Photo above: Frenite via Google
Two airports serve Vail, and the transfer you choose depends on which one you land at. Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) is in Gypsum, in the Eagle River valley west of Vail, and the drive east follows the valley floor. Denver International Airport (DEN) is on the plains east of Denver, so the trip to Vail crosses the I-70 mountain corridor. From either airport the options are a shared shuttle, a private car or limo, a public bus or a rental car. Fares below are the ones the operators published on October 3, 2026.
Avon, Edwards and Eagle are valley towns between EGE and Vail, not part of Vail, and Beaver Creek is a separate resort beside Avon. Shuttle and car companies often quote all four as one zone, so check which one your reservation is booked to.
Which airport is closer to Vail, EGE or Denver?
Vail Resorts places Vail about 100 miles west of Denver and 30 miles east of the town of Eagle, and the Gypsum airport sits a little farther west again. Denver International is on the far east side of the metro area, so its drive to Vail is longer than the 100-mile figure suggests. Epic Mountain Express describes EGE as about 30 minutes from Vail and Beaver Creek. The trade-off is flights: EGE has far fewer, and its month-by-month schedule is posted on the airport’s own site, so check your dates there before assuming a nonstop. Airlines, parking and the terminal are covered in the Eagle County airport guide, and the choice between the two airports is in closest airport to Vail.
How do the airport-to-Vail options compare?
The fares in this table come from each operator’s own site on October 3, 2026. Private-car prices from other companies are set by the company, so they are not listed here.
| Option | From | Published fare | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shared shuttle, Epic Mountain Express | DEN and EGE | DEN to Vail, Beaver Creek or Avon: $69–$139 per person. EGE to Vail or Beaver Creek: $49–$59 per person. Door to door; rates run through April 30, 2027 | Couples and small groups who want a fixed price and no driving |
| Private SUV or van, Epic Mountain Express | DEN and EGE | DEN: Premier Black SUV (up to 5) $549–$979; YourRIDE+ (up to 12) $649–$1,199. EGE: SUV $299–$489; YourRIDE+ $349–$629. Gratuity included | Families and groups of four or more, late arrivals |
| Other private cars and limos | DEN and EGE | Quoted by each company | Groups with a lot of luggage or fixed pickup times |
| Bustang bus plus the A Line train | DEN, by train to Denver Union Station | Union Station to Vail $17 one way ($19 to Avon), plus the RTD Airport Day Pass, $10 | Solo travelers and budget trips with light luggage |
| Core Transit Valley Route bus | EGE | Fares apply only to rides to or from EGE, Gypsum and Leadville; the single pass listed for Gypsum fares is $3. Riders 18 and under free through winter 2026–27 | Travelers with time to spare |
| Taxi | EGE | Quoted by the company | Short or unplanned trips |
| Rental car | DEN and EGE | Set by the rental company; seven have counters in the EGE terminal | Stays outside Vail’s villages, side trips to other resorts |
What do shared shuttles from Epic Mountain Express cost, and what are the rules?
Epic Mountain Express, formerly Colorado Mountain Express, runs shared and private rides from both airports. Epic Pass holders save 20% on its fares. Its rates page adds a $3 per-person airport concession fee, and the booking policies add a close-in fee for reservations made within 24 hours of travel: $5 per person on a shuttle or $100 per vehicle on a private ride. A private ride between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m. carries an extra $150.
The policies matter more than the fare when plans change. A shared reservation cancelled within 24 hours of travel is non-refundable and a cancellation outside that window costs $10 per seat. A private reservation is non-refundable within 72 hours and costs $75 per vehicle outside it. Each guest gets two bags plus one personal item, extra bags are $10 each, and skis ride in an exterior rack that can be exposed to snow and slush. Guests under 16 must travel with a parent or guardian aged 18 or older. At EGE the company says its shuttles are flight-specific and leave once the guests on that reservation have collected their bags. At Denver, its service counter is on Level 5 of the terminal, and the airport’s own mountain-carrier page lists pickup on Level 5, island 1, outside doors 511 to 513 on the east side and 504 to 506 on the west.
For a group, multiply the per-person fare by the number of travelers and compare it with the per-vehicle price for the same date. At the published ranges, five people on a shared Denver shuttle pay $345 to $695, against $549 to $979 for a Black SUV that holds five, and the private ride takes you straight to your door without stops.
When does a private car or limo make sense?
A private car pays off for large groups, early or late flights and trips with ski bags or child seats, and it is worth asking whether the operator tracks your flight. Denver’s airport lists mountain carriers that include Blue Sky Limo, Peak 1 Express, Silver Mountain Express, Vail Powder Cars, Ski Lift Limousine and Epic Mountain Express, and Eagle County’s airport lists limousine and taxi companies, among them High Mountain Taxi, Alpine Luxury Transportation and Epic Mountain Express.
Several of these companies also sell transfers on Viator, which lets you book and compare in one place. From Eagle County airport, listings include Snowflake Limousine to Vail or Beaver Creek, Mountain Ready Rides to Vail and Mountain Ready Rides to Beaver Creek, a private car from Inter Mountain Express Limo and Blue Sky Limo’s shuttle to Vail or Beaver Creek. Heading back to EGE, there are a departure transfer from Carmel Car & Limousine and taxiGo’s transfer from Vail, Beaver Creek and Avon.
