NO ONE wants to start their holiday with delays, but with hotter weather and new travel rules, it’s becoming all the more common.
New research from AirAdvisor has found the top airports around Europe where you are most likely to be delayed this summer.
The study looked at flights between June and September 2025, to see where flights either to or from the UK were likely to be delayed for over an hour.
The top of the list was Milan Bergamo, an airport which sits just outside of Milan in Italy which had 11.96 per cent of its flights delayed by one hour or more.
Also in Italy, Pisa came fourth on the list which had 10.58 per cent of its flights affected by delays last summer.
For anyone heading to the Greek islands this summer, some of these destinations experience hold-ups too.
The pretty island of Kefalonia is third on the list where 11.79 per cent of flights being delayed by an hour or more last year.
Also in the top 20 is Corfu, Zante, Paphos in Cyprus, Kos, Rhodes and Mykonos.
Anton Radchenko, CEO of AirAdvisor explained why the airports at Greek islands are badly affected.
He explained: “They tend to be much smaller than hubs in major metropolitan centres and are incredibly popular with holidaymakers from across the world.
“During the summer period, they frequently operate at maximum capacity, so that means that when a mass disruption event occurs, there are implications for other services.”
He continued: “Similarly, the sheer volume of flights between popular Spanish holiday hubs in Palma and Reus can result in full days of travel chaos when multiple services are delayed.”
Anton Radchenko added that these delays often result in a “domino effect” where flights across a single day are then pushed back, especially during peak times.
Spain is a popular getaway destination for Brits as it’s just a few hours from the UK.
But there are some airports here that have experienced issues too.
This includes Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza and Alicante, which all appear in the top 20.
Of course, last summer EES checks at passport control hadn’t been enforced yet.
But these have had a big impact in some airports around Europe – so there could be even more delays at certain destinations.
If you are delayed for more than three hours or have a flight cancelled then under the UK261 regulation you could be eligible for compensation.
For more information on this, check out the rules on AirAdvisor.
Here are the top 20 European airports where you’re most likely to be delayed this summer…
According to AirAdvisor these airports this is the percentage of flights delayed by 60 minutes or more either heading too or from the UK between June and September 2025…
1. Milan Bergamo, Italy – 11.96%
2. Nice Cote d’Azur, France – 11.92%
3. Kefalonia, Greece – 11.79%
4. Pisa, Italy – 10.58%
5. Corfu, Greece – 9.54%
6. Palma de Mallorca, Spain – 9.33%
7. Reus, Spain – 9.13%
8. Ponta Delgada, Portugal (Azores) – 9.08%
9. Olbia, Sardinia – 8.71%
10. Zadar, Croatia – 8.65%
11. Zakynthos, Greece – 8.48%
12. Naples, Italy – 8.40%
13. Chania, Greece – 8.33%
14. Paphos, Cyprus – 7.87%
15. Kos, Greece – 7.72%
16. Rhodes, Greece – 7.68%
17. Ibiza, Spain – 7.48%
18. Alicante, Spain – 7.27%
19. Mykonos, Greece – 6.95%
20. Porto, Portugal – 6.88%