Gold Coast Airport has recorded its busiest April in history with more than half a million passengers travelling through the terminal throughout the month.
New data has revealed a total of 570,703 passengers were recorded, 41,606 more than the same time last year, also surpassing the previous April record set in 2018.
Queensland Airports Limited’s chief of Aviation Adam Rowe said the bumper month is due to new routes, additional capacity and increased travel demand over the school holiday period.
“This year the Queensland and New South Wales school holidays overlapped which drove a spike in travel demand between Good Friday and 19 April,” he said.
“The busiest day was the last day of school holidays on 19 April when more than 22,400 passengers passed through the terminal.
“Travellers also benefitted from more options this year, with increased capacity on key domestic routes as well as internationally on Bali, Auckland, Christchurch, Hamilton and Dunedin in New Zealand.
While April was a strong month, airlines are operating in a challenging environment, with global uncertainty pushing fuel costs higher.
“We’re continuing to work closely with our airline partners to support their networks and look for opportunities to maintain and grow services in a sustainable way.
“What’s encouraging is the Gold Coast market remains resilient and our region continues to be a destination of choice for both domestic and international visitors.”
Next month Gold Coast Airport will welcome two more international routes to its network with Fiji Airways commencing its Nadi – Gold Coast service on June 11 and Qantas launching flights to Auckland on June 16.
Bumper numbers for Townsville
Townsville Airport also recorded its busiest April in history, with 144,941 travellers passing through the terminal, smashing the previous April record set back in 2012 by more than 6,300 thousand additional passengers.
“We’ve been working closely with our airline partners to advocate for increased connectivity for the North Queensland region and over the past 12 months we have seen a number of new aircraft allocated to the Townsville market,” Queensland Airports Limited’s Rowe said.
“Since this time last year Virgin Australia, QantasLink and Jetstar have all ungauged their aircraft on key markets including Brisbane and Melbourne.
“On the Brisbane route for example, which is our busiest, this April there were more than 15,000 additional seats available than the same period last year.
“These strong results show how continued investment in marketing across key markets, in partnership with Townsville Enterprise Limited and Townsville City Council, is helping attract more visitors, while strong economic conditions and business activity in Townsville continue to drive demand for outbound travel.”
Townsville Enterprise Director of Visitor Economy and Marketing Lisa Woolfe said the record-breaking result showed growing confidence in Townsville North Queensland a holiday destination.
“Seeing Townsville Airport achieve its busiest April on record is a fantastic result for our region and a strong indicator of continued growth in the tourism industry,” Woolfe said.
“At the same time as these record airport visitor numbers, we’ve also seen over 40% increase in visitor spend and 9% increase in accommodation occupancy for the month of April compared to last year.
“These results are a strong indicator of our tourism season extending beyond the peaks seen in winter and this should bring a boost of confidence to our industry.
“More airline seats into Townsville provides benefits across accommodation, hospitality, tours, attractions, retail and local businesses right across the region, and we love to see that.”
Rowe said that while April was a strong month, airlines are operating in a challenging environment, with global uncertainty pushing fuel costs higher.
“We’re continuing to work closely with our airline partners to support their networks and look for opportunities to maintain and grow services in a sustainable way.
“This recent data shows passengers continue to prioritise travel to and from Townsville, and as we head into the busier winter months, we typically see that demand increase.”
