College Visit Guides

Drive guide · 2 days, 3 campuses

Nebraska, Nebraska Omaha and Creighton in 2 Days: A Lincoln and Omaha College Trip

A parent-first plan for seeing the University of Nebraska Omaha, Creighton University and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in two days: UNO and Creighton in Omaha on day 1, then a Husker Weekday visit in Lincoln on day 2 before flying home from Omaha. Official visit sign-ups, parking at each school, a hotel in the Old Market minutes from Creighton, the Sheldon Museum of Art and Nebraska State Capitol for siblings, and Omaha weather by season.

A bronze mammoth statue on Lloyd G. Tanner Plaza in front of the columned entrance of Morrill Hall at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Tanner Plaza and Morrill Hall, University of Nebraska–Lincoln (May 2015). Photo: Hanyou23 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · resized and cropped

Last checked Oct 28, 2026. Every fact comes from the pages listed in Sources at the bottom. Some hotel and tour links are affiliate links (disclosure).

The short version

Trip at a glance

Schools
University of Nebraska Omaha (Omaha, NE) · Creighton University (Omaha, NE) · University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Lincoln, NE)
Days
2: UNO and Creighton on day 1, then Nebraska–Lincoln on day 2. Arrive the evening before.
Fly into
Omaha's Eppley Airfield (OMA), about 25 minutes from the hotel with no traffic, and fly home from OMA too, about 1 hour 28 minutes from UNL's Visitors Center.
Best base
Hyatt Place Omaha/Downtown-Old Market, about 4 minutes by car from Creighton's Harper Center and 12 minutes from UNO.
Car or transit
You'll need a car. Lincoln is about 1 hour 8 minutes from the hotel with no traffic; UNL says Omaha's airport is about an hour from its campus.
Registration
All three schools take visit sign-ups online: UNO's campus visits, Creighton's Personalized Campus Visit and UNL's Husker Weekdays.

1. Who this guide is for

This plan is for parents with a high schooler, and maybe younger siblings, who want to compare three very different Nebraska schools: the University of Nebraska Omaha, a city university on Dodge Street in the middle of Omaha; Creighton University, a Jesuit university a couple of miles from downtown Omaha; and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, the state's flagship, whose City Campus runs into downtown Lincoln.

UNO and Creighton are about 11 minutes apart, so day 1 stays in Omaha. Day 2 is an hour west on I-80 to Lincoln for a half-day Husker Weekday, then back to Omaha's airport.

Why this order

  • Day 1: UNO's Experience UNO visit pairs an information session with a campus tour and an academic interest meeting; Creighton's Personalized Campus Visit runs about two hours, with a presentation, a tour with a current student and a one-on-one meeting with an admissions counselor.
  • Day 2: a Husker Weekday is a free half-day visit with a student-led walking tour, a residence hall tour, admission, scholarship and financial aid information, and an hour-long academic appointment in your student's area of interest.
  • Experience UNO runs on Mondays and Fridays, and Husker Weekdays run most weekdays, so a Monday–Tuesday trip lines up all three. Creighton offers four visit times most weekdays, so book UNO in the morning and Creighton in the afternoon.
Each campus parks you differently
  • UNO: pay for visitor parking with the Park Omaha app or a pay station kiosk in the West or Pacific Parking Garage; a few visitor-only spaces are in Lot B, north of the Eppley Administration Building.
  • Creighton: park directly south of the Harper Center (602 N. 20th St.), in the spaces for Admissions guests or any open spot, and call 402.280.3431 when you arrive. If it's full, use the faculty and staff lot at the northeast corner of 20th and Cass streets.
  • UNL: park in the Larson Building garage (1317 Q St.) or the Que Place garage (1111 Q St.). There's no need to pay: Admissions gives you a validation code at check-in.
Tour availability varies by season.
  • Winters are cold: January averages about 34°F highs and 15°F lows at Omaha's airport, with about 7 inches of snow. May through August are the rainiest months.
  • UNL's tour is on foot, so wear comfortable shoes, and lunch isn't provided during a Husker Weekday, so eat beforehand.
  • Husker Weekdays fill up quickly and aren't offered on Red Letter Days, UNL's open-house days, so reserve your spot before booking travel.

2. The suggested 2-day plan

  • Drive and walk times are no-traffic estimates from OpenStreetMap routing, using addresses geocoded with OpenStreetMap Nominatim. Rush hour on Dodge Street and I-80 can add a lot of time.

