June the 6th, 2022 - Czech tourists and journalists arrived recently to the Northern Adriatic city of Rijeka from the Czech capital of Prague on the first RegioJet train to run this year.

As Morski writes, around 250 Czech rourists and a group of journalists arrived by the first train of this year from Prague to Rijeka, and the RegioJet train line which runs to this formerly industrial city is an extremely sought-after one with low prices, for which more than 40,000 tickets have already been sold. When it comes solely to the month of June, they are almost sold out.

It's worth noting that this train started running to the Republic of Croatia two years ago and immediately became a hit among Czech tourists. It seems that this year, following two coronavirus-induced years of stagnancy, the line could be even more sought after.

''It's a great pleasure for me to be able to bring Czech and Slovak journalists here. Some of them have already visited Croatia, and some have never otherwise been to Croatia. The Czechs love this beautiful, beautiful Croatia,'' said Eliska Nemejcova from the Prague Tourist Board.

The RegioJet train departed from Prague on Friday afternoon, carrying about 600 passengers. After Bratislava and the City of Zagreb, the train stopped in Ogulin, where it divided - some of the passengers left for Rijeka, and some headed further down south the the City of Split.

In addition to Czech tourists, both Czech and Slovak journalists arrived in Rijeka, and they will stay in Kvarner and get better acquainted with its tourist offer in a move organised by the Croatian Tourist Board, the Kvarner Tourist Board and local tourist boards, writes HRT.

RegioJet trains are bringing Czech tourists to the Republic of Croatia for the third year in a row now. Throughout June and September it will operate heading to Croatia three times a week, while in July and August it will operate daily. During the first year of establishing a tourist line to Croatia, RegioJet transported passengers to Rijeka, and from last year to, it also offered transport down to Split. 

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

May the 17th, 2022 - The very first Prague Regiojet train will arrive from the Czech capital to the City of Rijeka on the Northern Adriatic coast on June the 3rd, but there will be nothing to speak of when it comes to the Polish line to Croatia this year, it seems.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, this year's first train of the Czech carrier Regiojet to Rijeka and Split departs from the City of Prague on June the 3rd, 2022. Tereza Ptackova, head of international projects at Regiojet, confirmed this for Rijeka portal Novi list, stating that the recognisable yellow Regiojet trains will run again via Zagreb to Rijeka and Split, but will not stop in the Hungarian capital of Budapest this year.

"The trains will run from June the 3rd to September the 26th, with them running on a daily basis throughout July and August, and three times a week in June and September. The route hasn't really changed. We still stop in the capitals of Prague, Bratislava and Zagreb. Some stops within the Czech Republic itself are set to differ from last year, but that is only because of the construction works," Ptackova explained.

The line goes Prague - Kolin, Havlickuv Brod - Zdar nad Sazavou - Brno - Breclav - Bratislava - Zagreb - Ogulin - Rijeka and Split. So, just like last year, the train will part in Ogulin, meaning part of the wagon will go to Rijeka, and part will head south to Split. Upon returning, the wagons will reunite into one composition in Ogulin.

This year, a new line from Poland was set to be launched. However, the events of the war in neighbouring Ukraine have put these plans on hold for now, with the Prague Regiojet train the only one set to run in 2022.

"The line from Poland to Croatia will not start running this year. We hope to start operations from Poland next year. During this extremely difficult situation, we're trying to help as much as possible, so we're transporting Ukrainian refugees from the Polish border town of Przemysl to the Czech Republic. In cooperation with Clovik v tisni, CD Cargo and Rail Cargo Logistics, we're also sending material aid into Ukraine,'' said Ptackova, adding that she didn't expect the war in Ukraine to affect ticket sales from the Czech Republic to Croatia whatsoever.

In terms of capacity, the head of Regiojet's international projects said that the capacity this year is more than 600 passengers per train, meaning that it is, once again, 15 wagons. Wagons with seating as well as sleeping cars will also be available.

“Perhaps the only change is that we've increased the number of so-called ''quiet wagons'' that are suitable for families with small children or the elderly. The trains will once again offer familiar comfort at very popular prices and tickets for the Prague Regiojet train have been on sale since March the 8th this year.

Ticket prices for the Rijeka range from 23.9 euros per seat, or 31.9 euros for a ticket in a sleeping compartment. Ticket prices for Split range from 36.1 euros for a seat and about 44 euros for a ticket in a sleeping car. Free services such as coffee, water, WiFi, an entertainment portal and the like are all entirely included in the ticket price.

