Flying to Cedar Rapids, Iowa
The Eastern Iowa Airport (CID) serves Iowa's second city — home to the National Czech and Slovak Museum, Grant Wood's birthplace region, and the world's largest oat mill. FareOptic compares Delta, American, and United for the cheapest fare into Cedar Rapids.
Flights to The Eastern Iowa Airport (CID)
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Why Visit Cedar Rapids?
America's largest Czech heritage museum, Grant Wood's American Gothic country, a Czech neighborhood reborn as a food hall, and the city that smells like oatmeal for good historical reasons
National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library -- The Largest Czech and Slovak Museum Outside Europe, a Smithsonian Affiliate Documenting the Immigration Experience of 1.4 Million Bohemian and Moravian Immigrants to America
Czech Crystal and Folk Art and Embroidered Kroj Costumes in a Purpose-Built Museum in Cedar Rapids' Czech Village, a World-Class Library of Czech and Slovak-Language Genealogical Records, and the Story of How Bohemian Immigrants Built America's Corn Belt Farm Economy from the 1860s to the 1920sThe National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library (1400 Inspiration Place SW, Cedar Rapids -- a purpose-built museum and research library completed 1995, expanded and rebuilt after the 2008 Iowa flood, reopened 2012; a Smithsonian Institution affiliate; the largest Czech and Slovak museum in the United States and the largest Czech/Slovak museum outside the Czech Republic and Slovakia; admission approximately $10-14 adult; open Tuesday-Saturday) documents the migration of approximately 1.4 million Bohemian (Czech) and Moravian immigrants to the United States between 1848 and 1924, with particular focus on the Midwest settlement experience in Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Texas, and Minnesota. Cedar Rapids was the center of Czech settlement in Iowa: the city's Czech Village neighborhood (a district of Czech-owned businesses, Czech Catholic and Bohemian Brethren churches, and Czech-language newspapers that flourished from the 1870s through the 1940s) is the historical core from which the museum grew. The museum's collection strengths: (1) Czech folk art and craft objects (hand-embroidered kroj [traditional Czech regional costumes] from Moravia, Bohemia, and Slovakia; Bohemian glass and crystal from the Sudeten glassmaking tradition; painted Easter eggs [kraslice]; wood-carved figures; and the decorative arts that Central European immigrant women brought to Iowa as their cultural inheritance); (2) immigration documentation (ship manifests, naturalization papers, correspondence in Czech and English, and the personal documents of Iowa's Czech immigrant families); (3) Czech Sokol gymnastic tradition (the Sokol movement, a Czech gymnastic and civic organization founded 1862 and transplanted to American Czech communities in the 1860s-1870s, was one of the primary institutions that maintained Czech cultural identity in America for three generations); and (4) Czech-language press (original issues of Iowa's Czech-language newspapers, of which there were more than 30 at the turn of the 20th century -- more than any other European-language press in Iowa).
Cedar Rapids' Czech Heritage -- How Bohemian and Moravian Immigrants Made Iowa's Second-Largest City a Center of Czech-American Culture and What That Heritage Means Today
Czech immigrants arrived in Linn County, Iowa beginning in the 1850s (the Krejci family, the first documented Czech settler in the county, arrived in 1852) and by 1900 constituted approximately 10-12% of Cedar Rapids' population -- a higher concentration of Bohemian immigrants than any other American city except Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood. The Czech immigrant community in Cedar Rapids built: (1) three Czech-language newspapers (the Pokrok [Progress], the Slovan Americký, and the Listy z Prahy -- collectively reaching 15,000 subscribers at their 1910 peak); (2) 12 Czech mutual aid and fraternal organizations (the Cesko-Slovanský Podporující Spolek [CSP], the Jednota Táborítů, and the Česko-Moravský Bratrský Spolek, among others, providing life insurance, unemployment assistance, and cultural programming to immigrant families before government safety nets existed); (3) four Czech-language churches (two Catholic, one Reformed, one Bohemian Brethren); and (4) a commercial district in Czech Village (16th Avenue SW) of Czech-owned grocery stores, butchers, taverns, and businesses. The Czech community's agricultural influence was equally significant: Bohemian and Moravian farmers who settled the loess hills south of Cedar Rapids in the 1860s-1880s introduced farming practices from central European grain cultivation that adapted well to Iowa's similar climate and soils, and the Czech-American farm community that grew up in Linn, Benton, and Jones counties became one of the most prosperous agricultural communities in Iowa by 1900.
