Just over two million passengers went through the terminals of Dublin Airport in January, compared to 183,000 who went via Cork Airport, according to the daa.

In January, Cork Airport handled 1,387 flights, of which 16,817 were out of Dublin Airport.

London's Heathrow Airport was the most visited location.

"Thousands chose to flee to warmer surroundings during January's cold and gloomy weather in Ireland," stated Kenny Jacobs, chief executive of daa.

"During the month, flights from Cork and Dublin airports to the Canaries proved popular with vacationers, and routes to central and eastern Europe were extremely busy as thousands of people made their way to the ski slopes."

"A significant influx of corporate travellers was observed at both airports at the beginning of 2024.

"Passenger traffic at Cork Airport was up 14% from January 2023 to the beginning of the year, and 2024 is already looking to be another extremely busy year.

"In January, nine of ten planes in the 'first wave' of departures (5.45am–7.30am) departed from Cork Airport on schedule, demonstrating the diligence of the operations staff.

"In January, Dublin Airport handled a similar amount of passengers as in 2023. Although there is clearly room for more passengers to travel through Dublin Airport, daa is still in charge of controlling the volume of travellers to make sure the airport stays within the 32 million passenger limit that applies to its two terminals."