New Year's Report

1.7 million passengers exceeded in 2024 / stabilization at current level targeted for 2025 / only around 3.2% passengers missing from pre-corona assessment year 2018 / summer 2025 flight program with new routes / over 8 million invested in 2024 / 15 February and 22 February peak days (93 landings and 92 take-offs on both days) this season

The 1.7 million passenger mark was clearly exceeded in the last financial year, and the airport is on a recovery course, with only around 3.2% of passengers missing the pre-corona assessment year 2018. Salzburg has made a very good start to the current winter season, bookings in Salzburg's winter sports resorts are very satisfactory according to the accommodation providers and tourism in the province appears to have recovered from the pandemic years. This positive picture is also reflected in the airport's figures, with 10.7% more guests, i.e. 1,787,169 passengers, recorded in the past financial year 2024.

Factsheet 2024 (prozentuelle Veränderung auf die Vorjahreszahlen 2023)

Winter season 2024/2025: snow improves booking situation  
The current winter season is looking promising, with a late Easter and ideal snow conditions ensuring satisfaction in the tourism industry. The booking situation shows interesting patterns: while high season dates such as Christmas, New Year's Eve and semester breaks are fully booked early, guests tend to book at shorter notice and with more flexible arrival dates in other periods. “Parallel to the start of the 2024/2025 winter season, a lot of snow fell in the province, it was cold and the professionals were able to prepare the ski areas perfectly for the season. This year, the A10 construction site has once again caused a bottleneck in passenger transportation. However, thanks to the expansion of the regional bus line 270, there is once again a direct connection between the airport and Eben im Pongau this year. This means that guests can travel stress-free with a direct connection from the airport to the regions and, of course, from there back to their departure. This means that there is once again an optimal solution for winter sports guests and tourism businesses this winter season,” says Deputy Governor Stefan Schnöll, Chairman of the Supervisory Board.
The regional bus line 270 (every Saturday) started on 21.12.2024, the last day of service is planned for 19.04.2025. The stops are located at Salzburg Central Station and Salzburg Airport (terminal area) and the line ends at the Park & Ride in Eben.

8 million euros invested in 2024: 2025 will be the planning year for the terminal 
Preparation and planning are half the battle, they say - and this also applies to the major terminal renewal project. Intensive planning for the terminal renewal will begin in 2025 and construction is due to start in 2026. The demands placed on modern airports have evolved. Today, they present themselves as versatile worlds of experience that offer a wide range of services and amenities. In addition to a wide range of shopping opportunities, they attract visitors with a variety of restaurants, entertainment options as well as business and conference facilities. In the rapidly changing aviation industry, efficiency has become a key factor. Airports are integrating this concept into all areas of their operations, including optimized passenger handling, streamlined baggage handling, energy-efficient building technology and intelligent resource management.

This focus on efficiency is crucial if airports are to survive the intense global competition and maintain their position as an attractive hub for travelers and airlines. Only through continuous innovation and improvement can airports secure their competitiveness and remain fit for the future. “In December 2024, the co-financing of the owners was confirmed at the airport's last Supervisory Board meeting. A total of around 105 million euros will flow into the modernization of the airport with the construction of a new terminal. This future-oriented project will meet passenger requirements even better and make the airport modern, energy-saving and future-proof. It is an important step towards further strengthening Salzburg as a business location and boosting regional value creation,” said Schnöll about the terminal construction plans for the coming years.