Grant Wood and the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art -- The Iowa Regionalist Painter Who Created 'American Gothic' (1930) and the Cedar Rapids Museum That Holds the Largest Collection of His Work
The Pitchfork-Holding Iowa Farmer and His Daughter in the Most Reproduced Painting in American Art History, the 'American Gothic House' in Eldon Iowa 75 Miles South Where Wood Found His Models, and a Cedar Rapids Museum That Holds 50+ Works from the Iowa Regionalist PeriodGrant Wood (1891-1942 -- born in Anamosa, Iowa, 25 miles northeast of Cedar Rapids; lived and worked in Cedar Rapids from 1910 to 1934; taught art at McKinley Junior High School in Cedar Rapids while developing his painting style; founder of the Iowa Regionalist movement in American painting; best known for 'American Gothic' [1930], now in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago) is the most famous artist in Iowa's history and the painter whose 'American Gothic' is the most reproduced and parodied painting in American art history. The Cedar Rapids Museum of Art (410 Third Avenue SE, Cedar Rapids -- an AAM-accredited museum founded 1905; admission approximately $10 adult; Tuesday-Sunday; the largest art museum in Iowa by collection size) holds the definitive collection of Grant Wood's work: 50+ paintings, drawings, prints, and preparatory studies, including 'Arbor Day' [1932], 'Young Corn' [1931], 'Stone City, Iowa' [1930 -- Wood's masterwork of Iowa landscape painting, depicting the Cedar River valley near Anamosa in a stylized, rounded-hills style influenced by Flemish Renaissance painting], and the full series of illustrated lithographs. The museum also holds the Marvin Cone collection (Wood's Cedar Rapids teaching colleague and fellow Iowa Regionalist, with 130 works) and a strong collection of Iowa artists from the 1880s through the present. The American Gothic House (300 American Gothic Street, Eldon, Iowa -- 75 miles south of Cedar Rapids; free, open daily; a Carpenter Gothic cottage built 1881-1882, now a State Historic Site) is the house Wood depicted in the background of 'American Gothic' -- the State Historical Society of Iowa provides Gothic-style props (pitchfork, overalls, apron) for visitor photographs in front of the house.
American Gothic and Its Cultural Afterlife -- How a Single Iowa Painting Became the Most Parodied Image in American Art History and What Grant Wood Actually Painted
Grant Wood painted 'American Gothic' in 1930 after seeing the Carpenter Gothic cottage in Eldon, Iowa and deciding to 'paint the kind of people I fancied should live in that house.' Wood's models were his sister Nan Wood Graham (the 'daughter' in the painting -- not the wife, as is commonly assumed) and his dentist Dr. Byron McKeeby (the 'farmer' with the pitchfork). The painting was submitted to the Art Institute of Chicago's 43rd Annual Exhibition of American Paintings and Sculpture in 1930 and won the bronze medal; the Art Institute purchased it immediately for $300. 'American Gothic' attracted immediate controversy: the Iowa press interpreted the painting as a criticism of rural Iowans (hostile, narrow, Protestant, resistant to progress), and Grant Wood spent years defending it as a celebration, not a satire, of Midwestern rural character. The Art Institute's purchase price of $300 represents one of the best-valued acquisitions in American art museum history -- the painting, which anchors the Art Institute's American art galleries, is now insured for an estimated $100 million and is the most recognized American painting in the world, ahead of Whistler's 'Arrangement in Grey and Black' and Sargent's 'Madame X.' The parody tradition began almost immediately (the first known 'American Gothic' parody appeared in a magazine in 1931) and now encompasses an estimated 10,000+ commercial adaptations, political cartoons, advertising images, and art parodies -- the pitchfork-and-couple format has been applied to virtually every cultural and political topic of the past 95 years.
