Chicago is located in the middle of the USA and its location makes it a major air and ground transportation hub.

By air

The most common way to get to Chicago is by plane. Air travel in the US is extremely busy and thanks to its huge airports, Chicago has connections to literally every relevant airport across the US.

However, Chicago also receives a large number of international flights from Central America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

There are 3 airports in and around Chicago. Detailed information on transport, services or terminals can be found under the links below.

Domestic flights

Chicago's central location allows for service within a 4 hour flight to all corners of the continental US.

Flights to all major cities across the country operate several times a day, and even several times an hour to the largest cities such as New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Miami, Washington and Boston.

You can usually find the cheapest tickets to Chicago on Southwest, but it's always worth comparing ticket prices on search engines that compare all available airlines.

A common price for one-way tickets to Chicago from elsewhere in the US is between 60 usd and 150 usd.

Compare flight prices to Chicago

International flights

All international flights are to O'Hare ORD airport.

There are direct flights to Chicago from all over the world.

The most frequent connections are to Mexico, European destinations (especially London), the Far East (Tokyo, Seoul) and the Middle East (Dubai, Doha, Istanbul).

By train

Passenger rail service in the US is not frequent at all, but Chicago is a major long-distance rail hub.

However, train travel here is more of a tourist attraction and travellers often take modern trains for multi-day journeys across the US.

All long-distance trains are operated by Amtrak. Tickets and schedules can be found at amtrak.com.

The following destinations can be reached by train from Chicago:

Destinations Travel time Average price Train name
Buffalo 10.5 hours 80 usd Lake Shore Limited
Dallas 22 hours 111 usd Texas Eagle
Denver 7 pm 127 usd California Zephyr
Detroit 5.5 hours 35 usd Wolverine
Los Angeles 43.5 hours 150 usd Southwest Chief
New Orleans 20 hours 140 usd City of New Orleans
New York 20 hours 135 usd Lake Shore Limited
St. Paul 7,5 hours 45 usd Borealis
Empire Builder
Salt Lake City 34 hours 155 usd California Zephyr
San Francisco-Emeryville 53 hours 180 usd California Zephyr
Seattle 46.5 hours 165 usd Empire Builder
Washington 17.5 hours 185 usd Capitol Limited

All long-distance trains depart from Union Station (see map).

By bus

Intercity and long-distance buses are a cheap but very inconvenient travel option.

It is worth travelling to Chicago by bus from destinations within the state of Illinois and the neighbouring states of Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, Missouri or Michicagn. Flights to these destinations are usually quite expensive, despite the short flight distances.

Tickets can be purchased from two major bus carriers in particular:

Below are examples of the most frequent bus routes that run at least 3 times a day and are well worth the cost compared to flying.

Destinations Travel time Average price Carriers
Davenport 3.5 hours 39 usd Flixbus.com
Megabus.com
Des Moines 7.5 hours 70 usd Flixbus.com
Megabus.com
Detroit 6 hours 32 usd Flixbus.com
Indianapolis 4 hours 30 usd Flixbus.com
Madison 3.5 hours 30 usd Flixbus.com
Milwaukee 2 hours 17 usd Flixbus.com
Minneapolis 9 hours 50 usd Flixbus.com
Moline 4.5 hours 30 usd Flixbus.com
Omaha 9.5 hours 150 usd Flixbus.com
St. Louis 6 hours 32 usd Flixbus.com
South Bend 2.5 hours 25 usd Flixbus.com

Both the Greyhound (Flixbus) and Megabus Central Bus Stations are located on the southwest edge of Downtown (see map) and are accessible via the Metro Blue Line via Clinton Station.

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