Number of seats on flights to and from Malaga Airport this winter is up 26.3%

More airlines are committing flights to the Costa del Sol this winter with 26.3% more seats offered this season compared to last.

In total, 9.1 million seats are up for grabs to fly to and from Malaga airport in the low season, which started last Sunday and runs until the end of March. It's 26.3% more than in the same period last year, when 17% more seats were offered than before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Runways will also feel the increase, with 51,400 landing and take-off operations expected to take place, 21% more than the same period last year. "The strength of the Malaga Airport's two major markets, European (165 routes) and domestic (26 routes), supports these growth figures, which are reinforced by the expected growth in other areas of operation, such as the African continent, with 8% more seats, and North America, with 65% more seats," airport operator Aena pointed out.

Malaga will have direct flights this winter to the capital of Greece, Athens, and the capital of Serbia, Belgrade; as well as to the German cities of Dortmund and Paderborn; the British cities of Exeter and Newquay; the Polish cities of Gdansk, Katowice and Lodz; the Moroccan city of Nador, and the Norwegian city of Stavanger. In Spain, the Fuerteventura and San Sebastian routes will be on offer in winter.

These are the millions of seats offered by the 40 airlines that will operate this winter at the airport. The Costa del Sol will be connected with 123 cities with direct flights, four more than the previous low season. In total, the airlines have programmed 202 routes, of which 165 will connect Malaga with the rest of the continent, with 31% more seats and 28% more scheduled flights to Europe. In Spain, 26 routes have been established, with 13% more seats and 8% more operations than last winter.

Germany is also a strong market where airlines have increased the number of seats available to fly from the Costa del Sol by 52%, with 48% more operations; the Netherlands, with 20% more seats; France, with 38% more; Italy, with a 49% increase in air capacity; Poland, with a 185% increase in seats; Sweden, with 19% more seats and Denmark, with a 9% increase.

However, the UK remains the leader of the pack. In fact, 43 of the 202 total routes are directed to the British market, where airlines have scheduled just over 1.8 million seats and nearly 10,000 operations with this country from last Sunday until the last weekend of March next year. By destinations, London has the most seats and flights offered by airlines with more than 760,000 seats on almost 4,100 flights. Barcelona, Madrid, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Copenhagen, Dublin, Stockholm, Manchester and Rome complete the ranking of the cities with the most seats offered to fly this winter from Malaga.

Winter is becoming increasingly important for airlines operating in Malaga, according to the figures. Last year, there were 17% more seats to fly to and from the Costa del Sol than before the pandemic. Specifically, 7.4 million seats for the low season. From the end of October until the time change in March, 43,834 commercial operations, 13.6% more than before the health crisis, were operated on the runways of Malaga Airport. A season that also saw a strong boost in connectivity. During the 2022-2023 low season, airlines scheduled flights to link Malaga with 119 destinations via 192 routes, with the United Kingdom being the country with the most connections.