Heavy rain from Storm Adam has brought chaos to Ibiza airport, with water pouring through ceiling panels, parts of the terminal cordoned off, and dozens of flights cancelled across the Balearic Islands.
The airport's weather station recorded 173mm of rain in 24 hours on Sunday 18 October — the highest daily total there since records began in 1944. The main road to the airport was temporarily shut, though it has since reopened, and Aena, Spain's airport operator, is urging anyone driving to the terminal to take extra care. Buses are still running around the island but with delays, standing water is pooling on some roads, and Ibiza's council has warned of rockfall risk in the island's north.
The disruption numbers are significant. Ibiza saw 24 cancellations and 168 major delays on Sunday, then another five cancellations and 101 delays on Monday. Palma in Mallorca fared worse in places: 33 cancellations on Sunday, 10 more on Monday, 12 diversions, and more than 1,000 delayed flights across the two days. Travellers are being told to check directly with their airlines rather than relying on airport boards.
The mainland has been hit harder still. Spain's weather agency Aemet issued orange alerts for Barcelona, Tarragona, Girona and Cadiz on Monday afternoon, while Alicante, Valencia, Mallorca and Ibiza have been stepped down from red — the maximum level — to yellow alerts covering much of eastern and southern Spain and the Balearics, Menorca excepted. At least three people have died, including a swimmer at Almardà Beach near Valencia and a woman swept away crossing a river at Cabrera de Mar, north of Barcelona. Rivers bursting their banks cut off several Mediterranean coastal towns, forcing evacuations and shelter-in-place orders for hundreds of thousands of residents.
Aemet warns that very heavy showers could continue from Tuesday 20 October, particularly in the mornings along the far northeast coast and the Balearic Islands, with possible rainfall totals of 300-400mm — though it cannot yet say exactly which areas will be worst hit.
If you're flying to Ibiza, Mallorca or the Spanish Mediterranean coast this week, expect residual delays even after alerts lift, build in buffer time for airport transfers, and stay clear of flood-prone roads, beaches and coastal paths until conditions settle. Late-season travellers with flexible dates may want to wait a few days before rebooking; anyone already on the ground should follow local council updates, as rockfalls and road closures can persist after the rain stops. Outbound flights from the UK and elsewhere are resuming but backlogs take time to clear, so confirm your flight with the airline before heading to the airport.
