Brussels Airport Company announced on 19 December that it expects more than 1.06 million travellers between 19 December and 4 January, the busiest Christmas period in the airport’s history. Forecast models point to 70,000 passengers on Friday alone, coinciding with the start of Belgian school holidays; the peak day is projected for 29 December with around 72,000 flyers.
To keep people moving, the airport has expanded real-time queue-tracking in its mobile app, opened four additional security lanes and added temporary staff at check-in. New ‘peak assistants’ wearing orange vests will roam the departures hall directing travellers to the shortest lines. Public-transport operators De Lijn and SNCB confirm that extra bus and train services will run to Zaventem during the fortnight.
![Brussels Airport Braces for Record 1.06 Million Holiday Passengers]()
If you’re among the many international passengers passing through Brussels this season and still need to sort out travel documents, VisaHQ can help. The company’s online platform (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) provides step-by-step guidance on visa and passport requirements for trips to and from Belgium, letting travellers handle paperwork quickly and avoid last-minute surprises before arriving at the airport.
Business-travel patterns are changing too. Despite the leisure surge, Brussels Airlines reports a 9 percent year-on-year rise in premium-cabin bookings for the last two working days before Christmas, signalling that corporates are squeezing in final 2025 meetings abroad. Duty-of-care teams should note that strong demand has lifted average hotel rates near the airport by 14 percent, according to STR Global.
The winter schedule features 137 direct destinations, including three newcomers: Sälen (Sweden), Larnaca (Cyprus) and Chongqing (China). Travel-management companies advise early seat selection on these routes, which are already operating at load factors above 80 percent.
To keep people moving, the airport has expanded real-time queue-tracking in its mobile app, opened four additional security lanes and added temporary staff at check-in. New ‘peak assistants’ wearing orange vests will roam the departures hall directing travellers to the shortest lines. Public-transport operators De Lijn and SNCB confirm that extra bus and train services will run to Zaventem during the fortnight.
If you’re among the many international passengers passing through Brussels this season and still need to sort out travel documents, VisaHQ can help. The company’s online platform (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) provides step-by-step guidance on visa and passport requirements for trips to and from Belgium, letting travellers handle paperwork quickly and avoid last-minute surprises before arriving at the airport.
Business-travel patterns are changing too. Despite the leisure surge, Brussels Airlines reports a 9 percent year-on-year rise in premium-cabin bookings for the last two working days before Christmas, signalling that corporates are squeezing in final 2025 meetings abroad. Duty-of-care teams should note that strong demand has lifted average hotel rates near the airport by 14 percent, according to STR Global.
The winter schedule features 137 direct destinations, including three newcomers: Sälen (Sweden), Larnaca (Cyprus) and Chongqing (China). Travel-management companies advise early seat selection on these routes, which are already operating at load factors above 80 percent.