For Denver, listings include Blue Sky Limo’s one-way car from the airport to Vail and its car from Vail to the airport, Get-A-Ride’s luxury transfer between Vail and Denver, Mountain Star Transportation from Vail or Beaver Creek to Denver, Peak1 Express between the Vail, Beaver Creek and Copper Mountain areas and Denver airport and Silver Mountain Express’s private shuttle from Denver airport to Beaver Creek. taxiGo’s departure transfers run to Denver airport, from Beaver Creek to Denver airport and to Denver Centennial Airport; Centennial is a general-aviation field south of Denver, not the airport airlines use.
VailVacay earns a commission from Viator if you book through the Viator links in this guide, at no extra cost to you.
Viator is a marketplace, so the operator sets its own pickup, luggage and cancellation rules. Several of these listings are new or have few reviews, so treat them as options to compare, not recommendations. Before you pay, confirm the pickup point, whether the driver tracks your flight, how many ski bags fit and the cancellation window.
Can you take a bus from Denver airport to Vail?
Not in one ride. Bustang’s West Line runs between Denver Union Station and Vail, stopping at the Vail Transportation Center at 241 South Frontage Road East, and it also serves Avon. To reach Union Station from the airport you ride RTD’s A Line train, and RTD sells an Airport Day Pass for $10. Bustang’s fare table lists Denver Union Station to Vail at $17 one way and to Avon at $19. Buses leave Denver from Gate B19 in the Underground Bus Concourse at 1701 Wynkoop Street, and Vail’s first scheduled departure toward Denver is at 6:30 a.m.
The bus costs a fraction of a shuttle, but it adds a train and a transfer and runs to a timetable rather than your flight. It uses the same I-70 corridor as every other option, so winter closures affect it too. Check Bustang’s luggage rules for skis before you rely on it. Once you are in Vail, the Town of Vail’s buses are free, and the Vail Transportation Center is the hub for Core Transit and Bustang.
Should you rent a car instead?
A rental makes sense if you are staying in Avon, Edwards or East Vail, or want to reach Beaver Creek, Breckenridge or trailheads on your own schedule. It is harder to justify for a week in Vail Village or Lionshead, where the car mostly waits in a garage and the free town buses do the in-town work. The Town of Vail says all of its parking lots are free from September 28 to November 19, 2026, and that winter 2026–27 parking runs November 20 to April 18, with detailed rates due in mid-October. For how the garages work, see where to park in Vail.
At EGE, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Hertz, National and Sixt have counters in the terminal, and Go Rentals and Thrifty operate off the airport. Denver’s airport has its own rental-car page. If you drive, think about the tires before the price: when Colorado’s Passenger Vehicle Traction Law is in force, an all-wheel-drive or four-wheel-drive vehicle needs mud-and-snow, winter or all-weather tires with at least 3/16-inch of tread, or you need chains or an approved traction device.
How do you plan around I-70 in winter?
CDOT puts road information in three places: COtrip.org, the 511 phone line and highway signs. Check COtrip before you leave the airport, and again before you leave any stop along the way. CDOT’s GoI70 page carries a weekend travel forecast, which CDOT has said it updates every Thursday afternoon, so a Friday or Sunday transfer is worth checking against it.
CDOT can switch on the Traction Law on any state highway when a storm warrants. In a severe storm it can move to the Chain Law, which requires chains or an approved traction device on every vehicle and is the last step before a closure. The Colorado State Patrol enforces both as secondary offenses, meaning it can cite a driver who crashes or causes a delay while not compliant. The fine is $100 plus a $33 surcharge, rising to $500 plus a $157 surcharge if the violation blocks a travel lane. For the pass between Summit County and Vail, see how high Vail Pass is and how winter closures work.
No operator can guarantee an arrival time on I-70. Epic Mountain Express’s policy says it is not responsible for missed flights caused by weather, road closures, construction or heavy traffic, and recommends travel insurance. For a departure from Vail, leave extra time on a storm day, and avoid booking the last flight out of Denver.
What should you check before you book?
- Book early for holiday weeks, and enter your flight number so the company can track delays.
- Compare per-person and per-vehicle prices for your group size and date, and add the airport and close-in fees.
- Read the cancellation window: 24 hours for a shared Epic Mountain Express ride and 72 hours for a private one.
- Count bags and ski bags, and ask where skis travel.
- Confirm the drop-off village. Beaver Creek, Avon, Edwards and Vail are separate stops, and an address in Avon is not in Vail.
- Ask for the driver’s phone number and the exact pickup door at the airport.
For the stretch between Avon and Vail, see how to get from Avon to Vail, Beaver Creek to Vail and the Vail map guide. For the Denver side, Denver to Vail covers the drive and things to do between Vail and Denver lists stops along I-70.
Sources checked October 3, 2026
Fares, policies and schedules were read from these official pages on October 3, 2026, and they change, so confirm before you book: Epic Mountain Express rates, booking policies and EGE shuttle page; Eagle County Regional Airport ground transportation and rental cars; Denver International Airport mountain carriers; Bustang West Line; RTD fares; Core Transit fares and Valley Route; Town of Vail parking; Vail Resorts getting here; CDOT traction and chain laws, CDOT winter driving FAQ and COtrip.
