Cities you've been to but not seen.

MRC · Jul 3, 2020

Paris: I'm very familiar with the Metro between Gare du Nord and Gare Austerlitz, but otherwise just the airport - office - hotel - office - hotel - office - airport. Office & hotel within walking distance in Suresnes.

New Orleans: another airport - office - hotel (repeat last two ad nauseam) deal.

Tokyo: not seen it in daylight, just two inter-flight stopovers.

New Delhi: from 42,000 ft -- but I was in row zero talking to the Captain about sailing off UK East Coast vs New Zealand conditions he was used to. Might not have been New Delhi, large city in India anyway, they do have quite a few and this was pre-GEarth and pre 9/11. First Officer was busily filing his latest supply of Jepps and looking somewhat PO'd 😉

Niagara Falls: cheating here - somewhat unimpressive on the ground but fantastic from a CAVOK flight from Boston to Detroit. The pilots did circuits to left and right, with ATC approval, so all passengers could have a look-see.

Atlanta: airport, exhibition hall, snow, snow, snow. 5 days at an exhibition that no-one could get into the city to visit because the airport was closed (and we couldn't get out of course). Near our booth was the Rolls-Royce aircraft engine stand showing how they could get data from the inside of an engine at many rpm and hot, hot, hot in there. I did learn how they did it, but Commercial Confidentiality don'cha know. And it was nearly 40 years ago so I don't remember the details.

Dan S · Jul 3, 2020

I've flown through Tokyo and Frankfurt several times, but never left the airports. Within North America, I've flown into Detroit, Indianapolis, and Calgary a number of times but immediately jumped in a car and went elsewhere.

gatorcpa · Jul 3, 2020

Domestic: Detroit, Indianapolis and Nashville.

International: Amsterdam, Brisbane and Eilat.

All were airport transit points, except for Eilat. There, we were picked up at the airport, driven to the Israel/Jordan border, then walked through “No Man’s Land” and met our tour guide for Petra.

gatorcpa

queriver · Jul 3, 2020

About 20 years ago hubbed at Kathmandu airport on a business trip to (IIRC) Ahmedabad. Saw some aircraft (ex-Soviet) and airlines (from the 'stans) there that I'd never seen elsewhere in my travels.
Had a day and 1/2 layover in Tokyo and went to Disneyland. It was a trip with kids so to be expected but I would have loved to spend the time in the city.
In many Asian cities, the airport-hotel-office-client-dinner-hotel routine. After doing a number of such trips to each city I was fortunate to end up building a small picture and understanding of each of them, thanks to the generosity of hosts.

abrod520 · Jul 4, 2020

Chicago. Went to a conference in their convention center a few years ago, and we stayed in the hotel attached so literally did not go outside during our stay. On the way back, United delayed our departure from ORD until they finally cancelled the flight at 2am or so. By then all of the airport hotelswere fully booked, so I had to take a car all the way back into the city and just crashed at a motel. Got standby on a flight super early the next morning, so when I got up I took a really quick walk (I mean <10 minutes) through a couple blocks of downtown just to see it a bit before hopping in a cab back to the airport. Have been back to the suburbs on business once or twice.

Larry S · Jul 4, 2020

Tokyo and Frankfurt.

RonJ · Jul 4, 2020

Abu Dhabi International Airport, spent time in the transit lounge on my way to Oman.
Muscat, Oman is a great place by the way. I would have never expected the beautiful beaches, British pubs, and amount of Western influence there.

Salt Lake City, connected through that airport many times but never spent time in the city.

Atlanta, connected lots of time through there but never left the airport.
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w154 · Jul 4, 2020

I think all the times I’ve traveled with work I’ve been lucky to get at least some free time to have a look around in the evenings, so the entire list is transfer airports. Off the top of my head: Detroit, Auckland, Singapore, Stockholm, and Sau Paulo

BatDad · Jul 4, 2020

Chicago, Bangalore, Santa Clara/Sunnyvale, Redmond/Seattle and Beijing.

For the first 4 the same story as many others - airport, hotel - office.

Layovers in Denver and LA(which I thought was a terrible airport)

At least with Beijing I had one day to visit the forbidden city and GWoC but clearly there is much more to see!!

