Guadalajara International Airport (GDL) has received a 2024 Airport Experience Award from Airports Council International (ACI) in the “Airport Service Quality” (ASQ) category.

Launched in 2006, ASQ is the world’s leading airport passenger satisfaction program with more than 400 participating airports in 110 countries.

The award recognizes airports that achieve a 20% overall satisfaction score, based on data from ASQ’s Departures and Arrivals Surveys. GDL made it to the top in the category for airports serving 15 to 25 million passengers per year in Latin America and the Caribbean. 

“We are very happy with this news because the arrival of national and international tourists to the Perla Tapatía [Guadalajara] is very important to us,” Gustavo Staufert, the general director of Guadalajara’s visitors’ office, told the news magazine Expansión. 

“What better reference than having an international airport that is on par with the best in the world, focused on providing excellent service and ensuring that it is at the forefront and maintained in optimal conditions? This undoubtedly impacts traveler preference and acceptance,” Staufert said.

So far this year, GDL has reported a flow of 2.9 million passengers, making it one of the most connected air terminals in Mexico.

The accolade boosts the airport’s confidence ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026. In an interview with the Jalisco newspaper El Informador, the general manager of GDL Martín Zazueta said that the airport’s renovations, which began in 2020, has been essential to it becoming one of the most advanced airports in compliance with FIFA’s guidelines.

“They’re liking what they [FIFA] are seeing,” he noted. “They like the ‘look and feel’ of the airport.”

Pacific Airport Group to invest US $1.1B to expand Guadalajara International Airport

Staufert also confirmed previous news that the airport is planning a billion-dollar investment to build a new terminal and new platforms to increase flight capacity. 

Guadalajara International is part of the airport group Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico (GAP), which is renovating all 12 of its airports in western Mexico. However, Guadalajara will receive the largest share of the funds — 22 billion pesos, or US $1.1 billion.

“I am sure that next year, the people of Jalisco, Guadalajara and Mexico overall, will be even more proud of the airport,” Zazueta concluded.

With reports from Expansión and El Informador