May the 19th, 2023 - More than 480 airlines are set to bring masses of tourists into Croatian airports and then off to various destinations this year from across Europe and beyond.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, more than 483 airlines are expected to bring passengers in and out of Croatia this summer, mostly from European countries like Germany, Great Britain, France, the Netherlands and Italy, and if it is planned and implemented, it will bring a double-digit increase in the number of air operations compared to the summer of 2022, as was reported this week by the Croatian Tourist Board (HTZ/CNTB).

Information on the expected number of unique airlines in this year's summer flight schedule was collected by HTZ from Croatian airports, where they noted that these are announcements, that is, changes are still possible as time goes on.

The director of HTZ Kristjan Stanicic emphasised the importance of air transport in connecting Croatia with the rest of Europe and indeed the world, and this is especially the case with the far south of Croatia despite Peljesac bridge having made driving that bit easier.

"Far better transport connectivity of Croatian destinations compared to last year suggests a further recovery of air transport and is great news ahead of the main, summer part of the tourist season. A large number of airlines confirms the popularity of the Republic of Croatia on the tourist map of the world and is a continuation of the positioning of Croatia as an aviation destination, well connected with many foreign airports,'' Stanicic assessed.

According to HTZ data, during the summer flight season, Croatian airports will be flooded with passengers as the plan is to have direct connections with 130 cities, or a dozen more than in last year's summer season, in 38 countries, mainly here in Europe, while connections with destinations on other continents are planned from the US market, Canada, Israel, Qatar and the UAE.

According to the announcements of the Croatian airports so far, the most air operations are expected at Split Airport, 32 percent of the total number, and at Zagreb Airport (30 percent), followed by Dubrovnik Airport (22 percent). All these lines to Croatia are planned by 57 different airlines, which is also more than last summer, when there were about 50 of them, and among them the most flights are planned by Croatia Airlines, Ryanair, Easyjet, Eurowings and Lufthansa.

HTZ added that this summer, there will be lines of both regular and low-cost or charter carriers, such as Aeroitalia, Air Connect, Braathens Airlines, Enter Air, Jettime, Peoples Viennaline and others. As a reminder, at the beginning of May, the leading European airlines reported large amounts of summer bookings, as travellers plan their summer holidays despite the ongoing crisis due to the rising cost of living and inflation.

IAG, which owns British Airways, Iberia, Vueling and Aer Lingus, said stronger-than-expected summer and winter ticket sales would drive higher profits this year than earlier estimates. Such positive assessments of that company are also in line with other major European airlines. Current expectations from Lufthansa, easyJet and Ryanair also point to strong summer bookings.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated news section.

May the 13th, 2023 - Croatian air traffic for the month of March this year has surpassed that recorded back in March 2019, hailed as Croatia's record-breaking year for tourism. It's clear that the coronavirus pandemic is well and truly history as far as international travel is concerned.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Darko Bicak writes, after two years dominated by the global coronavirus pandemic, in which there was a collapse of air traffic, this type of mobility has finally almost completely recovered. This recovery has been evidenced by the recently published data of the National Bureau of Statistics which shows that in March 2023, Croatian air traffic surpassed that seen back during pre-pandemic 2019.

In the third month of 2023, total Croatian air traffic broken down amounted to 374,000 passengers, which is 44.6 percent more than in March 2022, when Croatian air traffic numbers recorded 258,000 passengers. Compared to March 2019, when Croatian air traffic numbers amounted to 346,000 passengers, this year's figure is higher by a very encouraging 8.1 percent.

Zagreb's Franjo Tudjman International Airport achieved the highest passenger traffic of all, recording 263,000 passengers, which is an increase of 34.8 percent compared to March 2022, when 195,000 passengers passed through that airport, and an increase of 13.8 percent compared to March 2019, when 231,000 passengers were recorded there.

The capital's airport is followed by Dubrovnik Airport (Cilipi), with 50,000 passengers recorded, representing an increase of 97.6 percent compared to March 2022, when 25,000 passengers passed through, and a decrease of 13.4 percent compared to March 2019, when traffic amounted to 58,000 recorded passengers.

Split Airport, with 49,000 passengers, recorded an increase of 56.7 percent at the annual level, when traffic amounted to 31 thousand passengers and an increase of 1.9 percent compared to March 2019, when traffic amounted to 48 thousand passengers.

The other six Croatian airports and airstrips are almost entirely seasonal in character, which is very clearly reflected by the minor number of passengers recorded during the off-season. As such, back in March this year, 8,368 passengers were recorded in Zadar, which is twice as many compared to the same period last year. Pula had 2,357 passengers, with a dependent growth of 52 percent. Osijek had 964 passengers, Rijeka 157, Mali Losinj 32 and Brac 9 passengers.

