Direct Flights from Chicago to Bloomington/Normal
Bloomington/Normal · Illinois
Nonstop service from ORD to BMI on American. Here's the schedule at a glance — plus what to do once you land.
How rare is this nonstop?
Only 6 cities have a nonstop to Bloomington/Normal, so this is a route worth knowing about — most travelers connect to get there.
How long to go to Bloomington/Normal for, from Chicago
45m in the air, 116 miles: short enough that a single night in Bloomington/Normal is worth it, and a day trip is not absurd.
About Bloomington/Normal
Bloomington, pop. 77,000, is a city in the Midwestern state of Illinois in the United States of America, on the classic Route 66 highway across the country. With neighboring Normal, pop. 52,000, it forms a combined community of about 130,000 known locally as the Twin Cities. Illinois Wesleyan University is in Bloomington, and is not to be confused with Illinois State University in Normal.
Summary from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA).
Top things to do in Bloomington/Normal
- The Robert Allerton Park is a 1,517-acre (614 ha) park, nature center, and conference center located in the rural Piatt County township of Willow Branch, near Monticello, Illinois, on the upper Sangamon River.
- Miller Park Zoo is a zoo located in Miller Park, a public park in Bloomington, Illinois, United States. It is administered by the Parks and Recreation Department of the City of Bloomington.
- The Metamora Courthouse State Historic Site is a historic American courthouse located in Metamora, Illinois, the former county seat of Woodford County.
- The Mabery Gelvin Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located within the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve. It is located just off State Route 47, 1 mile (1.6 km) north of Interstate 74, in Mahomet, Illinois.
- The Fell Arboretum is an arboretum located across the campus of Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois.
- Spider Hill is an annual haunted event held at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe, Illinois to celebrate Halloween. The attractions include a trail, haunted house, and a paranormal tour.
- The Adlai E. Stevenson I House is a historic house located at 104 West Walnut Street in Metamora, Illinois. The house was the home of U.S. Vice President Adlai Stevenson I.
- The Monticello Railway Museum is a non-profit heritage railroad museum located in Monticello, Illinois, about 18 miles west of Champaign, Illinois.
- The Farm Creek Section, also known as the Farmdale Geologic Exposure, is a hillside near East Peoria, Illinois that clearly showed geological strata.
- The Prairie Aviation Museum is an aviation museum located at Central Illinois Regional Airport in Bloomington, Illinois.
- Weldon Springs State Park is an Illinois state park; the primary 550-acre (220 ha) area is located near Clinton, Illinois, while a secondary area is located near Monticello, Illinois.
- The Heritage in Flight Museum is an aviation museum located at the Logan County Airport in Lincoln, Illinois.
Attraction descriptions from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA); place data from Wikidata (CC0).
Bloomington/Normal weather, compared with Chicago
Within 2° of Chicago on the annual average, so pack much as you would at home — but the two cities do not track each other month to month:
- January
- Bloomington/Normal 33°F · Chicago 31°F · much the same
- April
- Bloomington/Normal 62°F · Chicago 59°F · 4° warmer
- July
- Bloomington/Normal 84°F · Chicago 84°F · much the same
- October
- Bloomington/Normal 64°F · Chicago 62°F · 2° warmer
January bottoms out near 33°F — a real coat, not a layer.
Daily highs averaged from Meteostat station records (CC BY 4.0), measured at each city's airport.
Planning a trip to Bloomington/Normal
- Best time to visit
- The best time to visit Bloomington/Normal is April–May and September–October, when daytime highs are a comfortable 62–77°F.
- How long to stay
- Bloomington/Normal rewards a longer visit — a full week lets you explore its many sights, from Robert Allerton Park, Miller Park Zoo, and Metamora Courthouse State Historic Site and beyond.
Frequently asked questions
- Is there a direct flight from Chicago to Bloomington/Normal?
- Yes — you can fly nonstop from Chicago (ORD) to Bloomington/Normal (BMI) on American.
- Which airlines fly nonstop from Chicago to Bloomington/Normal?
- American flies nonstop between Chicago (ORD) and Bloomington/Normal (BMI).
- How many nonstop flights are there from Chicago to Bloomington/Normal?
- There are about 2 nonstop departures per day (roughly 14 per week) from Chicago to Bloomington/Normal.
- How far is Bloomington/Normal from Chicago?
- Bloomington/Normal is about 116 miles from Chicago by air.
- What is there to do in Bloomington/Normal?
- Popular things to do include Robert Allerton Park, Miller Park Zoo, Metamora Courthouse State Historic Site, Mabery Gelvin Botanical Garden, and more.
More nonstop destinations from Chicago near Bloomington/Normal
Airports near Chicago
The closest other departure airports to Chicago — each opens up more nonstop destinations.