly into is. I know Spokane is 4 hours away.....but it's the biggest airport.....Missoula is 2 hours away, and then Kalispell would obviously be the best.............HOWEVER..........I am not a big fan of flying and do not want to fly on a turbo prop plane...........makes me very nervous.........what do you suggest?

Also, if any of you have any information that might come in handy about the area, we would sure appreciate it.

 

[barkley]

all 3 are international airports served by almost the identical airlines so if the driving factor behind choosing is what type of plane you travel in I would suggest looking at flights into all 3 to see what type of planes arrive from your origination point (or whatever hub you would get a connecting flight from).

I've not used either of the Montana airports but I love Spokane's-very simple layout, easy to get into and out of, plenty of rental car agencies. it's also very easy to get on the freeway to do the drive to Kalispell-takes about 4 1/2 hours. if you do the trip from Spokane you will get to see allot of several regions-Eastern Washington, Idaho as well as Montana.

since I'm assuming you would be coming out in the next couple of months, if you choose to come into Spokane hopefully this year we will get some decent snow on the ground b/c it really does make the area look lovely in the winter. going through Idaho if you've got the time to check out Coeur d'Alene I would highly recommend it. it's a gorgeous place-and by just after thanksgiving they will have the Christmas tree set up which is an amazing thing to see. their tree has been featured on the today show, and to give you an idea of the size-this year it's roughly twice as big as the one that is put up in Rockefeller Center each year.

 

[descovy]

Fly into Spokane. The flights are more plentiful and much less expensive. Same with the car rental.

You will love the ease of the Spokane airport too.

While it is a 4 hour drive to Kalispel it is an enjoyable scenic drive. I took my kids this summer, flying to Spokane driving to Kalispel. No complaints. This way you get a little more feel for the area too.

 

[amyngary]

I have a different idea for you: Take Amtrak. We took Amtrak from St. Louis all the way to East Glacier last summer and loved it. You can't be in a hurry if you do that (Amtrak trains are always late), but it's an adventure. We did fly out of Kallispell for the way home, and I much preferred Amtrak. Kallispell is fine, but I do think we were on a smaller plane.

It's beautiful there!

 

[disneyhand]

I've flown into both Missoula and Kalispell airports and they are both fine. On regular big planes. I would definitely fly to Kalispell again if that was my destination. I've also picked someone up from the Spokane airport and her flight was fine and the airport was fine. All the drives were pretty and pleasant for me, my trips have been summer and early fall.