February 15, 2021 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as TAROM introduces Bucharest-Dubrovnik this summer, and Croatia Airlines operates on only eight international lines from Zagreb until March. 

Croatian Aviation reports that TAROM, Romania's national carrier, plans to operate a charter line between Bucharest and Dubrovnik in this year's summer flight schedule.

The Romanian national airline plans to connect Bucharest and Dubrovnik this summer on a charter line for the Romanian tour operator Karpaten Turism, which offers tourist arrangements for holidays in southern Croatia.

The Bucharest - Dubrovnik line will operate from June 4 to October 15, 2021, with a frequency of one flight per week, every Friday.

Timetable:

RO3731: Bucharest (OTP) 07:50 - 08:30 Dubrovnik (DBV),

RO3732: Dubrovnik (DBV) 09:30 - 12:00 Bucharest (OTP).

Tourist arrangements include flight, accommodation, and transfers to and from Dubrovnik Airport, and reservations can be made on the tour operator's website. TAROM has no regular lines to Croatia, and the charter line to Dubrovnik was in operation almost 10 years ago.

The company has 28 aircraft in its fleet (Airbus, Boeing, ATR). ATR72-600 aircraft with a capacity of 72 seats, which the company took over only a year ago, should operate on the route to Dubrovnik. On the 21 return flights, the Romanian national airline will offer more than 3,000 seats between Dubrovnik and Bucharest.

The only direct commercial route between Croatia and Romania was that of Croatia Airlines between Zagreb and Bucharest (only in the summer flight schedule), but it is unlikely that the Croatian national airline will resume operations on that route in this year's summer flight schedule.

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that until the end of February, Croatia Airlines will offer only 8 direct international flights from Zagreb.

Namely, from February 16 to 28, the Croatian national airline will offer 8 direct international flights departing from Zagreb Airport. The ninth international line is between Zagreb and Rome, but it has a stop in Split.

Zagreb - Amsterdam - Zagreb continues to operate daily,

Zagreb - Brussels - Zagreb operates on Fridays and Sundays (February 19, 21, 26, and 28),

Zagreb - Frankfurt - Zagreb continues to operate daily (2 to 3 times a day),

Zagreb - Copenhagen - Zagreb operates on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays (February 17, 19, 21, 24, 26, and 28),

Zagreb - London - Zagreb operates on Mondays (February 15 and 22),

Zagreb - Paris - Zagreb operates on Thursdays and Sundays (February 18, 21, 25, and 28),

Zagreb - Rome - Zagreb (via Split) operates on Thursdays and Sundays (February 18, 21, 25, and 28),

Zagreb - Skopje - Zagreb operates on Mondays and Fridays (February 15, 19, 22, and 26),

Zagreb - Zurich - Zagreb operates on Wednesdays and Sundays (February 17, 21, 25, and 28).

Lines to Munich, Sarajevo, and Vienna have been suspended. The airline plans to resume traffic to Sarajevo from February 28, while the resumption of direct flights between Zagreb and Vienna is expected from March 3.

From February 16 to 28, the airline will operate approximately 66 return flights from its base in Zagreb to the above-mentioned international destinations. These are fewer lines and weekly departures compared to the first half of February and January. Given the announcements of the reintroduction of direct lines from Zagreb to Vienna and Sarajevo, at the beginning of March, there should be a slight increase in capacity from Zagreb Airport, but also a larger number of weekly operations on other international routes.

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January 11, 2021 – Unlike the record 2019, when more than 11.4 million passengers passed through Croatian airports, in the crisis 2020, that number dropped by as much as 81 percent, counting less than 2.2 million passengers.

At the beginning of each new year, the revenues from the last tourist year are added up, and tourists' numbers are concluded. However, it was inevitable that in 2020, during which world tourism experienced a massive decline due to the coronavirus pandemic, would also affect tourist numbers.

As reported earlier, the Croatian tourism sector saw 50 percent fewer tourist overnight stays in 2020 than the record 2019. Likewise, commercial aviation experienced its largest decline in history. In 2020, Croatian airports accepted and dispatched less than 2.2 million passengers, writes Croatian Aviation.

