August 18, 2021 - The latest flight news to Croatia as the Ryanair Zagreb base boosts operations on two lines, and Blue Air Split and Dubrovnik routes are on the horizon. 

The newly launched Ryanair Zagreb base will boost operations on two routes from September 1, reports Ex Yu Aviation. 

Namely, the airline will operate four weekly flights to Charleroi compared to the existing two, while there will be four weekly rotations to Gothenburg compared to the existing three flights a week. 

Furthermore, Ryanair will station a second jet, the Airbus A320, in Zagreb from September 1, thus launching nine new routes. 

Ex Yu Aviation reports that Romanian low-cost carrier Blue Air will run seasonal flights from Bucharest to Split and Dubrovnik in 2022. The new routes will work from June 23 and June 28, with two flights per week on the 189-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

The airline is introducing seven new routes next summer, with Split and Dubrovnik included. 

Eurowings has also announced that it will introduce its third route to Zagreb Airport, a year-round flight between Dusseldorf and Zagreb, which was canceled in 2019. The route will run on Tuesdays and Saturdays beginning August 31.

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Updated article on the morning of August 3.

August 2, 2021 - A fire in Seget Gornji, in the hills of Trogir, broke out in the morning. Although the houses in the neighborhood are not in danger, the smoke is affecting the air traffic of the Split airport.

A large fire in Seget Gornji broke out around 10.30 am, reports 24sata. It blazed along the road. As we find out, the fire is spreading carried by the wind, but the houses are not endangered for now. All available forces from the fire brigades from Solin, Vranjica, Kaštela, Trogir and Seget Vranjica are on the ground. Police regulate traffic on DC 58 and drive alternately in one lane so that firefighters can use the other lane unhindered. The Split-Dalmatia Police Department appeals to drivers to be careful. Two canadairs are helping the firefighters in the field, and two 'air tractors' are expected to arrive at any moment.

''There are over 100 firefighters and 25 vehicles on the field, and help to firefighters on the field is still arriving. Two canadairs are also helping with the extinguishing. Maquis and low vegetation are burning, and the fire is spreading in the southeast direction'', the county fire commander, Ivan Kovačević, told 24sata.

(Photo: 24sata reader)

As we have learned from Pero Bilas, the assistant director of Split Airport, due to the fire near the airport, several planes were sent to alternative runways, points out Dalmatinski Portal. Resnik, says Bilas, was not closed, but there was a disturbance in air traffic. Despite the efforts of all fire brigade units present in the area to control the fire, the smoke continues to be a problem.

''There will be a delay in landing and then taking off. The planes take off from the Split airport'', says Bilas.

Canadairs are constantly flying over because it is the shortest way to the fire.

More will follow...

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July 31, 2021 - The Split ports expect 101 thousand passengers will arrive in the city and the surrounding islands this weekend from numerous destinations around the world, Croatia as well.

The Split Airport will thus conclude July with a share of 48 percent of passengers compared to July 2019, and the city airport, where they do not hide their satisfaction with a share of 75 percent compared to July 2019, a record month for the airport, reports Index.hr.

The Split Airport expects 190 planes to land and takes off over the weekend, of which 150 are on a regular route, while the remaining 40 private planes will carry 36,000 passengers through the port.

"July should be completed with 350 thousand passengers, and for comparison last year in the same period there were about 170 thousand, while July 2019 ended with 720 thousand", said to Hina the head of the Passenger Reception and Dispatch Service of Split Airport Mate Melvan.

He noted that the last weekend in July and the first in August have been the most numerous in terms of tourism for years. "We are still monitoring the situation with the crown, and for now the season is going great," Melvan added.

''The weekend is also a record in the ferry port, where more than 65 thousand passengers and over 15 thousand vehicles are expected'', said the coordinator of Jadrolinija, Jelena Ivulić.

According to the data she presented by Saturday at 1 pm, two extraordinary lines to Supetar have been introduced, while the ferries to other islands are full. Passengers in vehicles in a column in Zvonimirova Street continued to wait for more than two hours to the ferry port.

"We are now at 75 percent of the numbers we achieved in July 2019. We are more than satisfied and we believe that the season will not end abruptly", said Ivulić.

She mentioned that the traffic pressure is from all sides, from the entrance to Split, but also at the entrance to the ferry port. "We recommend everyone who needs to go to the port to start as soon as possible and arm themselves with patience, but it is worth enduring for our islands", she said.