This summer tourist season will be an excellent opportunity for people from the Czech Republic and Slovakia to travel to Croatia, but we also believe that the people of Rijeka and Split will use this opportunity to visit, for example, Bratislava or Prague,'' concluded Ptackova.

For more, check out our dedicated travel section.

January 6, 2022 - The announcement of Ryanair and RegioJet to Kvarner will strengthen connections in the region during the 2022 tourist season.

The pandemic has brought significant changes in the last two years in connecting Kvarner with its most important markets. Last year, after many years, the region was left without Ryanair. On the other hand, in the first pandemic year, a completely new line arrived - the RegioJet railway line from Prague, reports Novi List.

This line proved to be a complete success in the first year, and RegioJet introduced Split into its itinerary last year and changed the route, which included Budapest and Zagreb instead of Ljubljana.

From the end of May to the end of September, they transported a total of 90,000 passengers with an average occupancy rate of more than 90 percent, and compared to 2020; they had 50 percent more passengers.

As things stand, the region expects to strengthen the connection this year, including the return of air traffic.

Ryanair has already announced three routes to Rijeka Airport, and RegioJet, in addition to the current line from the Czech Republic, is also announcing a line from Poland.

Specifically, according to current announcements, Ryanair will fly from Krk to Brussels, London and Stockholm. This low-budget airline, which opened a new base in Zagreb last year, first announced the Brussels-Rijeka route at the end of last year.

There will be flights from Brussels Charleroi Airport from March 27, with the line running twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays. The B737-800 aircraft with a capacity of 189 seats will service this route, offering more than 23,000 seats on this line. Recall, Rijeka Airport had a direct line with Brussels before the pandemic, only in the peak summer months.

At the end of last year, Ryanair also released tickets for the Rijeka-London route, as usual, for Stansted Airport. However, this line was also canceled after the pandemic, and the region did not directly connect with Great Britain.

On 62 return flights, Ryanair will offer more than 23,000 seats next summer between Rijeka and London. In addition, Rijeka will be connected to Stansted, an hour's bus ride from central London, starting March 27. Fights will run twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays, throughout the summer flight schedule until the end of October.

From March 27 to October 27, the line to Stockholm is also announced twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays. Ryanair already flew from Rijeka to Stockholm, but to the secondary airport Skavsta, with this line being interrupted before the pandemic.

Ryanair will now fly to Stockholm's main airport, Arlanda, instead of Skavsta. For now, Condor flights to Düssledorf and Frankfurt, and a Lufthansa line to Frankfurt are also announced.

This year's novelty is that the Czech RegioJet will introduce a new railway line from Poland into its itinerary. Not all the details have been defined, but the recognizable yellow trains will likely run from Krakow.

Namely, RegioJet submitted a draft timetable to the competent Czech railway office, applied in the 2022 summer season. The train will run three times a week, Polish media write.

According to Nakolei.pl, the Railway Office has published a request from RegioJet regarding the launch of a passenger train on the route Kraków Główny - Rijeka / Split - Kraków Główny.

The carrier has expressed readiness to provide a new passenger transport service from June 15 this year to September 26, 2026, with the new service to be provided every year from June to September during the summer school holidays.

This shows that the Czechs are counting on this line in the long run and that they see potential in the Polish market, which this year was extremely important for Croatia and is one of the four strongest markets for Croatia. Namely, Poles achieved an 8% better turnover in Croatia in 2021 than the record 2019.

Therefore, it is clear that RegioJet is counting very seriously on this large Central European market and the desire of Poles to spend their holidays and holidays on the Adriatic.

Preliminary agreements say that RegioJet plans three lines a week, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays from the Rijeka / Split station and three lines a week on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays from the Krakow Główny station.

However, in case of high demand for tickets, the carrier leaves open the option of trains running daily during the summer, as is the case with the line from Prague, which runs daily through July and August.

According to Polish media, the train will be available in Poland only in international traffic, so the new RegioJet service will not be available for domestic transport.

Although the RegioJet timetable is still under development, it is estimated that the new railway line would depart from Krakow in the afternoon and pass Katowice, Tychy, Rybnik, Wodzisław Slaski, Ostaw, Hranica na Morawie, Przerów, Otrokowice, Brzecław, Vienna, Wiener Neustadt, Graz, Zagreb and Ogulin.

As with the line from Prague, the train would be divided into two, and one part of the wagon would go on to Rijeka and part to Split. The train will consist of 7 to 15 carriages.

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