Oshkosh
Discover Oshkosh
Oshkosh is in east-central Wisconsin on the shores of Lake Winnebago. Its unusual name has travelled far as the name of "Oshkosh b'gosh" clothing, and as a synonym for EAA Airventure, one of the world's great celebrations of aviation, held at the Wittman Regional Airport here. Commercial air service for Oshkosh is provided by Appleton International Airport (ATW) (20 minutes north on I-41, take exit 137 for College Ave.; follow signs to turn left onto CTH CA West; the highway takes you straight there). It offers various services from roughly 12 cities, you can fly to this airport from nearly 250 cities with only 1 stop. Over the years prices have come down and now airfares comparable to Chicago and Milwaukee are not hard to come by. (updated Jul 2021)
What to Experience in Oshkosh
Taste of Oshkosh...
If sit-in dining is not your thing Oshkosh also has plenty of chain restaurants like McDonald's, Culver's, Chick-fil-A, Subway, Jersey Mikes, Five Guys, FireHouse Subs, and many more. Food courts are scattered at a dozen locations throughout the grounds. They can be broken into the "Brats and Burgers" and "Cafe" groups, each of which have similar menus. Prices are a bit inflated; a full lunch will be $8-10. All vendors operate out of stalls, and you eat on nearby picnic tables. Vegetarian food and healthy food is hard to find at AirVenture. "Park Cafe", "Warbirds Cafe", and "Classic Cafe" offer a vegetarian wrap which is reasonably tasty at $8, but their "Chef's Salad" sadly has a stratum of ham. Pizza vendors usually have a cheese pizza option: see for example the pizza counters on the northeast corner of Hangar B and the southwest corner of Hangar A. There are no bars or nightlife on the AirVenture grounds, except perhaps for private parties at various campsites.
Festivals & Events
Experience the vibrant festivals and cultural celebrations of Oshkosh.
EAA AirVenture, last Monday in July through Sunday. Sometimes known simply as "Oshkosh", it is one of the world's great aviation gatherings. A week-long aviation event offering seminars, product demonstrations, aircraft tours and daily airshows. One of the largest airshows in the world. Hundreds of thousands of people drive in, tens of thousands of aircraft fly in. A tent city sprouts under the wings of parked aircraft and beyond. Be on the alert for closed roads all around Wittman airport and Highway 41 during the festival. Hotels can be filled for tens of miles around, but local universities open their dorm rooms, and private homes their spare bedrooms, to the visitor. See the AirVenture and Chamber of Commerce websites for leads on housing. If you plan to fly into Wittman airport during AirVenture, you must absolutely get the AirVenture NOTAM and follow it carefully.
Essential Information
Getting There
Multiple OptionsCommercial air service for Oshkosh is provided by Appleton International Airport (ATW) (20 minutes north on I-41, take exit 137 for College Ave.; follow signs to turn left onto CTH CA West; the highway takes you straight there). It offers various services from roughly 12 cities, you can fly to this airport from nearly 250 cities with only 1 stop. Over the years prices have come down and now airfares comparable to Chicago and Milwaukee are not hard to come by. (updated Jul 2021) Oshkosh is approximately 45 minutes south of Green Bay, 20 minutes south of Appleton, and 1.5 hours north of Milwaukee. The main north-south route is Interstate 41 and the main east-west route into Oshkosh is State highway 21. The AirVenture grounds stretch for kilometers, literally. You will walk a lot. There are helpful trams that run north and south parallel to the flight line, and stop near many of the main attractions. The AirVenture map lists the routes....
Getting Around & Staying
Getting Around
The AirVenture grounds stretch for kilometers, literally. You will walk a lot. There are helpful trams that run north and south parallel to the flight line, and stop near many of the main attractions. The AirVenture map lists the routes. Cars aren't allowed on the AirVenture grounds, except by certain staff. If you can bring a bicycle, it will make travelling around much easier. There is a bike corral about 200 m from Theatre in the Woods in the direction of Camp Scholler. However, there aren't other bike corrals. This means that you may not be able to lock your bicycle in other places; you'll need to keep it with you as you explore. For people who have a hard time walking, electric carts are available for rent from near the main gate. 43.978944-88.5660831 EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. A gathering each summer of aviation enthusiasts. During the gathering, the airport's control tower is the busiest in the world. (updated Mar 2018) EAA AirVenture, last Monday in July through Sunday.
Money & Budget
Most of the retail in Oshkosh is mostly your traditional hardware, grocery type stores, etc. Most of the clothing shopping is located within the Outlet Mall, A large amount of retail can also be found with-in the Fox River Mall district in Grand Chute, about 20 minutes north via I-41. If sit-in dining is not your thing Oshkosh also has plenty of chain restaurants like McDonald's, Culver's, Chick-fil-A, Subway, Jersey Mikes, Five Guys, FireHouse Subs, and many more. Food courts are scattered at a dozen locations throughout the grounds. They can be broken into the "Brats and Burgers" and "Cafe" groups, each of which have similar menus. Prices are a bit inflated; a full lunch will be $8-10. All vendors operate out of stalls, and you eat on nearby picnic tables.
Safety Information
Glimpses of Oshkosh
Oshkosh Airport fire tender. At the Annual EAA AirVenture week July 2011.
a boat traveling across a large body of water
A F35B of US Marines finishes the show at EAA AirVenture 2025 at Oshkosh and taxis back to the ramp. Its pilot applauds to the crowd.
gray and red plane toy
This is a stunt plane from the 2017 Airventure in Oshkosh, WI.
four red planes with contrails
F-22 Raptor
P-51 Mustang
Sound of Freedom
a tree trunk with a hole in it
Oshkosh Airport fire tender. At the Annual EAA AirVenture week July 2011.
a boat traveling across a large body of water
A F35B of US Marines finishes the show at EAA AirVenture 2025 at Oshkosh and taxis back to the ramp. Its pilot applauds to the crowd.