For everything you need to know about Split, from what to do, what to see, where to eat, where to stay, tours, and much more, check out the Total Croatia 2021 guide.

For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 24 July, 2021 - Split Airport is currently the busiest in Croatia and this weekend alone it will handle 180 planes with 32,000 passengers!

This weekend has seen the largest numbers of passengers and planes, an executive at the airport, Mate Melvan, told Hina on Saturday, adding that 140 of those 180 planes were regular flights and 40 were private planes.

"If the situation doesn't deteriorate, we could have more than 300,000 passengers in July," he said, adding that Split Airport could already say that the current tourist season was exceptionally good when compared with last year's, which had been the worst to date.

Jelena Ivulić of the Jadrolinija shipping company told Hina there were many tourists in the Split port as well, their number rising constantly since June. She said 56,000 passengers and over 13,000 vehicles were expected in the port this weekend.

"It's a real July weekend. We are in constant positive growth and if it stays so, it will be excellent," she said, calling for caution due to COVID so that Croatia was not declared a red zone like last summer.

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July 21, 2021 -There are 5-6 positive cases at Split Airport every day, the director of the Split-Dalmatia County Teaching Institute for Public Health, Željka Karin, said on the TV program "Good Morning, Croatia" Wednesday morning. 

Split-Dalmatia County was happy to open its doors to guests, but this also led to an increase in the number of infected people. The director of the County Teaching Institute for Public Health commented on the current situation in Split-Dalmatia County, reports HRT.

"We were looking forward to the tourists, but the situation needs to be controlled, so they need to come with COVID certificates. There are also suggestions that they have tests when entering the country, given that the Delta variant predominates not only in England but also Croatia," said Željka Karin as a guest on the show. 

She also pointed out that they have a checkpoint at the airport to control the situation very well both when tourists enter and leave Croatia. 

"At that point, we discover 5-6 tourists a day who have a positive rapid test. So we immediately put them in self-isolation, and we confirm this result with a PCR test. Then, after 10 days, we retake the swab, and the tourist can continue their journey," said Karin.

She referred to the current situation in Split-Dalmatia County.

"The situation is not worrying, but it is not satisfactory either. Our numbers are growing, and the number of hospitalized has increased. Therefore, epidemiological measures should be strengthened because until we get vaccinated, and the vaccine starts to work, the infection will spread," she said, emphasizing the importance of adhering to epidemiological measures and reducing gatherings.

Mate Melvan from Split Airport also spoke about the Delta Variant and the arrival of British tourists for Slobodna Dalmacija.

"The fact is that the British market at Split Airport has always been the strongest, but this year during the spring, many lines that have been operating for years were removed from the flight schedule until July 19. So far, only Croatia Airlines and British Airways have flown several times a week.

After the measures were lifted in Britain, airlines have started to return some of those canceled routes. However, there can be no question of any mass arrivals, because by the end of July we will have only 40 flights from Britain to Split, and in the pre-pandemic years there were more than 100 per week. So, everyone who is now heading to Croatia again still has a bunch of canceled flights, and that is not even close to normal traffic to Split," said Mate Melvan.

As the British can only arrive in Croatia by plane, we should not believe they will spread the Delta variant in Croatia, says Melvan.

"Everything that is now in the flight schedule was agreed and announced three or four weeks ago, and we now have five airlines from Britain and another in August. Some of them have only one flight, and some are just starting to operate in August. That is why there is no panic about it, because about 60 planes land in Split every day, and three or four of them are from Britain, with an occupancy of about 60-65 percent of the passenger cabin," Melvan explained on the fear that the Brits will increase cases. 

The testing center at Split Airport worked from:

Monday to Friday from 08:00 to 16:00,

on Saturdays from 07:00 to 17:00,

on Sundays from 08:00 to 16:00.

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

July 5, 2021 -  It was a record weekend at Split Airport with 65,000 passengers and 160 planes, equaling the passenger traffic at Split Airport during the last weekend of July last year! 

The Split Ferry Port and Airport achieved a record weekend traffic of around 65,000 passengers on Saturday and Sunday, reports Slobodna Dalmacija.

"This weekend, 160 planes will land at Split airport, 120 of which are commercial and 40 private, and they will have about 25,000 passengers on arrival and departure, which is the largest weekend traffic this year," said the head of the Split Airport Reception and Dispatch Service, Mate Matevan.

He pointed out that 45 airlines were engaged in the delivery of passengers to and from Split Airport, and that Split Airport is now connected to 85 destinations in 24 countries around the world.

