Sydney Airport is forecasting 5.8 million passengers will travel through its terminals from 13 December 2024 to 27 January 2025, a 99 per cent recovery to 2019 levels.

During the period 2.5 million international passengers will pass through the T1 International terminal, which will make it the busiest Christmas season for international travel since 2019 and an eight per cent increase on last year.

On the domestic front, 3.3 million passengers are expected to travel through the T2 and T3 Domestic terminals, a nine per cent uplift on 2023.

The peak day for domestic travel will be Friday, 13 December 2024, with more than 81,000 passengers, while the busiest day for international travel will be Saturday, 4 January 2025, with more than 62,000 passengers.

Sydney Airport CEO Scott Charlton said: “This holiday season is expected to be busy, and while there may be queues during the busy period, we will have plenty of staff on hand to ensure passengers get away safely.

"We’ve increased staffing levels and are activating overflow drop-off zones at the terminals to help passengers get into the terminals faster.

"We strongly encourage passengers to plan ahead and allow ample time for their journey."

Qantas takes to the skies with festive livery

Qantas has unveiled its festive fleet including QantasLink Q400 ‘Dasher-8’ and Boeing 737 ‘Roo-dolph’ decked out in Christmas livery.

Qantas Group Chief Customer and Digital Officer Catriona Larritt said: “Our teams have been working hard over several months to prepare our operations to be ready to help millions of customers to see their family and friends throughout the holiday season.”

A Qantas Freight A321 aircraft decorated with ‘Santa’s Freight’ livery is also set to transport thousands of presents and festive fare across the country in the coming weeks. Learn more here.

Virgin Australia prepares for record breaking summer

Passenger records are set to soar this summer for Virgin Australia, which is scheduled to operate up to 3000 flights per week across its domestic and short-haul international network in December and January – the equivalent of nearly half a million seats each week.

Extra flights have been added to popular holiday destinations including Byron Bay. Domestic capacity over the peak period (from 16 December 2024 to 12 January 2025) is three per cent higher than the same period in 2023 and five per cent higher than pre-COVID-19.

The busiest days of travel are expected prior to Christmas on 20 December and 22 December, plus 27 December as travellers make their way home from holidays. Learn more here.