Ibiza Airport is among the Spanish airports experiencing the greatest pressure on boarding gates during the summer season, according to an analysis of Aena's passenger data.

The figures help explain why Aena's planned refurbishment of the airport includes a major increase in boarding gates, from the current 17 to 32.

The proposed works have become politically sensitive, with some groups arguing that the expansion could encourage further growth in air traffic. Aena, however, maintains that the additional gates are an operational requirement and will not increase the airport's runway capacity.

Ibiza's Summer Pressure

The latest comparable August figures available are from 2025, as Aena has not yet published the August 2026 statistics.

Ibiza Airport handled 1,481,444 passengers during August 2025, compared with 1.11 million at Tenerife South, 2.10 million at Alicante-Elche, 4.70 million at Palma and 1.29 million at Gran Canaria.

With 17 boarding gates, Ibiza handled approximately 87,144 passengers per gate during the month.

That was the highest passenger-per-gate ratio among the airports included in the comparison where sufficiently consistent gate figures are available. Alicante recorded around 80,712 passengers per gate, while Tenerife South had approximately 42,720.

More Passengers, Fewer Gates

The difference is particularly striking when Ibiza is compared with Tenerife South.

Ibiza handled around 33% more passengers during August 2025 despite having nine fewer boarding gates.

The airport also processed 12,967 aircraft movements that month, slightly more than Alicante's 12,593 and substantially more than Tenerife South's 6,951.

Aena's most recent 2026 figures indicate that the pressure has continued.

In July 2026, Ibiza Airport handled 1,490,302 passengers and 13,544 aircraft movements, increases of 3% and 2.4% respectively compared with July 2025.

What 32 Gates Would Change

Under Aena's planned refurbishment, the airport would increase from 17 to 32 boarding gates.

Using August 2025 passenger numbers as a fixed comparison, that would reduce the passenger-per-gate ratio from around 87,144 to approximately 46,295.

That would bring Ibiza much closer to the operating levels seen at other major Spanish tourism airports.

However, Aena insists that increasing the number of gates does not mean increasing the number of aircraft movements the airport can handle.

The planned works concern the terminal rather than the runway system. According to Aena, the airport's capacity for take-offs and landings will remain unchanged.

The Brexit Factor

Aena has also highlighted changes in border-control requirements as one of the reasons for the additional infrastructure.

The need to separate Schengen and non-Schengen passengers means that gates previously capable of being used more flexibly cannot always serve both categories in the same way.

The United Kingdom is particularly relevant for Ibiza, given the importance of British tourism to the island.

FEHIF has described the planned investment as reasonable and necessary for the volume of traffic handled by the airport, while specifically pointing to the additional requirements created by non-Schengen traffic.

Extreme Seasonality

One of the defining characteristics of Ibiza Airport is the enormous difference between winter and summer traffic.

In 2025, the airport handled 210,850 passengers in January compared with 1,481,444 in August, meaning August traffic was roughly seven times higher.

That creates a particular infrastructure challenge.

The same terminal needs to cope with relatively low winter demand and extremely concentrated summer peaks, leaving far less opportunity to redistribute capacity across the year than at airports with a more even traffic pattern.

The Debate Over Expansion

The airport refurbishment has attracted opposition from environmental groups and other sectors concerned about the island's capacity to absorb further tourism growth.

A demonstration against the project is scheduled for September 20.

The central disagreement is therefore not necessarily over whether the terminal needs improvements, but over what those improvements could mean for Ibiza's future tourism model.

Aena argues that the project is focused on modernising the terminal, improving passenger processing and meeting new regulatory requirements.

Opponents fear that a larger and more efficient terminal could ultimately make further increases in traffic easier.

Works Expected From 2030

The project is still in development.

Aena has completed the Functional Design and is progressing with the technical work required to prepare the construction projects. The main construction works have not yet been tendered, with execution currently expected to begin from 2030.

For Ibiza, the figures underline why the airport's summer operation has become such a central issue.

With just 17 boarding gates currently serving some of Spain's most concentrated seasonal passenger flows, Es Codolar faces considerable pressure during the island's busiest months.

The planned increase to 32 gates is intended by Aena to address that operational pressure. The wider debate over whether improved infrastructure should also mean limits on future growth, however, is far from over.