4 days ago
Every European travel strike you need to know about this summer: Simon Calder's round-up
The peak summer months are about to begin. The odds are that between now and September, most travellers to, from and within Europe will get where they need to be roughly on time. Last week, Britain's biggest budget airline, easyJet, revealed a raft of measures to try to protect summer passengers from disruption caused by strikes as well as air-traffic control constraints and bad weather. This week, SAS Scandinavian Airlines reached a settlement with cabin crew to avert a threatened strike.
But travel is acutely susceptible to disruption caused by industrial action: it requires a wide array of employees to work together in order for holidaymakers to complete their journeys.
French and British rail workers, Scottish airport staff and transport employees in dozens of Italian locations are threatening industrial action in June – with the possibility of more to come during the peak summer months.
The effects of strikes vary significantly. While rail stoppages in Belgium and the Netherlands typically wipe out almost all services, many bouts of industrial action have only a limited effect.
Passengers' rights are uneven, too. If a flight is cancelled for any reason – including strikes – the airline is obliged to get the traveller to their destination as soon as possible, and to provide meals and accommodation as appropriate until that happens. But rail and ferry passengers have much weaker rights.
The Independent has conducted a sweep of transport providers across Europe to identify the pain points as the main summer surge gets under way.
These are the key issues that are known as of 30 May 2025. In addition, other strikes may be called at short notice. For example, members of the taxi drivers' union for the Athens area are currently on strike, with a stoppage called at just 48 hours' notice.
Belgium
Members of Belgian trade unions working for public services – including railways and airports – have been striking roughly once a month so far during 2025. No specific strike days have been set for the summer months, but the grievances that triggered the earlier walk-outs – over government pension reform – still persist.
If you have a ticket for a future train on a strike day in Belgium, you should get advance warning. Stoppages are notified eight working days ahead, and operational staff must declare whether or not they will work at least 72 hours before the start of the industrial action. 'An alternative transport plan may be drawn up and communicated to travellers 24 hours in advance,' says SNCB (Belgian Railways).
France
In past summers, strikes by French air-traffic controllers have affected hundreds of thousands of travellers. But Kenton Jarvis, chief executive of easyJet, is more optimistic about 2025. He told The Independent: 'It's down to whether the air traffic controllers decide they want to put a strike in, and we'll have to wait to see if they do that.
'But I'm hoping the resilience measures we have – and the fact that they should protect the overflying and just really doing it on a local level if it's in France – should help.'
Rail passengers may not be able to avoid disruption.
4 June: Train drivers working for SNCF (French Railways) will walk out. Typically around half of long-distance trains are cancelled. City transport is less badly affected.
5 June: National strike involving rail staff as well as many other professions in protest against pension reform.
Ryanair and easyJet, Europe's biggest budget airlines, say they do not anticipate disruption to their services, though getting to and from French airports may be tricky.
Cross-Channel ferries may also experience some disruption.
11 June: Train controllers (on-board staff) working for SNCF will walk out. The impact is likely to be similar to the train drivers' strike, with about half of trains running.
Italy
The Italian transport ministry has a dedicated web page that lists the dozens of walk-outs each week by transport workers across the country. Many of these are localised and may be for as little as four hours. But they can still affect travellers.
The following summary does not include events such as the 3 June national strike by rail maintenance staff, as this is unlikely to impact passengers on the day.
1 June: Public transport workers, Genoa, 24 hours.
3 June: Public transport workers, Sardinia, 4 hours.
4 June: Public transport workers, Tuscany (including Florence), 5.30pm-9.30pm.
6 June: Public transport workers, Bolzano, 24 hours.
9 June: Public transport workers, La Spezia, 11am-3pm.
13 June: Airports – a big one. Workers at Venice, Milan Malpensa and Milan Linate airport will walk out for 24 hours. A concurrent nationwide strike will affect airline passengers from 1pm to 5pm, a key time for many arrivals and departures.
14 June: Sardinia rail staff for 24 hours from 9pm.
15 June: Public transport workers, Naples, 12.45pm-4.45pm.
15 June: Piedmont rail staff for 23 hours from 3am.
16 June: Staff working for Trenord (Milan and Italian Lakes) walk out for 23 hours from 3am.
19 June: In the evening, 24-hour nationwide strikes by rail workers and motorway staff will begin, continuing until late on 20 June.
5 July: At 2pm staff working for the large ferry company Grandi Navi Veloci will begin a 48-hour strike.
7 July: As the ferry strike ends, a national rail strike begins – 21 hours from 9pm.
11 July: Palermo airport staff, 24 hours.
17 July: Ferry workers, Strait of Messina (connecting mainland with Sicily), 9am-5pm.
Netherlands
The big rail unions are threatening industrial action after the last pay deal expired without agreement on a replacement. While it is too early to say if a walk-out will go ahead, the effect is usually to shut down all NS (Dutch Railways) trains.
UK
'Glasgow and Edinburgh airport summer strike action looms,' is the headline from the Unite union after a pay offer from ground handler Menzies Aviation was overwhelmingly rejected by staff.
'If the company fail to table a better offer to our members, Unite will have no option but to ballot our members for strikes over the summer holidays.'
Talks to avert a walk-out have been taking place this week.
Phil Lloyd, senior vice president UK, Menzies Aviation, said: 'Following the rejection of recent pay award proposals, we remain committed to seeking a resolution.
'We have invited Unite to return to the table to continue discussions this week and hope to reach an agreement which is workable for both the business and our employees at both Edinburgh and Glasgow. We will continue to work to pursue an agreeable solution to protect services for our airline and airport partners and their customers.'
At London Heathrow, the busiest airport in Europe, 800 Wilson James workers assisting passengers with restricted mobility have been striking in the past week as part of a pay dispute. They are members of the Unite union, whose general secretary Sharon Graham said that 'these strikes will continue to intensify' unless an acceptable pay offer is made.
9 June: Five-month overtime ban begins by members of the RMT union working for CrossCountry. The ban applies from Monday to Saturday until 25 October; it is not in effect on Sundays, when many train operators rely on staff working overtime to run services.
