INDIANAPOLIS — The month of May is proving to be a busy one for sports fans in Indiana.
The Indy Chamber says hotels are sold out across the state, and Airbnb's are thriving.
Indy will be buzzing with the largest sporting event in the U.S, the Indy 500, on Sunday.
Hours later, the Pacers play a home game in the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Indiana Fever are at home on Saturday.
"We'll have about half a million people in the city this weekend attending one of the events," said Blaine Zimmerman with Indy Chamber.
Zimmerman said it's going to be bigger than the main event in 2012.
"It's considerably bigger than the Super Bowl," said Zimmerman. "Additionally, we've got about 25 million people that are going to watch one of these events on TV, which is about 1 in 14 people in the United States will have their eyeballs on our great city."
He's expecting an economic impact of nearly a billion dollars.
"Every hotel's full, basically from here to Terre Haute," he said.
Sold-out hotels have led to a boost in Airbnb bookings.
"It's been very profitable, and it's also rewarding, giving back to the city," said Darwin Taylor.
Darwin Taylor said Indy's revolving door of major events has helped him solidify his business.
"If you do it right, you can make some good money, Taylor said.
"Taylor Swift came and just kind of confirmed and affirmed all the things that I thought could be true. We always got something Indy 500, the Pacers, the Fever, and so by the grace of God, to be able to get into Airbnb, and be super familiar with Indy, because I'm a native. It just made a lot of sense," he added.
Airbnb tells WRTV:
“Searches for the cities near Indianapolis, Indiana have increased significantly during the Indy 500 and Pacers game weekend this year ( May 22-25, 2025) compared to last (May 23-26, 2024). Cities experiencing notable search growth include Muncie, Indiana with over 140% increase in searches, as well as Noblesville with over 30% increase.” (Based on Q1 searches)
Top origins guests are travelling from to Indianapolis, IN (and greater area) are:
- Chicago, Illinois
- Indianapolis, Indiana (staycations!)
- New York City, New York
- Denver County, Colorado
- Houston, Texas
- Fort Wayne, Indiana
- San Diego, California
- Nashville, Tennessee
- Columbus, Ohio
- Virginia
- Florida
- Washington, D.C.
- St. Louis, Missouri
- Dallas, Texas
- Charlotte, North Carolina
"We partner with Airbnb and get suggestions from them as, it relates to increase, the rates around different events and whatnot," said Taylor.
For those tackling the big Sunday:
"If you're trying to attempt the Speed City double between the IMS and Gambridge Fieldhouse on Sunday, make sure you hydrate, make sure you rest, and give yourself plenty of time to get to and from every place," said Zimmerman.
