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A Historic Year for Alicante-Elche Airport, in Numbers

A Historic Year for Alicante-Elche Airport, in Numbers

2024 concludes as the year with the highest number of passengers, with Alicante terminal nearing 18.4 million travellers

Óscar Bartual Bardisa

Alicante

Jueves, 16 de enero 2025, 07:27

2024 will be remembered as the year when Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández airport shattered all records. Month after month, it surpassed the figures achieved in 2023, setting new passenger records by approaching 18.4 million annual travellers.

The Alicante terminal has broken record after record in all areas, both in international passenger traffic and flight operations, surpassing all 2023 figures. The recovery of British tourism and emerging markets, now established like the Polish, have led to a significant increase in traffic at Alicante-Elche airport.

The year started strong, with records being broken month after month, reaching a peak in July for monthly users. Never before had so many travellers been recorded in a month at El Altet airport, nearing two million. In October, the record was solidified, surpassing 2023 with two months remaining in this historic year.

Indeed, 2024 started with a bang, with the first three months of the year showing the largest year-on-year increases compared to 2023. In January, traffic grew by 20.5%, while February saw a 26.8% increase. The most moderate increase in passenger traffic occurred in April, with a percentage of 10.8.

One of the main drivers of this increase in passenger volume is international traffic, with the United Kingdom leading the way. Despite domestic travellers reaching nearly 2.8 million people, foreigners accounted for more than 85.4%, according to data from airport operator Aena.

The United Kingdom, with 6.12 million passengers, is the largest source of passengers and an essential market in this province. The Netherlands and Germany also exceeded one million travellers, with 1.15 and 1.08 million respectively. Belgium, Poland, and Norway also emerged as significant markets in Alicante tourism.

In fact, Poland is one of the fastest-growing markets. According to Aena, the volume of passengers from this Eastern European country has increased by 57%, thanks to new connections. The opening of new routes with Budapest has boosted passenger traffic with Hungary by 119%. Bulgaria, with the new connection to Sofia, has also seen a 67% increase in its volume of travellers. Special mention goes to Algeria, which has increased its travellers to Miguel Hernández airport by 500% thanks to the reopening of commercial relations between the two countries.

Companies and Airports

The United Kingdom dominates the top 10 routes with Alicante-Elche airport. Up to four British airports make the list, with Manchester and London Gatwick being the two that moved the most passengers, with 902,000 and 789,167, respectively. Bristol and London Stansted rank seventh and eighth on this list, with over 486,000 travellers each during 2024.

The third airport with the most passengers with Alicante was Barcelona, which saw the most growth in 2024. The route with El Prat increased by 35%, while the rest of the list grew between 6% and 15%. Two Nordic countries close the most travelled routes: Stockholm in Sweden and Oslo in Norway.

Regarding airlines, Ryanair remains the leader with 39.8% of passengers transported, reaching 7.3 million. The new connections opened during the summer season have further increased its market share. In second place, albeit far behind, is EasyJet with over two million travellers, while Vueling ranks third with 1.97 million.

The new EasyJet base and the announced new routes for 2024 also added numerous seats to the high season schedule of the British line in Alicante, while Vueling consolidates for the second consecutive year as the third option.

The success of Alicante-Elche airport has led Aena to initiate the expansion, taking the first steps for the new terminal that will host non-Schengen space flights. Thus, the drafting of this project, which envisages a substantial increase in the surface area of the current terminal, has been put out to tender.

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