Millions of Europeans have scheduled their holidays during this period, most of them planning in time to travel by plane, without taking into account how good the services offered by airports are.
Millions of Europeans scheduled their holidays during this period
Airhelp, an organization for passenger rights, published the global annual ranking of airports, evaluating the performance according to punctuality, the satisfaction of the passengers and the quality of the services.
And, while major airport centers such as Paris Charles de Gaulle and London Gatwick failed to impress, some smaller European airports were noted for the reliability and attention to customers, writes Euronews.
What are the best airports in Europe
Cape Town International Airport in South Africa was first ranked in the global top, with an 8.6 score for punctuality and 8.7 for customers’ opinion, occupying the first place on a list of 250 international airports from 68 different countries (including Romania).
The best performing airport in Europe was Bergen Flesland in Norway, which ranked 9th globally and drove European airports.
Among other cities in Europe that obtained high scores were Bilbao Airport in the Basque region of Spain (16th place), Bodø Airport (23rd) and Oslo Gardermoen Airport (28th place), also from Norway, and Reykjavik Keflavík in Iceland (30th place).
Although ranked 130th in the general standings, Luxembourg Airport obtained a score of 9.0 for customers’ opinion, placing at the head of all other European airports in this category, while Amsterdam Schiphol (111st place in the general standings) obtained the highest score in Europe and drinks, with an 8.3 score.
Meanwhile, and perhaps at all surprising, given the recent strikes of air traffic control and criticisms of the country’s performance, the French airport with the best scores, Toulouse-Blagnac, ranked only on the 101st place.
However, he occupied the first place in the French ranking for the second consecutive year, obtaining solid scores for punctuality and customer satisfaction, although he obtained a slightly lower score and restaurants. In 181, Paris Charles de Gaulle had weak performances at all indicators, frequent delays and low clients, pulling his score down.
London Gatwick ranked 235th, with small notes in general.
All three have further surpassed the weakest airport in Europe, Rhodes Diagoras. The air hub on the Greek island obtained a score of 6.05, and the punctuality was 5.8. This score was placed on the 249th place, with a place over the weakest airport in the world according to these indicators, Tunis Carthage Airport.
1. Bergen Flesland in Norway
2. Bilbao from Spain
3. Bodø from Norway
4. Oslo from Norway
5. Wardermoen from Norway
6. Reykjavik Keflavík in Iceland
7. Luxembourg airport
8. Amsterdam Schiphol Airport
9. Toulouse-Blagnac
10. Paris Charles de Gaulle
11. London Gatwick
How the rankings were calculated
The Airhelp methodology gives the highest weight – 60% – punctuality performance, based on flights that leave or arrive 15 minutes before the scheduled time. Rhodes Diagoras’s 5.8 score for punctuality, for example, translates to 58% of flights running according to the program.
The remaining 40% is equally divided between passenger feedback on airport staff, cleaning and general experience, and services offered, such as restaurants and stores.
Most of the data was collected from several providers and compared to statistics from government agencies, airports, providers for tracking and historical flights. In order to gather users reviews, Airhelp has questioned travelers from over 58 countries and has gathered over 13,500 unique airports.
The ranking covers only airports with a substantial number of international flights, using data collected between June 1, 2024 and May 31, 2025.
Although delays and cancellations are often outside the control of an airport, the best performing airports tend to be the ones that combine operational efficiency with careful services and clear communication.
According to Airhelp findings, travelers who want to reduce their stress this summer could opt for lower regional airports in Scandinavia, where the chances of a smooth trip are significantly higher than in the largest continent’s transport nodes.