Melvan said that the 25,000 passengers who operated at Split Airport on the first weekend of July this year are equal to the passenger traffic that was realized at the Split Airport during the last weekend in July last year.

This means that this year's massive traffic in July started a month earlier than last July's massive passenger traffic at Split Airport.

“It’s encouraging data,” Melvan concluded.

More than 40,000 passengers and 11,500 vehicles passed through the Split Ferry Port over the weekend, too. 

The head of Jadrolinija's agency in Split, Jelena Ivulić, pointed out that over the weekend, more than 40,000 passengers and 11,500 vehicles traveled through the Split Ferry Port in both directions on the lines to the central Dalmatian islands.

"It will be the most massive weekend traffic this year in Split's ferry port," Ivulić told Hina over the weekend. She added that she is extremely satisfied with the increase in the number of passengers in the Split Ferry Port.

Most guests are from the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovenia, said Ivulić.

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June the 26th, 2021 - The Split Airport reconstruction project has received the Croatian Cemex construction award, among other praiseworthy projects from both Dalmatia and Kvarner.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Darko Bicak writes, the Split Airport reconstruction and extension of the passenger terminal, the Castua Pentagon office building from Kastav and the New City Stairs from Ploce are the winners of this year's Cemex Construction Award in the Republic of Croatia.

The three winners of the local pre-competition will represent Croatia's construction achievements over the last three years at the global Cemex Architecture Award, which is to be held this November in Mexico.

After a one-year break due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the 30th Cemex Building Award will be held this year, and the Croatian representatives will participate in it for the 12th time. The most successful Croatian architectural and construction achievements, such as the Split Airport reconstruction project, will compete in two main categories, the category of Infrastructure Buildings and the category of Public and Commercial Buildings.

While the Republic of Croatia has its representative in the competition for special awards, those for sustainable construction and special social value.

"The first impression that passengers get about any destination is its airport, and the new building of Split Airport is very transparent and designed in such a way that from every point of view, it is associated with flight. Every space that the passengers pass through offers them a new type of experience, a new moment that they can look at, photograph or comment on, with constant and uninterrupted contact with the local environment - with the sea, Trogir, Kastela, Split and in the background with Kozjak.

This introduces passengers in the best possible way to what awaits them when they arrive in the heart of Dalmatia,'' said Ivan Vulic, one of the authors of the architectural solution of the passenger terminal of Split Airport.

For more, follow our lifestyle section.

June 15, 2021 - How many passengers at Split Airport will be recorded this year? That hugely depends on the UK market. 

The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) green list means unhindered movement without the risk of COVID-19 infection, and that is exactly what Croatia wants to be this summer, reports Slobodna Dalmacija.

After Croatian counties were made green by Switzerland and almost entirely by Germany (except Varaždin and Međimurje), it is expected that a good epidemiological picture will remain in force, which is a basic prerequisite for more intensive tourist trips to the Adriatic.

They are also hoping for that at Split Airport, which received about 10,000 passengers last weekend, mostly in 55 large commercial aircraft, 2,000 more than the previous one.

"That number of flights is not small. If we know that companies have to take care of occupancy (this factor is significant because they will not fly if the plane is empty), then this is a good indicator, because last weekend we had a larger number of passengers on a similar number of flights, which is a sign that occupancy is better. And that again gives hope that all these flights will stay, and the companies will increase their number," said Pero Bilas, assistant director of Split Airport, where, of course, projections have already been made for this summer.

"If the favorable epidemiological situation is maintained from June to September, i.e., in the four peak months, we can expect approximately 800 thousand passengers. This can be divided so that there are ninety to one hundred thousand of them in June and the same number during September, and about three hundred thousand in July and August. However, the projection contains several elements, and one of them is that companies have the right to cancel the announced capacities up to 50 percent. But the first and basic condition, without which one cannot do, is the epidemiological picture. We need to stay green. Without that, there is nothing," adds the assistant director.  

May, in which the turnover of approximately 33 thousand passengers was realized, with 14 markets in which 15 airlines flew, was a good announcement of what awaits us in the coming period. Although the Airport is already recording an increase in traffic in the first half of June, confirmations of flight announcements for longer than three weeks are ungrateful given the changing variability of the epidemiological situation in Croatia and the world.

