Mammoth queues have once again formed at Malaga Airport’s passport control.
The chaotic scenes were filmed on Friday morning as thousands of travellers flooded into the Costa del Sol to enjoy a weekend away.
Passengers faced lengthy waits in scenes that have become all too familiar in recent months.
‘Malaga airport arrivals halls is manic yet again!’ fumed one British traveller on X.
Reports in Spanish media said the queues were at least a kilometre in length.
The bottleneck at border control has reignited anger within the tourism sector, with industry leaders warning of serious damage to the destination’s image.
The president of the Provincial Council, Francisco Salado, blasted what he called the Spanish government’s ‘continuous disregard’ for the Costa del Sol.
He linked the airport chaos to wider infrastructure problems – including the ongoing disruption to the AVE high-speed rail line after the Alora landslide – and accused authorities of ‘lack of diligence and inefficiency’ in handling non-EU security checks.
According to Salado, the delays are causing a “significant reputational cost” to a tourism industry that employs 152,000 people and generates nearly €22 billion a year.
‘It’s intolerable that we invest heavily in promoting our destination and offering excellence, only for visitors’ first impression to be standing in endless queues,’ he said.
It comes as rail connections with Madrid remain severely disrupted, with only Renfe operating a reduced service that now takes more than four hours and includes part of the journey by bus.
Current estimates suggest full restoration of the AVE line may not happen before March 23.
With Easter approaching, tourism leaders fear that infrastructure failures on land and air are combining to create the worst possible welcome for visitors arriving on Spain’s southern coast.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
