Brussels Airport is expecting 5.2 million passengers this summer holiday
Arriving at the airport in good time and well prepared for security screening remain key for a smooth departure
5.2 million passengers will travel via Brussels Airport in July and August, 4% more than last year. The summer holiday is traditionally the peak season at the airport, with the holiday rush starting as early as Friday, 26 June. With 180 direct destinations, including new intercontinental routes such as São Paulo, Kilimanjaro, and Halifax, passengers have plenty of choice. Brussels Airport and its partners are providing extra capacity and additional staff to cope with the summer rush. Passengers can also easily find answers to all their travel questions via the Brussels Airport App and chatbot BRUce, allowing them to start their holiday without a care.
The school holidays in Dutch-speaking education officially start on Wednesday, 1 July; in French-speaking education, they start on Monday, 6 July. In the months of July and August, Brussels Airport is expecting a total of around 5.2 million passengers, an increase of 4% compared with last summer. The holiday getaway starts as early as Friday, 26 June, when 82,000 passengers are expected. The busiest day of the summer holiday will be 20 July, with more than 90,000 travellers.
The classic sunny destinations remain very popular: Spain, Turkey, Greece, Italy, and Morocco top the list, followed by Portugal, Tunisia, Egypt, and Croatia. Those who prefer faraway destinations can fly direct from Brussels Airport to, among others, São Paulo (Brazil), Kilimanjaro (Tanzania), and Halifax (Canada). The offer to China and Hong Kong has also been further expanded, with six direct destinations.
The unstable geopolitical context currently has no impact on scheduled flights. There are also no concerns about the supply of kerosene presently for the entire summer season.
Brussels Airport and its partners are prepared for the summer rush
Brussels Airport and its partners are doing everything they can to give passengers a carefree journey. Extra staff are being deployed in the terminal to guide passengers around the airport and answer their questions. For check-in, additional capacity is being provided with pop-up check-in desks and a new Self Bag Drop zone for passengers of airlines SAS, Finnair, KLM, and Transavia, next to the existing zone for Lufthansa Group and Brussels Airlines.
Work is also being carried out together with the competent federal authorities, Home Affairs, Asylum and Migration, and the Federal Police to limit waiting times at border control at the airport. The introduction of the European Entry/Exit System is causing longer waiting times for non-European passengers at many European airports.
The Minister of the Interior and the Federal Police have foreseen increased staffing at border control this summer. The airport has created two additional positions for border control officers at departures and almost 60 pre-registration kiosks have already been installed for registering non-European passengers in the EES.
These are currently being tested so that passengers from certain third countries will soon be able to use these kiosks and the e-gates for border control, instead of the staffed border posts. All this should reduce waiting times for passengers.
Flight updates, lost property, and security screening: passengers’ most frequently asked questions
In the run-up to the summer holidays, Brussels Airport’s customer service department answers up to 300 passenger questions every day via the website, telephone, or social media.
“What time should I be at the airport, when can I check in, is my flight on time, which departure gate do I need to be at, etc.?” Many questions concern the different steps at the airport or the status of a flight. There is one convenient solution for this: passengers can select their flight and activate live updates via the Brussels Airport App or the chatbot BRUce on the website. This way, they receive all this information directly as soon as it becomes available. The rule of thumb remains: be at the airport two hours in advance for a flight within the Schengen area, and three hours in advance for a flight outside the Schengen area.
“Can I take this in my carry-on luggage?” For liquids, pastes, and gels, the rule still applies: containers of up to 100 ml may be packed in carry-on luggage, in a transparent bag with a total capacity of 1 litre. The new scanners will not be introduced until 2028. If in doubt, passengers can share a photo of an item with chatbot BRUce to check whether it is allowed in their carry-on luggage.
“I have lost something at the airport. “I forgot something at the security screening.” Checked luggage that goes missing is followed up by the airlines; passengers can contact Brussels Airport for all other lost items. Each item is registered, after which the Lost and Found team tries to identify the owner in order to return it; this is a free service. To do so, passengers must submit a report on the website, and the airport will get in touch as soon as the item is found.
