More than 150,000 passengers went through Tallinn Airport in July, a coronavirus pandemic record, but it was still half of the traffic before the virus took over international travel last year.
People heading for flights in Tallinn recently can see a livelier airport. The airport’s commercial manager Eero Pargmae said they did well in July. Most of the travelers are Estonian, as there are few foreign tourists.
“The picture at Tallinn Airport is the best it has been in a year and a half. We have not seen passenger numbers as high as this in a long time,” Pargmae said, adding that the number of passengers exceeded 150,000 in July. “At the same time, if we compare it to 2019, the number is still around half of what it was, so there is plenty of room for growth.”
The airport manager noted that the most common passenger currently was an Estonian heading for vacation.
“The most popular flights are to vacation destinations in the Mediterranean and in the South. Much fewer tourists arrive than two years ago,” Pargmae said.
While rules for travel in Europe have mostly been unified, Pargmae emphasized that people should check their destination country’s COVID-19 restrictions and regulations meticulously. Flight companies are also going by the countries’ directives.
“The requirements of airports and flight companies are similar. There is one main requirement of mask-wearing. Country requirements continue to differ and they will also change based on what the viral situation currently is, so travelers should check their destination country’s requirements before they head out. From what age should children be tested, for example. These things must be made clear before,” Pargmae said.
It is hard to predict anything currently and Pargmae said the flight market in fall would largely depend on the return of business travelers.
“It continues to be a great question as we do not know how the next virus waves will develop and how many conferences can be organized in Estonia and elsewhere. I think we will do well until the end of the vacation period in the end of September, but October-November are still open,” Pargmae said. (ERR/Business World Magazine)
