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Date Published: 21/07/2026

Ryanair flags major delays at Alicante, Malaga, Madrid and Tenerife airports this summer

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British tourists travelling to and from Spain are being advised to allow extra time at the airport

Ryanair flags major delays at Alicante, Malaga, Madrid and Tenerife airports this summer

British holidaymakers and expats travelling to and from Spain this summer are being warned to leave plenty of extra time at the airport as Ryanair says lengthy passport queues are continuing to cause disruption across Europe.

The budget airline has singled out several major Spanish airports where passengers have been facing delays, including Alicante, Malaga, Madrid, Tenerife South and Lanzarote. The warning comes during one of the busiest travel periods of the year, with millions of people heading off on summer holidays.

According to Ryanair, the problems are linked to the EU's Entry-Exit System (EES), which came fully into force in April this year. The system requires non-EU travellers entering the Schengen Area to provide biometric information such as fingerprints and facial scans.

The airline claims the technology is still creating bottlenecks at border controls months after its launch, leading to long queues and frustrated passengers at a number of airports popular with British travellers.

Outside of Spain, the Irish airline is also expecting major problems in Lisbon, Milan Bergamo, Milan Malpensa, Verona, Paris Beauvais, Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt Hahn, Krakow and Budapest.

Spain's airport operator AENA has already introduced measures designed to keep passengers moving. Staff have been given greater flexibility to manage queues and airports can redirect families and passengers with reduced mobility to traditional passport control desks if waits for biometric checks become too long. Flight arrivals are also being managed more carefully during peak periods to reduce congestion.

Even with those measures in place, Ryanair says travellers should be prepared for delays.

Neal McMahon, the airline's Chief Operations Officer, said families heading away this summer should be focused on "suitcases, suncream and sangria" rather than spending hours standing in passport queues.

He complained that the EES system is still not working as intended and said passengers should not be used as "the testing ground for unfinished border infrastructure".

Ryanair is backing calls for temporary flexibility measures, which currently allow some biometric checks to be suspended, to remain in place beyond September. The airline believes extending the arrangement until early 2027 would give airports more time to improve infrastructure, repair faulty equipment and recruit additional staff.

For anyone flying between the UK and Spain over the coming weeks, the message from the budget airline is crystal clear. Arrive early, expect queues and allow extra time to get through passport control.

Also of interest: Large dogs can now travel on more trains across Spain from July 21

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Terra Natura Murcia wildlife and water park

Address

C/Regidor Cayetano Gago S/N 30100 Espinardo Murcia ESPANA

Tel: (+34)968 368 200

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Terra Natura Murcia, wildlife and adventure water park in the outskirts of the city of Murcia

Terra Natura Murcia is one of the most important and spectacular animal and nature parks in western Spain, and is one of a new generation of wildlife parks in which visitors can discover the concept of what's called "Zooinmersión."

The aim of this is recreate a habitat which gives an experience of being at one with the wildlife viewed in the park, so to this end more than 500 examples of 50 species of vegetation have been interplanted among the animal habitats, spread across an area occupying more than 165,000 square metres.

The planting has matured to create a comfortable and interesting environment which enhances the interaction between visitors and animals.

The planting not only softens the landscape, but also enables visitors to be closer to the animals and have direct human contact rather than the traditional forms of wildlife park where the animals are at a distance behind physical barriers.

The park contains over 500 animals belonging to 50 different species (some of which are in grave danger of extinction), alongside giraffes, lions, hippopotamus, lemurs, brown bears, Iberian lynx, Oryx, Iberian wolves and a White African Rhinoceros.

Throughout the year, Terra Natura Murcia offers different educational talks during visits to their facilities: giraffes, brown bears and otters.

One of the most popular areas is the falconry zone, where the displays enable visitors to discover the beauty of a great variety of birds such as the majestic flight of the peregrine falcon, which reaches diving speeds of over 300 km an hour, the eagle owl, various types of hawk, the griffon vulture and the buzzard eagle. One of the main aims of the park is to encourage contact and engage in interaction between animals and humans, and the falconry is a popular means of achieving this goal.

Among the mammals are Iberian and European Lynx, Mouflon and Coatis.

Aqua Natura Water park

Terra Natura Murcia wildlife and water park

During the summer Terra Natura opens Aqua Natura, the only water park in the Region of Murcia.

This is a refreshing and enjoyable way to cool down in the heat of summer, with swimming pools for adults and children, slides and shoots, kamikazes, lazy river, entertainment and games for youngsters, all within just a short distance of the centre of the city of Murcia.

Opening hours 2024

Terra Natura Murcia is open every day of the year except 1^st January and 25^th December.

The wildlife park opens at 10.00 in the morning, and during the summer (June 23rd to September 8th) it opens at 11.00.

The water park opens from May 25th to September 8th, at 11.00

Closing times are as follows:

January 2nd – March 15th: 17.00, except weekends in February and March (18.00).

March 16th – May 24th: 18.00, except weekends in April and May (19.00).

May 25th – June 16th: 19.00.

June 17th – September 8th: 20.00.

NB: During the summer special nocturnal tours and meals are available. See what's on section for latest promotions.

September 9th – September 15th: 19.00.

September 16th – October 25th: 18.00, except weekends in September and October (19.00).

October 28th – December 31st: 17.00, except weekends in November (18.00).

Details of daily activities can be found here: extra activities and special offers are regularly updated on Murcia Today.

Click here for online bookings

Terra Natura Murcia wildlife and water park

How to get there

Terra Natura is located in the northern outskirts of the city of Murcia in Espinardo, accessed via the A-7 motorway.

Address: Calle Regidor Cayetano Gago, 30100, Espinardo, Murcia

From the A-7 Murcia to Alicante, exit 136, Universidad de Murcia

From the Autovia A-7 Alicante to Murcia, exit 762b, Murcia centro

Terra Natura Murcia wildlife and water park

By Bus

From central Murcia. Bus line number 31 leaves from Plaza Cruz Roja via Gran Via and passes by the park, from Monday to Saturday every half hour and on Sunday every hour.

Line 39A, leaves from the railway station from Monday to Friday every 15 minutes

Line 39C leaves from Infante Juan Manuel (Pio Baroja) from Monday to Friday every 30 minutes.