Spain's first summer getaway begins with 104 million road trips forecast and a 4.5% jump in flights
The first summer holiday exodus got under way at 15:00 Friday, with traffic authorities expecting 104 million long-distance road trips between now and 31 August and airlines adding nearly 1,000 extra flights over the long weekend alone.
Record travel forecast
Spain's Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT) activated its first major summer operation on Friday, 3 July, at 15:00, forecasting 104 million long‑distance journeys by road between 1 July and 31 August. That is 3.7% more than in summer 2025, when the 100‑million mark was passed for the first time. This weekend alone is expected to see 4.8 million movements, with heavy traffic on exit roads from major cities and routes to coastal destinations.
The summer is split into four large special operations: the one starting now (3‑5 July), the 1 August operation (31 July‑2 August), the 15 August operation (14‑16 August) and the return operation (28‑31 August). An additional extraordinary device will manage mobility linked to the solar eclipse on 12 August.
Airports gear up
Aena's network of airports has scheduled 22,290 flights between 3 and 5 July, 953 more than the 21,337 recorded during the equivalent weekend last year, a rise of 4.47%. Madrid‑Barajas leads with 3,726 flights, followed by Barcelona‑El Prat (3,355), Palma de Mallorca (3,070), Málaga‑Costa del Sol (1,854) and Alicante (1,365). The operator has warned that it will redistribute slot capacity at the busy Madrid and Barcelona hubs from summer 2027 to avoid saturation during peak hours, without affecting existing airline rights.
- Madrid-Barajas
- 3726 flights
- Barcelona-El Prat
- 3355 flights
- Palma de Mallorca
- 3070 flights
- Málaga-Costa del Sol
- 1854 flights
- Alicante
- 1365 flights
Rail and bus
While air and road traffic rise, train travel has dipped slightly compared with 2025, according to the operator Adif. A total of 3,125 high‑speed and long‑ and medium‑distance services will run across the networks of Renfe, Iryo and Ouigo this weekend. Renfe is offering 348,000 seats, with Madrid's two main stations, Chamartín‑Clara Campoamor and Puerta de Atocha‑Almudena Grandes, handling 1,125 trains, 438 of them on Friday alone.
Road coaches are picking up the slack: 29% of road travellers will use the bus, and companies plan to boost services by 47% in July, driven by tourist and youth demand. The travel agency association ACAVE notes that holidaymakers have opted for closer, better‑connected destinations offering predictable operations and good value for money, amid geopolitical uncertainty and fluctuating oil prices.
Electric vehicle readiness
The summer also tests Spain's fast‑growing electric‑vehicle network. The country now has 56,682 public charging points, having added 1,605 in the second quarter alone. More than 141,000 electrified vehicles were registered in the first half of the year, representing 21.8% of all sales. Ultra‑fast chargers are proliferating on major motorways, and industry association Aedive insists the infrastructure is ready for the holiday surge.
Today you can travel anywhere in Spain without any problem with high‑energy‑density electric vehicles capable of high‑power charging.
Safety measures
DGT is running targeted campaigns for motorcycle safety at weekends and for speed and alcohol‑and‑drug compliance. This summer is the first in which the V‑16 emergency beacon is compulsory for roadside incidents, and a new victims' helpline (018) is active. Special traffic regulation will also be in place for the 12 August eclipse.
said the government sub‑delegate in A Coruña during the launch of the Galicia device. The region expects 413,000 movements this weekend and 4.5 million in July. Galicia has recorded 40 road deaths so far this year, 21 of them vulnerable users.We ask drivers to take extreme safety measures,
- First summer operation begins (3‑5 July)
- 1 August operation starts (31 July‑2 August)
- Extraordinary device for solar eclipse mobility
- 15 August operation begins (14‑16 August)
- Return operation starts (28‑31 August)
On the ground
Within hours of the operation's start, traffic was already heavy on exits from Madrid (A‑1, A‑3, A‑4, A‑5, A‑6), in Valencia and across Andalusia. Several accidents compounded the jams, including incidents on the A‑4 at Pinto, the A‑6 at Las Rozas, the C‑58 near Terrassa and the AP‑7 in Castellón and Elche.
