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Transportation and Parking

Flight To/From South Bend

We encourage conference attendees to take advantage of the additional flight to South Bend International Airport  (SBN), because the bus service that previously existed between Chicago airports and the Notre Dame campus is no longer operating. If you decide to do so, you will need to go ahead and arrange your arrival at Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) (or other Intl. Airport, see below) ahead of time of the flight to SBN. The flight from ORD to SBN typically takes 30-60 minutes, but due to the time zone change from CST to EST, it will appear as 1 hour longer on your itinerary. Currently, there are three connections from ORD to SBN:

UNITED 4791 Departing from ORD at 10:35 AM
UNITED 5564 Departing from ORD at 2:10 PM
UNITED 4636 Departing from ORD at 6:10 PM

If you intend to arrive in the USA at another major international Airport, consult a connection to SBN based on the list of flights arriving in SBN.  

You may consider flying to SBN also for practical reasons, such as if you want to depart home overseas just after the conference and you don't plan to visit Chicago. The main advantage of flying overseas from SBN is that it is a relatively small airport, and TSA and check-in usually take much less time than you spend at large US international airports.

SBN is located about 15 minutes by car from the Notre Dame campus. 

If you choose to rent a car, the airport has representatives from most of the major car rental agencies.

Flight To/From Chicago

Flights to the two major Chicago area airports, O’Hare International Airport or Midway International Airport, are often cheaper but require additional commute to South Bend by car or rail. 

You can take public transit from the airports into downtown Chicago (Chicago Transit Authority; Blue Line from O’Hare or Orange Line from Midway) and catch the South Shore Line commuter train, which departs from Millennium Station and terminates at the South Bend Regional Airport.

Amtrak trains travel multiple times daily to and from Chicago to South Bend.

If you choose to drive, South Bend is about 2.5 hours from O’Hare Airport and 1.5 to 2.0 hours from Midway Airport, depending on traffic. The freeways to Northern Indiana from the southeastern edge of the city require toll payments, as does the Indiana Toll Road (I-80/90) to South Bend. A one-way drive from Chicago to South Bend should cost roughly $15-$20 USD in tolls.

Transpo offers local bus service in and around the city of South Bend.

Parking

Visitor parking is available at the following locations:

  • Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore (one-hour parking)
  • Morris Inn (for guests of the hotel or its restaurants)
  • Legends of Notre Dame (for customers only)
  • Visitor Lot (paid parking)
  • Joyce and Compton Lots (paid parking)

Please visit map.nd.edu and select Overlays/Visitor Parking to view these areas on a map. ParkMobile offers multiple ways to pay for parking. Note: There are different guidelines and designations for parking during home football games and other athletics events. Visit GameDay Parking for more information.