Cheap flights are not disappearing - they are just getting a little less cheap. The numbers show Macedonia hit 3.5 million passengers in 2025, 9 percent up on the previous year, and a full 30 percent up on 2019. The world is flying more than ever - and average fares are only 16 percent above pre-pandemic levels, according to IATA.

So why does it feel like flights are getting more expensive? A few reasons: fuel got pricier because of the conflict in the Middle East, the EU introduced a new CO₂ emissions trading system that loads costs onto airlines, and post-pandemic capacity has still not fully returned. Low-cost carriers - Wizz Air, Ryanair - are absorbing most of the shock through cut commissions, denser route networks and packed planes.

For the Macedonian passenger, part of the market is specific: a large share of travellers are diaspora with fixed travel windows (they have to fly on particular dates) and business travellers - both categories far less price-sensitive than tourists. That keeps the airlines profitable even when leisure travellers count every euro.

Cheap flying didn't die. It just got a bit pricier than five years ago. Disappointing, yes - but hardly a catastrophe.