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 5th, 2023 - Flydubai Croatia flights are firmly on the cards as the Croatian National Tourist Board partakes in a large tourism event and seeks better positioning on the Middle Eastern markets.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, the Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB/HTZ) partakes in the very first edition of the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) since the global coronavirus pandemic, which is one of the leading international tourism events in the Middle East.

"The presence and performance at the ATM fair is of strategic importance in the positioning and promotion of Croatia in distant markets, especially if we know that this fair is being held live and in full format for the first time after the pandemic-induced pause. Considering Croatia's potential, our goal is the country's better positioning on the markets of the MENA region, that is, the Middle East and North Africa, and indirectly also India.

Croatia is recognised in these countries as a destination of extremely preserved and rich natural heritage, and it is precisely this segment of the tourist offer on these particular markets that achieves the greatest demand and interest. As such, this year's edition of the fair is dedicated to sustainable development and Net Zero technology," said HTZ director Kristjan Stanicic, who also emphasised how airlines are key in achieving positive results and trends in regard to distant markets.

That is why it is more than good news that this year, Flydubai-Croatia flights will connect Dubai with both Dubrovnik and Zagreb, which is also connected to Doha via a Qatar Airways flight.

At the fair, the CNTB delegation discussed the possibilities of further cooperation with representatives of VFS Tourism Services, an entity that already cooperates with the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia when it comes to issuing visas, and which, as part of its services, offers the implementation of targeted marketing and PR activities. It also discussed further cooperation with the representatives of the Aviareps agency, which already successfully cooperates with the Croatian National Tourist Board through PR support and media rental support on various European markets.

Meetings were also held with representatives of other agencies and platforms, such as Wego MENA and Travelzoo.

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

March 26, 2023 - Ryanair posts some impressive Zagreb results for 2022, as Zagreb Airport launches incentives for airlines to connect to an additional 16 destinations. 

For years, Zagreb did not have a low-cost carrier of note, save for a couple of (often seasonal) routes. 

The arrival of Ryanair, which established a base in the Croatian capital in 2021, changed all that. 

The strongest challenge that Croatia Airlines has perhaps faced, the Irish airline started with a very impressive schedule, connecting Zagreb dozens of destinations all over Europe.

Last year, the low-cost carrier noted:

“Currently, we are really satisfied with the majority of the markets served out of Zagreb. For example, the UK market performs really well, as well as Ireland with the Dublin route. Then we see German markets, Swedish markets … so we are very happy with the current demand. There are some tourist destinations in the future that are of interest to us too. We really believe that Zagreb can be attractive all-year round, not just for families and the diaspora, but for tourists as well, so we want to use all these opportunities in the future”.

And it seems that not only has Ryanair been a big success, but Zagreb Airport has announced incentives to attract flights to 16 additional destinations. 

As ExYuAviation reports, Ryanair served some 816,500 passengers on 23 of its 27 Zagreb routes last year, in numbers recently posted. More than 100,000 of those were carried on the most successful route - from London Stansted to Zagreb, followed by Bergamo, Charleroi, Malta and Gothenburg. Data for two routes the Irish carrier competes with Croatia Airlines - Rome and Dublin - were not posted, and seasonal routes to Brindisi and Corfu were also missing. The routes with the east traffic were Sofia, Bratislava, Sandefjord, and Thessaloniki.  

Meanwhile, Zagreb Airport will introduce a new incentive scheme on June 1, aiming to connect more European capitals.

 “The Connecting Capital Cities Incentive Model is designed to link Zagreb to unserved capital cities located in the European Common Aviation Area (ECAA) member states, as well as Georgia, Armenia, Ukraine and Moldova, which have signed a Common Aviation Area Agreement with the European Union”, the airport said. Routes that will be eligible for incentives are those from Zagreb to Prague, Tallinn, Berlin, Budapest, Riga, Vilnius, Luxembourg, Stockholm (Arlanda or Skavsta airports), Tirana, Pristina, Reykjavik, Tbilisi, Kiev, Chisinau and Yerevan.

