Ireland West Airport set for busiest Christmas period in the airport's history

Ireland West Airport are expecting 40,000 passengers to pass through the airport over the Christmas period, making it the busiest in the airport's history.

Passenger numbers estimated to arrive and depart at the airport between this week and Sunday January 5 are expected to be up almost 15 percent compared with the same time last year. Friday, December 22 is set to be the busiest day for arriving passengers with over 3,500 passengers set to pass through the airport.

The Christmas excitement will kick off this week with performances from a number of local national schools and the Mayo Male Voice Choir and Mayo’s Rocks ‘n’ Roses Choir. On Friday Mid West Radio will be broadcasting from the airport on the morning from 9am to 1pm as families and loved ones from around the world reunite for the festive period. Members of the public are welcome to come to the airport and experience the festive atmosphere at the airport. The new Sláinte Barista Café is open to the public where you can enjoy a freshly brewed selection of coffees and snacks and watch as planes land and take off over the Christmas period.

Ireland West Airport will close on Christmas Day, the only day on which it closes every year, and will resume full operations on St Stephen's Day ahead of a very busy Christmas and New Year period.

Passengers travelling out of Ireland West Airport over the Christmas and New Year period can enjoy an even more seamless experience, as the airport recently completed the installation of a new next-generation cabin baggage screening system which is now fully operational. These new machines mean passengers are no longer required to remove laptops and liquids from cabin bags. With this new system, all liquids, gels, aerosols, creams, pastes, baby food, medicines and special dietary products that would previously have to be put into clear, sealed plastic bags and presented separately to hand luggage, can now remain packed in your hand luggage. With the installation of these new machines, the restriction on liquids of more than 100ml no longer applies, and passengers can travel with larger quantities of liquids if they fit into a cabin bag which will make the passenger journey through security even quicker and easier.

Looking ahead to the busiest Christmas period in the airports history, Joe Gilmore, Managing Director, Ireland West Airport said: “Christmas is always a wonderful time at the airport as families and friends are reunited at this special time of the year. We are looking forward to welcoming record numbers travelling through the airport over the busy Christmas period which will culminate in 2023 being our busiest ever year for passenger traffic with passenger numbers reaching record levels. I would also like to take this opportunity to wish all our customers and stakeholders a very happy Christmas and thank them for their continued support for the airport. In addition, a special word of thanks to the staff at the airport for their hard work and continued focus on ensuring the customer and passenger experience through the airport is both a safe and welcoming one and for ensuring operations run smoothly over what’s a very busy time over the Christmas and New Year period.”