Cork Airport is preparing to welcome 72,000 passengers this August Bank Holiday weekend, with Sunday, August 2 expected to be the busiest day overall. Friday, July 31 will be the busiest day for departures while Sunday, August 2 will be the busiest for arrivals.
As one of the busiest weekends in the year for inbound tourism, a plethora of festivals and events will take place across the South of Ireland including Cork Community Pride, Kinsale Regatta Festival (Ireland’s oldest regatta), Courtmacsherry Harbour Festival, All Together Now music festival and Spraoi International Street Arts Festival in Waterford, and Cahersiveen Music & Arts Festival Weekend in Kerry. Other festivals include Castletownbere Festival of the Sea; Youghal Medieval Festival with Cork On A Fork Fest, Schull Regatta Festival and Bandon Walled Town Festival, which all take place later next month.
The last two weeks of July and first two weeks in August continue to be very popular for outbound holidaymakers, and this weekend is no different as thousands of families will take off on well-deserved breaks to parts of the UK, Europe and further afield. In July, the most popular routes included Valencia, London Gatwick, Alicante, Edinburgh, Zadar, Seville, Milan and Malaga.
An increasing number of passengers from across the South of Ireland continue to choose Cork Airport as their preferred point of departure. Market research shows that, outside of Cork, the largest share of passengers come from Waterford, Kerry, Tipperary, Limerick, Kilkenny and Wexford respectively.
As the busy August Bank Holiday weekend approaches, Niall MacCarthy, Managing Director at Cork Airport said: “We are entering the last month of the peak summer season for both inbound and outbound visitors through Cork Airport. I’m delighted to see that so many festivals and events are taking place right across the region. Visitors will notice that our capital programme is well underway, with three live construction sites on the airport campus at present. Despite the on-time, on-budget construction activities, the warmth of the welcome and the smoothness of the passenger journey remains unchanged and the best in Ireland. If you haven’t used Cork Airport before, check it out and hold us to that test!”
For those travelling this August Bank Holiday weekend, Cork Airport has set out some helpful travel tips to ensure passengers have a smooth and stress-free airport experience:
- Arrive at the airport at least 90 minutes before your scheduled flight departure time.
- Allow ample time if you are checking-in at the airport or checking in a bag. For Aer Lingus and Ryanair passengers, convenient self-service bag drop kiosks are available for passengers’ use.
- If you have liquids/gels/pastes in your hand luggage, make sure they are less than 100ml and are contained in a single, clear, plastic bag. (Remember, one bag per passenger!)
- At security screening, remove any liquids/gels/pastes and any large electronic items (laptops, tablets, games consoles etc.) from your hand luggage and place in a tray provided.