NewBo City Market and the New Bohemia Arts District -- Cedar Rapids' Czech Heritage Neighborhood Transformed into a Food Hall, Brewery, and Arts District in the Formerly Industrial Czech Village
A 21,000-Square-Foot Public Market in a Restored 1921 Industrial Building, 35 Vendors of Local Food and Craft, the Parlor City Food Hall, Ohnward Fine Arts Center, Local Breweries, and the Czech Village Historic District One Block NorthNewBo City Market (1100 11th Street SW, Cedar Rapids -- a 21,000-square-foot public market in a restored 1921 industrial building in the New Bohemia [NewBo] arts district, immediately south of the Czech Village historic neighborhood; open Tuesday-Sunday; 35 local food and craft vendors, a brewery taproom, prepared food vendors, artisan makers, and a weekend farmers market) is the anchor of Cedar Rapids' most dynamic neighborhood: New Bohemia (NewBo) is the city's Czech heritage neighborhood repurposed into a mixed-use creative district, with the Czech Village historic commercial strip (16th Avenue SW -- the original 1880s-1940s Czech business district with surviving storefronts, the Czech Museum, and the Czech Village bakeries and butchers) directly adjacent. The NewBo district's development from 2010 to the present represents one of the most successful neighborhood revitalization projects in Iowa: formerly vacant industrial buildings along the Cedar River have been converted to apartments, studios, restaurants, and the market, creating a walkable arts and food district within walking distance of downtown. The district's institutions: (1) NewBo City Market (local farmers, cheesemakers, bakers, and artisan food producers at the Saturday farmers market; week-round local food vendors including Parlor City café, Middle Eastern food, and local coffee roasters); (2) Lion Bridge Brewing (100 7th Ave SW -- a craft brewery in a converted industrial space, one of the anchors of the NewBo food and drink scene); (3) the Ohnward Fine Arts Center (the performing arts venue for the district, presenting Cedar Rapids theater, music, and community events); and (4) the Czech Village Museum (16th Avenue SW -- the historic storefront museum documenting Czech immigration in Cedar Rapids, adjacent to the surviving Czech Village bakeries and specialty food shops).
The 2008 Iowa Flood and Cedar Rapids' Recovery -- How the Worst Flood in Iowa's Recorded History Destroyed 10 Square Miles of Cedar Rapids and What the City Built in Response
The June 2008 Cedar River flood (the flood of record for the Cedar River at Cedar Rapids, cresting at 31.12 feet on June 13, 2008 -- 19 feet above flood stage, nearly 12 feet higher than the previous record flood of 1929) inundated approximately 10 square miles of Cedar Rapids, including the entire Czech Village and NewBo area, the downtown business district, 1,300 blocks of residential neighborhoods, and the National Czech and Slovak Museum building (the museum's entire first floor was destroyed, including irreplaceable artifacts and archival materials). The flood displaced approximately 10,000 residents, destroyed or severely damaged 5,000 structures, and caused approximately $6 billion in damages -- the costliest natural disaster in Iowa's history. Cedar Rapids' flood recovery became a national model for managed retreat and flood resilience: (1) the city acquired and demolished approximately 1,300 structures in the flood plain, creating a 1-mile-wide green corridor along both banks of the Cedar River through downtown (the Cedar Rapids Flood Control System, still under construction with an expected completion in the 2030s, involves 35-foot flood control walls along the most vulnerable reaches); (2) the National Czech and Slovak Museum relocated its building 500 feet uphill (the entire museum building was physically moved on pneumatic dollies in a $27 million project completed 2011 -- the largest building move in Iowa's history); and (3) the NewBo district's redevelopment concentrated in the blocks that had flooded but could be raised above the 500-year flood line.