Arrival evening: fly into Omaha and check in at the Old Market

  1. Eppley Airfield (OMA) → Hyatt Place Omaha/Downtown-Old Market (540 S. 12th St., Omaha)

    Driving (no traffic)
    ~25 min, 5.9 mi (no-traffic estimate)
    Driving
    Drive
  • Creighton says it's a couple of miles from the heart of downtown Omaha, so the Old Market works as a base for both Omaha schools.

Day 1: University of Nebraska Omaha, then Creighton

  1. Hyatt Place Omaha/Downtown-Old Market → UNO, Eppley Administration Building (6001 Dodge St., Omaha)

    Driving (no traffic)
    ~12 min, 4.8 mi (no-traffic estimate)
    Driving
    Drive

  2. UNO → Creighton, Mike and Josie Harper Center (602 N. 20th St., Omaha)

    Driving (no traffic)
    ~11 min, 4 mi (no-traffic estimate)
    Driving
    Drive

  3. Creighton → Hyatt Place Omaha/Downtown-Old Market

    Driving (no traffic)
    ~4 min, 1.3 mi (no-traffic estimate)
    Driving
    ~27 min walk, 1.2 mi
  • Book UNO's visit on its campus visits page: Experience UNO is aimed at seniors and out-of-state students, and Discover UNO at juniors and seniors. If your visit falls on the same day as a UNO home game, you get in free.
  • Request Creighton's Personalized Campus Visit on its sign-up page; Creighton confirms within 1 to 2 business days. Meetings with faculty or an academic advisor add 30 to 60 minutes each.

Day 2: University of Nebraska–Lincoln, then fly home from Omaha

  1. Hyatt Place Omaha/Downtown-Old Market → UNL Van Brunt Visitors Center (313 N. 13th St., Lincoln)

    Driving (no traffic)
    ~1 hr 8 min, 58.9 mi (no-traffic estimate)
    Driving
    Drive

  2. UNL → Eppley Airfield (OMA)

    Driving (no traffic)
    ~1 hr 28 min, 64 mi (no-traffic estimate)
    Driving
    Drive
  • Check out before you leave Omaha. Reserve a Husker Weekday on UNL's sign-up page, and check in at the Van Brunt Visitors Center.
  • Lincoln's own airport (LNK) is about 10 minutes from the Visitors Center if your flights work from there; UNL says it's four miles from City Campus.

3. Campus by campus

A grassy campus lawn at dusk with brick buildings and a slender tower at the University of Nebraska Omaha
Campus lawn, University of Nebraska Omaha. Photo: Beatmastermatt · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons · resized and cropped

Campus

University of Nebraska Omaha (Omaha, NE)

Where visits start
  • Experience UNO, for seniors and out-of-state students, runs on Mondays and Fridays: an information session on admissions, scholarships and Omaha life, a campus tour and an academic interest meeting.
  • Discover UNO, for juniors and seniors, is an information session and campus tour, and the MavWeekender is a Saturday option. UNO's free visits include a walking tour of Dodge Campus and a residence hall room.
Visitor parking
  • Visitors can pay with the Park Omaha app or pay station kiosks in the West and Pacific Parking Garages; a few visitor-only spaces are in Lot B, north of the Eppley Administration Building, with no permit required.
  • UNO's parking permits are virtual and tied to a license plate, so keep your rental car's plate state and number handy.
Getting there
  • About 12 minutes from the Hyatt Place, 11 minutes to Creighton and 6 minutes from the Hampton Inn Midtown-Aksarben with no traffic.
What to know
  • UNO's neighbors include Aksarben Village, Dundee, Benson, Midtown, the Blackstone District and downtown Omaha.
Contact
UNO Undergraduate Admissions, 111 Eppley Administration Building, 6001 Dodge Street, Omaha, NE 68182; 402.554.2393. Campus visits: 402.554.6281, visituno@unomaha.edu.

Last checked Oct 28, 2026. Tour and admissions details change often, so confirm them on the school's official visit page before you go.