The low-cost airline revolution in Croatia continues. 

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February 1, 2023 - Why year-round flights to Belgrade could solve Dubrovnik's huge connectivity problem.

The most important event in the Dubrovnik calendar takes part this year, and - don't tell anyone - this is the very best time of year to visit the Pearl of the Adriatic. The Feast of St Blaise, the much-beloved patron saint of Dubrovnik, is an extraordinary event when the UNESCO World Heritage Site, stripped back to its bare stone with most cafes and restaurants closed, comes to life and is packed once more. But not with tourists, but with locals, emerging from the winter hibernation to celebrate this most important of days. If you have never been, I rate it as one of the top 10 experiences of my 20 years in Croatia - you can read more in Dubrovnik Full of Life as St Blaise Celebrated in Style.

Want to come and enjoy the festivities, or chill in Dubrovnik in the off-season? Good luck, unless you live in Zagreb.

After a week working in Montenegro last week, I got to see the realities of tourism and connectivity in January. 

It was a little sobering when I saw the Dubrovnik timetable, a European tourism champion and iconic city which could - and should - be a 12-month destination.

Above is the timetable for the next few days, including those magical St. Blaise festivities. Apart from one flight to London, Zagreb is petty much the only choice. 

And even those flights to Zagreb are crazy expensive - despite the fact that they are subsidised with the PSO (Public Service Obligation) scheme.

Here are your one-way options from Dubrovnik to Zagreb a week from now, for example.

I have spent the last week on Lustica, the lovely and almost totally unspoiled peninsula south of Tivat in Montenegro. I flew in and out of Dubrovnik, and I was struck by how poorly serviced Dubrovnik is in the winter, and how the rise of Tivat from nothing has made it arguably a more interesting destination in winter - certainly livelier - than the Pearl of the Adriatic itself. Here is what I wrote:

Croatian tourism tragedies in road signs and airport departures. 25 years ago, Tivat was a coastal backwater on the Montenegrin coast. Today, even though it is 3 times smaller than a nearer town to Dubrovnik (Herceg Novi), it has its very own sign as you leave Dubrovnik Airport. Porto Montenegro was supposed to have been built in Croatia, but someone got greedy and Tivat became its home. Today, there are 3 luxury resorts with investment totalling 2.5 billion euro in the Boka region of Montenegro, with many other large developments. By contrast, the largest hotel investment on the Croatian coast in today's money is Haludovo on Krk, a joint venture between Tito and Penthouse in 1971 (and now a ruin for over 30 years) at a paltry 250 million. Not only is the luxury tourism going across the southern border, but so are the locals for entertainment in winter. And flights. Tivat Airport connects to the world 12 months a year, while Dubrovnik is serviced by almost exclusively domestic routes this winter (see timetable in photo). On the positive side in the Kingdom of Accidental Tourism, the sun is shining, and soon the tourists will just come.

Tivat's daily schedule - windows to Belgrade and Istanbul, which are both outstanding destinations in their own right but are also windows to the world with the global network of Turkish Airlines and the rapidly expanding network of Air Serbia. Tivat to the world in 100 different combinations, four times a day. And the world to Boka Bay. 

And the prices aren't bad compared to those singles with Croatia Airlines (flights February 8-13 - a return not single):

I asked legendary tourism consultant, Mario Seric, for his opinion. The first sentence shows the benefits of being connected to Belgrade, as well as Zagreb, whose connectivity pales by comparison.

Air Serbia will be offering direct flights to 93 cities /destinations worldwide, of which 62 are direct, scheduled, and year-round, 16 direct scheduled seasonal, and 15 direct charter seasonal!

This is impressive compared to the poor connections being offered by Croatia Airlines from Zagreb with direct flights to only 21 destinations (16 year-round and 5 seasonal).

So these connections with Belgrade can also be great to access other destinations as well, especially those that are far away because Belgrade has direct flights to New York, and as of this year also to Chicago and Tianjin...

Air Serbia is currently also considering the introduction of direct flights to Toronto, Miami, Bangkok, and Beijing.