Traffic to Croatia's three largest airports, Zagreb, Split, and Dubrovnik, has been growing steadily for years, but this series has been interrupted by a global pandemic. The three mentioned airports had over 9.6 million passengers in 2019, while in 2020, they recorded less than 2 million passengers together (1,929,336). The fact that the other five Croatian airports had 242,827 passengers last year is also devastating, of which Zadar alone served over 120,000 passengers.

Source: Franjo Tuđman Zagreb Airport

With 924,823 passengers throughout the year, the main Croatian airport Franjo Tuđman Zagreb failed to reach the millionth passenger in 2020. However, almost half of the total Croatian traffic in 2020 was realized at the Zagreb airport.

Although it recorded an increase in the number of passengers in January and February compared to the same period in 2019, Franjo Tuđman Airport recorded a decrease in the number of passengers of 73 percent compared to 2019.

Unlike Zagreb Airport, Split Airport in January and February has modest traffic compared to the summer, seasonal months, and so it was in 2020. However, after the global pandemic hit Croatia, air traffic in Split almost stopped.

However, compared to other Croatian airports on the coast, Split still had a certain number of passengers in the peak season, especially in August. Still, the numbers in the post-season dropped drastically again. With 674,366 passengers, Split Airport recorded a decrease in the number of passengers of 79.58 percent compared to 2019.

Dubrovnik Airport was one of the biggest losers last year. It was closed in April, while the traffic was very poor in May and June. An increase in the number of passengers was recorded only in July and August, but not enough to avoid a large drop in the number of passengers.

Although many companies flew to Dubrovnik this summer, the planes were empty rather than full, as confirmed by statistics. The decrease in the number of passengers at Dubrovnik Airport is 88.6 percent compared to 2019.

Source: Zadar Airport

Traffic also dropped drastically at Zadar Airport, but not as much as in Pula. These two Croatian airports have been competing in the number of passengers for several years, and the difference between them is relatively small. Nevertheless, in 2020, Zadar accepted almost 40,000 more passengers than Pula. Zadar Airport recorded a drop in the number of passengers of 84.93 percent compared to 2019, and Pula Airport 89.6 percent.

In 2019, Rijeka Airport finally exceeded 200,000 passengers for the first time in its history. Still, the numbers dropped drastically in 2020 as many airlines have given up on introducing seasonal routes to this airport due to the global pandemic. Rijeka Airport thus recorded a decrease in the number of passengers of 86.22 percent compared to 2019.

In 2020, Osijek Airport had only domestic PSO (Public Service Obligation) lines and the Eurowings line to Stuttgart, but only in August. It recorded a decrease in the number of passengers of 85.72 percent compared to the previous 2019.

Brač Airport also recorded a decline in the number of passengers in 2020. A slightly more significant number of passengers was recorded only in July and August, but these are also modest numbers compared to the 2019 summer season.

You can see the graphs of the 2020 traffic from all Croatian airports at Croatian Aviation.

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January 5, 2021 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Volotea announces 21 lines to Croatia for summer 2021.

Croatian Aviation reports that well-known Spanish low-cost airline Volotea has announced as many as 21 international direct routes to Croatia for the summer of 2021.

Volotea, with operational bases in Spain, Italy, France, and Greece, plans to operate on as many as 21 international routes to two Croatian airports - Dubrovnik and Split.

Lines to Split Airport

According to the airline's current plans, Volotea will operate on as many as 10 international routes to Split Airport in the 2021 summer flight schedule, which will take effect at the end of March. This includes one line from Greece, as many as six from France, and three from neighboring Italy:

Split - Athens from April 25 will run twice a week, every Wednesday and Sunday,

Split - Bordeaux from April 11 will operate once a week, and from June 2 twice a week, every Wednesday and Sunday,

Split - Lyon will operate twice a week from April 11, on Wednesdays and Sundays, and from July 6, the third flight will be added (Tuesdays),

Split - Marseille will be in operation from April 25 twice a week (Wednesdays and Sundays),

Split - Nantes from April 4 will run once, from April 28 twice a week, from July 6 three times (Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Sundays),

Split - Nice from April 25 will operate once a week, from July 7 twice a week (Wednesdays and Sundays),

Split - Toulouse will operate twice a week from April 18, from July 6 three times a week (Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Sundays),

Split - Bari will operate once a week from July 7, on Wednesdays,

Split - Palermo will operate from June 2 once a week, on Wednesdays,

Split - Venice will operate 4 times a week from May 28, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.