Around 8 million euros were invested in the future of Salzburg Airport in the 2024 financial year. The three largest projects were the photovoltaic system at the multi-storey parking garage (EUR 1.13 million), the purchase of equipment for security checks (EU Standard 3 devices EUR 1.1 million) and for the terminal development planning project (just under EUR 1.2 million). There was also an urgent need to purchase a compact sweeper incl. truck (EUR 644,530), a vacuum cleaner for de-icing agents (EUR 412,036), the creation of an IT data center (EUR 336,053), purchases for the fire department (EUR 268,831) and adaptation measures for the baggage handling system (EUR 357,841). Around EUR 795,000 also had to be invested in the finalization of the ETRY EXIT (EES) system at the airport. Airports are large infrastructure facilities where, in addition to major investments, money must also be invested each year in the maintenance of existing buildings, roads and facilities in order to ensure safe and smooth operations.
“After a couple years of saving in 2020, 2021 and 2022, when many projects and investments were postponed or suspended, it was finally possible to make up for a significant part of this in 2024. In total, more than 8 million euros were invested in the future of Salzburg, because a well-situated airport benefits the entire region,” says Ganghofer about the urgently needed investments.  

Terminal planning 
Time flies and 2025 is all about the planners, and the first construction measures for the terminal renewal project will start in 2026. The basic building from 1966 has reached the end of its life cycle in terms of construction, technology and official requirements, and the airport is currently in the design phase.

All comments from the ongoing consultations with users, operators and authorities have been incorporated into the planning, and the Supervisory Board approved the current project on December 17,2024. The current design planning is being further refined, a final “design freeze” for the overall project was carried out towards the end of 2024, with submission and approval planning to follow.
In the first half of 2025, the airport will be awarding the contracts for the structural testing, construction supervision and execution services. Construction is then due to start in April 2026 with the departure terminal, which is scheduled to be finalized by 2030. “The schedule is tight and we are all very excited to see what will emerge at the end of the planning phase. The modernization of our airport is a forward-looking project that will secure the airport's competitiveness and attractiveness in the long term. The expansion and conversion of the terminal landscape will not only bring the airport up to the latest technical standards, but will also meet the changing requirements of modern airports,” says Schnöll.

Summer 2025 at a glance
Summer, sun, beaches and cities - the 2025 summer flight program leaves nothing to be desired. “The Mediterranean, exploring cities or to the Maldives via Dubai, our guests can take off comfortably on their dream vacation from Salzburg,” says Airport Managing Director Bettina Ganghofer. In addition to summer classics such as Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza, Sardinia and Corsica, new destinations such as Barcelona (with Eurowings) and Alicante (with Ryanair) are also waiting to be discovered.  
Summer always means sun, beach, relaxation, luxury, sport and relaxation. Whether it's Egypt (Hurghada), Bulgaria (Burgas), the Greek islands (Karpathos, Corfu, Kos, Crete, Rhodes, Zakynthos) or Turkey (Antalya), Tunisia (Monastir), Cyprus (Larnaca) or Southern Italy (Lamezia Terme) - the summer destinations offer a broad variety. For those who are more drawn to the north, Copenhagen is a real must-see and has more flights in this year’s program. The cities of Berlin, Hamburg, Belgrade, London and Amsterdam are also popular destinations in the Salzburg flight program. Via the major hubs such as Frankfurt, Istanbul or Dubai, long-haul destinations such as Mauritius, Thailand or the USA can also be reached quickly and conveniently from Salzburg with just one change.

The 3 WIZZ routes introduced in 2024 (Skopje, Bucharest and London) will unfortunately be removed from the existing program, as the airport was unable to meet WIZZ's demand to adjust airport tariffs for economic reasons. Discussions with partners and airlines are ongoing, always with the aim of strengthening and expanding the range of destinations for the region from Salzburg Airport.

SN-Reisetag 2025 at Europark
All information about the summer flight schedule and travel options from Salzburg will be available at the SN-Reisetag on 25 January 2025 at Europark. Numerous exhibitors - from local travel agencies and international tour operators to cruise operators and many more - will provide fascinating insights into the world of travel on the 3rd SN Travel Day. Don't miss the one or other exciting travel lecture. 

Further Information concerning SN-Reisetag as well as the flight program: salzburg.com 
Link to SN-Reisetag: Veranstaltungen am und rund um den Flughafen
Link to summer flight program: Saisonflugplan ab Salzburg