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.
- Chicago O’Hare ORD - One of the largest airports in the world, with all long-haul flights
- Chicago Midway MDW - a major domestic hub for low-cost airline Southwest and select Delta flights,
- Chicago Rockford RFD - a small airport over 100 km away serving only a few flights a day by Allegiant Air
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:
- Flixbus.com (affiliated with Greyhound)
- Megabus.com
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.
