Book Flights to Cheyenne, Wyoming (CYS)
Pro Tip: Denver (DEN) Is 90 Miles South -- Often the Better Value
Cheyenne Regional (CYS) has limited service. Denver International Airport (DEN, 90 miles south on I-25) has 30+ airlines and significantly lower fares. For most Cheyenne visits, fly into DEN and drive 90 minutes. CYS is best for Frontier Days (late July) when driving from Denver is inconvenient.
FareOptic compares all carriers on CYS and DEN routes -- finding the cheapest available fare for your Cheyenne, Wyoming trip.
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Why Visit Cheyenne?
The Daddy of 'Em All rodeo, Wyoming's gold-domed capitol, 150 ICBMs under the high plains, and 1.4-billion-year-old granite at Vedauwoo
Cheyenne Frontier Days -- The Daddy of 'Em All: The World's Largest Outdoor Rodeo
10 Days in Late July, 170,000+ Attendees, PRCA Rodeo, and the Largest Free Outdoor Concert Series in the USCheyenne Frontier Days (CFD, held annually in late July, established 1897) is the largest outdoor rodeo in the United States and one of the largest Western heritage festivals in the world, drawing 170,000-200,000 attendees over 10 days. The rodeo itself is sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) and is one of the six events in the rodeo 'Triple Crown' -- featuring all major rodeo disciplines (bareback bronc, saddle bronc, bull riding, team roping, steer wrestling, tie-down roping, barrel racing) with total prize money exceeding $1.5 million. The parallel entertainment: CFD features the world's largest free outdoor concert series -- nightly headline country and rock acts at the Frontier Nights concert series (recent headliners: Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean, Miranda Lambert, Garth Brooks) with free admission as part of the rodeo ticket. Frontier Days Park also features a midway, free Wild West shows, Indian Village (Native American cultural demonstrations), and the chuck wagon cook-off.
How a Local Booster Event Became the Daddy of 'Em All -- The 1897 Origin and the 127-Year Legacy of Cheyenne Frontier Days
Cheyenne Frontier Days was organized in 1897 by Union Pacific Railroad assistant freight agent Frederick Angier, who conceived it as an event to boost Cheyenne during a period of economic stagnation following the decline of the cattle industry that had made Cheyenne one of the wealthiest cities per capita in the US in the 1870s-1880s. The first CFD (September 23, 1897) drew 15,000 spectators. The event grew under its self-applied moniker 'The Daddy of 'Em All' -- a claim that became defensible when CFD became the largest and longest-running outdoor rodeo in the US. Key to its longevity: CFD is operated by the Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum and is a nonprofit -- all revenue is reinvested in the event and the CFD facilities rather than distributed to owners. The event has run without interruption since 1897 except for WWI (1918) and WWII (1943-1945), and for the first time in 2020 (COVID). The 'Daddy of 'Em All' claim is based on prize money, attendance, and consecutive years of operation -- no other outdoor rodeo approaches all three simultaneously.
Wyoming State Capitol and Cheyenne's Historic District -- The Gold Dome That Made Wyoming the Equality State
Wyoming Gave Women the Right to Vote in 1869 -- 51 Years Before the 19th Amendment -- and the Capitol Documents That HistoryThe Wyoming State Capitol (completed 1890, Cheyenne) is one of the finest state capitol buildings in the US -- a Renaissance Revival structure with a 146-foot gold-leafed dome (the dome was re-gilded in 2018 using 24-carat gold leaf) visible across the high plains. The building was completed just as Wyoming achieved statehood (July 10, 1890), and the legislative chamber's historical significance includes Wyoming's identity as the Equality State: the Wyoming Territory granted women the right to vote in 1869 -- 51 years before the 19th Amendment -- and was the first government in US history to do so. Wyoming also had the first female governor (Nellie Tayloe Ross, 1925), the first all-female jury, and the first female justice of the peace. The renovated Capitol (completed 2019 after a 3-year, $300 million restoration) is open for free tours.
