Variation in Passenger Counts Observed in Latvia's Travel Industry
Riga International Airport witnessed a significant boost in passenger traffic during the first quarter of 2025. The number of passengers at the airport increased by 8.3% compared to the same period last year, totalling 1.4 million passengers. This uptick in travel is also reflected in the total number of passengers carried by land passenger transport, which rose by 2.1% in Q1 2025, amounting to 47.8 million passengers.
The growth at Riga Airport is not limited to air travel. The number of flights at the airport grew by 5% year-on-year in Q1 2025, totaling 25,000 flights. Other modes of transport, such as rail, bus, trolleybus, tram, ferry, and air travel, may have seen similar growth, but comprehensive data for Q1 2025 compared to Q1 2024 across all modes is not available.
However, some specific data points are available. For instance, air cargo volumes at Riga Airport rose by 10% in Q1 2025, reaching 7,623 tonnes. In May 2025, the number of direct passengers at Riga Airport exceeded pre-pandemic levels by 6%.
Other ports in Latvia, Ventspils and Liepāja, did not provide Q1 2025 passenger numbers. At Ventspils port, passenger turnover comprised 49.5 thousand passengers in Q1 2025, a decrease of 3% compared to the same quarter in the previous year. Passenger turnover at Liepāja port decreased by 12.8% in Q1 2025, amounting to 15.7 thousand passengers.
In terms of other forms of land transport, tram transport saw an 8% growth in Q1 2025, carrying 8.1 million passengers. Trolleybuses carried 10.1 million passengers in Q1 2025, marking a 0.4% increase compared to the same quarter in the previous year. Regular bus traffic lines, on the other hand, saw a decrease of 1.6% in Q1 2025, with 24.8 million passengers carried.
Rail transport, however, saw a significant rise of 18.5%, totaling 4.8 million passengers in Q1 2025.
Financially, Riga Airport recorded a profit of EUR 848,000 in Q1 2025, a substantial improvement compared to the loss of EUR 540,000 in the same period last year. Revenue for Q1 2025 at Riga Airport reached EUR 17.4 million.
As for May 2025, Riga Airport handled 683,000 passengers, bringing the total number of passengers since the beginning of the year to 2.7 million, a 7% increase as compared to the same period in 2024.
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- The growth in passenger traffic at Riga International Airport, not only limited to air travel, seems to be influencing other modes of transport within the industry, such as the 18.5% increase in rail transportation seen in Q1 2025.
- In Q1 2025, the finance sector witnessed a positive shift at Riga Airport, with a significant improvement in profits, as the airport recorded a profit of EUR 848,000, a stark contrast to the loss of EUR 540,000 during the same period the previous year.
