O’Hare Airport

Fresh art at O’Hare Int’l Airport

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If you’re traveling through Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD) over the holidays and are passing through Terminal 5 (T5) you’re in for an art-filled treat.

The installation of a $3.5 million public art commission featuring work by more than 20 Chicago artists is nearly complete and it’s pretty darn impressive.

Here is a selection of the works you’ll be able to see.

Above is a part of the piece titled a murmuration by Jina Valentine, which consists of 600 wall-mounted convex aluminum discs of varying sizes on view in the Passenger Level Concourse.

The artwork is a data visualization mapping over 200 years of immigration to the Illinois region. The color shifts as you move from one end of the piece to the other, illustrating the changes in immigration patterns over time.

Shinsekai Yori / From the New World (above), by Mayumi Lake is on view in the T5 International Arrivals Corridor.

Buffalo Chart at O’Hare, by Bernard Williams, is also in the International Arrivals Corridor.

In addition to all the new works on view in Terminal 5, you’ll find art in Terminal 1, Terminal 2, the Terminal 3 Rotunda, the muli-modal transportation facility, and elsewhere on the O’Hare Airport Campus.

Travel Tidbits from airports near you

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Please tune in Tuesday to part 2 of my ‘appearance’ on the Dallas Love Field podcast, Love Field Stories. We’ll be chatting about the great art collection at the airport and learning the stories behind some of the pieces.

Airport traditions are back: Flowers on Mother’s Day

Since 2009 (except for a pandemic pause) Jacksonville International Airport (JAX) has been handling out carnations to moms traveling through the airport on Mother’s Day. We’re glad to see the tradition continued this year.

Discounts for Military at O’Hare

During May active, retired, and veteran members of the US Military will be eligible for discounts at both O’Hare and Midway Airports.

Restaurant Week at ORD & Midway Airports

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Chicago Restaurant Week is underway now through April 4, with special events and a wide variety of prix fixe menus offered throughout the city.

The food festival extends to Chicago’s airports.

Restaurants at both O’Hare and Midway Airports are offering special meal and drink pairings and there are chef demos and special events as well.

The airports are also sharing recipes and celebrating iconic dishes with short videos all week.

Here’s a sampling.

Vote for the airport amenity of the week.

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We used to think that putting roulette wheel numbers on the baggage carousel was the coolest thing you could do with that space.

MSP’s new bag claim carousel

But Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) has done something better.

Instead of the annoying buzzer and flashing light that announces the arrival of bags at some airports, the newly redesigned bag carousels at MSP airport send up the alert with nature sounds and a light show.

We’re making this the first nomination for Airport Amenity of the Week.

Hand washing help

Our second nomination for Airport Amenity of the Week is this high-tech hand-washing station Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) installed to encourage travelers to wash their hands and “scrub away germs in 12 seconds flat!”

O’Hare Airport’s new Twitter Bio

Pete Buttigieg, who has been named transportation secretary nominee by President-elect Joe Biden, put a spotlight on O’Hare International Airport (ORD) during his formal introduction on Wednesday.

During the event, Buttigieg noted that he proposed to his husband, Chasten, at O’Hare. “Don’t let anybody tell you that O’Hare isn’t romantic,” he said.

Avgeeks know that.

So does United Airlines, which sent out a tweet identifying the engagement gate.

And O’Hare Airport even change its Twitter bio.

It now begins “Place of romance.”

Which would you pick as Airport Amenity of the Week?

MSP’s bag carousel? PIT’s hand washing station? O’Hare’s new status as place of romance?

Let us know in the comments section which of these airport stories you’d pick as Airport Amenity of the Week.

And feel free to nominate an airport amenity for next week’s Airport Amenity of the Week.

Ready for Halloween? Airports seem to be.

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We’ve been keeping an eye on how airports are gearing up to celebrate Halloween this year.

Pumpkin Palooza

In Chicago, O’Hare International and Midway Airports are hosting pumpkin carving contests.

Cute Canine Costumes

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) shared a photo of one of its its therapy dogs, Buddy Holly, in a Halloween costume.

We’ll be keeping watch for more.

Working on Halloween?

Denver International Airport (DEN) is sharing some Halloween-themed Zoom backgrounds.

Winning in Wichita

And Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport (ICT) is having way too much fun with Halloween this year.

Room for more

Spot a great Halloween celebration at an airport? Please snap a photo and send it along.

Signs of the times: cool social distance signs at airports

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Signs and floor stickers reminding travelers to keep their distance in airport terminals are necessary right now.

We get that.

But at least some airports are giving their signs some local character.

In the sign above, you’ll see that Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) is using Chinook salmon as a measuring tool. The airport has also enlisted the help of a moose and a Bald Eagle

These are animals locals will listen to.



Harrisburg International Airport (MDT), which is nearby Hershey Park in Pennsylvania, uses Kisses chocolates as their measuring tool.

