Bilbao Airport consolidates its position as a reference after closing 2022 with an extraordinary balance sheet

Bilbao Airport closed 2022 on a high note, consolidating its position as the benchmark for connectivity in northern Spain. According to statistics provided by Aena, the Biscayan capital’s aerodrome registered more than five million people (5,129,583), 98.7% more than in 2021, and operations increased by 70%, with a total of 44,919 landings and take-offs. In 2023, the traffic recovery will be complete and the trend is on track to exceed the figures of 2019, the last year without impact from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bilbao, which has been voted the second best airport in Europe, only behind Adolfo Suárez Madrid Barajas, has great forecasts for next summer. The Routes Committee foresees that in 2023 the connectivity of the territory will improve the balance of 2019 and a new route record will be achieved, most of them linked to international tourism. Thus, the airport of the Biscayan capital has recovered destinations such as Vienna and Faro, has extended connections with several companies (Zurich, Hamburg and Brussels) and new direct flights have been confirmed to Warsaw, Riga, Marrakech, Santorini and the Azores.

Last year, the aerodrome already experienced the best August in its history, with 53 operational routes and 572,094 passengers, 1% more than in the same month of 2019, before the pandemic, according to Aena data. From January to the summer, the airport received 3,285,000 people, which meant a recovery of 83% of the volume recorded in 2019.

The arrival at the terminal of Wizz Air, the largest low-cost airline in Central and Eastern Europe, is the latest boost to the connectivity of Bilbao-Bizkaia and proof of the territory’s tourist appeal.