Why Wyoming Territory Gave Women the Vote in 1869 -- The Political Calculations Behind America's First Women's Suffrage Law
The Wyoming Territory Women's Suffrage Act of December 10, 1869 was not primarily a progressive ideological statement -- it was a calculated political maneuver by the new Territorial Legislature. Wyoming Territory had approximately 8,000 residents in 1869, of whom only about 1,000 were women. The legislature's reasoning: (1) granting women the vote would attract positive Eastern press coverage and encourage female migration to the territory (which desperately needed population growth); (2) Esther Hobart Morris (later the first female justice of the peace) had lobbied legislators personally; and (3) Democrats in the legislature voted for it as a political taunt (expecting Republican Governor John Campbell to veto it -- he didn't, signing it on December 10). When Wyoming applied for statehood in 1890, Congress threatened to reject its application unless Wyoming rescinded women's suffrage; Wyoming's legislature reportedly responded with a message paraphrased as 'We will remain out of the Union a hundred years rather than come in without our women.' Congress admitted Wyoming with women's suffrage intact.
F.E. Warren Air Force Base and the ICBM Mission -- America's Nuclear Deterrent in Wyoming's High Plains
The Oldest Active Military Installation in the Air Force, 150 Minuteman III ICBMs Under Wyoming's High PlainsF.E. Warren Air Force Base (immediately west of downtown Cheyenne, established 1867 as Fort D.A. Russell) is the oldest continuously active installation in the Air Force and home to the 90th Missile Wing -- responsible for 150 Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) dispersed in silos across a 12,600-square-mile area of southeastern Wyoming, southwestern Nebraska, and northern Colorado. The base's Historic District (brick Victorian-era cavalry post buildings constructed 1885-1929) is a National Historic Landmark -- one of the finest intact examples of 19th-century military post architecture in the United States. The Francis E. Warren ICBM and Heritage Museum on base documents the Cavalry era through the ICBM mission. Civilian access to the base requires a visitor pass (available at the Visitor Control Center with valid ID).
The Minuteman III ICBM -- 50 Years in Service, 150 Missiles Under Wyoming, and the Weapon System That Has Never Been Fired in Combat
The Minuteman III (LGM-30G) entered service in 1970 and remains the United States' only land-based ICBM -- the sole survivor of the Triad's land component (the other two legs: submarine-launched Trident D5 missiles and nuclear-capable B-2 and B-21 bombers). The Minuteman III carries one 300-350 kiloton W87 warhead (each warhead is approximately 20-25 times more powerful than the Hiroshima weapon) and can travel 8,000+ miles with high accuracy in approximately 30 minutes. The 450 Minuteman IIIs currently deployed (150 at Warren, 150 at Minot AFB ND, 150 at Malmstrom AFB MT) are dispersed in underground silos rather than concentrated at a base -- dispersal is the primary survivability measure, making it impossible for an adversary to destroy all missiles with a small number of warheads. The silos around Cheyenne (extending into Colorado and Nebraska) are a visible part of Wyoming's landscape -- recognizable by their characteristic fenced access roads and antenna fields visible from I-25 and I-80.
Vedauwoo Rock Formations and Medicine Bow National Forest -- Weird Rock Country 30 Miles from Cheyenne
Sherman Granite Formations 1.4 Billion Years Old -- Wyoming's Finest Rock Climbing and Hiking on the Colorado BorderVedauwoo (pronounced VEE-da-voo, from the Arapaho 'earth-born spirits') is a dramatic collection of massive granite boulder piles and towers in Medicine Bow National Forest, 30 miles west of Cheyenne on I-80 at 8,200 feet elevation. The formations are composed of Sherman Granite -- 1.4-billion-year-old Precambrian rock exposed by the erosion of overlying sedimentary layers over millions of years. Vedauwoo is one of the finest crack climbing areas in North America (splitter cracks in the granite from 1 inch to 5+ inches wide -- 'wide crack' or 'off-width' climbing is the specialty), with 900+ documented climbing routes. Hiking trails through the boulder fields are accessible to non-climbers. The Ames Monument (a striking pyramid designed by H.H. Richardson, built 1882 to mark the highest point of the Union Pacific transcontinental railroad) stands 3 miles north of Vedauwoo.
The Sherman Granite and the Geologic History of Vedauwoo -- How 1.4-Billion-Year-Old Rocks Were Exposed at the Colorado-Wyoming Border
The Sherman Granite (also called the Rawah Granite in some literature) is a Precambrian intrusion -- a mass of molten rock that cooled slowly underground approximately 1.4 billion years ago during the Middle Proterozoic Era. For most of the subsequent 1.4 billion years, the granite was buried under layers of sedimentary rock (Paleozoic limestones and shales, Mesozoic sandstones and mudstones). The Laramide Orogeny (the mountain-building event that created the Rocky Mountains, 70-50 million years ago) uplifted the Precambrian basement in the southeastern Wyoming area -- including the Laramie Range. Subsequent erosion (50 million years of wind, water, and glaciation) removed the overlying sedimentary layers, exposing the Sherman Granite at the surface. The characteristic rounded 'haystacks' and weathering-pits of Vedauwoo result from spheroidal weathering: water penetrates the joint sets in the granite block, freezes and expands, and progressively rounds the corners. Wyoming's dry climate means this weathering proceeds slowly -- the boulders you see today are billions of years old and look approximately as they did a million years ago.
How to Find Cheap Flights to Cheyenne
Fly Into Denver (DEN) and Drive 90 Miles to Cheyenne -- The Smart Budget Option
Denver International Airport (90 miles south of Cheyenne on I-25) has 30+ airlines, significantly more carrier competition, and dramatically lower transcontinental fares than Cheyenne Regional (CYS). The drive from DEN to Cheyenne (I-25 north, 90 miles, 90 minutes) is straightforward on a four-lane interstate. For travelers whose primary destination is Cheyenne, the DEN savings frequently exceed $100-200 compared to CYS fares. Rental cars at DEN are abundant and competitively priced.
Frontier Days (Late July, 10 Days) -- The Only Period When CYS and Cheyenne Hotels Fill Completely
Cheyenne Frontier Days (late July, 10 days) is the only event that creates significant flight demand to CYS. During CFD, Cheyenne hotels within 30 miles fill completely and Denver hotels also tighten as overflow visitors stay in DEN and drive up. Book CFD travel 3-4 months ahead -- accommodations even more critically than flights. If you're attending CFD, CYS is worth the premium vs. DEN for the convenience of staying in Cheyenne.
Salt Lake City (SLC) Is 160 Miles West -- A Second Alternative Airport
Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC, 160 miles west on I-80) serves as a second alternative to CYS for Cheyenne travelers -- particularly for those connecting on Delta or Southwest. The SLC-to-Cheyenne drive (I-80 east, 160 miles, approximately 2.5 hours) is longer than DEN but still viable if SLC fares are significantly lower. Delta's SLC hub provides excellent national connectivity.
Cheyenne Is a 90-Minute Drive from Denver -- Plan Day Trips to Rocky Mountain National Park and Colorado
Cheyenne's location 90 miles north of Denver makes it an effective base for Colorado day trips: Rocky Mountain National Park (entrance at Estes Park, 115 miles south) is a 2-hour drive; Colorado Springs (95 miles south via I-25, Garden of the Gods, Pikes Peak, Air Force Academy) is 90 minutes. Fort Collins (45 miles south, Colorado's craft beer capital) is 45 minutes. For a Wyoming + Colorado trip, flying into DEN and splitting time between Denver/Colorado and Cheyenne is an efficient itinerary.
Airlines Flying to Cheyenne (CYS) and Nearby Denver (DEN)
United Airlines
Denver Hub -- The Primary Gateway to Cheyenne via United ExpressUnited Airlines and its United Express partners operate the primary commercial air service connecting Cheyenne Regional Airport (CYS) to the national network via Denver International Airport (DEN), 90 miles south. The DEN-CYS route is operated by United Express with small regional aircraft. United's Denver hub provides connections from virtually every major US market to Cheyenne. Many travelers prefer to fly into Denver and drive to Cheyenne (90 miles, 90 minutes on I-25 north) for more carrier options and lower fares -- compare DEN + rental car vs. CYS direct.
Key Routes
DEN to CYS (45m nonstop via United Express; ORD to CYS (via DEN; LAX to CYS (via DEN; EWR to CYS (via DEN
American Airlines
Phoenix and Dallas Hub Connections to Cheyenne via DenverAmerican Airlines provides connections to Cheyenne through its Phoenix (PHX) and Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) hubs, with passengers connecting to United Express service at Denver (DEN). For travelers from the Southwest, Mountain West, and South on American's network, the PHX-DEN or DFW-DEN connection to CYS is the primary routing.