And the good thing in this is that all these flights can be operated by smaller airlines that do not consume a lot of fuel. Turboprop airlines are perfect for intraregional connectivity, and you have a lot of great examples in Europe for this.

Thanks, Mario. And to connect all that network to one of Europe's top destinations, so that tourists could enjoy it out of season, as well as allowing locals to travel with ease, would it really be so hard to connect Belgrade to Dubrovnik 12 months a year? After all, if it is clearly working for tiny Tivat next door, surely it would work for a tourism giant like Dubrovnik. Worth the small investment to try?

Of course, I can understand that there might be some objections in certain quarters given recent history of the connection between Belgrade and Dubrovnik, but the Croatian tourism chiefs decided to move on from the recent past in 2011 by being the main tourism sponsor at the regionally significant Belgrade Tourism Fair back in 2011. 

Dubrovnik to the world, 12 months a year. It could - and should - be closer and more realisable than one might think. 

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November 3, 2022 - Looking for a festive visit to Istria? A new Air Serbia service is offering flights to Pula over the Christmas period.

The weather in Croatia these last few days has been exceptional, with people still swimming in the Adriatic. It coincides with the period when most flights to the coast stop for the season, businesses close, and the long winter begins. 

Before the Homeland War, there used to be year-round flights to Croatia's Adriatic airports (read more in this fascinating interview with a 1980s tour rep - Croatian Winter Tourism in 1990: Full of Life! Tour Rep Interview).

Initiatives such as the Split Winter Tourism Roundtable have put the issue back on the agenda, and KLM is running 12-month flights from Amsterdam several times a week to Split, a great option for those wanting to connect with the Dalmatian coast out of season, but there has been little promotion of the fact. 

And, as ExYuAviation writes:

Air Serbia has scheduled a limited winter service between Belgrade and Pula during the holiday period. Flights will operate between December 23 and January 9 each Monday, Wednesday and Friday with the ATR72 turboprop aircraft. Tickets are available for purchase through the airline's website. 

Unlike Croatia Airlines, Air Serbia has a global network, including New York, which will allow both tourists and diaspora to visit Istria over the holiday period. 

Great news, and one more connection to the Croatian coast out of season which will breathe a little more life into the Adriatic lifestyle during the winter months. 

For the latest flight news to Croatia, check out the dedicated TCN section. 

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October 10, 2022 - After months of delay, the Trade Air PSO (Public Service Obligation) flights will finally begin on Thursday, a little-known - and rather useful - way to get around Croatia. 

Last March, I took my first internal flight in Croatia that was not Croatia Airlines or a seaplane (ah, remember those days...). And rather a useful little service it was too. 

When I posted about my experience flying from Dubrovnik to Osijek in March for just 60 euro back in March, a lot of locals were surprised, as they had never heard of the Trade Air PSO service. You can read how fabulous it is in Affordable, Useful, Stunning Daily Croatian Internal Flights, And It is Not Croatia Airlines.

And those flights will recommence this week, as reported by ExYuAviation:

Croatian carrier Trade Air will restore Public Service Obligation (PSO) domestic flights within Croatia next Thursday following a five-month hiatus. It comes after the airline was selected to operate the routes over the next four years following a severely delayed tender by the Croatian government. Trade Air has been granted 24 million euros for the upkeep of six routes. They include Osijek - Zagreb - Osijek, Osijek - Pula - Split - Pula - Osijek, Osijek - Rijeka - Osijek, Rijeka - Split - Dubrovnik - Split - Rijeka, Osijek - Zadar - Osijek and Rijeka - Zadar - Rijeka. The carrier will wet-lease a 34-seat Saab 340 turboprop from Polish airline SprintAir in order to maintain the domestic services. Tickets for the flights are now on sale.

Ticket prices are really not bad at all, and this is a GREAT time to visit Slavonia - here is an example of a one-way fare from Split to Osijek, for example. 

You can book your flights on the Trade Air site. 

For the latest flight news, follow the dedicated TCN section. 