Official pages: UNO: Visit UNO · UNO: Navigating the city · UNO: Visitor parking

Large Creighton lettering on the Skutt Student Center at Creighton University under a deep blue sky
Skutt Student Center, Creighton University, Omaha (Sep 2018). Photo: Tony Webster from Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons · resized and cropped

Campus

Creighton University (Omaha, NE)

Where visits start
  • The Personalized Campus Visit runs about two hours on most weekdays: a presentation on Creighton, a campus tour with a current student and a one-on-one meeting with an admissions counselor.
  • You can ask to meet a faculty member or academic advisor too; allow 30 to 60 minutes per extra appointment. Creighton also holds Saturday information sessions on select dates.
Visitor parking
  • Undergraduate visits start at the Mike and Josie Harper Center, 602 N. 20th St., which also houses the Heider College of Business. Park in the lot directly south of it and call 402.280.3431 when you arrive; someone will meet you outside.
  • If the visitor lot is full, park in the faculty and staff lot at the northeast corner of 20th and Cass streets.
Getting there
  • About 4 minutes by car (a 27-minute walk) from the Hyatt Place and 11 minutes from UNO with no traffic.
What to know
  • Creighton points visitors to the Old Market, the Blackstone District, Midtown Crossing and the Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, all minutes from campus.
Contact
Creighton University Admissions, 2500 California Plaza, Omaha, NE 68178; visit questions: 402.280.2703, admissionsvisits@creighton.edu.

Last checked Oct 28, 2026. Tour and admissions details change often, so confirm them on the school's official visit page before you go.

Official pages: Creighton: Plan your undergraduate visit · Creighton: Plan your Omaha visit

A bronze mammoth statue on Lloyd G. Tanner Plaza in front of the columned entrance of Morrill Hall at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Tanner Plaza and Morrill Hall, University of Nebraska–Lincoln (May 2015). Photo: Hanyou23 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · resized and cropped

Campus

University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Lincoln, NE)

Where visits start
  • Husker Weekdays are free, held most weekdays, and open to juniors, seniors, transfer students and families: a big-picture introduction, a student-led walking tour, a residence hall tour and an hour-long academic appointment.
  • Registration is required and spots fill quickly. UNL also runs Red Letter Days, Husker Saturdays and Junior Jumpstart visits.
Visitor parking
  • Park in the Larson Building garage (1317 Q St.) or the Que Place garage (1111 Q St.), then check in at the Van Brunt Visitors Center (313 N. 13th St.); you'll get a parking validation code, so there's nothing to pay.
Getting there
  • About 1 hour 8 minutes from the Hyatt Place and 1 hour 28 minutes to OMA with no traffic; UNL says OMA is 65 miles or about an hour away. Lincoln's airport (LNK) is four miles from City Campus.
What to know
  • City Campus runs into downtown Lincoln, which UNL says has 105+ restaurants, coffee bars and dessert spots, plus the shops of the Historic Haymarket District.
Contact
UNL Office of Admissions, 1410 Q Street, Lincoln, NE 68588-0417; 402-472-2023, admissions@unl.edu.

Last checked Oct 28, 2026. Tour and admissions details change often, so confirm them on the school's official visit page before you go.

Official pages: UNL: Visit · UNL: Plan your trip

4. Where to stay: two nights in Omaha's Old Market

Price tiers (Budget, Mid-range, Upscale) follow each hotel's star class on Expedia. Rates vary by date, so check your dates on Expedia.

Hotel · Our pickMid-range

Hyatt Place Omaha/Downtown-Old Market

540 S. 12th St., Omaha, NE

Why here

  • It's about 4 minutes by car from Creighton's Harper Center, 12 minutes from UNO, 1 hour 8 minutes from UNL and 25 minutes from OMA with no traffic.
  • Expedia lists this hotel as a 3-star property, so we place it in the Mid-range tier. Rates vary by date, so check your dates on Expedia.

Good to know

  • Creighton says selected Omaha hotels offer a discount if you mention you're visiting Creighton, so ask. Confirm breakfast, parking and amenities on the Expedia listing.

Check rates on Expedia →

Expedia link is an affiliate link

Hotel · AlternateBudget

Hampton Inn Omaha Midtown-Aksarben Area

1401 S. 72nd St., Omaha, NE

Why here

  • Expedia lists this hotel as a 2.5-star property, so we place it in the Budget tier. Rates vary by date, so check your dates on Expedia.
  • It's about 6 minutes from UNO, 14 minutes from Creighton, 1 hour 3 minutes from UNL and 36 minutes from OMA with no traffic.

Good to know

  • UNO lists this Hampton Inn among the hotels on its Navigating the City page. Confirm parking and amenities on the Expedia listing before you book.

