The National Statistics Institute (INE) has revealed that passenger traffic rose by 2 percent in August to 7.9 million, with Porto leading the growth among the country’s main airports.
As reported by Publituris, Portugal’s airports handled more passengers in the first eight months of 2026 than in any comparable period.
On Wednesday, 14 October, data released by the INE showed that passenger traffic increased by 2 percent in August compared with the same month last year, reaching 7.9 million passengers.
According to the INE, passenger traffic set monthly records in the first eight months of 2026, with June the only exception.
Overall, traffic between January and August increased by 2.4 percent year on year, continuing the upward trend in air travel.
International travel
Porto Airport recorded the highest growth among Portugal’s three main airports, handling 12.1 million passengers over the eight-month period, representing a 7.1 percent increase compared with the same period in 2025.
Lisbon remained the country’s busiest airport, accounting for 47.7 percent of all passengers, or 24.3 million, although traffic grew by a more modest 0.8 percent.
Meanwhile, Faro Airport handled 7.6 million passengers, representing 14.8 percent of the national total and a 4 percent annual increase.
International passengers accounted for most air travel in August.
Of those arriving at Portuguese airports, 81.4 percent were travelling on international flights, representing around 3.2 million passengers and a 3.1 percent increase year on year.
Europe remained the leading region of origin, accounting for 66.4 percent of arriving passengers, up 3 percent.
The Americas ranked second, representing 9.8 percent of arrivals and recording growth of 3.1 percent.
Departures
These figures were similar for departing passengers, as international flights accounted for 82.3 percent of the 4.0 million passengers who departed in August, with the total reaching approximately 3.3 million and increasing by 3 percent compared with the previous year.
Once again, Europe was the main destination, accounting for 68.1 percent of departing passengers, an increase of 3 percent, while the Americas ranked second, representing 9.6 percent of the total, with traffic rising by 2.2 percent.
Furthermore, aircraft movements increased during the month, as Portuguese airports recorded 26,700 landings on commercial flights in August, up 1.4 percent year-on-year, slightly above the 1.3 percent growth recorded in July.
The INE also reported an average of 124,900 arriving passengers per day in August, up 2.1 percent from the same month last year.
UK market
The United Kingdom remained Portugal’s leading international source and destination market for air passengers between January and August.
Compared with the same period in 2025, arrivals from the UK rose 5.2 percent, while departures from Portugal to the country rose 5.5 percent.
Moreover, Spain overtook France to become Portugal’s second-largest international origin and destination market for air passengers in the first eight months of the year.