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September 14, 2022 - A massive boost for Split winter tourism, as KLM announces 12-month flights between Amsterdam and Split. And there's more... 

It is 9 months almost to the day since the first TCN Split Winter Tourism Roundtable, hosted by Chops Grill, which brought together the key tourism stakeholders in Dalmatia from the public and private sector. You can read more about that initial meetting (and excellent lunch) here.

There was a lot of scepticism going into the meeting, with few participants expecting concrete results, but that initial meeting - expertly moderated by Michael Freer - was one of the most positive business experiences I have had in my time in Croatia.

And the results - direct and indirect - are starting to show. How about this for some excellent news for those looking for connectivity to Dalmatia in winter? I heard the news a few days ago, but this has now been officially confirmed by the excellent Croatian Aviation: 

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines will continue to operate between Amsterdam and Split in the upcoming winter flight schedule! Namely, since the beginning of the global pandemic, the company operated to Split exclusively around Christmas and New Year (6-12 rotations per year), but the airline has now announced regular flights between the two mentioned cities from the beginning to the end of the winter flight schedule (end of October - end March).

In the summer season, KLM flies up to 3 times a day between the two cities, which is not surprising when there is extremely high demand for the second largest Croatian city in the peak of the summer tourist season.

The company is extremely satisfied with the results achieved on the Croatian market, several winter flights in recent years have recorded excellent occupancy, so this winter the airline will convert its route from seasonal to year-round. This is important news for the Split airport, which in the winter flight schedule has only a few airlines and a smaller number of international lines, which will enable passengers to and from Split to significantly increase the possibility of travel and connectivity via Amsterdam to numerous other destinations in Europe and the world.

In addition to local passengers from Split, the line is also important for winter tourism in the city and its surroundings, as well as for business people traveling to and from Split throughout the year.

Winter flights between Split and Amsterdam will be operated by KLM's daughter company, KLM Cityhopper, and E295 aircraft with a capacity of 132 passengers have been announced on the route. It is to be expected that the airline will, if necessary, adjust the type of aircraft on the route in accordance with demand, so smaller E90 and E70 type Embraers are also possible in Split this winter.

Regular flights between the two cities will take place from the end of October to the end of March next year as many as seven times a week, that is, daily, which will allow passengers complete flexibility in planning their trips.

This is KLM's second destination in Croatia, to which the Dutch airline will also operate in the winter flight schedule. In addition to Split, KLM operates to Zagreb International Airport in the winter, twice a day in both the winter and summer flight schedules.

Without giving too much away, talks are also ongoing with a major budget airline to bring in up to 80 flights over the winter 2023 season from thee European capitals. The price is reasonable, the hotels are happy to contribute, and I for one am quietly optimistic that there could be some even more good news to announce in the coming months. 

TCN will bring you more news on this as we get it.

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July 28, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as Korean Air Seoul-Zagreb charter flights have been confirmed for the end of September, with five rotations planned. 

Korean national airline, Korean Air, has confirmed charter flights between Seoul and Zagreb for October this year. The first arrival is announced on the last day of September, and the planes and crew will spend the night in the capital of Croatia, reports Croatian Aviation.

As Croatian Aviation exclusively announced earlier, Korean Air is returning to Zagreb on September 30 with a total of 5 rotations on charter flights for the well-known South Korean tour operator.

The planes will land at Zagreb Airport on Fridays after approximately 10 hours in the air, while on Saturday afternoon, the aircraft will fly back to Seoul.

The route will be operated by A330-200 aircraft on all five rotations, which have a capacity of 218 seats. These aircraft were frequent guests at Zagreb Airport when the regular Korean Air route operated.

The airline is still considering establishing a regular direct route for the next summer season while following low-cost T'way Air, which is also planning a regular route to the Croatian capital. There is no room for two South Korean airlines in the relatively small Croatian market at the moment.

