Island tops 1m air passengers after summer boost

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Sunseekers enjoy the beach at St Brelade's Bay

Passenger numbers rose across Jersey's transport hubs during the busy summer months, with more than one million people passing through the airport so far this year, according to official statistics.

Ports of Jersey said more than 472,000 passengers travelled through Jersey Airport between July and September, up 4.2% on the same period in 2025.

Nearly 200,000 passengers travelled through Jersey Harbour, while ferry operator DFDS carried 10% more passengers than it did during the third quarter of last year.

Paul Holley, head of connectivity at Ports of Jersey, said it was "encouraging to see sustained growth".

The figures continue a strong year for travel to and from the island, with Jersey Airport reaching the milestone of its one millionth passenger of 2026 at the end of August.

Holley said: "The third quarter is our busiest period of the year, and it's encouraging to see sustained growth through both our air and sea gateways with visitors making the most of the great Jersey summer.

"This was supported by higher frequencies on key services such as KLM's Amsterdam route, alongside Loganair's first full summer with routes to Bordeaux, East Midlands, Norwich and Paris added to its core network."

During the peak summer season, the airport offered direct flights to 41 destinations across the UK and Europe.

Airlines continued to invest in Jersey's route network, supporting a timetable of up to 185 departing flights a week.

The harbour also reported a positive summer, with DFDS seeing passenger numbers increase across its Jersey routes compared with the same period in 2025.

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