Copenhagen Airport: Passenger growth continues in 2024
More than 1.7 million passengers passed through Copenhagen Airport during the opening month of 2024, a 7 per cent year-on-year increase. Long-haul destinations in Asia, the Middle East and North America saw strong passenger growth.
Copenhagen Airport is off to a good start to the year, with passengers pouring in. 1,712,967 travellers passed through the terminals in January – just over 115,000 more than in January of last year.
“Generally, the winter months are a less busy period for the airport than the summer months, but the appetite for travel clearly continues to grow. January was a good month, with passengers increasingly choosing to fly out of Copenhagen Airport. This is a positive trend, which we are very pleased with,” says Peter Krogsgaard, Chief Commercial Officer of Copenhagen Airports A/S.
London, Oslo and Stockholm were the three most popular destinations in January – 17 per cent of all passengers travelled between Copenhagen and one of these three cities. After the UK, Spain was the most popular country to travel to, and Malaga on the Costa del Sol was the absolute favourite destination.
Travel to Asia and the Middle East grew in January
The greatest percentage increases were seen on the routes to Asia and the Middle East, however, with year-on-year passenger growth of 47 per cent and 36 per cent, respectively. For the first time, Doha, Qatar was among the top ten most popular destinations out of Copenhagen.
Qatar Airways and Finnair both operate services between Copenhagen and Doha with up to three daily departures. Close to 40,000 passengers travelled on this route in January, representing a 58 per cent year-on-year increase.
“We are seeing a massive increase in the number of travellers to the Middle East. Doha plays a big part in this, but Abu Dhabi and Dubai, serviced by Etihad Airways and Emirates, are also performing very well indeed. The Middle Eastern destinations offer lots of sun and heat for winter-weary Scandinavians, but some passengers use them as a layover en route to Asian, African and Australian destinations,” says Peter Krogsgaard.
The direct routes between Copenhagen and Asia are also seeing growth. Passenger numbers on these routes were up 47 per cent in January compared with the same month last year. The pre-pandemic levels are still some way off, however. Compared with 2019, six in ten passengers are back on the Asia routes.
“Thailand is hugely popular during the winter months. Many Scandinavians are attracted to the pleasant climate, many exotic destinations and exciting adventures on offer. In fact, we are back at the pre-pandemic passenger numbers – and the majority of passengers choose to travel to Bangkok, serviced by SAS and Thai Airways,” says Krogsgaard.
Two busy winter break weeks
The winter break has started, and many Danes and southern Swedes will be travelling out of Copenhagen Airport in weeks 7 and 8, the peak winter break weeks. During the winter break period, just over 1 million passengers travel through the airport, Fridays and Sundays being the busiest.
“The many holidaymakers in the terminals are brimming with expectation. We do everything we can to give our passengers a good send-off, from check-in and security to our many shops and restaurants in the terminals, which stand ready to receive the many customers,” says Krogsgaard.
The snowy Alps and the beaches of Thailand are firm favourites with many travellers. The most popular ski holiday destinations are Switzerland, Austria and Italy, but many travellers are also drawn to the sunny southern European destinations, with Spain as the favourite.
