Málaga Airport sees record growth thanks to growing demand from Britain
An incredible 575,999 passengers travelled between Málaga and the UK in April alone
Málaga Costa del Sol Airport continues to shine as one of southern Europe’s busiest and most popular aerodromes, welcoming more than 7.1 million passengers between January and April 2025.
This represents an impressive 7.4% increase compared to the same period in 2024, underlining the airport’s growing importance as a hub for international and local tourism.
Aircraft operations also surged with 51,412 takeoffs and landings recorded, a 7.6% rise year over year, according to data from Aena.
International travel dominated the first four months of the year; of the total 7,177,616 passengers, 5,927,934 flew on international routes, reflecting a healthy 9.2% increase.
Coming as absolutely no surprise, the British market once again led by a wide margin, with 1,556,649 UK travellers, far ahead of Germany with 525,010, the Netherlands with 461,575 and Italy with 410,294.
Overall, British visitors accounted for approximately 21.7% of all passengers at Málaga Airport from January to April.
Domestic traffic remained largely stable during the same period, with 1,233,138 passengers recorded on internal routes, showing a slight variation of -0.1%, a trend seen at many neighbouring airports, including Alicante.
The month of April was especially strong, with 2,387,538 passengers using the airport, a year-on-year increase of 10.4%. Commercial flights made up nearly the entire volume, with 2,383,482 travellers opting for scheduled routes. Of these, 2,017,639 passengers flew on international services and once again, the United Kingdom held the top position.
A total of 575,999 passengers travelled between Málaga and the UK in April, followed by Germany with 182,647 and the Netherlands with 142,963.
In April alone, UK travellers represented around 24.2% of all commercial passengers at the airport.
Flight activity was also up, with 16,569 total operations – a 9% increase from April last year. Of these, 16,256 were commercial flights, including 13,001 international and 3,255 domestic services.
Málaga Costa del Sol Airport’s steady growth is helping boost tourism and support the local economy throughout Andalucía. This success is driven by better operations, new flight routes and growing interest in the region’s culture, food and beaches.
As the summer travel season approaches, expectations are high. If current trends hold, 2025 could close with record-breaking passenger and flight numbers. Achieving this ambitious goal will certainly be helped by the airport’s rapidly expanding international reach, with new routes planned to connect Málaga with Nordic countries, Latin America and Eastern Europe.
Image: Pexels
Sign up for the Spanish News Today Editors Roundup Weekly Bulletin and get an email with all the week’s news straight to your inbox
Special offer: Subscribe now for 25% off (36.95 euros for 48 Bulletins)
OR
you can sign up to our FREE weekly roundup!
Read some of our recent bulletins:
Discount Special Offer subscription:
36.95€ for 48 Editor’s Weekly News Roundup bulletins!
Please CLICK THE BUTTON to subscribe.
(List price 3 months 12 Bulletins)
Read more stories from around Spain:
