Barcelona Airport records 3.8 million passengers, setting new January high

Josep Tarradellas Barcelona‑El Prat Airport handled 3,806,895 passengers in January, the most ever for that month. 

Growth compared with January 2025 was just 3%, the lowest annual increase since 2021, a year affected by the pandemic.

In January, the airport managed 24,537 flight operations, slightly down 0.2% from the same month last year. Cargo reached a record 15,611 tonnes, up 16.5%.

Almost all passengers were commercial travellers, a 3% rise from January 2025.

Barcelona remained Spain's second busiest airport, behind Madrid's Adolfo Suárez Madrid‑Barajas, which handled 5.38 million passengers in January.  

Barcelona's overall growth was slightly lower than Madrid's (3% vs. 3.5%).

Spanish airport operator Aena says future growth will depend on better use of off‑peak time slots and spreading demand throughout the year. The airport is set to undergo a major expansion by 2034.

Last year, Barcelona Airport saw record traffic, welcoming 57.5 million passengers, the most in its history, driven by important international traffic and high December figures.

Other Catalan airports saw declines in January. 

Girona‑Costa Brava carried 35,462 passengers, down 8.2%, and Reus handled 589 passengers, a 57.2% drop from a year earlier.

Spanish airports overall recorded 20.3 million passengers in January, a 2.6% increase. 

This was much lower than the 6.1% growth seen between January 2024 and January 2025.