But record numbers for Oslo Airport. – In March, Avinor experienced passenger growth of 0.3 percent compared with 2015. International traffic rose by a whopping 6.5 percent.
“Start-up of new routes, efforts to market Norway as a destination and a somewhat lower exchange rate have resulted in increasing numbers of tourists heading our way,” says Avinor’s Vice President of Traffic Development, Jasper Spruit.
“We have also seen an increase in the number of Norwegians travelling abroad for the Easter holidays, which fell in March this year.”
Biggest growth in Bergen
Oslo, Bergen and Trondheim have noted particularly strong growth in international passengers in March. Bergen posted the largest increase among the major airports, with 18 percent, followed by Trondheim with 10 percent and Oslo with 9 pecent. Traffic at Stavanger, Ålesund, Kristiansand and some of the smaller airports was down during the same period.
Domestic traffic fell 2.4 percent in March, which can largely be attributed to the Easter dates this year. Oslo posted a 2.2 percent increase in domestic traffic, with most traffic going to Northern Norway, as well as to Molde and Ålesund.
Northern lights tourism has become more and more popular, which means more foreigners also using domestic flights. While Norwegians travelling on domestic flights has grown 2 per cent per year over the last four years, foreigners travelling on domestic flights in Norway has increased by as much as 4 percent. Similarly, large individual groups such as Germans and Americans have increased by 10 percent per year. More tourists visiting Norway stimulate growth and create jobs, including for the tourism sector outside the urban areas.
Another record for Oslo Airport
Oslo Airport has experienced historically high passenger traffic every month so far in 2016. This year was the first time the airport could record two million passengers in the month of March.
“Oslo Airport is our main airport, and our most important hub. It is great fun to note the milestone of two million passengers in March, and we look forward to continued growth both in Oslo and at our other airports in the months ahead,” concludes Spruit.
Source: Avinor / Norway Today
