A two-speed winter for Spanish Airports: International traffic booms while the domestic market shrinks
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Airlines have scheduled 137.6 million seats (arrivals + departures) at Aena's airport network in Spain for the 2025-2026 winter season. This figure represents a 3.5% growth compared to the same season in 2024.
The season, which runs from October 26, 2025, to March 28, 2026, will also see an increase in commercial operations. A total of 788,400 movements are scheduled, 3.3% more than the previous year, as reported by Aena in a statement.
Madrid and Barcelona lead absolute growth
In terms of percentage growth, the airports with the largest increase in their offer are Córdoba (driven by its new commercial flight operations), Vitoria (+37.8%), Región de Murcia International Airport (+29.8%), and Badajoz (+23.4%).
However, the country's major hubs lead in volume. Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport tops the list with 33.9 million seats offered, 4.6% more than in 2024. It is followed by Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat, with 25.7 million seats, representing a 4.7% increase.
Other high-demand airports include Málaga-Costa del Sol, with 10.4 million seats (+6.1%); Gran Canaria, with 8.9 million (-0.4%); Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández, with 8.2 million (+10.2%); Tenerife Sur, with 7.7 million (-1.3%); and Palma de Mallorca, with 7.5 million (-1.5%).
Route expansion
The winter schedule includes a total of 2,485 routes (1,960 international and 525 domestic), 81 more than last winter. The airports adding the most new routes are Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas (+25), Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat (+19), Málaga-Costa del Sol (+14), Seville (+13), and Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández (+12).
International markets drive demand
A geographical analysis shows that the European market remains the main driver, with over 77 million seats scheduled, 5.8% more than the previous winter season.
The strong impetus from long-haul markets is notable. The Asia-Pacific region shows the highest percentage growth, with 33.3% more seats (exceeding 1.1 million). It is followed by the Middle East, which grows by 28% and reaches 2.4 million seats.
In contrast, the domestic market (within Spain) is the only one to register a decline, with 44.5 million seats scheduled, 3.8% less than in 2024.
United Kingdom remains top international market
After Spain, the countries with the highest number of scheduled seats are the United Kingdom (17.8 million, +5.7%), Germany (10.8 million, -2.2%), Italy (9.7 million, +6.4%), France (6.6 million, +6.2%), and the Netherlands (4.2 million, +2.2%).
Despite not being in the top 5 by volume, the markets showing the fastest percentage growth are China (+47.6%), Turkey (+33.7%), the United Arab Emirates (+32.5%), Brazil (+29.7%), and Poland (+26.7%).
Aena clarifies that this schedule of seats and movements is always subject to potential changes by the airlines.
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