All lines to Split should run until October 10, except for the lines to Bari and Palermo, which should end slightly earlier - on October 6. 

Lines to Dubrovnik Airport

Volotea is planning as many as 11 lines to Dubrovnik. These are two lines to Greece, six to France, and three to Italy:

Dubrovnik - Athens will operate twice a week from April 24, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and from June 1, they will add another flight per week and operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays,

Dubrovnik - Mykonos will operate from May 29 twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays,

Dubrovnik - Bordeaux will operate from April 10 twice a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays,

Dubrovnik - Lyon will operate from April 10 twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays,

Dubrovnik - Marseille will operate from April 24 twice a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays,

Dubrovnik - Nantes will operate from April 3 once a week, from April 27 three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays,

Dubrovnik - Strasbourg will operate from April 24 once a week, on Saturdays,

Dubrovnik - Toulouse will operate from April 17, twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays

Dubrovnik - Bari will operate from June 2 once a week, from July 5 twice a week, Mondays and Wednesdays,

line Dubrovnik - Palermo will operate from July 7 once a week, on Wednesdays,

Dubrovnik - Venice will operate twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays, from May 28.

Certain routes were in traffic in the 2020 summer flight schedule, but according to a significantly reduced flight schedule, which was expected given the global epidemic. Volotea has released all the lines listed here for the summer of 2021, but there is a possibility that they will reduce the flight schedule to these two Croatian airports if bookings are not satisfactory. 

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December 18, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Flydubai returns to Dubrovnik in May 2021.

Croatian Aviation reports that as we already know, Emirates will no longer operate to Zagreb. The airline's partner low-cost airline, Flydubai, was supposed to travel to Zagreb this winter, but that will not happen, either.

However, Flydubai will resume traffic between Dubai and Zagreb at the start of the summer flight schedule, from March 31, 2021. The airline will thus replace the famous Emirates, which has temporarily canceled the line to Zagreb and will not operate on it in 2021, due to the impact of the pandemic.

Flydubai will operate its first flight to Zagreb on March 31, 2021, and will run four times a week on this route through April and May, every Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Four flights a week in the spring, daily to Zagreb in the summer of 2021.

From the beginning of June, Flydubai will operate daily between Dubai and Zagreb until September 5 next year.

The number of weekly flights from September 6 will be reduced to four (Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays) by the end of October. This is the framework plan of this well-known airline. Still, it was also to be expected that FlyDubai would return to Zagreb and replace Emirates, which estimates that there will not be enough demand for their wide-body aircraft in Zagreb next year.

Flydubai will operate on the Zagreb - Dubai route with narrow-body aircraft type B737-800, and in the summer flight schedule, it plans to perform as many as 164 return flights!

Over 57,000 seats available between Dubai and Zagreb in the summer of 2021.

This low-cost company will offer more than 57,000 seats between Dubai and Zagreb in the summer flight schedule, which is significantly less than in 2019 when Emirates operated on this route with a B777-300ER wide-body aircraft with an average capacity of 358 seats per flight (in 2019, more than 152 thousand seats were available on this line, so the number of seats offered on this line will be lower by over 60% compared to 2019.)

Apart from the smaller capacity, the Dubai - Zagreb line will no longer have a first-class seat offer for which Emirates is world-famous. The number of offered seats in business and economy class will be drastically reduced. Nevertheless, the return of Flydubai to Zagreb will enable Emirates passengers to continue their journey to Zagreb with a partner company, which is very important for the market's recovery next year.

