More than 850,000 passengers expected at Dublin Airport during busy St Patrick’s Festival period

Dublin Airport is preparing for its busiest period of the year so far, with more than 850,000 passengers expected to travel through the airport for a mixture of St Patrick’s Day celebrations, Six Nations rugby and Cheltenham Festival.

Passenger numbers are forecast to build steadily across the period, with several particularly busy days expected.

Between today (Tuesday) and next Wednesday (March 18th), around 433,000 passengers are set to arrive at Dublin Airport, with around 418,000 departing.

Dublin Airport’s departure gates are busy this week as thousands of horse racing fans head over to the south of England for the Cheltenham Festival, which kicks off today and runs until Friday.

Up to 10,000 rugby fans are then expected to arrive at Dublin Airport for the Six Nations rugby clash at Aviva Stadium on Saturday between Ireland and Scotland, before tens of thousands of visitors descend on Ireland, through Dublin Airport, from all over the world to celebrate St Patrick’s Day.

Busiest Days 
The busiest days of the period are set 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 set to be very busy in the airport’s arrivals halls with between 50,000 and 60,000 passengers forecast to arrive in each day between Friday and the big day on Tuesday.

Passenger Advice 
Passengers travelling over the coming days are 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.

Commentary

According to Graeme McQueen, Head of Media Relations, at daa, the operator of Dublin Airport: “This is always one of the best weeks of the year at Dublin Airport as the Cheltenham Festival, quickly followed by the St Patrick’s Festival, combine to create a great buzz in our terminals. The fact we have the Scottish rugby fans travelling over in the middle of it all, with both countries still in with a chance of winning the Six Nations championship, means this year is going to be extra special.

“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, while many Ireland residents will also take advantage of the bank holiday to jet off for a city break or for some spring sunshine overseas.

“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. The airport is going to be busy, but we love this time of year, and our teams are ready to do all they can to send every passenger off with a smile on their face.”