"In May, we had 14 markets, and now, in June, we are at 24. This is almost the whole of Europe, along with Russia, Ukraine, and Serbia. And that’s great considering the circumstances. We will now have 30 to 40 airlines, which have traditionally flown to us. Croatia is open, there is exceptional interest, desire, and will, but currently, a situation is in force when you offer something and wait for a reaction," explains Pero Bilas. He says that it is excellent that Germany and Switzerland have put us on the green list and that we currently share the same fate with similar countries, such as Spain, France, Italy, Greece. 

But the big question mark remains the UK market. Rising numbers of those infected and hospitalized because of COVID 19 are a subject of 'serious concern,' British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said last weekend, acknowledging that he was less optimistic about opening the country than he was in May. Recall, on May 17, Brits could start hanging out indoors, in restaurants, pubs.

"It is clear that the Indian variant is more contagious, and it is also true that the numbers are growing and that the level of hospitalizations is rising," said the Prime Minister for Sky News.

"And now we have the following situation with Brits - we have been quite open since the beginning of April, but the catch is in their return to their own country. They need a negative PCR test at boarding, not older than 48 hours, then isolation, and again a PCR test after two and eight days. When you add up the time, cost, and energy invested in a return, it’s complicated for people. In addition, the number of infected people, regardless of vaccination, is growing slightly. Obviously, this Indian strain is spreading. And I don't have to tell you what the British market is to us. London has been our number one destination for decades, and it will definitely be felt in Split," says the assistant director of Split Airport.

From July 5, three flights from Amsterdam to Split

Optimism, for example, is fueled by the news that the Dutch national airline Royal Dutch Airlines is introducing a third daily flight between Amsterdam and Split on 5 July. The KLM plane will arrive at the Split Airport in the evening (21.40), and after spending the night in Split, it will fly back to Amsterdam at 6.45.

On the other hand, the Irish airline Aer Lingus has suspended sales on almost all routes from Dublin and Cork to Croatia for this summer season. The Dublin - Split - Dublin line, previously announced three times a week, has also been withdrawn from sale, and the Cork - Dubrovnik - Cork line is no longer on sale. The only line on which Aer Lingus still allows you to buy a ticket between Dublin and Dubrovnik. However, Croatian airports are already connected to Dublin with other airlines (Croatia Airlines, Ryanair). Many Croatian emigrants in Ireland decide to travel by transfer, especially via Amsterdam with the Dutch KLM, due to lower air ticket prices.

Dubrovnik has 32 lines 
Dubrovnik Airport has 32 domestic and international routes from 16 to 30 June this year. In the mentioned period, Dubrovnik will be connected with Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, Belgrade, Berlin, Vienna, Brussels, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Helsinki, Madrid, Moscow, Paris, Prague, Rome, Stockholm, and Zurich. At the beginning of July, it will establish regular lines to New York.

EasyJet has four lines to Split
British EasyJet has announced a significantly higher number of routes to Croatian airports since the end of June. The company currently has four routes only to Split Airport (from Basel, London, Berlin, and Geneva) and will continue to operate on them in the coming weeks. In addition, from the end of June, there will be five more lines in operation: Amsterdam - Split, Bristol - Split - Bristol, Lyon - Split - Lyon, Paris - Split, and Orly - Split - Orly. By the end of this month, EasyJet will, according to current plans, resume traffic to the other three Croatian airports - Dubrovnik, Zadar, and Pula.

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

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June 14, 2021 - There are just over 2,700 tourists in Split, though announcements of a promising summer are underway. 

Slobodna Dalmacija reports that there are currently 2766 tourists in Split - mostly Croatians, followed by guests from the USA, Germany, France, and Poland, confirmed Alijana Vukšić, director of the Split Tourist Board, which clearly speaks of the current tourist picture in Croatia's second-largest city, which broke records until the coronavirus pandemic.

From the beginning of June until June 13, a little more than 26,000 tourist overnights have been realized, while the number of tourist nights in the same period last year was 5,800, and in 2019 a little more than 100,000, which the people of Split can now only dream of.

The Split Tourist Board director is optimistically looking forward.

"The interest in Split is growing day to day, which is confirmed by tourist traffic, and also the current announcements of travel agents, journalists, and tourists. We have a reason to be optimistic, and I believe there will be growth in tourist traffic in the following months. Still, we need to be very careful because the success of the tourist season depends on the responsible behavior of each individual," says Vukšić.

The current situation in Split in terms of tourist arrivals is not great, as evidenced by the announcements of numerous renters in various groups on social networks. They mostly complain about the lack of reservations. There are many empty apartments in the city center, those in great locations, beautifully decorated.

