Editorial Team
Our content team
5 min read
80 airlines. 155 destinations. 55 countries. The summer 2026 schedule at BER airport is the largest route network Berlin has ever seen. And yes, this is the same airport that opened nine years late in 2020, costing roughly 7.3 billion euros instead of the planned two billion. Things have changed.
Two airlines are driving much of this growth: Eurowings and Wizz Air. Here's what's actually happening and what it means if you're flying from Berlin this summer.
Eurowings Berlin: 9 Aircraft, 6 Brand New Routes
Eurowings is expanding its Berlin base from seven to nine permanently stationed aircraft. That's a serious commitment. The result: 43 destinations across 20 countries, including six completely new routes.
The new connections:
London Heathrow: Up to 12 flights per week. Not Stansted, not Gatwick. Heathrow. That's unusual for a budget carrier and a clear signal that Eurowings is going after business travelers too.
Lisbon: New to the network
Sarajevo: First ever direct link from Berlin
Naples: Southern Italy without a connection
Olbia (Sardinia): Beach destination for summer
Kavala (Greece): Under-the-radar spot in northern Greece
Eurowings CEO Jens Bischof put it this way, according to Frankfurtflyer: "We are deliberately investing in BER because we see the region's potential and want to offer people in Berlin and Brandenburg an even more diverse European network."
Corporate talk? Sure. But parking nine aircraft at an airport costs real money. Airlines don't make that kind of move unless they genuinely believe in the market.
Wizz Air Berlin: 90% More Capacity, 4 New Destinations
Wizz Air is moving even faster. The Hungarian carrier is increasing its seat capacity at BER by a full 90% compared to last summer, according to aviation.direct. Almost a doubling.
Four new routes are launching:
Bratislava: From March 16, 4x weekly
Tuzla (Bosnia): From late March, 3x weekly
Cluj-Napoca (Romania): From late March, 3x weekly
Timișoara (Romania): From May, 2x weekly
Existing routes are getting beefed up too. Belgrade and Chișinău go daily, Tirana climbs to ten flights a week. Total: 12 destinations from Berlin.
Transatlantic Connections and the Bigger Picture
BER is also getting more international muscle. Air Canada launches the very first direct flight from Berlin to Montreal on July 3, 2026. Three to four times weekly, using the new Airbus A321XLR. That's never happened before.
Delta has been flying daily to New York since March 29. United offers daily Newark service. For an airport that was a global laughing stock six years ago, this is quite the turnaround.
The numbers back it up. 26 million passengers in 2025, a record load factor of 82.2%, and the 100 millionth passenger since opening walked through in October 2025. A 1.2 billion euro refinancing deal in November 2025 has also put the airport on firmer financial ground.
What This Means for Your Luggage
Planning to try one of these new routes? Check the baggage rules first. Eurowings and Wizz Air play by very different rules here.
Eurowings Berlin is fairly relaxed. Their Smart fare includes one carry-on bag (55 x 40 x 23 cm, up to 10 kg) at no extra charge. Checked baggage costs extra. We've got the full breakdown in our Eurowings baggage guide.
Wizz Air is much stricter. Without an add-on, you only get one small personal item: 40 x 30 x 20 cm. That's tiny. If you want a trolley, you'll need to pay for it. Our Wizz Air hand luggage guide covers all the details and how to save.
Especially on the new Wizz Air routes to Bratislava or Cluj-Napoca, it pays to sort out your luggage before you get to the gate. Last-minute fees at check-in are brutal.
