Tivat Airport handled 292,868 passengers in July 2026, up 10.9% year on year, as Montenegro’s coastal aviation market continued to expand during the peak tourism season. Aircraft movements increased 7.7% to 2,831 take-offs and landings during the month.
For the first seven months of the year, passenger traffic reached 782,888, generated through 8,209 aircraft operations, representing passenger growth of 10.6% compared with the same period of 2025. By 9 August, Tivat Airport had handled more than 875,000 passengers, approximately 11% above the corresponding period of 2025 and more than 9% higher than 2019. Combined passenger traffic at Tivat and Podgorica airports had surpassed 2.2 million by that date, around 20% above the record 2025 season and 42% higher than in 2019.
Tivat Airport Operating Near Peak Capacity
The increase in passenger traffic is placing greater pressure on facilities designed for substantially lower volumes. Tivat operates with limited terminal capacity, apron space and daily operating hours, while airlines continue adding flights to Montenegro’s coast. During the peak season, Tivat is handling approximately 245 flights per week, around 15 more weekly flights than during the corresponding period of 2025. Sundays can include up to 40 aircraft arrivals within an operating period of less than 14 hours, while Mondays still see about 31 flights.
The airport currently connects Montenegro’s coast with approximately 54 destinations across Europe and the Middle East through scheduled, seasonal and charter services. Tivat’s operating structure further concentrates traffic. The airport does not function as a conventional 24-hour facility, leaving much of its aircraft, passenger, baggage and ground-handling activity concentrated within daylight hours.
Delays elsewhere in the European aviation network can therefore create additional pressure when aircraft arrive outside their planned sequence, as Tivat has limited scope to distribute disrupted traffic across longer operating periods. The aircraft apron has seven parking positions for commercial aircraft in categories C and D. That capacity can become restrictive during peak periods, particularly when several aircraft are delayed or diverted simultaneously.
Terminal Capacity Under Pressure
Terminal 1 was designed for approximately 650 departing passengers during a peak hour, while airport management says passenger numbers at the facility can exceed 1,500 simultaneously. Congestion became particularly visible during July, with the most serious disruption occurring around flight cancellations and diversions on 24 and 25 July. Airport management subsequently reported that it handled as many as 11,500 passengers in one day without comparable disruption.
Terminal 2 has been placed fully into seasonal operation to provide additional capacity. It is currently dedicated to departing passengers and can support activity involving approximately eight aircraft per day. During the summer, a 150-square-metre covered area was also installed outside the terminal to provide additional protection from the sun. These measures provide additional seasonal capacity, while the airport continues to operate with the existing terminal and apron configuration.
Airline Capacity Continues to Expand
The pressure on Tivat is accompanied by a dense airline schedule. Air Serbia operates about 47 weekly departures from Tivat to Belgrade, Niš and Kraljevo during the peak season. Air Montenegro operates approximately 41 weekly services to five regional and European destinations, while easyJet has around 24 weekly departures serving five markets in the United Kingdom, Switzerland and Germany.
Belgrade remains Tivat’s strongest individual market. Air Serbia and Air Montenegro together provide around 68 weekly departures between Tivat and the Serbian capital. Tivat serves more than conventional leisure travel. Its passenger base also includes second-home owners, business travellers, yacht and marina traffic, as well as the property and hospitality markets around Porto Montenegro, Luštica Bay, Kotor and the wider Bay of Kotor.
Rising Tourism Demand Supports Airport Traffic
Tourism indicators around Tivat have continued to strengthen alongside airport traffic. In late July, the municipality was recording approximately 10,323 registered guests, around 11% more than a year earlier. Hotel occupancy was 33% higher year on year, while private accommodation increased by approximately 7%. Earlier in the season, municipal authorities reported hotel guest numbers about 25% above 2025 levels, with accommodation availability becoming very limited during the busiest periods.
