Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain Airport

About Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain Airport

Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport – also less commonly known as Wold–Chamberlain Field – is a joint civil-military public international airport serving the Twin Cities in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is located in Fort Snelling Unorganized Territory and sections of the airport border the city limits of Minneapolis and Richfield; however, the airport property is not part of any city or school district. Although situated within the unorganized territory, the airport is centrally located within 10 miles of both downtown Minneapolis and downtown Saint Paul. In addition to primarily hosting commercial flights from major American and some international airlines, the airport is also home to several United States Air Force and Minnesota Air National Guard operations. The airport is also used by a variety of air cargo operators. MSP, along with Detroit Metropolitan Airport, regularly contends for the busiest airport in the Upper Midwest. Source: "Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport" by Wikipedia contributors (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis%E2%80%93Saint_Paul_International_Airport), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Edit history on the linked Wikipedia page.

Overview

Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain Airport is the main commercial airport for Minneapolis, United States. Its IATA code is MSP and its ICAO code is KMSP. The clocks here run on America/Chicago, the runway sits roughly 850 ft above sea level, and the airport is a large international gateway, with around 218 scheduled departure pairs in the public OpenFlights schedule plus onward connections through partner airlines.

Terminals and concourses

Most travellers will pass through one of a handful of terminal areas at Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain Airport. Bigger fields tend to split domestic and international traffic into separate halls, each with its own arrivals area, immigration counters, customs and a landside check-in concourse. Signage is bilingual wherever the local language and English share the airport, and walking between terminals at Minneapolis's main gateway is usually possible on foot. Where the aprons stretch more than a kilometre, a shuttle bus or an automated people mover takes over.

Lounges and amenities

Lounge options at Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain Airport match what you would expect from a large international gateway. There is normally at least one airline-run lounge for premium-cabin passengers and elite-status flyers, plus an independent or contract lounge that sells day passes and accepts programmes like Priority Pass, DragonPass, Plaza Premium and LoungeKey. Inside, you can usually count on hot food, espresso, charging at every seat, decent Wi-Fi, and showers at the busier terminals. Quiet zones, prayer rooms and family areas tend to sit landside near check-in.

Getting to and from the airport

Getting between Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain Airport and central Minneapolis is straightforward. Licensed taxis queue at marked curbs outside arrivals, with metered or zoned fares posted at the rank. Ride-hail apps have a designated pickup point, often one level up at departures or in a nearby lot. Public transport varies by city. A primary gateway like this one almost always offers an express train, a metro line or a dedicated airport bus running from before the first wave of departures until after the last arrival. Long-stay parking, rental car desks and hotel shuttle stops are clustered together on the landside.

Tips for travellers

A few things worth knowing for Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain Airport. Aim to arrive at least two hours before a domestic flight and three hours before an international one, especially during peak banks. Local time is America/Chicago, so plan your transfers around the time difference if you are coming in from another zone. Save a screenshot of your boarding pass before you leave the house, since terminal Wi-Fi is hit and miss when it gets busy. If you are connecting on a partner airline, check whether your bag is tagged through to the final destination, because Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain Airport handles a mix of in-terminal and inter-terminal connections. With 218 direct destinations on the public schedule, this is a useful node for both point-to-point trips and onward connections across United States and the wider region.

More guides for MSP

Four extra pages dig deeper into lounges, layovers, getting to and from the airport, and the terminal layout itself. Open whichever one matches the problem in front of you.

Direct destinations from MSP

These are the cities you can fly to nonstop from Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain Airport, based on the published schedule. Tap any one to open its own terminal, lounge and route guide.