Check rates on Expedia →

Expedia link is an affiliate link

Hotel · AlternateUpscale

Hilton Omaha

1001 Cass St., Omaha, NE

Why here

  • Expedia lists this hotel as a 4-star property, so we place it in the Upscale tier. Rates vary by date, so check your dates on Expedia.
  • It's about 4 minutes by car (a 20-minute walk) from Creighton's Harper Center, 11 minutes from UNO and 24 minutes from OMA with no traffic.

Good to know

  • Confirm parking and amenities on the Expedia listing before you book.

Check rates on Expedia →

Expedia link is an affiliate link

Two nights in the Old Market keep you minutes from Creighton and a quick drive from UNO on day 1. On day 2, check out and drive to Lincoln, then head back to Omaha's airport.

5. Meals between tours

Hours change, so check before you go.

In Omaha

Creighton points visitors to the Old Market's 45+ restaurants, the Blackstone District and Midtown Crossing, five minutes from campus.

Near UNO

UNO's student MavCARDs work at nearby spots such as First Watch, Five Guys, Raising Cane's and Voodoo Taco, and Aksarben Village and Dundee are close by.

In Lincoln

Lunch isn't part of a Husker Weekday. UNL says downtown Lincoln, next to City Campus, has 105+ restaurants, coffee bars and dessert spots.

6. Things for siblings along the route

With siblings

Sheldon Museum of Art

451 N. 12th St., Lincoln, NE

Admission is free, and it's about a 4-minute walk from UNL's Visitors Center. It's closed Mondays, and backpacks, food and drinks go in the Visitor Center lockers.

Official page →

With siblings

Nebraska State Capitol

1445 K St., Lincoln, NE

Free to enter and free to tour, and open every day; free guided tours begin at the North Entrance on the second floor. The tower and observation decks are closed during HVAC construction. It's about 3 minutes by car from UNL's Visitors Center.

Official page →

7. Practical tips

Driving and parking

  • At UNO, pay with the Park Omaha app or a garage kiosk. At Creighton, use the lot south of the Harper Center and call ahead. At UNL, park in the Larson Building or Que Place garage and get your validation at check-in.
  • UNO's parking permits are virtual and tied to a license plate, so have your rental's plate number handy.

Flying in and out

  • Eppley Airfield (OMA) is about 25 minutes from the Hyatt Place and 1 hour 28 minutes from UNL with no traffic, so leave plenty of time on day 2.
  • Flying in and out of OMA means a simple round-trip car rental. If flights from Lincoln (LNK) work better, it's about 10 minutes from UNL, but a one-way rental may cost extra.

Weather by season (1991–2020 NOAA normals: Omaha Eppley Airfield)

  • Spring: April averages about 64°F highs and 41°F lows, with about 3.2 inches of rain.
  • Summer: July averages about 88°F highs and 68°F lows, with about 3.6 inches of rain.
  • Fall: October averages about 66°F highs and 43°F lows, with about 2.3 inches of rain.
  • Winter: January averages about 34°F highs and 15°F lows, with about 0.8 inches of precipitation and 7 inches of snow.

Parent checklist

  • Register for all three visits online: UNO and Creighton on day 1, a Husker Weekday at UNL on day 2. Reserve UNL before you book travel.
  • Plan around UNO's schedule: Experience UNO runs on Mondays and Fridays, and Creighton confirms requests within 1 to 2 business days.
  • Save Creighton's arrival number (402.280.3431) and have your rental's plate number ready for UNO parking.
  • Book two nights in Omaha, ask about Creighton visitor discounts, and fly in and out of OMA.
  • Pack comfortable shoes for UNL's walking tour and eat before your Husker Weekday; lunch isn't provided.
  • After each visit, take five minutes to jot down what stood out to your student.

8. Student-athlete recruiting visits

For families whose student hopes to play a college sport. Rules below are the NCAA's; each school's links were checked Oct 26, 2026.

Coaches arrange the recruiting part of a visit, not the admissions office. The tour sign-ups in this guide are for the regular family visit. An official (school-paid) visit is offered by the school, and contact with coaches follows NCAA rules that vary by division, sport and grade level.

Start with your sport's questionnaire, then email the coaches. The NCAA suggests emailing coaches with your achievements, highlight videos and interest in their program, including your name, position, NCAA ID and graduation year.