The airport’s growth forms part of a wider increase in Montenegro’s aviation market. Passenger traffic across the country’s airports rose by around 17% during the first half of 2026, keeping Montenegro among the stronger-performing non-EU aviation markets in Europe. Podgorica has expanded particularly rapidly following Wizz Air’s decision to establish a base there, while Tivat remains the principal airport serving Montenegro’s coastal tourism economy.
Aerodromi Crne Gore Plans €21.3 Million in 2026 Investments
The financial outlook of Aerodromi Crne Gore, the state-owned airport operator, also reflects the increase in traffic. Its 2026 plan targets 3.63 million passengers across Podgorica and Tivat, equivalent to planned annual growth of approximately 18%. The company expects operating revenue of around €47.3 million, an increase of 8%, with projected EBITDA of approximately €18.3 million and net profit of about €13.37 million. For 2026, Aerodromi Crne Gore has planned approximately €21.3 million in investment in equipment, works and services, financed primarily from its own resources.
The programme includes security equipment, ground-handling machinery, terminal modifications and technical works at both airports. At Tivat, planned projects include roof reconstruction, sanitary facility improvements, additional cooling equipment for Terminal 1 and work on perimeter infrastructure.
Incheon Concession Process Ends After Years of Uncertainty
The airport operator’s investment programme is taking place against the backdrop of the failed concession process for Podgorica and Tivat. In April, the government proposed awarding a 30-year concession to a consortium led by South Korea’s Incheon International Airport Corporation. The proposed concession included approximately €300 million of infrastructure investment, an upfront concession payment of €100 million and a variable concession fee equivalent to 35% of annual gross revenue.
The government estimated that investment, concession payments and concession fees could produce at least €1 billion in financial value for the state over the 30-year period.
Incheon withdrew from the process in July. On 23 July 2026, the Montenegrin government formally adopted a proposal to cancel the concession tender and submit the decision to parliament. The tender process had effectively been underway since 2018-2019, leaving the long-term financing model for major airport expansion unresolved between state-led investment and a private concession arrangement. The difference between the two investment scales is significant. The concession model envisaged approximately €300 million of infrastructure investment, while Aerodromi Crne Gore has budgeted slightly more than €21 million for its entire 2026 investment programme. The programmes cover different timeframes and both airports, but the figures distinguish between incremental upgrades and larger-scale airport development.
Tivat Traffic Exceeds Earlier 2026 Planning Assumption
Tivat is also facing stronger traffic than anticipated in the operator’s original 2026 plan. Aerodromi Crne Gore had projected approximately 1.338 million passengers at Tivat for the full year, broadly matching the airport’s 2025 level. More than 875,000 passengers had already passed through Tivat by 9 August, with year-to-date traffic approximately 11% above the previous year.
The expanding passenger base supports aeronautical revenue, retail and concession activity, ground handling, as well as businesses across Montenegro’s coastal hotel, restaurant, marina, real-estate and transport sectors. Higher flight frequencies also improve direct access to the Bay of Kotor from international markets without requiring passengers to travel onward from Podgorica or Dubrovnik.
At the same time, constrained airport capacity affects aircraft stand availability, turnaround times and schedule reliability. Passenger processing can require longer queues, while maintaining existing service levels can require additional seasonal staffing and operational measures.
At Tivat, the gap between infrastructure design and peak demand is particularly pronounced. Terminal 1, designed for around 650 departing passengers per peak hour, is handling periods with more than 1,500 passengers simultaneously. The apron, with seven commercial aircraft parking positions, must support a schedule of approximately 245 weekly flights within restricted operating hours. The airport’s passenger growth is therefore occurring alongside increasingly intensive use of existing infrastructure. Tivat has already exceeded its comparable 2019 passenger level during the year-to-date period, while Montenegro’s combined airport system has moved substantially above both its previous records and pre-pandemic traffic.
For the Bay of Kotor, the airport serves a tourism economy that includes hotels, residences, yacht facilities and coastal developments, while Montenegro’s continued growth in passenger traffic is taking place as the long-term programme for major expansion of Tivat and Podgorica remains unresolved following the withdrawal of the Incheon-led consortium and the government’s decision to cancel the concession tender.
