Chicago Midway International Airport

Chicago Midway is about 12 miles (19 km) southwest of the Loop, near the Stevenson Expressway (I-55). By car the drive usually takes 25 to 45 minutes, longer at rush hour. The CTA Orange Line runs from the airport station to the Loop in about 20 to 25 minutes, with no change of train.

Midway is closer. It sits about 12 miles southwest of the Loop, while O'Hare is farther out to the northwest. Midway is also smaller, with one terminal and three concourses, and most of its flights are on Southwest Airlines. Check your ticket for the code MDW or ORD, because the two airports are far apart.

Yes. The CTA Orange Line starts at the Midway station, beside the main parking garage and reached by an enclosed walkway from the terminal. Trains reach the Loop in about 20 to 25 minutes. It is the cheapest way downtown, though stations can mean stairs and some walking with luggage.

The taxi stand is on the lower level, inner lane, at Door 2, outside baggage claim. Follow the ground transportation signs after collecting your bags. Taxis go door to door anywhere in Chicago and are easiest with luggage or for addresses away from the Orange Line.

Rideshare pickups are on the lower level, center lane, outside baggage claim. The zones are color-coded: blue zones A and B at Doors 2 and 3, orange zones C and D at Doors 3 and 4, and green zones E and F at Door 4. Your app tells you which zone to use.

Midway has one terminal with three connected concourses, A, B and C, and 43 gates. The concourses meet at the Central Market food court past security, so passengers arriving on domestic flights can walk between them without screening again. All arriving passengers collect bags on the lower level of the main terminal.

Southwest Airlines is the main airline and flies to cities across the United States and to Mexico and the Caribbean. Delta flies to Atlanta, Detroit and Minneapolis/St. Paul, and Frontier, Allegiant and Volaris add routes to Florida, Denver, Cancún and several cities in Mexico.

Yes, a limited number. Southwest, Frontier and Volaris fly to Mexico and the Caribbean, including Cancún, Guadalajara, Morelia, Montego Bay and Punta Cana. International arrivals clear U.S. immigration and customs at the Federal Inspection Services facility in Concourse A before entering the terminal.

International visitors need a valid passport and either a U.S. visa or, for Visa Waiver Program nationals, an approved ESTA before boarding. You go through U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Concourse A, collect your bags and clear customs. U.S. citizens and residents use the same facility with their own lines.

Yes. The Club MDW opened in September 2024 in the Central Market next to gate B1, where the three concourses meet. Any passenger with a same-day boarding pass can buy a day pass, and Priority Pass members are admitted. It opens daily from 4:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

The main parking garage sits across from the terminal, linked by a walkway, for hourly and daily stays, and the CTA Orange Line station is on its east side. A larger economy garage serves longer trips. Drivers collecting passengers can wait free at the cell phone lot at 61st Street and Cicero Avenue.

Rental car companies operate from a consolidated Rental Car Facility near the airport. A shuttle runs to it around the clock from the lower level near baggage claim, so follow the rental car signs after collecting your bags. Allow extra time for the shuttle on your return.

The airport opened in 1927 as Chicago Municipal Airport, on a site first known as Chicago Air Park. It was renamed Midway in 1949 after the Battle of Midway. Its full name today is Chicago Midway International Airport, and travelers usually just call it Midway or MDW.