Airport passenger traffic to reach 9 million target

Cyprus airports’ operator Hermes said the island is on course to meet its nine million passengers target after an upward trend in traffic recorded in recent months continued in November.

Until November, airports welcomed 8.7 million passengers, up from 4.8 million in 2021.

Some 10.8 million passengers passed through Cyprus’ airports in the first eleven months of 2019.

According to Hermes Airports, passenger traffic at the Larnaca for November alone increased by 29%, compared to the same month last year, reaching 200,600.

Compared to the same month in 2019, traffic recorded a 12.9% decrease.

Paphos airport saw 184,700 passengers enter its gates in November, registering an annual increase of 0.6%.

Notably, passenger traffic at Paphos was only 2.6% lower compared to the record year of 2019.

Some 575,100 passengers went through Cyprus airports in November, up from 484,300 in the same month last year, recording an increase of 18.8%.

Compared to the same month in 2019, figures have been reduced by 8.4%.

In 2021, Hermes reported that 5.1 million had passed through the two airports, up from 2.3 million in COVID-ravaged 2020.

The record for passenger traffic was recorded in 2019 when 11.2 million passengers used Larnaca and Paphos airports.

And 2019 was a record year for tourism, as 3.97 million tourists arrived in Cyprus.

The Chief Executive Officer of Hermes Airports, Eleni Kalogirou, recently estimated that there would be more than 9 million passengers this year with more routes to the island.

“Strengthening Cyprus’ attractiveness as a tourist destination and its connectivity contributed decisively to the increased number,” said Kalogirou.