Flydubai also plans to return to its second destination in Croatia - Dubrovnik. The Dubai - Dubrovnik line should operate from May 13, twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays. From June 25, the airline plans to add a third weekly flight (Fridays), and scheduled flights are announced until the end of September next year.

Neither Flydubai nor Emirates flew to Croatian airports this year due to the impact of the global pandemic. Still, given that the market is expected to recover next year, Dubrovnik and Zagreb have returned to this airline's network of destinations.

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December 9, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Finnair plans flights from Helsinki to Croatia in 2021.

Croatian Aviation reports that the Finnish national airline Finnair has confirmed its return to Croatia with two routes from Helsinki in the 2021 summer flight schedule.

Finnair did not operate to Croatian airports in the summer flight schedule in 2020. At one point, the airline announced flights to Dubrovnik, but they were not realized due to the epidemiological situation and restrictions at the state borders. 

The Croatian market is very important to this airline, and apart from the P2P demand itself, the airline brings a large number of transfer passengers to Croatian airports from numerous Asian destinations, primarily China, Japan and South Korea.

Given that Emirates and Korean Air will not return to Zagreb Airport next summer, Finnair expects a larger number of transfer passengers to popular Croatian destinations such as Split and Dubrovnik, to which the company intends to operate next summer.

"We are sure to return to the Croatian market in the summer of 2021. Lines from Helsinki to Split and Dubrovnik will once again be an important link between Asia and the Adriatic."

The Helsinki-Split-Helsinki route, according to Finnair's current plan, should start with regular direct operations from 11 May 2021 with 5 flights a week (every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday). A319 aircraft with a capacity of 144 passengers in the carrier's fleet have been announced on the routes. Finnair plans to operate on this line until the fall (early October) next year.

The Helsinki-Dubrovnik-Helsinki route is planned for March 29, but the airline will still adjust the flight schedule to Dubrovnik according to the epidemiological situation.

According to the current flight schedule confirmed by this airline, there will be an increase in the number of weekly operations in April and May, so that as of May 25, as many as 6 flights per week will be available on this route (every day except Thursday). In relation to the line to Split, the airline plans to use A321 aircraft with a capacity of 209 passengers towards Dubrovnik. Finnair has as many as 19 aircraft of this type in its fleet.

The very fact that Finnair has decided to keep two lines to Croatia in its destination network for 2021 is important and positive news. It is still questionable whether Croatia Airlines will reintroduce a direct line between Helsinki and Zagreb next summer.

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November 4, 2020 - The three largest Croatian airports, Zagreb, Split, and Dubrovnik, released their monthly statistics for October. All airports recorded a decrease in the number of passengers compared to September.

Croatian Aviation reports that the drop in passenger numbers in October was actually expected for several reasons. First, we traditionally have fewer seasonal lines in October, especially in Split and Dubrovnik. This year, due to the pandemic's impact, several lines stopped operating in late September, a month earlier than usual in previous years.

Zagreb, Split, and Dubrovnik combined did not reach 100,000 passengers in October

In addition to the earlier cancellation of routes, aircraft operating to and from the three mentioned airports had low passenger cabin occupancy. In addition to the pandemic itself and the crisis it causes, there is the fear of traveling by plane due to frequent flight cancellations and uncertainty about frequent changes in rules at state borders. All of the above resulted in record low numbers - the three largest Croatian airports in October together did not have even 100 thousand passengers (specifically, there were 95,432)! 

Zagreb Airport in October this year recorded 55,289 passengers, by far the most of all Croatian airports. Still, there is a noticeable decrease in the number of passengers than in September (more than 10 thousand fewer passengers than the previous month).

In October 2019, Zagreb registered 330,598 passengers. In total, from January 1 to October 31, 840,610 passengers passed through the main Croatian airport (2,957,109 in the same period last year). Thus, it is clear that Zagreb Airport will not reach the millionth passenger this year. From January to October, Zagreb recorded a drop in passenger traffic of over 71% compared to the same period last year.

