Fall Break 2026 kicks off today for many Hoosier school systems, and the Indianapolis Airport Authority is ready for the crowds. IAA officials project nearly 500,000 travelers are anticipated to fly out of the Indianapolis International Airport (IND) during the fall-break period Oct. 1 – Oct. 26.
IAA officials anticipate Oct. 4 will be the heaviest travel date out of the gate, with nearly 23,000 passengers estimated to depart Indianapolis, and more than 24,000 travelers expected to travel out of IND on Oct. 8. Additional peak travel days through mid-October include Oct. 9, 11 and 18, with more than 23,000 passengers departing each day.
The bulk of travelers will fly out between the hours of 4 a.m. – 6 a.m. on peak days. IAA officials strongly recommend travelers have a plan for arriving at the airport, from selecting their route to the airport and parking, to checking in two hours before boarding time.
Destinations in Demand
This year’s hottest destinations among travelers include cities in Florida, such as Fort Myers (RSW), Miami (MIA), Punta Gorda (PGD), Sarasota (SRQ) and St. Petersburg (PIE). Other in-demand destination cities during the Fall Break 2026 period include: Austin (AUS), Nashville (BNA), Dublin (DUB), Los Angeles (LAX) and Boston (BOS).
New Flights Operating During Fall Break 2026
New flights are operating in time for the fall-break travel period. Avelo Airlines is operating its recently launched flights to New Haven, Conn., and Concord, N.C., which is home to key NASCAR races in October.
New Traveler Programs
Travelers who have signed up for the latest customer-convenience services, like CLEAR and touchless TSA PreCheck, will have a faster and easier security-checkpoint experience. CLEAR, a biometric identity verification service, allows travelers to use dedicated lanes to faster screening, and bypassing traditional identification checks. Touchless Pre-Check is also a new enhanced service that allows eligible travelers to get through security screening with minimal physical contact. Travelers may sign up for CLEAR at the airport at the kiosks located by Guest Services and online at www.clearme.com, and touchless TSA Pre-Check online at https://www.tsa.gov/touchless-id.
For a list of important travel tips for Fall Break 2026, click here.