Airports in Greece and across the Balkans posted some of the strongest passenger traffic growth in Europe in the first six months of 2025, boosted by international tourism, new routes and expanding regional connectivity, industry data showed on Saturday.
Athens International Airport handled 7.6% more passengers than in the same period last year, matching Copenhagen and trailing only Milan Malpensa, which led major European hubs with an 11.4% rise, Airports Council International Europe (ACI Europe) said in its half-year traffic review.
Greek regional airports saw the sharpest gains. Syros Island Airport more than doubled passenger volumes, surging 112.8%, while Volos rose 51.1%, reflecting rising demand for smaller and less-developed destinations. Together with steady growth at Athens, the gains pushed Greece’s nationwide airport network to a 5.3% year-on-year increase in January–June, outpacing the European average.
The wider Southeast European region also performed strongly. Slovakia topped growth charts with a 19.2% jump, followed by Poland (+14.9%), Hungary (+14.2%), Malta (+11.7%) and Cyprus (+10.8%). In the Western Balkans, Moldova led with a 49.2% surge, Bosnia and Herzegovina climbed 31.1%, Kosovo rose 16.6% and Georgia 13.7%.
By contrast, Nordic and some Western European markets such as Sweden, Estonia, Iceland and Luxembourg saw minimal growth or small declines, with ACI citing seasonal factors, market maturity and weaker demand in some domestic segments.
Across Europe, passenger traffic increased 4.5% compared with the first half of 2024, with international travel up 5.7% and domestic traffic almost flat at 0.2%. Passenger volumes are now 5.1% above pre-pandemic levels from early 2019.
Medium and large airports recorded the fastest growth, including Tel Aviv (+27%), Krakow (+18.7%), Budapest (+15%) and Warsaw (+13.2%). Among bigger hubs, Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen gained 11.5%, Rome Fiumicino 6.5%, Paris Charles de Gaulle 4.3%, Amsterdam Schiphol and Madrid 3% each, while London Heathrow edged up 0.2%.
ACI said the results highlight shifting travel patterns, with smaller and regional airports benefiting from tourism diversification and the expansion of low-cost and seasonal services. It added that while the pace of growth at Europe’s largest hubs has slowed, emerging markets in the Balkans and eastern Mediterranean are now central to the continent’s air travel momentum.