Split Airport recorded 25,796 passengers in October, while in October 2019, 247,172 passengers passed through this airport. Split lost its chance for the millionth passenger a long time ago; by the end of October, only 657,570 passengers passed through Split Airport, which is actually an excellent result considering that there was almost no significant traffic by May. Hence, most passengers passed through Split at the height of the season. Namely, from June to October, Split generated over 600 thousand passengers!

This airport had more passengers from January to October last year than Zagreb - over 3 million (3,214,702).

Dubrovnik was far from famous this year in air traffic, and October was another modest month. Only 14,347 passengers passed through Dubrovnik Airport, while in the same month last year, there were almost 300,000 passengers (299,532).

At Dubrovnik Airport, slightly better traffic monthly was achieved only in August (almost 120 thousand passengers).

From January to October, 321,296 passengers passed through this airport, while last year in the same period - 2,804,478.

One thing is for sure, the decline in the number of passengers will continue in the last two months of this year, but the problem is that the market recovery is not in sight, almost certainly not until the spring of next year. Detailed statistics of other Croatian airports (Pula, Rijeka, Zadar, and Osijek) will be published soon.

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August 7, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for flights to Croatia with updates from Split and Dubrovnik.

Croatian Aviation reports that Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) announced its flight schedule for August in which it will significantly reduce the number of weekly flights to Split Airport.

This well-known Scandinavian airline launched traffic at the end of June to Split Airport from three destinations: Copenhagen, Stockholm and Oslo. Lines from Stockholm and Copenhagen to Split operated daily (mainly A320 aircraft), while the Oslo - Split route operated 5 to 6 times a week.

But that will change from mid-August. Namely, from August 15, the Copenhagen - Split line will operate only once a week, every Saturday, and the same will be the case with the Stockholm - Split line, which will also operate once a week (Saturday).

The Oslo - Split line will operate three times a week (Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays) from 9 August, and from August 15, this line will also run once a week (Saturdays).

The second destination in Croatia for SAS this summer was Pula Airport, where the company operated regularly once a week on the line from Copenhagen (Saturdays). Tickets are on sale for flights until August 15, after which, it is likely, the line will end with traffic for this summer season.

Brussels Airlines has announced its flight schedule for August, in which lines from Brussels to Split and Dubrovnik will continue to operate this month.

As announced earlier, Brussels Airlines launched traffic on the route to Dubrovnik on June 27 this year and operates twice a week, every Tuesday and Saturday with A319 and A320 aircraft.

The line will continue to operate through August, but from August 22, only once a week. Namely, the flight is canceled on Tuesdays and only the flight on Saturdays, A320 aircraft, remain in traffic. Brussels Airlines is holding flights to Dubrovnik until October 10, but we will monitor the situation and announce any changes.

The second Brussels line in Croatia, to Split, operates once a week (also on Saturdays), which will continue until mid-September (September 19). After the mentioned date, the company no longer offers direct flights on the Brussels - Split route.

We remind you that before the corona pandemic, this airline planned flights to Zadar and Zagreb, but those routes were completely canceled. Croatia Airlines operates on a direct route between Zagreb and Brussels.

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July 17, 2020 - Business troubles caused by the coronavirus will bring considerable annual losses to airlines, and 2020 will be remembered as “the worst year in the history of the aviation industry”. The crisis has not bypassed Split Airport in Kastela, where it is estimated that this year's losses at the end of the year will reach 2 million fewer passengers compared to 2019, when more than three million passengers landed at that airport.

Slobodna Dalmacija reports that the first 6 months of this year, Split Airport had a turnover of 108,000  passengers, while in the first half of last year, 1.2 million passengers were recorded. If we compare the month of June, the decline is about half a million passengers. This year, 26,000 passengers were realized, while last year, 513,000 passed through Split Airport.

"Until July 13, we had a turnover of 55,000 passengers, and by the end, we expect another 65,000, which at the end of the month will amount to a total of about 120,000 passengers. In the first 6 months of this year, we recorded a loss of about a million passengers, and we will lose that much more in July and August. So we are in the red about 2 million passengers," said Mate Melvan of Split Airport.

When it comes to companies that fly to Split Airport, the situation is somewhat better, but the problem, they point out, is that there are no passengers.

