World's busiest flight routes of 2025 revealed: Where Dubai flights rank

Dubai: Dubai-Riyadh has ranked among the top 10 busiest international flight routes in the world in 2025, proving there is strong and growing travel demand between the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

According to a new report by aviation data firm OAG, the route recorded 4.5 million scheduled seats this year, up 4 per cent from 2024 and 42 per cent higher than pre-pandemic levels in 2019, placing it seventh globally among international routes.

Asia dominates air travel

Nine of the world’s ten busiest airline routes in 2025 are located in the Asia-Pacific region, highlighting the region’s continued dominance in global aviation.

The Jeju–Seoul Gimpo route in South Korea topped the global rankings, with 14.4 million seats scheduled this year, though it is still trailing pre-pandemic levels.

Middle East routes show strong recovery

Alongside Dubai–Riyadh, another Middle East route made the global top rankings:

• Cairo–Jeddah ranked as the second busiest international route globally, with 5.8 million seats

• Capacity on the route is 71 per cent higher than in 2019

• Low-cost carriers now operate 43 per cent of total capacity, driving most of the growth

OAG said growth on Middle East routes reflects strong demand for business, leisure and visiting friends and relatives (VFR) travel.

Saudi domestic travel surges

Saudi Arabia’s busiest domestic route, Jeddah–Riyadh, was the fastest-growing route in the global Top 10, with capacity up 13 per cent year-on-year to 9.8 million seats.

The route is now 22 per cent above pre-pandemic levels, reflecting the Kingdom’s rapid aviation expansion.

Asia’s cross-border routes dominate

Seven of the world’s ten busiest international routes are in Asia, led by:

1. Hong Kong–Taipei

2. Cairo–Jeddah

3. Kuala Lumpur–Singapore

OAG also said that Asia-Pacific continues to account for the bulk of global aviation growth, supported by high competition and lower fares.

OAG’s Busiest Flight Routes of 2025 report is based on scheduled airline seat capacity for January to December 2025, drawn from its global airline schedules database. Data from 2019 and 2024 were used for comparison, alongside average one-way airfare trends.