Quaker Oats and Cedar Rapids' Industrial Heritage -- The World's Largest Cereal Factory, Operating on the Cedar River Since 1901, and a City Whose Economy Is Built on Corn Wet Milling, Oat Processing, and Agricultural Technology
The PepsiCo-Owned Quaker Oats Plant That Has Been the World's Largest Oat-Milling Facility Since 1901, Cedar Rapids' Position as the Corn Wet Milling Capital of the World (Cargill, ADM, and Ingredion All Operate Plants Here), and Why Cedar Rapids Smells Like Oatmeal in the MorningCedar Rapids' economy and identity are shaped by its position as one of the most concentrated food processing cities in the United States: the city's industrial corridor along the Cedar River contains: (1) the Quaker Oats plant (at 1400 Quaker Oats Road SW -- a facility that has operated continuously since 1901, when American Cereal Company [later acquired by Quaker Oats in 1901] completed what was then the largest cereal factory in the world; now owned by PepsiCo, which acquired Quaker Oats in 2001 for $13.4 billion; the Cedar Rapids plant processes approximately 180 million pounds of oats annually, making it the largest oat milling operation in the world; the plant's oat processing creates a distinctive oatmeal smell that permeates the west side of Cedar Rapids on certain wind conditions -- a smell that Cedar Rapids residents identify as 'home'); (2) the Cargill corn wet milling plant (one of the largest corn wet milling facilities in the world, processing corn into high-fructose corn syrup, corn starch, and ethanol from Iowa corn; corn wet milling plants in Cedar Rapids collectively process more corn than any other US city); (3) the ADM (Archer Daniels Midland) processing facility; and (4) the Ingredion (formerly Corn Products International) starch and sweetener plant. Cedar Rapids is the only city in the United States with multiple operating corn wet milling plants, giving it the highest concentration of corn processing capacity in the world. The agricultural processing industry is Cedar Rapids' largest employer, followed by Collins Aerospace (formerly Rockwell Collins), which manufactures avionics and communications systems in a Cedar Rapids campus of 8,500 employees and has been Cedar Rapids' signature technology employer since 1933.
Collins Aerospace and Cedar Rapids' Avionics Industry -- How a Depression-Era Radio Factory Became the World's Largest Avionics Manufacturer and Why Cedar Rapids Has the Highest Concentration of Aerospace Engineers in the Midwest
Collins Radio Company (founded in Cedar Rapids 1933 by Arthur Collins, a 21-year-old radio engineer who had communicated with Admiral Byrd's South Pole expedition on home-built equipment in 1930) grew from a basement radio manufacturing operation to the world's dominant manufacturer of aircraft communications systems and flight instruments. Collins' growth history: (1) WWII military communications (Collins Radio's AN/ARC-5 aircraft radio and the Collins transmitters used by the US Army Signal Corps in WWII established the company as the primary military aviation electronics supplier); (2) the Space Age (Collins Radio built the communications systems for the Apollo lunar missions, including the S-Band transmitter used for the first Moon landing broadcast on July 20, 1969; the 'One small step' transmission went through Collins equipment in Cedar Rapids); (3) commercial aviation (Collins' EFIS [Electronic Flight Instrument System] displays, autopilot systems, and navigation receivers became the standard equipment on Boeing and Airbus commercial aircraft from the 1980s forward; Collins held market-leading positions in weather radar, flight management computers, and head-up displays). Collins Radio merged with Rockwell International in 1973, was spun off as Rockwell Collins in 2001, and acquired by United Technologies in 2018, which merged its aerospace divisions into Collins Aerospace (a $19 billion annual revenue division of RTX Corporation). The Cedar Rapids campus employs 8,500 engineers, technicians, and manufacturing workers, making Collins Aerospace the second-largest employer in Iowa after Principal Financial Group.
How to Find Cheap Flights to Cedar Rapids IA
CID Is 30 Miles from Iowa City -- Consider Visiting Both
Iowa City (home to the University of Iowa) is 30 miles south of Cedar Rapids on I-380, about 30 minutes by car. The two cities are often combined in a single trip: Cedar Rapids for Czech heritage, Grant Wood, and food industry tours; Iowa City for the Ped Mall, UI campus, and Big Ten college town experience. Flying into CID serves both markets.