The most significant international passenger traffic was achieved with the airports of Germany - recording a massive 80 thousand passengers - which is 29.3 percent more compared to March 2022 and 23.5 percent less compared to March 2019.

Across Europe, Germany is followed by the airports of the United Kingdom with 32,000 transported passengers, which is 53.5 percent more compared to the same period last year and 103.2 percent more compared to March 2019, and the airports of the Netherlands with 25,000 transported passengers. which is 38 percent more compared to the same period last year and 74.6 percent more compared to March 2019.

The total number of aircraft landings and takeoffs at airports in March 2023 was 5,604, an increase of 12.7 percent compared to March 2022, when the number of landings and takeoffs was 4,974, and 2.5 percent less than on March 2019, when the total number of landings and takeoffs was 5,747.

Total cargo traffic at the airports in March 2023 was 808 tonnes, an increase of 2.4 percent compared to March 2022, when cargo traffic was 789 tonnes, and also an increase of 2.4 percent compared to March in 2019

The number of passengers in Croatian airports is also expected to increase during the month of May, but the exception to that could be Zagreb Airport. This is because on May the 2nd this year, they started work on the runway which will be closed to all traffic at night from 23:00 to 06:25 until May the 31st.

In particular, Ryanair, which has a base in Zagreb, could be in trouble due to this and, due to accumulated daily delays, the last flight to Zagreb is often well after midnight.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated news section.

October the 17th, 2022 - Zadar Airport has been ranked among the best on an impressive list, which will work to further place Croatia, which relies very heavily on tourism, on the airport quality map.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Zadar Airport has successfully entered the short list of the best in the category of up to five million passengers, and the winner will be revealed later today across the pond in Las Vegas, Nevada.

This nomination is truly excellent recognition for Zadar Airport because it comes from the aviation profession. In addition to Zadar Airport, Nuremberg, Edinburgh and Larnaca in Cyprus were also all nominated in the ''up to five million passengers'' category, according to a report from HRT.

Mihaela Kadija, the director of the Tourist Board of Zadar County, said that this weekend 15,000 passengers passed through Zadar Airport and she expects to end 2022's tourist season with 1.1 million passengers, which is the most so far.

"This speaks of the importance of Zadar Airport for all kinds of tourism, especially for the off-season and for more distant markets," she said.

In October this year, she added, guests from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland "jumped" into the top five markets with an increase of 77 percent. Several more events still await this Dalmatian city, such as the Biograd Boat Show, the Zadar regatta, a bicycle race, and they also have hopes for Advent in Zadar this year.

For more, make sure to keep up with our dedicated news section.

June 30, 2022 - Border controls should be lifted at Croatian airports from March 26, 2023, as Croatia becomes part of the single Schengen area. This means that the 2023 Croatia summer flight schedule will kick off with new rules. 

When the Republic of Croatia becomes part of the single Schengen area on January 1 next year, travel from or to Croatian airports will be significantly easier, writes Croatian Aviation. 

On Wednesday, the EU Council proposed that border controls at Croatia's land and sea borders with Schengen countries be abolished from January 1, 2023, and at airports from March 26 next year. Thus, at the beginning of the new year, Croatia should become a member of the Schengen area, which will simplify travel to and from Croatian airports.

If all goes well, border controls will be lifted on January 1 at seaports and road border crossings, while the same should take effect on March 26 at all Croatian airports.

Namely, with the stated date, the summer flight schedule comes into force, so it is logistically easier to make the change just then, and at the same time the airports are given enough time to prepare.

At Croatian airports, it is necessary to change the existing passenger flows, given that currently there are fewer departures at airports for flights within the Republic of Croatia, while now flights to and from all Schengen member states will be treated as "domestic".

This means that passengers traveling from Croatia on direct flights to destinations in the member states of this area (26 European countries), after checking in for the flight and security control, will go to the exit for their flight without crossing the border or police control.

All Croatian airports must have the infrastructural possibility of separating passengers arriving or departing to destinations in the Schengen area, as well as to destinations outside it.

This means that, for example, when traveling from Zagreb to Split, Osijek, Vienna, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, or any other destination located in a Schengen member country, the exit to the aircraft will go without checking your identity document, but the border control still exists when traveling to Istanbul, London, Doha, Dubai, Sarajevo, Belgrade or other destinations outside Schengen. The same, of course, applies to all other Croatian airports.

Croatian airports have enough time to prepare and change passenger flows until the spring of 2023 when Croatia finally feels another advantage of membership in the European Union, and preparations have been underway for months.

