When Kansans are looking to escape the Sunflower State for fun, they’re not going very far to the west or north.
BetKansas.com took a break from covering Kansas sports betting and utilized Google Trends to determine the most searched cities in each state using the term “Flights To” and finding the most often searched city at the end of the phrase.
After completing the trends over the past 12 months (from June 25, 2022, to June 25, 2023), we were able to find the top 3 cities for Kansas. Please note cities within the state were not included.
Kansas’ Favorite Cities to Visit
Looking for Fun in Sin City
The three places Kansans look for flights the most are to Las Vegas, Denver and Chicago.
If you’re looking to book that fun trip to Las Vegas, there aren’t a lot of options in Kansas unless you drive across the border to the Kansas City International Airport. Spirit and Southwest fly non-stop from the Kansas City airport. There’s only two daily non-stop flights from Wichita, one on Allegiant and one on Southwest, and then you’re looking at one-stop flights from Salina, Liberal, Dodge City and Garden City.
Since Kansas sports betting apps are legal, it’s not necessary to travel all the way to Las Vegas to place wagers. That might explain why there’s not a need for quick access to the betting capital of the country.
The drive to Denver and the Rocky Mountains is only eight hours from Kansas City, but there are quicker options from the state’s airports for the 80 to 90-minute flight to Colorado. However, there aren’t many. There are 10 non-stop flights from Wichita on United and Southwest and then two from Hays, Dodge City and Liberal, all offered by United.
When not getting away to nature in Colorado, Kansans head for Chicago’s big city sites with The Art Institute of Chicago, Millennium Park or going to watch the Cubs, White Sox or Bulls. Just like trying to fly to Las Vegas and Denver, there aren’t a lot of non-stop flight options. Wichita offers nine per day on American and United, while Salina has two with United.
No matter the reason for getting away, be it business or pleasure, Kansans have to plan for some longer travel times, whether that’s driving to Kansas City for flights or dealing with changing flights in another city. But there are still plenty of choices when it comes to leaving the state for a getaway.
Author
Douglas Pils has been a sports journalist for 30 years in Texas, Arkansas and New York having worked for the San Antonio Express-News, the Associated Press, The Dallas Morning News and Newsday. He currently runs the Student Media Department at Baylor University.
