--- title: "Layover and connection guides · ORD Airport Guide" description: "Every ORD guide on layovers and connections: 8 guides, each answering one question. They include a two-hour layover at O'Hare: what you can do." url: "https://ordairportguide.com/guides/layovers-and-connections/" updated: "2026-11-03" airport: "ORD" type: "guide" --- > Independent guide, not the official ORD website. All pages: https://ordairportguide.com/llms.txt # Layover and connection guides Every ORD guide on layovers and connections: 8 guides, each answering one question. They include a two-hour layover at O'Hare: what you can do. Updated November 3, 2026 What you can do with the time between flights at ORD: how long a connection really needs, how to move between concourses without leaving security, what a long layover can hold, and what to do when the connection is tight. Each guide answers one of those questions. Looking for the listings themselves? They are on the [Connecting flights](https://ordairportguide.com/connections/) page. ![Bar stools and a small table on the Terminal 2 concourse at O'Hare, outside an open bar.](https://ordairportguide.com/images/ord/t2-f15-skybridge-stretch-v9-800.webp) [A two-hour layover at O'Hare: what you can do](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/two-hour-layover-at-ohare-what-you-can-do/) Two hours at O'Hare: Terminals 1, 2 and 3 connect behind security, Terminal 5 needs a bus or train. Where to eat near your gate, by concourse. - [Read your two gate letters first](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/two-hour-layover-at-ohare-what-you-can-do/#read-your-two-gate-letters-first) - [Inside Terminals 1, 2 and 3: find the gate, then eat](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/two-hour-layover-at-ohare-what-you-can-do/#inside-terminals-1-2-and-3-find-the-gate-then-eat) - [Where to eat by concourse](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/two-hour-layover-at-ohare-what-you-can-do/#where-to-eat-by-concourse) - [A lounge only helps if you can get in](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/two-hour-layover-at-ohare-what-you-can-do/#a-lounge-only-helps-if-you-can-get-in) - [Terminal 5 changes the math](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/two-hour-layover-at-ohare-what-you-can-do/#terminal-5-changes-the-math) - [Quick stops that cost little time](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/two-hour-layover-at-ohare-what-you-can-do/#quick-stops-that-cost-little-time) - [Sources](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/two-hour-layover-at-ohare-what-you-can-do/#sources) ![The empty Blue Line platform at O'Hare station beside its curved wall of yellow glass blocks, with the blue strip along the platform edge.](https://ordairportguide.com/images/ord/tunnel-to-blue-line-v33-800.webp) [Can you leave O'Hare on a layover?](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/can-you-leave-ohare-layover/) Leaving O'Hare mid-layover: the Blue Line takes 40 to 45 minutes to downtown, checkpoint hours set your return, and O'Hare lists no left-luggage service. - [How long does it take to get downtown?](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/can-you-leave-ohare-layover/#how-long-does-it-take-to-get-downtown) - [How do you get to the train?](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/can-you-leave-ohare-layover/#how-do-you-get-to-the-train) - [How do you get back through security?](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/can-you-leave-ohare-layover/#how-do-you-get-back-through-security) - [Carry your bags and have the boarding pass ready](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/can-you-leave-ohare-layover/#carry-your-bags-and-have-the-boarding-pass-ready) - [Landing from abroad: getting through CBP](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/can-you-leave-ohare-layover/#landing-from-abroad-getting-through-cbp) - [Sources](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/can-you-leave-ohare-layover/#sources) ![The checkerboard floor of Concourse B at O'Hare in patches of sun and shade, with a steel column and a cafe chair.](https://ordairportguide.com/images/ord/t1-c28-concourse-end-v10-800.webp) [How long do you need to connect at O'Hare?](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-long-do-you-need-connect-at-ohare/) O'Hare publishes no minimum connection time. Terminals 1 to 3 connect behind security. Terminal 5 takes the train, or the bus 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. - [Start with your two gate letters](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-long-do-you-need-connect-at-ohare/#start-with-your-two-gate-letters) - [Terminals 1, 2 and 3: follow the signs](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-long-do-you-need-connect-at-ohare/#terminals-1-2-and-3-follow-the-signs) - [Getting to and from Terminal 5](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-long-do-you-need-connect-at-ohare/#getting-to-and-from-terminal-5) - [Checkpoint hours when the bus isn’t running](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-long-do-you-need-connect-at-ohare/#checkpoint-hours-when-the-bus-isnt-running) - [Landing from outside the U.S.](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-long-do-you-need-connect-at-ohare/#landing-from-outside-the-us) - [Help along the way](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-long-do-you-need-connect-at-ohare/#help-along-the-way) - [Sources](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-long-do-you-need-connect-at-ohare/#sources) ![The round Goose Island sign and the white glazed dome above the Goose Island Beer Company bar on a Terminal 1 concourse at O'Hare.](https://ordairportguide.com/images/ord/t3-l10-concourse-stretch-v7-800.webp) [How to spend four hours at O'Hare](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-spend-four-hours-at-ohare/) Four hours at O'Hare: Chicago food by gate, who gets into the lounges, and the few minutes the airport publishes between terminals. - [The minutes the airport does publish](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-spend-four-hours-at-ohare/#the-minutes-the-airport-does-publish) - [Start with the meal](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-spend-four-hours-at-ohare/#start-with-the-meal) - [Pick