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

June the 15th, 2022 - Croatian air traffic has well and truly recovered from the enormous amount of damage done to it as a result of the global coronavirus pandemic and all of the lockdowns and measures against travel for leisure that were introduced across Europe and the world.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Darko Bicak writes, the fact that there was a complete recovery of Croatian air traffic after the global coronavirus pandemic has been very clearly shown by data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Their information shows that in April 2022, the total passenger traffic at Croatian airports amounted to 580 thousand people, which is 654 percent more than in April 2021, when the country realised a turnover of a mere 77 thousand passengers.

The largest amount of Croatian air traffic in terms of passengers was realised by Zagreb's Franjo Tudjman International Airport, with 254 thousand passengers (an increase of 375.8 percent when compared to April 2021, which saw the transportation of 53 thousand passengers), followed by Split Airport with 132 thousand passengers and an increase of 842.1 percent when compared to April of last year (14 thousand passengers).

Dubrovnik Airport had 117 thousand passengers, which is an enormous increase compared to only eight thousand passengers in April 2021. Dubrovnik is still primarily an air destination owing the need to cross the border in and back out of neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina at Neum when travelling by car. The placing into function of the long awaited Peljesac bridge will likely aid that.

The most significant amount of international Croatian air traffic was realised with German airports, which transported 141 thousand passengers into Croatia, which is an increase of 650.3 percent when compared to the same period back in 2021.

The total number of aircraft landings and take-offs at all Croatian airports during April 2022 was 7,932, an increase of 126.7 percent when compared to April 2021, when the number of landings and take-offs stood at a mere 3,499.

The total cargo traffic at Croatian airports in April 2022 amounted to 728 tonnes, an encouraging increase of 14.5 percent when compared to April last year.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

ZAGREB, 18 Feb 2022 - Croatian airports in 2021 served 4.7 million customers, a 121.5% increase from 2020, with the airports in Split and Zagreb serving close to 62% of all passengers, reporting, like all the other airports, large increases in passenger turnover, show data from the national statistical office.

The number of airplanes and their operations (landings, takeoffs) increased in all airports, by 58.2% to 85,500, while cargo transport rose by 15% from 2020, to close to 9,000 tonnes.

Zagreb airport sees most passengers in December, Zadar reports the largest increase, Rijeka sees drop in Dec. 2021

In December 2021 alone passenger turnover increased by almost 300% compared to the same month of 2020, to 216,000, while the number of plane operations grew by 101% to slightly more than 4,600, and cargo turnover by 25.5% to 882 tonnes.

Of the eight airports in Croatia, all but Rijeka and Brač saw an increase in the volume of passengers and cargo in December 2021. Rijeka saw a drop of 43% in passenger transport while the airport on Brač island did not work.

Zagreb airport saw the largest increase in the number of passengers of 336% to 178,400, followed by Split, with a 187% increase and 23,400 passengers, and Dubrovnik, with a 176.4% increase in the number of passengers to 11,500.

Split airport with most passengers in 2021

In the entire year, 2021 Split airport was the one with the most passengers, slightly more than 1.5 million, up 136.5% from 2020, while Zagreb airport was second, with a 52% increase or 1.4 million passengers.

Dubrovnik was third with 917,600 passengers, 184.5% up from 2020, followed by Zadar with 500,300 passengers or 350% more, Pula, with 261,600 passengers (+232%), Rijeka (+107.3%), Osijek (+71%), Brač (+125%), and Mali Lošinj (+84%).

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

January 10th, 2022 - Almost twice as many passengers traveled through Rijeka Airport in 2021 than in the previous year, with the upward trend expected to continue due to new summer lines announced for 2022

Rijeka Airport recorded 56,388 passengers in 2021. It’s an increase of almost 29,000 passengers compared to the airport traffic in 2020, reports Croatian Aviation.

Unsurprisingly, the largest number of passengers was recorded in summer months. Rijeka Airport saw over 15,000 passengers in July 2021, around 20,000 passengers in August and some 13,000 in September.

In contrast, there was very little off-season air traffic on Krk island. At present, Rijeka Airport only has two flights on its winter schedule, those of a local carrier operating from Rijeka to Osijek and Rijeka-Split-Dubrovnik. 

On the upside, international airlines have lately been announcing plans to boost their existing summer lines from Rijeka and introduce new routes, so we can expect a further increase in traffic this year. It might be a while before the airport bounces back to its pre-pandemic levels; in 2019, over 200,000 passengers traveled through Rijeka Airport. 

Low-cost carrier Ryanair will operate from Rijeka to London, Brussels and Stockholm twice a week starting from March 27th, 2022.

German airlines Condor and Lufthansa have announced summer lines between Rijeka and Frankfurt, once and twice a week respectively. Lufthansa and Croatian Airlines will also operate from Rijeka to Munich.

