M. R. Štefánik Airport welcomed the year’s two-millionth passenger, 23-year-old Natália Hanusová, who departed from Bratislava to Tbilisi, Georgia, with a transfer in Istanbul on a Pegasus Airlines flight. The airport reached 2,000,000 handled passengers for the first time in six years – it last crossed this threshold before the pandemic, in 2019.
“Two million passengers is a beautiful milestone and we are very pleased to have reached it. It is already clear that we have exceeded last year’s total number of handled passengers. In 2024, we handled a total of 1,948,008 passengers on arrivals and departures. This year, by 24 October, we have already reached 2,000,000 passengers. We are now eagerly awaiting to see whether we will break the historical passenger record of 2.29 million, set in 2018,“ said Dušan Novota, CEO and Chairman of the Board of M. R. Štefánik Airport.
Before her departure to Istanbul and onward to Tbilisi, the milestone passenger received complimentary access to the Pearl Lounge business lounge and airport gifts from the CEO.
„Congratulations to both you and me, I’m honored to be rewarded like this. I love traveling and the adrenaline that comes with it, I love flying, so this is also a kind of satisfaction for me,“ said Natália from Bratislava–Devínska Nová Ves, delighted about the jubilee. She flew to Tbilisi for a trip and to meet her former classmate. The university student bought her ticket herself, as she’s very familiar with flights from Bratislava — she studied in the Netherlands and regularly used flights from Bratislava to Eindhoven. She is also looking forward to tasting traditional Georgian cuisine, experiencing local customs, and exploring the mountains.
Start of Winter Flight Schedule:
Historic Winter Season at Bratislava Airport to Offer 49 Regular Routes to 42 Destinations in 22 Countries
A record total of 49 regular routes to 42 destinations in 21 countries, the launch of a domestic connection with Košice, as well as flights to exotic destinations, will be part of the winter flight schedule at M. R. Štefánik Airport. In aviation, the schedule takes effect on Sunday, 26 October 2025, with the time change, and will remain valid until the end of March 2026.
5 AIRLINES TO OPERATE 49 REGULAR ROUTES
During the winter season, 5 airlines will operate regular flights from Bratislava – Wizz Air, Ryanair, Air Cairo, Pegasus Airlines and Smartwings.
Wizz Air will operate the largest number of regular flights – a total of 25. At the end of the winter flight schedule, in late March 2026, the airline will also add two new routes to Warsaw and Tuzla, increasing the total number of its regular routes to 27. Ryanair will operate regular flights to 21 destinations. Air Cairo will fly from Bratislava to two destinations in Egypt – Hurghada and Marsa Alam – and Pegasus Airlines (Istanbul) and Smartwings (Dubai) will each operate one regular connection. In total, 49 regular air routes will be available from Bratislava during the winter season.
“This is the highest number of regular routes in the history of Bratislava Airport – not only for the winter season. It exceeds this year’s summer offer as well as the previous record from the summer of 2019, when 48 regular routes were available. This winter season has not only matched but even surpassed the summer season in terms of available flights. We have therefore succeeded in our goal to keep the airport active throughout the entire year, including winter,“ said Dušan Novota, CEO of M. R. Štefánik Airport.
TWO AIRLINES SERVING NINE DESTINATIONS
49 regular routes will connect Bratislava to 42 destinations in 40 cities. Nine of these destinations will be operated by two airlines: Athens, Lamezia Terme, Naples, Palermo, Barcelona, Alicante, Malaga, London and Rome. Wizz Air will fly to London Luton and Rome Fiumicino, while Ryanair will operate flights to London Stansted and Rome Ciampino.
DAILY FLIGHTS TO FOUR CITIES
Passengers will be able to fly daily from Bratislava to four destinations: Barcelona, Košice, Rome and London. Wizz Air will operate daily flights to London Luton and Rome Fiumicino, while Ryanair will fly to London Stansted and Rome Ciampino six times per week.
BRATISLAVA CONNECTED TO 22 COUNTRIES VIA REGULAR FLIGHTS, INCLUDING A DOMESTIC ROUTE
During the winter season, Bratislava will have regular direct flights to 21 countries: Egypt, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands, Spain, United Kingdom, Malta, Italy, Greece, North Macedonia, Romania, Switzerland, Serbia, Bulgaria, Norway, Cyprus, Moldova, Germany and Albania. In addition, a domestic route to Košice will also be operated. At the turn of March and April 2026, routes to Poland (Warsaw) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (Tuzla) will be added.
BETER CONNECTIONS TO EUROPEAN CAPITALS AND THE BALKANS
European capitals will be more accessible from Bratislava thanks to new direct flights, including to Oslo, Athens, Berlin, Chișinău and Bucharest and others. Flights to Germany will resume after an eight-year break, and connections to Switzerland will return after 15 years, specifically to the tri-national Basel–Mulhouse–Freiburg Airport located at the borders of Switzerland, Germany and France. Connections with Balkan countries will also increase.
EXOTIC DESTINATIONS AVAILABLE FROM BRATISLAVA VIA TRAVEL AGENCIES
In addition to regular flights, passengers will be able to travel from Bratislava to exotic destinations during winter through charter flights offered by travel agencies. During the 2025/26 winter season, charter flights will operate from M. R. Štefánik Airport to the Dominican Republic, Vietnam, Thailand, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman (Salalah and Muscat), Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, Zanzibar and Egypt – a total of 10 destinations in 9 countries. Charter arrivals of students from Thessaloniki, Greece, operated by the Slovak airline Air Explore, are also scheduled.
The winter flight schedule will be in effect from 26 October 2025 until 28 March 2026. From 29 March 2026, the aviation sector will switch back to the summer flight schedule.
Winter Flight Schedule for the 2025/2026 Season – valid from 26 October 2025 to 28 March 2026
Overview of Regular Flights in the Winter Flight Schedule 2025/2026
Overview of Charter Flights during the Winter Flight Schedule 2025/2026
The complete winter flight schedule is published on the airport’s website:
https://www.bts.aero/en/flights/flight-schedule-winter-2025-26/departures