Frankfurt Airport is bracing for a surge in passengers at the start of the summer holidays, with operator Fraport expecting around 9 million passengers and approximately 60,000 flights between June 26 and August 9, it said on Monday.
Fraport warned of longer waiting times at border controls due to the new EU-wide Entry/Exit System (EES), which has been electronically recording the entry and exit of non-EU citizens since October 2025.
Fraport is advising non-EU travellers to arrive at the airport at least three hours before departure. The same applies to EU citizens travelling to destinations outside the Schengen area.
Around 616,000 travellers are expected to be processed during the first holiday weekend alone in the states of Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, from June 26 to 28.
Hand luggage only is faster
Travellers flying within the Schengen visa-free travel area are advised to allow two and a half hours. Even those travelling without checked baggage should allow a buffer of two hours before departure, Fraport said.
Time can be saved at Germany's largest airport by pre-booking parking spaces or fixed time slots for passenger and hand luggage screening.
Passengers departing from the new Terminal 3 can also leave drinks bottles of up to 2 litres and electronic devices unpacked in their hand luggage, as new scanners now make this possible in large parts of Terminal 1 as well.
The new Skyline rail link between the terminals has returned to service ahead of the first major summer rush, though at reduced speed.
