Dublin Airport expects almost 800,000 passengers over St Patrick’s Day period
12-day period expected to be Dublin Airport’s busiest since Covid interrupted travel
Dublin Airport prepares for St Patrick's Day, with (L-R) Lisa Armstrong, Emma Breathnach, Gavin O Hagan, Tadhg Breathnach O Hagan, Laura Breathnach and Dominic Byrne
Shannon Airport welcomes back transatlantic travel in 2022
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Almost 800,000 passengers are set to travel through Dublin Airport during the St Patrick’s Day period.
"This coming 12- day period is expected to be the busiest the airport has seen since before Covid,” it said in a statement.
Up to 77,000 passengers will use the airport each day at peak times.
It comes as Ireland prepares for a unique double bank holiday this Thursday and Friday, March 17 and 18, and widespread parades and celebrations return for the first time in three years.
The theme for this year’s St Patrick’s Day Festival is “Connections”. It is being sponsored by Dublin Airport, with tourists encouraged to reconnect in Ireland after the pandemic.
As well as a public holiday and national knees-up, St Patrick’s Day is traditionally seen as the start of Ireland’s tourism season and a key marketing opportunity around the world.
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An $8.5m (€7.75m) campaign in the US, for example, sees Tourism Ireland urging potential visitors to push the “Green Button” and “convert lookers to bookers” after two years of Covid.
Since March 6, Ireland no longer requires visitors to show proof of Covid-19 vaccination, recovery or a negative PCR test result, simplifying tourist journeys.
However, Russia's war in Ukraine has created fresh concerns for tourism and aviation recovery, leading to fuel price increases, changing air routes and concerns for traveller confidence.
Tourism Ireland has said it may cause "a deferral on decision-making”.
The popular Global Greening, which last year saw a record 725 landmarks lit up green around the world, will also be more muted this year.
"2022 is a very different year and as a mark of respect to the situation in Ukraine, Tourism Ireland has taken the decision not to promote the Global Greening initiative for St Patrick’s Day,” it said.
Nevertheless, Ireland’s air connectivity has been building back up, with Ryanair announcing its largest ever schedules for Dublin and Cork, and Shannon Airport welcoming back transatlantic services for the first time in two years.
"The restoration of these daily vital US services will be a welcome boost for the West of Ireland economy and will see loved ones and business communities reconnected,” said Mary Considine, CEO of Shannon Group.
More than 2.3 million passengers travelled through Dublin Airport in the first two months of 2022, a 44pc decrease on pre-Covid levels in 2020, but an increase of 626pc on the same period last year.
Ryanair has also announced a new service between Marseille and Shannon from May 4, and other developments see Dublin Airport’s first ever scheduled service to Cairo, Egypt, take off from June 2.
Passengers travelling over the St Patrick’s Day period are advised to check their terminal, plan ahead for security screening and arrive at least two hours before short-haul flights, and three hours before long-haul flights.
Passengers are asked to wear a mask throughout the airport, and can check any Covid-19 restrictions for their destinations at reopen.europa.eu.
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