Czech Village and NewBo Are Best on Saturdays -- Farmers Market and Market Days
NewBo City Market's farmers market and full vendor hours are Saturday mornings. Czech Village's specialty bakeries and food shops are most active on Saturdays. For the full experience of both neighborhoods, plan a Saturday visit and combine with the Czech Village Museum and the National Czech and Slovak Museum.
Iowa State Fair (August) and Hawkeye Football (September-November) Create Demand Spikes
The Iowa State Fair in Des Moines (80 miles west, mid-August) is one of the country's largest state fairs and brings statewide demand. University of Iowa Hawkeyes home football games (September-November) fill Iowa City hotels and affect CID flight demand. Non-event weekdays and spring/fall shoulder periods offer the best pricing.
The American Gothic House in Eldon Is a 75-Mile Day Trip -- Plan Half a Day
The American Gothic House (the actual house in Grant Wood's famous painting) is in Eldon, Iowa, 75 miles south of Cedar Rapids on US-63. The State Historical Society provides props for photos. The drive through Iowa's rolling farmland is part of the experience. Combine with the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art visit to complete the Grant Wood circuit.
Airlines Flying to Cedar Rapids (CID)
Delta Air Lines
ATL, DTW, and MSP Hub Connections to CID -- Delta's Southeast, Great Lakes, and Twin Cities Network Access to Cedar RapidsDelta Air Lines serves The Eastern Iowa Airport (CID) through its Atlanta (ATL), Detroit (DTW), and Minneapolis-Saint Paul (MSP) hubs, providing southeastern US, Great Lakes, and Upper Midwest network coverage. ATL-CID connects Cedar Rapids to Delta's global network. DTW-CID provides Great Lakes region business travel connections. MSP-CID serves the Twin Cities market (260 miles north). Delta's CID service is typically operated by Delta Connection regional carriers.
Key Routes
ATL to CID (2h 15m; DTW to CID (1h 45m; MSP to CID (1h 10m; MCO to CID (via ATL; BOS to CID (via DTW or ATL; JFK to CID (via DTW or ATL; LAX to CID (via ATL or SLC
American Airlines
CLT, DFW, and ORD Hub Connections to CID -- American's Eastern, Texas, and Midwest Network to Cedar Rapids IowaAmerican Airlines connects Cedar Rapids (CID) through Charlotte (CLT), Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), and Chicago O'Hare (ORD), providing East Coast, southern, and Midwest coverage. CLT-CID serves the Southeast and East Coast markets. DFW-CID connects Texas and the Southwest. ORD-CID is a key Midwest corridor connection. American's CID service is operated by regional partners.
Key Routes
CLT to CID (2h 10m; DFW to CID (via CLT or ORD; ORD to CID (1h 20m; LAS to CID (via ORD or CLT; PHX to CID (via CLT; MIA to CID (via CLT; LAX to CID (via CLT or DFW
United Airlines
ORD, DEN, and EWR Hub Connections to CID -- United's Midwest and Western US Access to The Eastern Iowa AirportUnited Airlines serves Cedar Rapids (CID) from Chicago O'Hare (ORD), Denver (DEN), and Newark (EWR), providing Midwest, Rocky Mountain, and East Coast coverage. ORD-CID nonstop is United's primary Cedar Rapids route, connecting the city to United's Chicago hub and international connections. DEN-CID provides western US access. EWR-CID serves New York and New England.
Key Routes
ORD to CID (1h 20m nonstop; DEN to CID (2h 10m nonstop; EWR to CID (2h 30m; SFO to CID (via ORD or DEN; LAX to CID (via ORD or DEN; IAD to CID (via ORD; Houston to CID (via ORD
Allegiant Air
Seasonal Nonstop Leisure Routes from CID to Florida -- Allegiant's Budget Service for Cedar Rapids Travelers Heading to Warm-Weather MarketsAllegiant Air operates seasonal nonstop service from The Eastern Iowa Airport (CID) to Florida and other Sunbelt leisure destinations, providing the lowest base fares for Cedar Rapids travelers going south for winter sun. Allegiant's CID routes typically include Orlando-Sanford (SFB) and Fort Lauderdale (FLL) seasonally. The Allegiant bag-fee model means comparing total cost vs. Delta and American before booking. Check Allegiant.com for current CID seasonal availability.