In 2021, eight Croatian airports recorded a total of 4,771,520 passengers combined. It’s a significant increase compared to a little over 2 million passengers in 2020; in the record 2019, Croatian airports saw a total of 11,376,915 passengers.

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

ZAGREB, 15 Dec 2021 - In October, airports in Croatia catered for 564,000 passengers, which is 431% more than in October 2020, and the number of flights jumped by 140% 9,368, according to the data provided by the national statistical office (DZS).

The cargo transported through Croatia's airports increased this October by 17.2% compared to October 2020.

In terms of passenger traffic, the Airport of Zagreb ranked first, with 180,600 passengers using this airport in October, or 231% more than in October 2020.

Split's airport ranked second, (160,700 passengers), or 541.6% more on the year.

Dubrovnik's airport saw a rise of 720.6% to 114,300.

A majority of flights were between the Croatian airports and Germany, Great Britain, France, and Italy.

However, the passenger traffic in Croatia's airports in October was still below the results in the pre-pandemic October 2019.

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

October the 14th, 2021 - Zagreb's Franjo Tudjman Airport has been re-certified as a safe airport in the conditions of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the capital's busy airport reported on Wednesday.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Zagreb's Franjo Tudjman Airport recalled that back in 2020, they were among the first European airports to successfully pass the accreditation programme for the establishment of health and safety measures in the conditions of the coronavirus pandemic, and recently the re-accreditation process for 2021 was completed.

In the accreditation process, as they say, special emphasis was placed on further improving the established health and safety measures in the conditions of the global pandemic at airports, developed by the World Airports Council (ACI World).

It is a process of examining the conditions and organisation for the safe use of the airport's space, prescribed in accordance with the recommended health measures set out in the ACI Aviation Business Restart and Recovery Guidelines.

The programme is designed to identify and demonstrate the fact that airports are safe places to be in when travelling, and to take further precautions to reduce any risk to passenger health.

The programme, as they say, was made according to the recommendations of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO Aviation Recovery Task Force Recommendations) and in accordance with the best examples from the industry.

In the procedure of assessing all submitted evidence, Zagreb's Franjo Tudjman Airport proved that it can and does successfully implement all of the prescribed measures and thus provides conditions for the safe travel to all of its many users from across the world. Owing to this box being ticket, the facility once again received the Airport Health Accreditation Certificate for the next twelve months, according to the airport's report on the topic.

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, make sure to bookmark our dedicated COVID-19 section and select your preferred language.

ZAGREB, 27 May 2021 - A flight from Dublin with about 100 passengers landed in Zagreb on Thursday, whereby Croatia Airlines (CA) and Zagreb International Airport (MZLZ) marked the relaunch on flights on that route after they had been suspended due to the pandemic, and CA hopes to intensify flights to European destinations.

The national flag carrier CA hopes to expand its flight network from Croatia to European destinations and as part of its plans, it will intensify flights on the Zagreb-Dublin route.

There will be two flights a week on that route, on Thursdays and Sundays, and the plan is to adapt to current market demand, depending on the epidemiological situation in Croatia and the world. The first direct flight on that route was established in 2018.

A member of the management board at MZLZ, David Gabelica, underscored that Zagreb is currently connected to 24 destinations and that as of June that will increase to 36. There are 300 flights a week and at peak season there will be 700.

Gabelica added that CA is MZLZ's most important partner and they are in constant contact. Considering the conditions that Ryanair was recently awarded, which are much more favorable than for Croatia's flag carrier, Gabelica said that CA can always count on the best conditions.

The director of the Zagreb Tourist Board, Martina Bienenfeld, underscored that the reintroduction of Dublin-Zagreb flights shows that interest exists for people to come to Zagreb and Croatia.

"The majority of passengers, according to my information, are staying in Zagreb but I am convinced that a large number of flights that Croatia Airlines is gradually reintroducing to Zagreb will have transfers to other destinations in Croatia," she said.

She explained that the majority of tourists currently in Zagreb are from the USA and that tourism numbers are similar to last year's.

CA commercial director Slaven Žabo said that CA will fly to 18 European destinations during the summer, including 14 from Zagreb.

He confirmed that the national flag carrier was in negotiations with MZLZ regarding better conditions.

In an effort to ensure better connectivity and support to Croatia's tourism, CA plans to provide 80,000 seats a month during the summer season on flights from European destinations to Croatia while cooperation with tour operators foresees more than 200 tourism charter flights from Austria, Italy, Ireland, Israel, and Scandinavia, said Žabo.

Follow the latest on flights to Croatia HERE and the latest travel updates and COVID-19 news from Croatia HERE.

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