Sleep tight, Lisbon: Why this airport banned night flights as Portugal faces a visitor spike

Lisbon has banned night flights after years of protests from local residents.

Now, no planes will be going in or out of Lisbon's Humberto Delgado Airport between 1 am and 5 am each night, local time.

This hard curfew comes after the government listened to local citizens and environmental groups, as well as the city council.

Night flights have been an ongoing issue in Lisbon, disrupting the sleep of city residents.

Zero, a Portuguese environmental non-governmental organisation, first requested the night flight ban in the summer, warning that aircraft were causing noise and air pollution.

The government had previously introduced legislation to cap the number of flights that could take place at night from the airport, but Zero claimed that the airport was in violation of the limits.

In a two-week period, Zero had recorded an extra 115 flights, as reported in The Portugal News.

Miguel Pinto Luz, the minister for infrastructure and housing, made the announcement and described the ban as a “giant step forward”.

The decision came from a special working group assembled to examine the issue, and it was publicly shared on the same day that dozens of residents gathered to protest outside the city airport.

Since the announcement, no dates have been given as to when Lisbon’s night flight ban will begin.

Local campaigners say the night flight ban will have little impact

Aeroporto Fora, Lisboa Melhora, a group of citizens who are for the night flight ban, remain unconvinced that it will benefit local residents' health and wellbeing.

It claims that few flights are scheduled at this time and that the announcement does not clarify whether it’s a total ban or whether scheduled flights running late from their airport of origin will still be permitted to land.

Humberto Delgado Airport is located seven kilometres northeast of Lisbon’s city centre and operates domestic and international flights. Yet it’s an old airport in need of a major upgrade, which could take three years and cost €300 million.

Concerned citizens are worried that the original airport will be expanded, and so have been campaigning for a brand-new airport outside the city instead of retrofitting the existing one.

Is the night flight ban another indication that Portugal is struggling with visitor numbers?

The criticism over Lisbon’s international night flights comes at the same time several Portuguese cities are introducing permanent tourist taxes.

In September, Lisbon began charging anyone over the age of 12 a ‘taxa turística’ of €4 per person per night for the first seven nights of your stay.

Likewise, the coastal town of Albufeira in southern Algarve introduced its tourist tax in May 2024. This tax is charged for guests over the age of 12 and costs €2 per person per night for high season from 1 April to 31 October and €1 per person per night throughout the rest of the year.

Other towns in the Algarve have also followed suit. Faro, a city in the Algarve region, will be implementing its year-round tourist tax from March next year, which marks the start of the region’s high season.

Visitors will need to pay €2 per person per night during peak season in Faro or €1 per person per night in the low season between November and February. Only visitors over the age of 16 will be expected to pay, and like Portugal’s other tourist tax destinations, will be capped after seven nights.

Portugal is an increasingly popular holiday destination throughout the year. In fact, there were 13.1 million visitors between January and August this year, which is up 6.7 per cent, according to the National Statistics Institute (INE).