August 4, 2020 - Get a bird’s eye view of Zadar’s closest facing neighbour with this new drone footage of cycling on Ugljan island

Even in the height of summer, Croatia can offer total escape. The crowds and city streets have been all but forgotten by Andrej Šimunaj and his friends, who are currently enjoying cycling on Ugljan island. A new video they shot using a drone offers an incredible perspective of the peace, tranquillity and beauty of this little-discussed island.

The footage shows the visitors passing through peaceful pine forests as they journey to the vantage point of Venetian-built St. Michael’s Fort, high above the town of Preko and just of the edge of the Kornati National Park. From there, the cyclists roll downhill to a small cove named Prtljug, which holds the incredibly clear turquoise seas so beloved by visitors to the Croatian coast.

Cycling On Ugljan Island

July 23, 2020 - The director of the Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB), Kristjan Stanicic, said on Wednesday that Croatia was a hit tourist destination and that tourist traffic was already recording 40 percent of last year, and they hoped for further growth. At the beginning of the corona crisis, they did not expect numbers greater than 30 percent.

Vecernji List reports that the director of the Croatian National Tourist Board held a coordination meeting with the director of the Zadar County Tourist Board, Mihael Kadija, and 28 representatives of the county tourist boards of cities and municipalities at the Kolovare Hotel.

On that occasion, he pointed out that in this time of crisis, they focused on the nearest markets - Slovenia, Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, given that the Croatian coast is mostly an auto destination, which is an excellent thing at the moment.

"We conducted several promotional campaigns in foreign markets, and given the epidemic, we focused on the nearest markets in our area. The proximity of these markets to Croatia, and especially to Zadar County, is now a big plus for us. Growing figures show that Croatia is a hit destination. At the same time, we are ready to respond to articles in foreign media that are focused on keeping domestic tourists within the borders of their countries," Stanisic said.

When asked by the press how he commented on the fact that the Netherlands put Croatia on the orange list, without concrete data on how many people have been infected per 100,000 inhabitants in the last two weeks, he said that it is difficult to give any estimates for the season to continue.

"I believe that the situation will change soon, because every 14 days the list is updated, and the number of infected in our country is declining. I also believe that in good communication and the epidemiological situation, we will return to the green list. As for the criteria, they are not unique for all countries," said Stanicic and emphasized that this is only a recommendation of the Netherlands that their citizens go into self-isolation upon their return from Croatia.

Stanicic also presented the promotional activities carried out by the Croatian National Tourist Board to position Croatia as a safe tourist destination in the current market circumstances and future activities, which will, among other things, include the adoption of new bylaws and regulations that will further improve and regulate tourism processes. The director of the Zadar County Tourist Board, Mihaela Kadija, pointed out that the Zadar area is still a hit destination, and the numbers are much better than what experts predicted in March.

"Our figures are excellent. We planned to reach 30 percent and realized 67 percent of last year's tourist traffic, of which 60 percent is commercial traffic. As for events, we appealed to partner tourist communities to agree with their organizers a customized program with adherence epidemiological measures. Everyone is of the same view, and that is that we must be responsible," Kadija said.

The coordination meeting also discussed the development of the system of tourist boards with an emphasis on tasks and roles at the local and regional levels and the nautical segment, and announced a performance at the WTM tourism fair to be held in London in November.

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July 22, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for flights to Croatia with updates from Split, Dubrovnik, Zadar, and Pula. 

Croatian Aviation reports that easyJet returned to Split at the beginning of July with six international flights to Split, and from the end of this month to Dubrovnik, Zadar and Pula. Now, in August, the low-cost airline will significantly increase the number of destinations and weekly flights to Croatian airports.

Lines to Zadar

Zadar - Amsterdam continues to operate 2 times a week,

Zadar - Basel continues to operate 3 times a week,

Zadar - Berlin continues to operate 1 week,

Zadar - London Luton continues to operate 2 times a week,

Zadar - London Gatwick is introduced, from July 25, twice a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays),

Lines to Pula

Pula - Amsterdam continues to operate 2 times a week,

Pula - Basel from August will operate 2 times a week,

Pula - Berlin continues to operate 1 time a week,

Pula - London Luton from August will run 3 times a week,

Pula - Bristol is introduced, from August 1, 2 times a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays),

Pula - Liverpool is introduced from August 2 two times a week (Wednesdays and Sundays),

Pula - London Gatwick is introduced from August 1, the line will operate 4 times a week (Mondays, Tuesdays, Saturdays and Sundays).

Lines to Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik - Amsterdam from August 2 will operate 4 times a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays),

Dubrovnik - Edinburgh will operate 1 time a week,

Dubrovnik - London Gatwick will operate daily,

Dubrovnik - London Luton from August 1 will operate 1 time a week (Saturday), from August 20 the second weekly flight is added, Wednesday,

Dubrovnik - Manchester will run twice a week,

Milan - Dubrovnik will operate 2 times a week,

Dubrovnik - Basel is introduced, 1 time a week through August,

Dubrovnik - Belfast is introduced from August 2, 2 times a week (Wednesdays and Sundays),

Dubrovnik - Bristol is introduced from August 2, 3 times a week (Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays),

Dubrovnik - Geneva is introduced from August 1, 1 time a week (Saturday),

Dubrovnik - Paris Orly is introduced from August 4, 3 times a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays).

