Duty-Free Shopping at Alicante Airport
Whether you are hunting for a bargain or hoping to purchase some last-minute presents for friends or family, you should be able to find what you are looking for in one of Alicante Airport’s three Duty-Free shops.
Duty-Free Location and Opening Times
Main Duty-Free shop
The main duty-free area is on the second floor of the departures area after security, so naturally, only passengers can use it. The opening times are from 4 am to midnight from Monday to Sunday.
Express Duty-Free
Closer to the departure gates, there is a further “Express” duty-free store. This is smaller than the main shop but stocks many of the essential items. Opening times are from 7 am to 11 pm, Monday to Sunday.
Arrivals Duty-Free
An additional duty-free shop can be found in the arrivals area on level 0, after Baggage Reclaim. This allows you to stock up on supplies at the beginning of your trip. The opening times are from 7 am to 10 pm.
Duty-Free Products
The duty-free shops at Alicante Airport stock a wide variety of articles and brands. You can find perfumes, cosmetics, alcoholic drinks, food, cigarettes, and other tobacco products. Look out for special promotions – these change regularly and can be good value.
Are duty-free products tax free?
The name would suggest that they are, however, in reality this depends on where you are travelling to. Despite the fact that all passengers are able to shop in the airport’s Duty-Free stores, tax-free items can only be purchased when travelling outside the EU. Look for items with green labels that state ‘only for passengers travelling outside the EU’. Those goods that are available for passengers travelling within the EU have tax included in the price.
Duty-Free Allowance
Travel within the EU
Since tax is included in the price of the products you can purchase when travelling within the EU, there is no strict rule regarding the maximum amount of products you are able to bring with you. However, certain items are not for resale and can only be purchased for personal use e.g. alcohol and tobacco. If you are stopped by customs officials with a large number of tobacco products or alcoholic beverages in your luggage, you may be questioned. It is therefore recommended not to go over the limits of what is considered to be for personal use.
What are the “personal use” limits?
Each EU country can decide on the maximum amount of tobacco products and alcohol you can bring back with you, so the limits may differ from country to country. However, the limit in each country will be at least:
- 800 cigarettes
- 400 cigarillos (cigars weighing a maximum of 3 grams each)
- 200 cigars
- 1 kg of tobacco
- 10 litres of spirits
- 20 litres of fortified wine
- 90 litres of wine (including a maximum of 60 litres of sparkling wines)
- 110 litres of beer
Some EU countries may have a more generous allowance – please check the official information for the country you are travelling to. Although, in most cases and specifically where alcohol is concerned, it will not be practically possible to carry with you more than the amounts listed above.
Please note: If you are under 17, stricter rules may apply to you. These will vary, depending on the country you are travelling to. Please check before you travel.
For additional information, please also see the “Your Europe” website.
Travel outside the EU
If you are flying from Alicante Airport to a country outside the EU, your allowance will depend on where you are travelling to. Please check the government website for the relevant country.
Duty-free allowance for travel to Great Britain
If you are flying from Alicante Airport to Great Britain ( England, Wales, or Scotland), the following limits apply:
Tobacco
You can bring with you one of the following tobacco products:
- 200 cigarettes
- 100 cigarillos
- 50 cigars
- 250g tobacco
- 200 sticks of tobacco for electronic heated tobacco devices
It is possible to “mix and match”, as long as you don’t go over your total allowance (e.g. you can bring with you 100 cigarettes and 25 cigars (both half of your allowance).
Alcohol
With regards to alcohol, your customs allowance by far exceeds what you will be able to carry with you in practice. Your duty-free allowance for alcohol is as follows:
- A maximum of 4 litres of spirits and other liquors over 22% alcohol
OR - A maximum of 9 litres of sparkling wine, fortified wine (for example port, sherry) and other alcoholic drinks up to 22% alcohol (not including beer or still wine).
It is possible to split this allowance, e.g. you can bring 4.5 litres of fortified wine and 2 litres of spirits (both half of your allowance).
You can also bring with you:
- Up to 18 litres of wine (still)
AND - Up to 42 litres of beer
Please note: If you are under 17, you have no personal allowances for tobacco or alcohol. You are permitted to bring alcohol and tobacco with you for your own use but you must pay tax and duty on these products before you arrive in the UK.
Other goods
You can bring in other goods up to the value of £390 (or up to £270 if you arrive by private plane). You may have to pay import VAT and customs duty if you exceed your allowance. For more information, please also the UK Government website.
General Shopping at Alicante Airport
Please also see our page Shops at Alicante Airport for information about the range of different stores and boutiques available at Alicante Airport.