Everybody knows that flying out of Montana is expensive.

One of the few times I miss not living in or near a metropolis is when it's time to book airfare. Flying anywhere from Montana usually costs a fortune. Even a somewhat less costly flight out of Bozeman is much more expensive than departing from Denver or Salt Lake. And while flights out of Montana are pricey, it turns out that having a long layover in Big Sky Country is also a not-so-great experience, according to a recent report.

Photo by Briana Tozour on Unsplash
Photo by Briana Tozour on Unsplash
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Billings Logan Airport ranked 8th worst in the US for long layovers.

Landscaping firm LawnLove.com analyzed 128 US airports to see which cities are best and worst for having a long layover. Montana airports made the list and all of them ranked near the very bottom for good places to be delayed. At #121 is Billings Logan International Airport, followed by Kalispell at #122. Bozeman ranked slightly better at #98 and Missoula is right there on the crappy list at #118.

Graphic courtesy LawnLove.com
Graphic courtesy LawnLove.com
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Big cities ranked best for long delays.

The report ranked a variety of factors in its determination of less-crappy places to have a long layover, including Getting Around, Things to Do, Affordability, Staying and Eating/Drinking, etc. Unsurprisingly, they ranked New York, Chicago, and LA at the top. If you've got eight hours to kill while waiting for a flight in any of those cities, you'll have no problem finding public transportation to tons of fun things to see/do/eat.

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Credit: Johnny Vincent, Townsquare Media
Credit: Johnny Vincent, Townsquare Media
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Billings ranked favorably in one area.

I can't imagine any traveler ever saying "Yay! We have a six-hour layover in Billings!", but if there was one bright spot in the report it's that the Magic City ranked #4 in the nation for Shortest Average Distance to City Center. Unlike the Bozeman airport (which is actually in Belgrade) flyers stuck at BIL can take a very short Uber to downtown Billings for restaurants, bars, shopping, hotels, etc.

So there ya go. Not only is it expensive to fly into/out of Montana... but experiencing a long layover here stinks too. Nice!

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