Croatian Aviation also exclusively reports that Korean Air will run several charter flights to Dubrovnik Airport as well for the needs of a South Korean corporation. The flights are currently planned for November, but the airline leaves room for changes, which are always possible with charter operations, considering that everything depends on the client or the lessee of the flights.

Recall that the Korean airline regularly operated between Seoul and Zagreb until the pandemic. The airline plans to replace the risk of its summer route by re-establishing this regular line with charter operations between the two cities. 

October, along with April and May, is popular for Koreans traveling abroad, so it is not surprising that operations are announced at the end of the Croatian summer season. The Chuseok holiday is when most Koreans use their vacation days to go on trips abroad.

Several South Korean tour operators are offering travel packages to Croatia in October and an agreement was reached between tour operators and Korean Air to conduct charter operations to the Croatian capital.

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

July 22, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as Trade Air domestic lines are once again delayed, this time until August 15. 

Private Croatian airline Trade Air has once again delayed the start of operations on domestic PSO lines, reports Croatian Aviation. 

Trade Air announced on its website that it is once again postponing the start of operations on domestic PSO lines. The mentioned lines have been suspended since May, and the start of operations was first announced for June, then for July 1, and then for July 18. Finally, the lines had last been announced for August 1, which now will not happen. The new planned date for the start of operations is August 15.

The announcement reads as follows: "Dear passengers, unfortunately, Trade Air expects to re-establish domestic flights only on August 15, 2022, after receiving confirmation from the relevant authorities. Sales will not open before August 1, so we invite you to visit us again after an unspecified date. When the sales open, we will announce it through established communication channels (news, Facebook, and Instagram)".

As a reminder, this summer Trade Air should operate on the following routes:

Osijek - Zagreb - Osijek,

Osijek - Pula - Split - Pula - Osijek,

Osijek - Rijeka - Osijek,

Rijeka - Split - Dubrovnik - Split - Rijeka,

Osijek - Zadar - Osijek, and

Rijeka - Zadar - Rijeka.

The number of weekly frequencies remains the same as in the previous four-year period, except for the lines between Osijek and Zadar and Rijeka and Zadar, which will operate once a week.

These lines are extremely important for Osijek Airport, which could have recorded high interest in the summer months due to the planned larger aircraft (Saab340 with 34 seats), and lines to airports on the coast. Due to bureaucracy, these lines won't run until mid-August, and considering that the start of traffic has already been postponed several times, it is difficult to say whether the lines will actually start operating from the specified date.

Once they start, all lines except the ones mentioned to and from Zadar will operate throughout the year, which is important not only for Osijek but also for other Croatian airports.

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

July 12, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as 23 of 49 British Airways London-Zagreb flights have been canceled in August. 

British Airways significantly reduced the number of weekly flights between London (Heathrow Airport) and Zagreb for July, justifying the move by problems in the industry (lack of staff and capacity). The carrier has now reduced the schedule of flights to Zagreb for August, reports Croatian Aviation. 

Namely, the OneWorld alliance member canceled 23 of the announced 49 flights between Zagreb and London (Heathrow) planned for August this year.

Due to the lack of workforce within the company, but also due to the problem with the lack of staff at Heathrow Airport, British Airways has reduced the number of weekly flights on several European routes, including the one to Zagreb Airport.

Until a few days ago, British Airways offered up to 12 weekly flights between London and Zagreb. Still, since the number of weekly operations was reduced for July, it was expected that the company would do the same thing in the flight queue for August.

This has now happened, and instead of the planned and announced 49 weekly flights between London and Zagreb, British Airways canceled 23 flights. So now, 26 return flights have been announced for August.

British Airways plans to operate between London and Zagreb 6 times a week in August, every day except Mondays, mainly using its A320 aircraft and A321 aircraft leased from Finnair, which already operates on this route.

The airline has not yet reduced its flight schedule for September, but further cancellations of this carrier are expected.

Croatia Airlines also operates between Heathrow Airport and Zagreb three times a week, every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, mostly with A319 aircraft. It is also possible to get to London with a direct Ryanair flight from Zagreb to Stansted, an airport approximately 60 kilometers from the center of London.

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