Record summer season for Copenhagen Airport
9.7 million passengers passed through Copenhagen Airport's terminals during the three summer months of June, July and August – seven per cent more than in the same period last year and the largest number of travellers in any summer period in CPH’s 100-year history.
Copenhagen Airport had its busiest summer ever. From early morning to late evening, the many travellers crowded the terminals of Denmark’s largest airport this summer. In June, July and August, a total of 9.654 million passengers travelled through Copenhagen Airport. In August alone, the figure was 3.2 million, an eight per cent increase compared to last year.
“We have had a record summer at CPH with more passengers than ever. We see a strong global desire and need to travel, and in each of the three summer months, more than three million passengers passed through our terminals. In total, we recorded close to 9.7 million travellers this summer, which is the highest number in our 100-year history,” says Chief Commercial Officer Peter Krogsgaard of Copenhagen Airports A/S.
The vast majority of passengers at Copenhagen Airport are international travellers, primarily from other EU countries, the USA and the UK. Danish travellers make up about 35 per cent, while 15 per cent are Swedes. Americans and Brits each make up eight per cent of travellers.
Good global route network
“Half of our passengers this summer were Danish and southern Swedish travellers flying, for example, to sunny southern European destinations. The rest were international travellers, many coming to enjoy their summer holidays in Copenhagen and the rest of Denmark, while others had a layover at Copenhagen Airport on their journey to destinations around the world,” says Krogsgaard.
A growing number of passengers at Copenhagen Airport are transfer passengers flying via Copenhagen. During the three summer months, close to two million transfer passengers passed through Copenhagen Airport, which was 21 per cent more than last summer.
“The large proportion of transfer passengers helps to ensure more intercontinental routes to and from Copenhagen. The 334 total routes on offer open up even more opportunities for Danes to travel the world from Copenhagen Airport. Good connections to destinations worldwide furthermore attract foreign companies and labour to Denmark, and new direct routes make destinations around the world more accessible to Danish companies. This is of great value to our society in general,” says Krogsgaard.
Growth on routes between Denmark and the USA
In the three summer months, 460,000 passengers travelled between Denmark and one of the ten US destinations reached by direct flights from Copenhagen – a 15 per cent increase compared with last year, and the largest number ever.
Two new routes to the United States have been added this year – one to Minneapolis and one to Seattle. Never have there been as many direct routes from Copenhagen to the United States, nor as many travellers.
“The good connections between Denmark and the USA benefit many Danes, of course, but a large proportion of the travellers are transfer passengers flying to Copenhagen from Scandinavia, the Baltic countries and Northern Europe and on to the USA. Another trend we are seeing is that more Americans choose to visit Denmark and Copenhagen. The growing number of guests is good for our society as a whole and also benefits restaurants, shops and hotels,” says Krogsgaard.
The many American tourists benefit local hotels, which are reporting a major increase in the number of bookings. According to the trade organisation Horesta, American visitors booked more than 456,000 nights in Danish hotels in the first six months of 2025 – a year-on-year increase of 13 per cent.