"Unlike last year when we were connected with about 58 global companies, this year we are connected with 30. I must emphasize that only ten of these thirty companies last year accounted for 90 percent of our total turnover last year. I think we are well covered in this regard, but the problem is that there are no passengers. People just don’t travel by plane and that’s where the whole problem lies. Last weekend, our port had the highest traffic, there are all the main carriers and there are no obstacles and problems," concludes Melvan.

It is interesting to note that in April this year, there were only six passengers, and in the same month last year, the traffic was more than 156,000 passengers.

Vienna, Warsaw, Madrid, Oslo, Paris, Rome, Frankfurt, Riga are just some of the twenty or so airports that are currently connected to Dubrovnik. However, the "real season" should start soon, when flights from Great Britain begin. British Airways (from London - three times a week), Jet2.com, EasyJet and others are establishing lines with certainly the most important tourist market for Dubrovnik. Low-cost carrier Ryanair is already flying on a route to Dublin, Ireland, and other airlines have decided to resume in an attempt to at least partially recoup losses in recent months.

Despite everything, by the end of July, Dubrovnik should be connected with more than 30 European cities. Compared to the current situation, traffic is expected to triple by the end of August. Thus, according to the announcements, there should be as many as 140 landings and take-offs at Dubrovnik Airport on the first weekend of August.

"It all depends on the epidemiological situation both in our country and in the countries from which our guests come. Most of the airlines we have worked with before are coming back, new ones are coming, and some have failed due to the corona crisis. We have to be optimistic because the situation is moving as we predicted," says the director of Dubrovnik Airport Frano Luetic.

Despite the unprecedented crisis for air traffic around the world, the airport is proud to highlight this week's agreement on the intercontinental connection of Dubrovnik and Dubai with Flydubai, and the start of flights from new destinations in Kyiv, Ukraine, Budapest, and Vilnius in Lithuania.

However, even with such an increase, the airport will find it difficult to achieve 30 percent of last year's traffic in July and August, which is mostly at the level of total air traffic worldwide. Namely, this year, up to thirty international planes a day will land at the airport in Cilipi during July and August, while in the same period last year there were even more than sixty.

The semi-annual number of passengers at the end of June last year was 1,059,684, while this year's number was 87,026 passengers in the same period, which is just over eight percent. Also, in June 2019, there were 415,876 passengers, while this year there were 10,592, which means that with the greatest optimism this year, it is difficult to expect more than half a million passengers at the airport.

"The Dubrovnik area and everything that gravitates to our airport are much smaller than the often mentioned area of ​​Split and their airport, which currently has more planes and passengers than us. One should know that Split gravitates to more than half a million local people, and their tourist capacities range from Zadar to the Neretva, and from numerous islands to the deep hinterland and Medjugorje. Our area is cramped and has less than a hundred thousand people, without the roads that Split has and with less tourist capacity. We are also oriented towards guests of higher purchasing power given that we have a lot more five-star hotels. And that is the reason why low-cost carriers opt more for Split because such is the offer and the purchasing power of passengers," says Luetic.

Last weekend, 3870 passengers passed through Zadar Airport. Compared to last year, the turnover is lower by 70 percent, and judging by the forecasts, these figures will be transferred to all of July. Namely, the expected weekly traffic in July is about 60 commercial aircraft, or 120 rotations, while during August, 70 commercial aircraft or 140 arrivals and departures are expected.

"Although it is difficult and ungrateful to give any forecasts at the moment, we expect about 33,000 passengers in July, and about 60 thousand in August. By the end of the year, the total traffic should reach the number of about 150,000 passengers, which is 19 percent of last year's result," said the management of Zadar Airport about the season which, if corona had not happened, should have been a record.

Last year, the traffic at Zadar Airport increased by 30 percent compared to 2018, and they welcomed the end of the year with more than 800,000 passengers. On the wings of these results, which were the best in the history of Zadar airport, this summer was greeted even more ambitiously.

