Honduras Airport Smoking Areas

By , Author, Air Travel Writer · Updated

Two of Honduras’s busiest international gateways — Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport (SAP) in San Pedro Sula and Palmerola International Airport (XPL) serving Tegucigalpa — both permit open-air smoking outside the terminal building, landside, under national law. Neither airport publishes a designated smoking area, and no facility after security is confirmed at either.

For international travel through Honduras, San Pedro Sula (SAP) and Palmerola (XPL) are two of the country’s scheduled international gateways: SAP serves the industrial Sula Valley, and XPL is the gateway for the capital, Tegucigalpa, and central Honduras.

Why Palmerola, Not Toncontín

Tegucigalpa’s old airport, Toncontín (TGU), sat inside the city and was long known for a short, hemmed-in runway. Honduras opened Palmerola International Airport near Comayagua, about 80 km from the capital, on the grounds of the former Soto Cano military base, and under decree PCM-199-2021 moved every scheduled international flight there on 15 December 2021. Toncontín has continued to operate for domestic flights only since that date, and Honduran officials confirmed in 2026 that it will not return to international service. Palmerola is therefore the airport this guide covers for Tegucigalpa: it is the one carrying the capital’s international commercial traffic.

How Honduran Airport Smoking Works

Decreto Legislativo No. 92-2010, the Ley Especial para el Control del Tabaco, bans smoking inside enclosed spaces — including transport terminals — and defines tobacco products to include e-cigarettes. It permits smoking in the open air only when a person stays at least two metres from anyone passing through or gathered:

  • No indoor or airside smoking area is published at either SAP or XPL
  • Open-air smoking, landside, at least two metres from doors and pedestrian flow, is permitted by law at both airports
  • Vaping is treated the same as cigarettes under Decreto 92-2010 — open-air landside only

San Pedro Sula (SAP)

Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport handled 1,017,799 total passengers in the first nine months of 2024, more than any other Honduran airport, according to Honduras’s civil aviation authority AHAC (via La Prensa, 10 December 2024). Open-air smoking outside the terminal is permitted; the terminal and gate areas are smoke-free, and no facility after security is confirmed.

Palmerola (XPL)

Palmerola International Airport handled 772,407 total passengers over the same nine-month period, per the same AHAC data. Open-air smoking outside the terminal is permitted; the terminal and gate areas are smoke-free, and no facility after security is confirmed.

Tips for Smokers at Honduran Airports

  • Both SAP and XPL permit open-air smoking landside only — plan to smoke before security or accept a smoke-free layover
  • Stay at least two metres from doors and busy pedestrian areas, per Decreto 92-2010
  • Vapes are treated like cigarettes at both airports — open-air landside only
  • A pure airside connection has no confirmed smoking option at either airport

Honduras Airports Compared: Indoor, Outdoor & After Security

AirportAfter securityIndoor roomOutdoor area
Palmerola International Airport (XPL)––Yes
Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport (SAP)––Yes

Last updated:

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you smoke at Honduras airports?

Yes — at Ramón Villeda Morales International (SAP) in San Pedro Sula and Palmerola International (XPL) serving Tegucigalpa, open-air smoking outside the terminal building, landside, is permitted under Honduras’s Decreto 92-2010. Neither airport publishes a designated area.

Why does this guide cover Palmerola (XPL) instead of Tegucigalpa's old Toncontín Airport (TGU)?

Honduras moved all scheduled international flights from Toncontín, inside Tegucigalpa, to the new Palmerola International Airport on 15 December 2021, under decree PCM-199-2021. Toncontín now carries domestic flights only, so Palmerola is the airport international travellers to the capital region actually use.

Is there smoking after security at Honduran airports?

Both SAP and XPL are smoke-free past the checkpoint under Decreto 92-2010, and no smoking facility after security is confirmed at either. Smoke outside the terminal building before you go through.

Are e-cigarettes and vapes allowed at Honduran airports?

Yes — Honduras’s Decreto 92-2010 defines e-cigarettes as a tobacco product, so vaping follows the same indoor ban and open-air landside allowance as smoking, at both SAP and XPL.

What is Honduras's airport smoking law?

Decreto Legislativo No. 92-2010, the Ley Especial para el Control del Tabaco, bans smoking inside enclosed spaces, including transport terminals. It permits smoking in the open air provided you stay at least two metres from where people are passing through or gathered, which is why open-air smoking outside the terminal is the only confirmed option at both of Honduras’s main airports.