Archer · Jul 4, 2020

Some stopover cities where I've been to just the airport...I'm sure I'm forgetting a bunch...

US cities...

Atlanta
Minneapolis
LA
Pittsburgh
Charlotte
Dallas
Houston

International...

Seoul
Beijing
Caracas

Archer · Jul 4, 2020

abrod520
Chicago. Went to a conference in their convention center a few years ago, and we stayed in the hotel attached so literally did not go outside during our stay.

Years ago I went to the IMTS - what used to be called the International Machine Tool Show, but was later renamed the International Manufacturing Technology Show, in Chicago.

Drove across the border, stayed overnight near the Detroit airport, flew out on the earliest flight the next morning. Can't recall what airport I flew into - likely O'Hare. Caught a shuttle right from the airport to the convention center, took my luggage inside and they had an area to leave it while you toured the show. Spent the hole day there, then grabbed the luggage and went to my hotel for the night. Back to the show again the next day, withy luggage again, then near the end of the day took the shuttle back to the aiurport, flew back to Detroit, got in the car and drove 3 hours home.

It was honestly exhausting, but very well organized in Chicago...

abrod520 · Jul 4, 2020

Archer
Years ago I went to the IMTS - what used to be called the International Machine Tool Show, but was later renamed the International Manufacturing Technology Show, in Chicago.

Drove across the border, stayed overnight near the Detroit airport, flew out on the earliest flight the next morning. Can't recall what airport I flew into - likely O'Hare. Caught a shuttle right from the airport to the convention center, took my luggage inside and they had an area to leave it while you toured the show. Spent the hole day there, then grabbed the luggage and went to my hotel for the night. Back to the show again the next day, withy luggage again, then near the end of the day took the shuttle back to the aiurport, flew back to Detroit, got in the car and drove 3 hours home.

It was honestly exhausting, but very well organized in Chicago...

Yeah, similarly on one of my trips to the Chicago suburbs last year we had a quick meeting at a client in Las Vegas. So I flew to Las Vegas, barely made it in time for the meeting (1hr), then right back to the airport where I barely made it in time for my flight to ORD. Was on the ground there for about two hours, but I've been to Las Vegas before so I consider that an ideal visit.

Flew in on a regional airline that uses private terminals on the other side of McCarran airport, and we pulled in right next to an arriving Janet 737 though which was cool.

Archer · Jul 4, 2020

abrod520
Was on the ground there for about two hours, but I've been to Las Vegas before so I consider that an ideal visit.

Got a chuckle with that. Never been personally and have no interest in doing so. We have friends who are huge fans of going there and are always asking us to come along. They also like visiting Disneyworld and Disneyland. Just not the sort of vacations we take...

abrod520 · Jul 4, 2020

Archer
Just not the sort of vacations we take...

Me neither. The only time I've been to Disneyworld as an adult (I was ~22 maybe?) I was bored out of my mind. Fun for kids though.

As to Las Vegas, you're not missing much. They've been doing a lot of work on dining and such in the past decade or so as tastes have changed, but you're still far better off just going to an actual city (any one will do, compared to Las Vegas) and just spending time in local spots. Hell, I got dragged to Phoenix for a friend's wedding two years ago, and we ended up finding a really cool little speakeasy-type cocktail bar run by a true scholar of the cocktail.
These days there mmmmmmight be something like that in the growing residential areas around Las Vegas but none that would bring me back out there.

jsducote · Jul 5, 2020

With all the travel I've been lucky enough to do (mostly pleasure, very little business), I've only not seen Seoul, Taipei, Mexico City, Detroit, Atlanta, Phoenix, and Oklahoma City. I guess Frankfurt too, since we flew in and took the train to Cologne, but did no sightseeing in Frankfurt itself. Was supposed to hub through Toronto back in May...

Speaking of Disney, my least favorite airport in the world is without a doubt Orlando, Florida. I've got family there, so have been a few times, but there isn't a single flight coming or going that isn't loaded with screaming kids. Screaming that they're either excited to get there or screaming that they have to go home. Thanks but no thanks.

rob#1 · Jul 5, 2020

Dubai. Been on many Asia - Europe flights stop there but I’ve never had the chance to get off and have a look around.