Almost 900,000 passengers to travel through Dublin and Shannon airports over the next week
Ellen O'Donoghue
Almost 900,000 passengers are expected to travel through two Irish airports over the next week or so.
More than 850,000 passengers are expected at Dublin Airport between today and next Wednesday, March 18th.
Shannon Airport expects to welcome 40,000 passengers travelling over the St Patrick's Day period, a 7 per cent increase on 2025.
The passengers at Dublin will be travelling for a mixture of St Patrick's Day celebrations, Six Nations rugby and the Cheltenham Festival.
According to Dublin Airport, passenger numbers are forecast to build steadily across the period, with several busy days expected.
Around 433,000 passengers are set to arrive at Dublin Airport over the next eight days, with around 418,000 departing.
Thousands of horse racing fans are heading over to the south of England for Cheltenham, which kicks off today and runs until Friday.
Up to 10,000 rugby fans are then expected to arrive at the airport for the Six Nations rugby clash at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday between Ireland and Scotland, before tens of thousands of visitors descend on Ireland through Dublin Airport to celebrate St Patrick's Day.
The busiest days of the period are expected to be Friday, March 13th and Sunday, March 15th, when around 116,000 passengers are forecast to travel through the airport.
The days in the run-up to St Patrick's Day are also set to be very busy in the airport's arrival halls, with between 50,000 and 60,000 passengers forecast to arrive in each day between Friday and Tuesday.
Passengers travelling over the coming days have been advised to allow enough time for their journey through the airport, two hours before a short-haul flight and three hours before a long-haul flight.
Graeme McQueen, head of media relations at daa, said that this week is "always one of the best weeks of the year at Dublin Airport".
He said that the Cheltenham Festival, followed by the St Patrick's Festival, and the rugby, will create a "great buzz."
"If that wasn’t enough, Mother’s Day is this Sunday, so we’re also going to be seeing lots of heart-warming family reunions over the coming days," McQueen said.
“We have a great programme of entertainment lined up in our Arrivals Halls to ensure an extra special welcome for overseas visitors, including face painting, music acts, Irish dancing groups and stilt walkers."
Shannon Airport will also see an uplift in UK travel for Cheltenham, with Ryanair operating additional services on its Shannon to Birmingham route to accommodate racegoers heading to and from the event.
Niall Kearns, Shannon Airport director, said that St Patrick's Day is "always a special time" at the airport.
"It traditionally marks the start of the tourism season for many. This year’s passenger numbers show the continued confidence of our customers, and follow a strong start to the year, with average passenger growth of 7 per cent across January and February," he said.
Shannon Airport's terminal building is also going green again, a long-standing tradition as the airport participates in the Global Greening, joining landmark buildings across the country and around the world that glow green at this time of year.