Key Routes
SFB (Orlando-Sanford) seasonal nonstop; FLL (Fort Lauderdale) seasonal nonstop; PIE (St. Pete-Clearwater) seasonal; check Allegiant.com for current CID schedule
Things to Do in Cedar Rapids
Essential Info for Your Cedar Rapids Trip
State / Region
Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Linn County seat. Population ~140,000 city, ~280,000 metro. Iowa's second-largest city. 30 miles north of Iowa City (University of Iowa), 120 miles east of Des Moines.
Airport
CID -- The Eastern Iowa Airport, 7 miles SW of downtown. Delta (ATL, DTW, MSP), American (CLT, DFW, ORD), United (ORD, DEN, EWR), Allegiant (seasonal FL). Rideshare ~15 min to downtown.
Currency
USD -- US Dollar
Time Zone
CST (UTC-6) / CDT (UTC-5) in summer -- Central Time, same as Chicago and Minneapolis
Czech and Slovak Museum
1400 Inspiration Place SW -- open Tue-Sat 10AM-4PM. Admission ~$12 adult, $5 child. Research library open by appointment for genealogical research. Czech Village and NewBo walkable from museum.
Cedar Rapids Museum of Art
410 Third Ave SE -- open Tue-Sun. Admission ~$10 adult (free for under 18). Grant Wood collection: 50+ works. Marvin Cone collection: 130 works. Changing exhibitions.
NewBo City Market
1100 11th Street SW -- Tue-Sun regular vendors. Saturday farmers market 8AM-12PM. Czech Village bakeries and shops: 16th Ave SW, Tue-Sat. Lion Bridge Brewing taproom adjacent.
Emergency Number
911
Most Popular Airlines
Best Airlines for Domestic & International Routes
Frequently Asked Questions on Flights to Cedar Rapids IA
Airport info, Czech museum details, Grant Wood paintings, and travel planning for Iowa's second city
What airport serves Cedar Rapids Iowa?
The Eastern Iowa Airport (IATA: CID) serves Cedar Rapids, 7 miles southwest of downtown. Airlines: Delta (ATL, DTW, MSP), American (CLT, DFW, ORD), United (ORD, DEN, EWR), and Allegiant (seasonal FL routes). Iowa City (30 miles south) and Des Moines (120 miles west) are alternative markets with additional flight options.
What is the National Czech and Slovak Museum in Cedar Rapids?
The National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library (1400 Inspiration Place SW) is the largest Czech and Slovak museum in the United States — a Smithsonian affiliate documenting the immigration of 1.4 million Bohemian and Moravian immigrants to America, with Czech folk costumes, crystal, genealogical records, and immigration history. The museum was rebuilt after the 2008 Iowa flood destroyed its first floor and was physically moved 500 feet uphill.
What Grant Wood paintings can I see in Cedar Rapids?
The Cedar Rapids Museum of Art (410 Third Ave SE) holds the largest single collection of Grant Wood's work — 50+ paintings, prints, and drawings including 'Stone City, Iowa' (1930), 'Young Corn' (1931), and 'Arbor Day' (1932). American Gothic (the most famous painting) is at the Art Institute of Chicago. The American Gothic House in Eldon, Iowa (75 miles south) is the actual house in the painting — free to visit.
Why does Cedar Rapids smell like oatmeal?
The Quaker Oats plant (1400 Quaker Oats Road SW) has operated continuously since 1901 and is the world's largest oat milling facility, processing 180 million pounds of oats per year. The oat processing creates a distinctive oatmeal aroma that permeates the west side of the city on certain wind conditions — something Cedar Rapids residents consider a signature feature of home.
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