one longer stop](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-spend-four-hours-at-ohare/#pick-one-longer-stop) - [Where to charge a phone or get online](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-spend-four-hours-at-ohare/#where-to-charge-a-phone-or-get-online) - [Which lounges you can use](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-spend-four-hours-at-ohare/#which-lounges-you-can-use) - [When the next flight is in Terminal 5](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-spend-four-hours-at-ohare/#when-the-next-flight-is-in-terminal-5) - [Sources](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/how-spend-four-hours-at-ohare/#sources) ![The white ceiling and flared columns of the new concourse hall at O'Hare's Terminal 5.](https://ordairportguide.com/images/ord/t5-m25-interfaith-corridor-v10-800.webp) [Quiet places at O'Hare without a lounge: what the airport lists](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/quiet-places-at-ohare-without-lounge/) O'Hare lists no quiet zone open to everyone. Find its Interfaith Room, Yoga Room, chapel and sensory-map Calm Spots, with hours and house rules. - [The only room called a quiet room is the USO’s](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/quiet-places-at-ohare-without-lounge/#the-only-room-called-a-quiet-room-is-the-usos) - [The three rooms and what each one asks of you](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/quiet-places-at-ohare-without-lounge/#the-three-rooms-and-what-each-one-asks-of-you) - [Where the sensory maps mark a Calm Spot](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/quiet-places-at-ohare-without-lounge/#where-the-sensory-maps-mark-a-calm-spot) - [Rooms that look quiet but have another job](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/quiet-places-at-ohare-without-lounge/#rooms-that-look-quiet-but-have-another-job) - [If you’ll pay or leave the gates](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/quiet-places-at-ohare-without-lounge/#if-youll-pay-or-leave-the-gates) - [Sources](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/quiet-places-at-ohare-without-lounge/#sources) ![Inside the yoga room in the Rotunda of Terminal 3 at O'Hare, with its wood floor and a basket of mats.](https://ordairportguide.com/images/ord/t3-yoga-room-door-v4-800.webp) [Showers, spa and yoga at O'Hare: what the airport lists](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/showers-spa-yoga-at-ohare-what-airport-lists/) O'Hare lists no general-use shower rooms. It lists a Yoga Room (6 a.m. to 10 p.m.) and Terminal Getaway Spas at Gates B12 and H1 (7 a.m. to 8 p.m.). - [The Yoga Room asks for shoes off and a quiet phone](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/showers-spa-yoga-at-ohare-what-airport-lists/#the-yoga-room-asks-for-shoes-off-and-a-quiet-phone) - [What the Terminal Getaway Spas sell, and what the airport doesn’t post](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/showers-spa-yoga-at-ohare-what-airport-lists/#what-the-terminal-getaway-spas-sell-and-what-the-airport-doesnt-post) - [Showers: none for general use, and three places with strings attached](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/showers-spa-yoga-at-ohare-what-airport-lists/#showers-none-for-general-use-and-three-places-with-strings-attached) - [Reaching them from your terminal](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/showers-spa-yoga-at-ohare-what-airport-lists/#reaching-them-from-your-terminal) - [Sources](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/showers-spa-yoga-at-ohare-what-airport-lists/#sources) ![The lawn, hedge and brick path of Grant Park in Chicago on a grey day, with downtown towers beyond the trees.](https://ordairportguide.com/images/ord/blue-line-ohare-stairs-v13-800.webp) [Six hours or more in Chicago from O'Hare](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/six-hours-or-more-chicago-from-ohare/) Six hours from O'Hare: the Blue Line takes 40 to 45 minutes to downtown. The last checkpoint closes at 11 p.m. in Terminals 1 and 2, 10:30 p.m. in Terminal 3. - [What six hours leaves you](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/six-hours-or-more-chicago-from-ohare/#what-six-hours-leaves-you) - [Working out your latest return](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/six-hours-or-more-chicago-from-ohare/#working-out-your-latest-return) - [The train runs all night](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/six-hours-or-more-chicago-from-ohare/#the-train-runs-all-night) - [A taxi or rideshare instead](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/six-hours-or-more-chicago-from-ohare/#a-taxi-or-rideshare-instead) - [What the airport publishes about getting back in](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/six-hours-or-more-chicago-from-ohare/#what-the-airport-publishes-about-getting-back-in) - [Sources](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/six-hours-or-more-chicago-from-ohare/#sources) ![The reception counter and massage chair at the Terminal Getaway spa in Terminal 3 at O'Hare.](https://ordairportguide.com/images/ord/t3-h1-terminal-getaway-spa-v5-800.webp) [Things to do at O'Hare](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/things-do-at-ohare/) What O'Hare lists besides food: Barbara's Bookstore in Terminals 1 to 3, a Yoga Room, a spa, a Family Lounge and public art, with gates and hours. - [Read, browse, buy](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/things-do-at-ohare/#read-browse-buy) - [Where can you stretch or get a massage?](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/things-do-at-ohare/#where-can-you-stretch-or-get-a-massage) - [Kids get a Family Lounge in Terminal 2](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/things-do-at-ohare/#kids-get-a-family-lounge-in-terminal-2) - [The airport keeps a public art collection](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/things-do-at-ohare/#the-airport-keeps-a-public-art-collection) - [Quiet rooms and traveler services](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/things-do-at-ohare/#quiet-rooms-and-traveler-services) - [Sources](https://ordairportguide.com/guides/things-do-at-ohare/#sources)