Budapest's Main Airport: 75th Anniversary with New Records

Budapest's Ferenc Liszt International Airport marked the 75th anniversary of its opening with historic records. The airport set records for both passenger and cargo volume last year, with the airport community managing the soaring passenger traffic seamlessly even during peak periods, according to a press statement by the airport operator Budapest Airport, part of the VINCI Airports network. A major airport development program has begun, with the aim of preparing the airport for future growth, while maintaining an excellent passenger experience.

The airport handled between 1.5 million and 1.9 million passengers almost every month in 2025, and ended the year with 19,632,894 passengers, an increase of 11.7% compared to 2024.

In addition to Hungary’s touristic appeal, the growth was also supported by the airport operator’s airline development strategy. Last year, the airport offered its most diverse schedule ever; 154 destinations were available from 45 airlines, with even more seats than in previous years, the statement says.

This diverse offer will be expanded by several new destinations in 2026. As Budapest Airport announced last year, the Hungarian capital will be back on the map of the largest North American airlines with two destinations this year, further boosting the already lively interest of overseas travelers and providing a number of connecting flights to North and South America and the Caribbean. As a result of the cooperation between Budapest Airport, the Hungarian government and Visit Hungary, American Airlines will return with a direct Budapest-Philadelphia connection, and Air Canada will also re-launch its Budapest-Toronto service. The new Hungarian-Chinese bilateral aviation agreement can also further increase the number of flights between China and Hungary, and Condor will debut as a completely new carrier on the Hungarian market with the launch of its Frankfurt flight.

Passenger traffic figures and the excellent results of tourism in Hungary last year confirmed the huge demand for the expansion of the airport. In preparation for the construction of the new terminal, work began last year to expand the security screening and passenger check-in capacity of the current building, and the renewal of the parking system and the extension of pier B will commence shortly. The future of Hungarian aviation will be fundamentally shaped by the construction of the new terminal, which will be one of the most significant aviation investments in Central Europe in the next decade, ensuring the competitiveness of Budapest Airport in the long run.

Budapest Airport will deliver these large-scale developments while keeping the airport running seamlessly and maintaining a high-quality passenger experience, worthy of the best airport in Europe. High service quality was underscored last year by two awards based on passenger feedback: Skytrax recognized Budapest Airport as the best airport in the region for the twelfth time, and Airports Council International named Budapest Airport the best airport in Europe in the category of airports handling 15-25 million passengers once again.

In addition to passenger traffic, the cargo business also grew significantly in 2025; the cargo volume increased from 300,000 to more than 400,000 tons last year, so Budapest Airport closed the year at 426,519 tons, a 42.3% increase compared to the previous year. This achievement has made Budapest Airport the main hub in the region, ahead of its main competitors. The outstanding performance of the cargo business was recognized by the industry for the second time in 2025 at the Payload Asia Awards, where Budapest Airport was named cargo Airport of the year in the European region.

Budapest Airport celebrated the anniversary year with a special series of events focusing on world-renowned composer Ferenc Liszt, whom the airport was named after, and his work. Among other events, the operator commemorated the 75th anniversary with performances in the terminal on World Piano Day, a large-scale Liszt concert at the Liszt Academy, a pantomime performance in cooperation with the Hungarian State Opera House, a Liszt installation in Terminal 2B at the end of the year, the first Aviation Ball for the Hungarian aviation community and the launch of Budapest Airport’s new website, which elevated the airport’s online presence to a new level.