Australian airports are preparing for record-breaking passenger numbers this holiday season, with millions taking to the skies.

Today will be the busiest day for domestic travel at the Sydney Airport since 2019, with 81,000 passengers departing or arriving in the city.

An estimated 5.8 million people will pass through the airport between December 13 and January 27, almost half a million more travellers than last year’s holiday period.

Of those, 2.5 million will be transiting through the international terminal — an 8 per cent increase on last year, making this upcoming Christmas season the busiest for international travel since 2019.

About 3.3 million travellers are expected through the domestic terminals over the next six weeks — a 9 per cent increase from last year.

Sydney Airport chief executive Scott Charlton said passengers should plan ahead.

“We’ve increased staffing levels and are activating overflow drop-off zones at the terminals to help passengers get into the terminals faster,” he said.

“With our multi-million-dollar capital program currently underway, which includes significant construction works and security upgrades, passenger journeys may be different than usual.”

Melbourne to hit new all-time record

Melbourne Airport will see 1.8 million international travellers between today and January 27, marking a new all-time record. 

All up 4.8 million passengers are expected over those dates, which is on-par with the 2019-2020 holiday period.

The airport’s CEO Lorie Argus said passengers should add another 30 minutes to their travel time and book car parks online in advance.

Singapore, Auckland, Bali, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur were the top five international destinations from Melbourne, with many travellers using the Asian hubs for connections to other ports.

Ms Argus said the international arrival terminal would be particularly congested.

“We are working with the Australian Border Force to secure more SmartGate kiosks because our current allocation is insufficient to cope with the number of passengers we are expecting,” Ms Argus said.

More than three million passengers are expected to transit through Brisbane Airport over the next six weeks, on top of the one million people who have streamed through terminals since private schools broke for holidays.

Domestic travel is up 6 per cent on the same period last year, and international travel is up 18 per cent.

Today the airport will experience its busiest day this year, with 55,000 domestic passengers expected to pass through the gates.

Brisbane Airport spokesman Peter Doherty said international travellers should arrive three hours before their flight, and domestic travellers 90 minutes in advance, with major security upgrade works taking place.

“People who’ve not been to Brisbane Airport for a while will notice changes, which is even more reason to leave ample time before catching a flight,” he said.

Meanwhile, around 500 Qantas engineers have walked off the job in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth today, which may cause delays for passengers.

The unions said it was likely that the strikes would have an immediate impact at the five airports, as line maintenance engineers who were stopping work were responsible for towing and marshalling aircraft.

However, Qantas said it had put a number of contingencies in place to prevent disruptions.

The engineers will not return to work until 7:30am local time on Saturday.

Tourism numbers expected to grow

The surge in travel demand is expected to continue.

New Tourism Research Australia figures show international visitor arrivals will reach 8.3 million next year, or 88 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.

International visitors’ spending in Australia is set to hit $49 billion in 2029, up from $28 billion in 2023, according to the tourism forecasts 2024-2029 report.

Domestic visitor spending is also set to increase from $142 billion in 2023 to $174 billion in 2029.

The increase comes amid concerns about the growing environmental cost of global tourism, with the sector now accounting for 9 per cent of the world’s total emissions, largely due to aviation.