Algarve and Andalusia Boost Business and Tourism Relations: Key Insights from the XIII Luso-Andalusian Meeting

Strengthening Ties Between Algarve and Andalusia

The XIII Luso-Andalusian Meeting, a strategic event aimed at deepening relationships and fostering new opportunities between the business and tourism sectors of the Algarve and Andalusia, recently took place in Albufeira.

Passenger Movement in October 2024

In October 2024, national airports facilitated the movement of 6.5 million passengers, marking a 2.9% increase compared to October 2023, following a 3.6% rise to 6.944 million in September.

• Lisbon saw 3.2 million passengers, up 3.5% from the previous year.
• Porto and Faro reported 1.5 million (+2.7%) and 1 million (-0.3%) respectively.

International Passenger Traffic

In October 2024, 82.7% of passengers arriving at national airports were international travelers, totaling 2.7 million (+2.4%), with most coming from Europe (70.1% of total). The Americas accounted for 8.5% of arrivals (+6.3%).

For passengers departing, 83.3% were also international, amounting to 2.8 million (+3.4%), with 69.5% headed to European destinations, reflecting a 1.4% increase from October 2023.

Seasonal Trends in Air Travel

The INE highlights that daily aircraft and passenger movements are typically influenced by seasonal fluctuations, with the summer period usually seeing the highest numbers. Last year, Saturday was the peak day for passenger arrivals.

Record Passenger Numbers

From January to October 2024, there were historic highs in monthly passenger numbers at national airports. In October alone, the average daily disembarkation reached 103.7 thousand, a 2.5% increase over the same month in 2023.

For the year-to-date, passenger traffic rose 4.2% (+20.6% in 2023) to nearly 61 million.

Leading Airports and International Traffic

Lisbon led with nearly 30 million passengers, up 4.3% from 2023, followed by Porto with 13.7 million (+4.6%) and Faro exceeding 9 million (+1.8%).

Analysis indicates that Lisbon Airport handled 49% of total passengers, while Porto and Faro accounted for 22.5% and 15% respectively.

International Origins and Destinations

From January to October 2024, the UK was the top country for both arrivals and departures, with increases in disembarked (+1.6%) to 4.290 million and embarked (+1.3%) to 4.276 million compared to 2023.

Conversely, France saw declines with 3.674 million disembarked (-3.6%) and 3.647 million embarked (-3.8%). Spain, Germany, and Italy followed as the 3rd, 4th, and 5th leading countries, respectively.

In October 2024, 22,000 aircraft landed at national airports, a 1.1% decrease from the same month in 2023, with over 211,000 aircraft landing in total for the first ten months of the year, an increase of 1,891 aircraft.