For Brussels Airport, the first weekend of the Christmas holidays is traditionally the busiest weekend of the holiday. And this year will prove no different: the airport is expecting more than 180,000 departing and arriving passengers between Friday and Sunday. To put everybody into the holiday mood, the airport is decked out in Christmas decorations and there are countless promotions for the Christmas shoppers.
The Christmas holidays are nearly here and for many these are an ideal opportunity to to sneak out for a few days. Quite a few people go abroad to visit family and relatives, to ski or to soak up the sun. And a lot of Belgians come home and tourists visit our country to lap up the Christmas spirit. The first weekend of the Christmas holidays promises to be particularly busy at Brussels Airport, with Friday 18 December the busiest. No less than 66,000 passengers are expected at the airport on that day.
Compared to last year’s Christmas holidays, Brussels Airport expects 5.6% more passengers. The prognosis for the first days of this Christmas holidays is:
Thursday 17 December: 61,000
Friday 18 December: 66,000
Saturday 19 December: 54,000
Sunday 20 December 59,000
Monday 21 December: 55,000
Step into the magical world of Brussels Airport
No less than 50 Christmas trees and thousands of lights bring Christmas cheer to Brussels Airport. On 23 December there is even a choir singing Christmas carols in the Departure Hall. If you are still looking for that perfect present, you can enjoy special holiday promotions at the airport in the weekend before Christmas.
Top destinations are mainly sunny
Belgians who choose to spend their Christmas holiday abroad choose either a week in the sun or a week in the snow. The destinations for the Christmas holiday are enormously diverse. Spain remains a favourite with the Canary Islands, but also more distant, and more exotic, destinations are in demand, such as the US (New York and
Florida), the Dominican Republic, Senegal (Dakar), Cape Verde and the Dead Sea Riviera. Italy (Milan) and Germany (Berlin) are also extremely popular, as is Switzerland (Geneva) for ski holidays.
Practical tips for a smooth start of your holiday
During the Christmas holidays, the airport can be extremely busy. Brussels Airport advises passengers to plan sufficient travelling time to the airport, to use the car parks or come by public transport.
The airport would like to remind everyone that the Kiss & Fly zone is only intended to allow departing passengers to get out quickly and is not intended for collecting passengers. Anyone coming to pick up passengers can make use of car parks P1 and P2 which can be accessed directly from the access road when arriving at the airport.
The legislation concerning liquids and gels in hand luggage has not been changed: containers of more than 100 ml are not allowed. Exceptions are made for baby food and medication. Liquids purchased in the tax-free shops at the airport must remain in the sealed bag until the passenger has reached their destination.
Brussels Airport, 16 December 2015
