Portugal and Hungary Power Summer Travel Gains as VINCI Airports’ Global Passenger Traffic Slips 0.6%

VINCI Airports handled 93.5 million passengers across its global network in the third quarter of 2026, down 0.6% from a year earlier, as growth in Portugal, Hungary, Serbia and Scotland softened the impact of weaker traffic in Japan, Cambodia and Chile. Its 19 October update linked the uneven results to geopolitical tensions, high aviation fuel prices and changes in airline capacity.

Behind that modest overall fall, individual airports experienced much larger swings. Budapest achieved double-digit growth as airlines expanded Southern European services. Porto and Faro continued to gain passengers through the summer, while Japan and Cambodia faced pressure from weaker regional travel.

For the travel industry, the figures reveal where additional connections supported business during the main European holiday season and where cost pressures or airline restructuring limited growth. They also show how VINCI’s international spread helped contain the effect of weaker markets.

Q3 2026 Airport Traffic at a Glance

Source: VINCI’s passenger traffic appendix. Country totals and individual airports overlap, so these rows should not be added together. The global total rounds to 93.5 million.

Nine-Month Traffic Holds Close to Last Year

VINCI’s airports handled 252.53 million passengers between January and September, a decline of just 0.2% compared with the corresponding period of 2025. September alone was weaker, with traffic down 1.5%, although the nine-month result remained broadly stable.

The figures mark a slower phase after two years of expansion. VINCI handled more than 318 million passengers in 2024, when traffic rose 8.5% from 2023 and exceeded 2019 levels by 3.7%. The network then welcomed more than 334 million passengers in 2025, up 5%.

VINCI describes itself as the world’s leading private airport operator and manages more than 70 airports in 14 countries. That geographical breadth remained central to the latest performance: growth across several European and Latin American operations largely offset weaker activity elsewhere.

Budapest and Portugal Keep European Holiday Routes Growing

Budapest delivered one of the strongest results highlighted in the update. Passenger traffic rose 12% to 6.218 million during the quarter, supported by a broader choice of Wizz Air and Ryanair services to Southern Europe. Budapest’s quarterly increase also exceeded its growth rate for the year to date. Across January to September, the airport handled 15.759 million passengers, up 8.1%, with the summer quarter providing a particularly strong contribution.

Portugal’s ANA network recorded growth of 2.1%, with Porto and Faro providing clear areas of strength. Porto handled 5.433 million passengers, up 7.1%, while Faro welcomed 3.994 million, an increase of 3.7%. Lisbon was broadly steady, recording a marginal 0.2% decline.

These differences matter when assessing Portugal’s tourism access. The ANA network’s positive result contained separate local trends, with Porto growing faster than Faro and both outperforming Lisbon. A single network-wide percentage therefore gives only part of the picture.

Belgrade added to the European gains. Its passenger traffic increased 6.7% to 3.075 million, supported by routes to Western Europe. VINCI highlighted the Serbian airport’s continued development as a regional hub, extending the group’s growth beyond Mediterranean holiday gateways.

Edinburgh Gains Capacity as Gatwick Faces Network Changes

Edinburgh Airport recorded 5.403 million passengers, up 4.3%, as Ryanair, easyJet and Jet2 increased capacity. Mediterranean destinations were a particular source of growth, linking Scotland’s summer performance to the wider strength of European leisure travel. London Gatwick remained under pressure, handling 12.861 million passengers, down 2.9%. VINCI attributed the decline to continuing changes in the medium-haul services offered by low-cost carriers.

However, the fall eased during the quarter. Strong summer results on routes to Spain and five additional aircraft based by Jet2 helped offset part of the reduction elsewhere. Gatwick’s figures therefore combined a continuing contraction with specific areas of improvement. The contrast between Edinburgh and Gatwick highlights how airlines’ network decisions can produce different outcomes within one national market. Additional capacity supported one gateway, while restructuring weighed on the other. For holiday businesses, the distinction is relevant to departure airport selection, available services and the markets connected to each programme.

Japan and Cambodia Record Sharper Setbacks

VINCI’s Japanese airport network handled 12.937 million passengers, down 8.8%. The company linked the decline to tensions between China and Japan, which continued to affect traffic at its Japanese operations. The pressure varied within that network. Kansai Airport recorded a 13% decline, while Itami fell 4.4%. Kobe moved in the opposite direction, with growth of 7.2%. The network-level result consequently concealed significant differences between individual airports.

VINCI’s Cambodian operations recorded a steeper 20% contraction, handling 1.059 million passengers. The company attributed the decline to weaker demand from China and Thailand. Together, the Japanese and Cambodian results explain an important part of the regional imbalance in the quarter. European holiday routes were adding passengers at several airports, while these Asian operations faced reduced demand from key neighbouring markets. Across the first nine months, Japanese traffic was down 6.8% and Cambodian traffic fell 12%.

Cabo Verde Strengthens Its Links With Europe

Cabo Verde recorded 5.5% growth, with VINCI’s airports handling 933,000 passengers during the quarter. Expanded European connections supported the increase, including new services operated by easyJet and TAP Air Portugal. The result added an island destination to the network’s list of growing markets. It also showed that the contribution from European travel extended beyond airports on the continent itself.

The quarterly increase brought traffic for the first nine months to 2.782 million passengers, up 9.4% from the same period in 2025. The archipelago therefore continued to make a positive contribution while several larger airport markets recorded declines.

Mexico and the Caribbean Advance as Latin America Diverges

Mexico’s OMA network handled 7.733 million passengers, an increase of 1.2%. Strong domestic services between regional airports supported the result, providing a source of growth alongside the international leisure routes highlighted elsewhere in the report. In Brazil, Salvador Bahia continued to strengthen its role as a regional hub following investment by GOL. Passenger traffic increased 4% to 2.141 million, maintaining the airport’s positive contribution to the group.

The broader Brazilian picture was less buoyant. VINCI’s airport network in the country recorded a marginal 0.1% decline overall. Salvador’s expansion therefore did not translate into growth across the entire portfolio, underlining the importance of assessing individual gateways. In the Dominican Republic, VINCI’s Aerodom network welcomed 1.697 million passengers, up 4.9%. Services linking the country with Spain, other Caribbean islands and Latin America supported the increase. Both transatlantic access and regional connections contributed to the quarter’s performance.

Santiago Airport in Chile moved in the opposite direction, with traffic down 2.2% to 6.369 million passengers. VINCI linked the decline mainly to unfavourable fuel price trends and flight adjustments during the southern hemisphere winter. The regional results consequently reflected several different demand patterns. Domestic travel supported Mexico, investment and connectivity helped Salvador, and international links strengthened the Dominican Republic. Chile remained exposed to cost pressures and seasonal schedule changes.

Low-Cost Airline Networks Bring Growth and Pressure

The quarter demonstrated the influence of low-cost airline networks on airport performance. Expanded Wizz Air and Ryanair services supported Budapest, while Ryanair, easyJet and Jet2 helped Edinburgh grow. At Gatwick, restructuring within the same broad airline segment continued to weigh on traffic. For tourism businesses, this makes airport and route-level information an important complement to national visitor statistics. A growing country market can contain weaker gateways, while an airport facing an overall decline can still record stronger demand on particular holiday routes.

VINCI’s geographical diversification limited the overall contraction, but did not remove the differences between markets. The company’s nine-month figures remained close to the previous year even as individual airports recorded substantial gains or losses. The published totals count airport passenger traffic at 100%, regardless of VINCI’s ownership share. They are indicators of transport activity rather than unique visitor numbers. For the travel trade, they provide a basis for comparing air access and passenger flows across destinations, alongside separate tourism and accommodation data.