3 Division I

NCAA basics for parents

  • Unofficial visit: any campus visit you or your family pay for. You can take as many as you like; in Divisions I and II each one has to come after the first permissible date for your sport.
  • Official visit: a visit paid for by the school. Each school can offer your student only one. Before a Division I official visit, your student must be registered with the NCAA Eligibility Center, be on the school's institutional request list, and the school must have their high school transcripts.
  • Division I (University of Nebraska Omaha, Creighton University and University of Nebraska–Lincoln): on an official visit the school can pay for travel for the student and up to two family members, lodging, up to three meals a day for the student and up to four family members, and up to $60 a person in entertainment, including five home-game tickets. On an unofficial visit there are no free meals, but the school can give up to three home-game tickets. Division I uses recruiting calendars with contact, evaluation, quiet and dead periods; in a dead period, no in-person contact and no visits.
  • Rules change. Confirm with the coach, or check the NCAA's recruiting page and recruiting calendars, before you plan dates.

Planning around the season

  • Check each school's athletics schedule (linked above) before you pick dates, so a coach meeting doesn't land on a road trip or game day for your sport.
  • Our recommendation, not a school rule: ask the coach whether they can line up an admissions session or tour around your meeting. If not, book the regular family tour yourself through the official sign-up links in this guide, and leave time between the two.

Student-athlete sources

All checked Oct 26, 2026.

  1. NCAA, 2026-27 Guide for the College-Bound Student-Athlete (pp. 3, 21–25)
  2. NCAA.org: NCAA Recruiting
  3. NCAA: Division I and II Recruiting Calendars and Guides
  4. NCAA Directory: University of Nebraska at Omaha
  5. University of Nebraska Omaha Athletics (official site)
  6. University of Nebraska Omaha Athletics: Compliance
  7. University of Nebraska Omaha Athletics: Staff Directory
  8. University of Nebraska Omaha Athletics: schedule of events
  9. NCAA Directory: Creighton University
  10. Creighton University Athletics (official site)
  11. Creighton University Athletics: Compliance
  12. Creighton University Athletics: Staff Directory
  13. Creighton University Athletics: schedule of events
  14. NCAA Directory: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  15. University of Nebraska–Lincoln Athletics (official site)
  16. University of Nebraska–Lincoln Athletics: Compliance
  17. University of Nebraska–Lincoln Athletics: Staff Directory
  18. University of Nebraska–Lincoln Athletics: schedule of events

Trip planner

Plan this trip

Add your dates and how you're getting there, and we'll pull this guide into one plan: tour sign-up links, the hotel base, parking or airport notes, the route and meals.

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Sources

All checked Oct 28, 2026. Tour schedules change constantly, so always confirm on each school's official sign-up page. Photo credits are under each photo and on our About page.

  1. University of Nebraska–Lincoln Office of Admissions: Husker Weekdays (official sign-up)
  2. University of Nebraska–Lincoln Office of Admissions: Visit
  3. University of Nebraska–Lincoln Office of Admissions: Plan your trip
  4. University of Nebraska at Omaha: Visit UNO
  5. University of Nebraska at Omaha: Campus visits (official sign-up)
  6. University of Nebraska at Omaha Undergraduate Admissions: Navigating the city
  7. University of Nebraska at Omaha Parking and Transit Services: Visitor parking
  8. University of Nebraska at Omaha Parking and Transit Services: Visitor parking permits
  9. Creighton University Admissions: Personalized Campus Visit (official sign-up)
  10. Creighton University Admissions: Plan your undergraduate visit
  11. Creighton University: Plan your Omaha visit
  12. Sheldon Museum of Art: Visit
  13. Nebraska State Capitol: Visit
  14. OSRM routing (OpenStreetMap), driving profile
  15. OSRM routing (OpenStreetMap), foot profile
  16. OpenStreetMap Nominatim geocoder
  17. NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 Monthly Normals, Omaha Eppley Airfield, NE (USW00014942)
  18. Expedia listing: Hyatt Place Omaha/Downtown-Old Market (star class, checked 2026-10-28) (not linked: https://www.expedia.com/Omaha-Hotels-Hyatt-Place-Omaha-Downtown-Old-Market.h6598358.Hotel-Information)
  19. Expedia listing: Hilton Omaha (star class, checked 2026-10-28) (not linked: https://www.expedia.com/Omaha-Hotels-Hilton-Omaha.h1048147.Hotel-Information)
  20. Expedia listing: Hampton Inn Omaha Midtown-Aksarben Area (star class, checked 2026-10-28) (not linked: https://www.expedia.com/Omaha-Hotels-Hampton-Inn-Omaha-Midtown-Aksarben-Area.h10020122.Hotel-Information)