This is best illustrated by the projections of the largest low-cost carrier in the world, Ryanair, which announced in early 2020 that it will carry a total of 670,000 passengers on 30 lines and its base in Zadar this season, 50 percent more than a year earlier. Instead, Ryanair currently flies on only ten routes, and the base, which was supposed to house three aircraft with staff for eight months, has been postponed until the summer of 2021.

In addition to Ryanair, whose share in traffic is by far the largest with almost 70 percent, ten other airlines are currently flying to Zadar Airport, connecting Zemunik with 29 European destinations.

Whether that number will be maintained or increased next season, no one currently wants to predict. Because it’s hard to say what will be next month, let alone next summer.

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May 20, 2020 - A meeting on the topic of launching international flights was held in Dubrovnik on Tuesday.

The meeting was attended by Mayor Mato Franković, Deputy Mayor Jelka Tepšić, Director of the Dubrovnik Tourist Board Ana Hrnić, representatives of the largest hotel companies in the city and the Director of Commercial Affairs of Dubrovnik Airport, Ivan Maslać, reports Croatian Aviation. 

The meeting agreed on marketing cooperation and a strategy by which the City of Dubrovnik, the Tourist Board of the City, and the Dubrovnik Airport will work together on marketing, all in order to encourage airlines to reintroduce international routes to this city.

Unlike some other tourist destinations in Croatia, the 'Pearl of the Adriatic' is still (until the construction of the Peljesac Bridge) separated from the rest of Croatia, and due to the distance from many crucial markets, it has developed into an air destination.

Airlines that decide to launch routes to Dubrovnik will be provided with financial compensation, and the Mayor of the city has already announced that they are ready to participate in this marketing campaign. The City will co-finance flights with 14 million kuna.

It remains to be seen which airlines will apply in the future and be interested in co-financing the flights, but there is no doubt that there will be interest in an action of this kind.

We remind you that Dubrovnik is currently connected by air only to Zagreb, twice a day. Croatia Airlines has already reduced the number of flights operating on a daily basis, depending on the booking status of each flight.

Recall, Qatar Airways and American Airlines have canceled their seasonal services to the famous coastal city this year, and won't resume operations until 2021. The American Airlines Dubrovnik to Philadelphia flight was the first direct connection for 28 years between Croatia and the United States, a psychological as well as physical connection between the two countries. 

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April 23, 2020 - Like many airports around the world, one of Croatia’s busiest airports in the summer will take a considerable hit this year. Dubrovnik Airport readies for a challenging season ahead. 

The tourism sector is one of the biggest victims of the coronavirus pandemic, and when travel resumes remains unknown. Lifting the travel restrictions, however, is just part of the solution - what airlines will survive once all is said and done, and what connections will remain is another hurdle we have yet to cross. 

Ex Yu Aviation reports that Dubrovnik Airport General Manager Frano Luetić is anticipating handling just 30% of its planned traffic this year - and that is the best-case scenario. 

Recall, American Airlines and Qatar Airways won’t be resuming traffic to Dubrovnik until 2021, while a handful of airlines like Lufthansa, airBaltic, Enter Air, Jet2, Finnair and Volotea are significantly reducing operations. 

“We are witnessing something unlike we’ve ever seen in peacetime. We have been left without any traffic,” Luetić said.

Ex Yu Aviation adds that Dubrovnik Airport has been closed since March 19 and has no plans to open until at least May 2. 

“Some domestic flights are expected to resume next month, however, the majority of international services are unlikely to resume before June. The airport estimates it will register a net loss of 9.5 million euros during the first half of the year. Despite the result, none of its 387 staff members will be dismissed, although the fate of 162 seasonal workers will depend on the support the Croatian government provides to its airports as part of measures to stimulate the economy in the aftermath of the pandemic,” writes Ex Yu Aviation. 

Dubrovnik Airport has also stopped all non-essential investments, though it could purchase thermal cameras to measure body temperature once operations resume. 

2020 was meant to be record summer for Dubrovnik Airport, with a 4% increase in overall operations. However, in the first quarter of this year, the airport was down 38.6%, welcoming only 72,406 passengers. 

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