By reviewing the offer of accommodation on popular online platforms, it is easy to see how some renters struggle because their existence depends on renting or on credit. In despair, they began to significantly lower prices. Some stunning central apartments can be found for as little as fifty euros.

"According to people's reactions and available information, the pre-season was catastrophic in the case of those renters who previously had guests in that period. Only now, in mid-June, something similar is starting to happen that once took place in the pre-season - in Split, some reservations began to appear, and the first guests appeared. This is very weak, considering that our epidemiological situation is excellent and that we thought that our "last minute" would start at full speed. For now, the story is on the respirator, but for at least the last two weeks, the reservations have started to come to life, and there are no cancellations as before," notes Martina Nimac Kalcina, president of the Family Tourism Association of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce.

The first guests move into the apartments in Split almost shyly, but this is far from what the renters hoped for. Nimac Kalcina will say that the current situation in Split on this issue looks like the one that the people of Split used to have in April. And that means - there are some guests, but it's generally poor. 

"Attractive apartments in the center of Split, even those with their own parking, are empty. In the last few days, their owners are asked to inquire daily, which usually ends with a reservation, but all this is too little, insignificant. These are apartments in Varoš, Get, Bačvice, Radunica, Spinut, which were once full throughout the summer. In addition, the prices of their rent have been lowered by about twenty percent compared to 2019, so again it is not going," says the president of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce Family Tourism Association. 

However, Nimac Kalcina believes that the Split tourist story will soon heat up somewhat, as the planes in full operation towards Split should start returning at the end of June.

"Unfortunately, the pre-season has been lost, and the peak season itself will not be what we hoped for," predicts the long-term volunteer in the family tourism sector.

Split Airport: Traffic growth and the announcements are good

"According to the information from Split Airport, already May, in which the traffic of approximately 33 thousand passengers was realized, from 14 markets where 15 airlines flew, was a good announcement of what awaits us in the next period," said the Split Tourist Board. 

The airport expects further traffic growth by the end of June, a total of 80 to 90 thousand passengers, an additional 10 markets, and a total of 35 airlines.

"Confirmations of flight announcements for a period longer than three weeks are ungrateful given the variability of the epidemiological situation in our country and in the world. But if the favorable epidemiological situation is maintained from June to September this year, we can expect approximately 800,000 passengers," Vuksic hopes.

She notes that, according to the Split Port Authority, 151 cruise ships have been announced by the end of the year.

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June 5, 2021 - With each passing day, we are one step closer to summer as traffic at Split Ferry Port and Airport pick up this weekend!

HRT reports that as of Friday, a new Jadrolinija summer sailing schedule is in force, with ticket prices up 20%. Jadrolinija has introduced several more daily ferry lines to the central Dalmatian islands, so there are no major crowds in the Split ferry port this weekend.

"Instead of 05:30, the point of sale will open at 04:30, so we really get up early at dawn. And off we go!" Jelena Ivulić from Jadrolinija said with a smile for HRT's show Dobro jutro, Hrvatska.

Jelena says there will be increases on the ferry lines.

"For example, Supetar will increase from 9 lines to 12, Stari Grad from 4 to 5, and so on, we are gradually moving forward. As for the catamaran lines, we are a little more careful here. We are not launching immediately with full routes, but, for a start, instead of 4, we are starting with 2 commercial routes to Hvar - we still lack air passengers who would then continue to our islands," she explains.

After many months of peace and quiet, you can finally hear some foreign languages ​​in Split - both at points of sale and in the port.

"We are starting slow, to roll in the second half of June, July, August, and so on," says Ivulić and adds that Jadrolinija has finally waited for 40 percent of the total allowed capacity to be abolished.

"We now have one hundred percent capacity in which we can board our passengers. That really came as a great relief. As for the measures, the masks remain, and we appeal to our passengers to help us with that and the whole trip to be with masks," she notes.

At Split's Resnik Airport, slightly higher traffic is expected this weekend - 67 planes and 5,500 passengers, which is slightly lower traffic than the same period last year, Mate Melvan, head of reception and departure of passengers at the Port, told HRT.

"We expect about 40 aircraft and close to 4,000 passengers, and tomorrow 27 aircraft and a little more than 1,500 passengers. We have had 70,000 passengers since the beginning of the year, and 80,000 in the same period last year. The highest numbers are expected in July and August," he told HRT.

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