We’re curious about how they figured out that 72 Kisses chocolates equals six feet and hope whomever was asked to lay the candies out to figure this out got to eat them.

Springfield-Branson National Airport (SGF) has a long-running thing for plastic pink flamingos. So it makes sense that a flamingo pops up in the airport’s social distancing signs.

In Chicago, they use these cute floor stickers at O’Hare and Midway Airports to remind people to keep their distance.

And at San Diego International Airport (SAN) it makes sense that the measuring stick is a surfboard. Passengers are urged to stay at least one surfboard apart.

We’ll keep adding to this collection of creative airport social distance signs and stickers as new ones arrive.

If you see a one in your travels that you think fits, please snap a photo and send it along.

Finally! Unlimited free Wi-Fi now at O’Hare and Midway Airports

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Free Wi-FI at airport

They’re late the party, but last week the Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA) announced that unlimited free Wi-Fi from Boingo Wirelss is now available at O’Hare International and Midway International Airports.

Until now, free Wi-Fi at these airports was offered for just 30-minutes, but the system is now upgraded to a free, unlimited service that offers streaming capability, courtesy of advertisements that show up every 45 minutes.

Passengers still have the option of buying faster, ad-free Wi-Fi by buying a one-day pass or using a Boingo subscription.

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo at O’Hare; Kentucky Derby at CVG and Louisville

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https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e3-3418-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Courtesy New York Public Library, via Flickr Commons

Travelers passing through Chicago’s O’Hare Airport get to celebrate Cinco de Mayo a day early.

Today, Thursday, starting at 3:30 between the H and K concourses near Tortas Frontera, there will be a live mariachi band, a flair bartender giving margarita demos and tastings, giveaways and a musical dance performance. All courtesy HMSHost.

And from 2 to 4 p.m. on Friday at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG), the folks from Seven Oaks Farm will be bringing by their miniature-therapy horses decked out in Derby attire, because this weekend is the 143rd Kentucky Derby.  Can’t wait to see what they’ll be wearing!

 

 

And to celebrate the Kentucky Derby, on Thursday and Friday at Louisville International Airport arriving passengers will be welcomed by live music and greeters offering complimentary Woodford Reserve Bourbon Balls in the terminal’s airside rotunda.

A bugler’s “Call to the Post,” which usually signals the arrival of horses on the racetrack for their race, announces the arrival of bags at baggage claim carousel.

And, for those who may be leaving Louisville with souvenir bottles of bourbon and Derby glasses in their checked luggage, the airport ambassadors will have complimentary bubble-wrap packing stations set up near  the airline ticket counters on Sunday, May 7, beginning at 4 a.m.

 

Food fest at Chicago’s airports

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O’Hare International Airport’s second-annual Ticket to Taste takes place next week – on January 24, 2017 – and free tickets are available now.

The event takes place post-security in Terminal 5, but is open to anyone who nabs one of the tickets and show up between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m for entertainment, cooking demonstrations and discounted meals.

There’s even free parking

Participating restaurants include Hub 51, R.J. Grunts Burgers & Fries and The Goddess and Grocer along with Tortas Frontera by Rick Bayless and Tocco.

Details on getting tickets O’Hare’s Ticket to Taste are available here.

Can’t make it on the 24th? Don’t worry.

Ticket to Taste is the kick-off event for the Chicago Department of Aviation’s Airport Restaurant Week, which runs from January 27 through February 9 at both O’Hare and Midway airports and coincides with Chicago Restaurant Week.

Airport Restaurant Week includes live cooking demonstrations from airport chefs, celebrity guest chefs, and college student chefs as well as free samplings and discounts on special selections at 150 airport food establishments.

For schedules and more details about sampling schedules and specially-discounted meals during Restaurant Week at O’Hare and Midway click here.

Yum!

Air Carnival at O’Hare & Midway Airports

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ORD air carnival

Send in the clowns – well, at least the stilt walkers and the balloon-animal makers…

This summer Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway Airports are bringing back the Air Carnival – a program designed for children but certainly entertaining for all.

Air Carnival will feature face painting, balloon sculpting and stilt walkers at various spots in the terminals each week, as well as music, free food samples (including cheesecake and cotton candy) and appearances by Ronald McDonald, Mr. Potato Head and Anna, Elsa and Olaf from Disney’s popular movie, “Frozen”.

MIDWAY BALLOON SCULPTING

The Air Carnival will take place each Thursday in Midway Airport and each Friday in O’Hare from June 16th through August 12th from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Air Carnival kicks off today (Wednesday, June 15) at Midway with The Chicago Blues All Stars playing in the Midway Boulevard food court starting at 12:30 p.m.

You can see the full schedule for Air Carnival activities scheduled at O’Hare here and at Midway here.