Key Routes
PHX to CYS (via DEN; DFW to CYS (via DEN; LAX to CYS (via PHX then DEN; CLT to CYS (via DFW then DEN
Delta Air Lines
Salt Lake City and Atlanta Hub Connections to Cheyenne via DenverDelta Air Lines connects Cheyenne through its Salt Lake City (SLC) and Atlanta (ATL) hubs, with connections at Denver (DEN) to United Express CYS service. Salt Lake City (160 miles west of Cheyenne on I-80) is also a drivable alternative airport -- SLC has significant carrier competition from Delta, Southwest, and American, often with lower fares than CYS.
Key Routes
SLC to CYS (via DEN; ATL to CYS (via DEN or SLC; MSP to CYS (via DEN or SLC; DTW to CYS (via DEN
Alaska Airlines
Seattle Hub Connections to Cheyenne via Denver -- Pacific Northwest GatewayAlaska Airlines provides Seattle-based connections to Cheyenne via Denver (DEN), serving Pacific Northwest travelers heading to Wyoming's capital and the surrounding high plains. The SEA-DEN-CYS routing is the primary Pacific Northwest connection to Cheyenne. Alternatively, travelers from Seattle heading to Cheyenne may prefer to fly SEA-DEN on Alaska, then rent a car and drive 90 minutes to Cheyenne for a more flexibility.
Key Routes
SEA to CYS (via DEN; PDX to CYS (via DEN; SFO to CYS (via DEN or LAX
Things to Do in Cheyenne
Essential Info for Your Cheyenne Trip
State
Wyoming
Airport Code
CYS (Cheyenne Regional, 3 miles north of downtown; limited service)
Alt. Airport
DEN (Denver, 90 miles south on I-25 -- 30+ airlines, far more options)
Time Zone
MST (UTC-7) / MDT (UTC-6) in summer
Frontier Days
Late July, 10 days. World's largest outdoor rodeo. Book 3-4 months ahead. cfdrodeo.com for tickets and lineup.
Vedauwoo
30 miles west on I-80. Sherman Granite climbing and hiking. 8,200 ft elevation. Open year-round.
Denver Day Trip
90 miles south on I-25. Rocky Mountain NP (115 mi south), Colorado Springs (95 mi south) all accessible as day trips.
Emergency Number
911
Most Popular Airlines
Best Airlines for Domestic & International Routes
Frequently Asked Questions on Flights to Cheyenne
Everything you need to know about booking cheap flights to Cheyenne, Wyoming (CYS)
Which airport serves Cheyenne, Wyoming?
Cheyenne is served by Cheyenne Regional Airport (CYS), located 3 miles north of downtown. CYS has limited commercial service -- primarily United Express connections through Denver (DEN). The most practical alternative: Denver International Airport (DEN, 90 miles south on I-25, 90-minute drive) has 30+ airlines and dramatically lower fares. Salt Lake City (SLC, 160 miles west on I-80) is a second option for Delta and Southwest connections.
What is Cheyenne, Wyoming known for?
Cheyenne is known for: (1) Cheyenne Frontier Days (late July, 10 days -- world's largest outdoor rodeo, 170,000+ attendees); (2) being Wyoming's state capital, with a notable women's suffrage history (Wyoming was first to give women the vote in 1869); (3) F.E. Warren Air Force Base (oldest active USAF installation, ICBM mission with 150 Minuteman III missiles); and (4) Vedauwoo rock formations (30 miles west, one of North America's finest crack climbing areas).
When is Cheyenne Frontier Days?
Cheyenne Frontier Days is held annually in late July (typically the last 10 days of July, ending the last Saturday of the month). The event includes the PRCA rodeo (one of the six Triple Crown events), the free Frontier Nights concert series with major country headliners, a midway, free Wild West shows, and the chuck wagon cook-off. Total attendance is 170,000-200,000 over 10 days. Ticket packages, schedule, and concert lineup are announced at cfdrodeo.com typically in January-February for that summer's event.
Is it better to fly into Denver or Cheyenne for Cheyenne travel?
For most travelers: fly into Denver (DEN). Denver is 90 miles south of Cheyenne (I-25, 90-minute drive), has 30+ airlines with far more carrier competition, and typically has significantly lower fares than Cheyenne Regional (CYS). Cheyenne Regional's advantage: saves the 90-minute drive and rental car if you're flying specifically for Frontier Days (when DEN area hotels also fill up). For leisure and business travelers not attending a major event, DEN + car rental is the better value by a significant margin.
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