Lines to Split

Split - Amsterdam line will operate 6 times a week from August,

Split - Basel will operate daily from August,

Split - Berlin line continues to operate daily,

Split - Geneva continues to operate through August,

Split - London Gatwick from July 27 will operate daily,

Split - London Luton from July 22 will operate daily,

Split - Lyon continues to operate in August, 3 times a week,

Split - Manchester continues to operate through August, 3 times a week,

Split - Naples continues to operate through August,

Split - Paris line continues to operate through August,

Split - Bristol is introduced from August 1, 5 times a week (Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays),

Split - Glasgow is introduced from August 2, 2 times a week (Wednesdays and Sundays),

Split - London Stansted is introduced from August 1, 4 times a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays),

Split - Paris Orly is introduced, from July 24, 2 times a week. From August 3 flights a week (Mondays, Fridays and Sundays).

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July 18, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for flights to Croatia with updates from Split and Zadar. 

Croatian Aviation reports that Russian Aeroflot has announced the launch of its seasonal line between Moscow and Split. There are currently no announcements about the start of traffic on the line between Moscow - Zagreb.

The Russian national airline, which normally operates throughout the year between Moscow (Sheremetyevo Airport) and Zagreb, and between Moscow and Split in the summer flight schedule, has announced it is resuming traffic to Croatia.

From August 1, the direct line between Moscow - Split will be re-introduced, which will be in traffic every day, with the A321 aircraft, which has a capacity of 183 seats in the fleet of this airline.

At the moment, there are no announcements for the line between Moscow and Zagreb, and all flights that were supposed to take place in August have been withdrawn from sale and are not in the announcement.

Aeroflot has announced a significant change in its business in which the company will focus on intercontinental flights, while subsidiaries Pobeda (a low-budget company) and Rossiya Airlines will take over other routes from the destination network. At the moment, there are no announcements about a change of carrier on the line to Zagreb, but it is likely that Aeroflot will soon implement its plan.

Recall that until the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, Aeroflot operated daily between Moscow and Zagreb, both in summer and in winter, while flights to Split operate only in summer.

Furthermore, Ex Yu Aviation reports that Jet2, the low-cost carrier which was supposed to launch services from London Stansted and Manchester to Zadar this summer, has delayed the service until 2021.

Jet2 was initially scheduled to begin on May 21, though it has been delayed several times. Operations from Manchester and London to Zadar should begin on May 23 next year. 

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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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July 17, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for flights to Croatia with updates from Split, Dubrovnik, Pula, Zadar, and Rijeka. 

Croatian Aviation reports that Transavia, a low-cost airline with subsidiaries in France and the Netherlands, has made some changes to its flight schedule to destinations in Croatia.

At the end of June and the beginning of July, the company launched lines to Croatia, as many as 8 of them, and continues to operate on them through August.

The Paris Orly - Split route operates 3 times a week, but the company previously planned to increase it to as many as 6 weekly flights. This will not happen due to low demand. From August 13, the number of weekly flights will be reduced to 2.

The Rotterdam - Split line runs 5 times a week, and the same number of weekly flights is announced in August (every day except Monday and Wednesday).

The Nantes - Dubrovnik line continues to operate twice a week, as was announced earlier.

The Paris Orly - Dubrovnik line operates 3 times a week, and the company planned one more flight a week through August, but will keep the same number of operations (Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays).

The Rotterdam - Dubrovnik line continues to operate according to plan and through August, 2 times a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays).

The Rotterdam - Zadar line will hold three weekly flights in August (Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays).

The Rotterdam - Pula line will increase the number of weekly flights, from 3 to as many as 5, every day except Tuesdays and Wednesdays throughout August.

The Eindhoven - Rijeka line will continue to operate 3 times a week in August (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays), which is one flight less per week compared to the 2019 season.

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that the Slovak airline, Air Explore, announced its first scheduled flight to Croatia.

So far, the company has operated to Croatia on charter lines, mostly in the summer months, but will now launch the first regular line between Bratislava and Split.

The Bratislava - Split line will be in operation from Sunday, July 19, twice a week until the end of September this year. The line will operate twice a week, on Wednesdays and Sundays in the afternoon on B737-800 aircraft.

This is the first, completely new route introduced by the airline since the coronavirus pandemic.

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July 12, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for flights to Croatia with updates from Zagreb, Split, Dubrovnik, Pula, and Zadar.

After we announced the flight schedule of low-cost airline easyJet to Split, Croatian Aviation reports that they decided to launch traffic to other airports in Croatia at the end of this month.

easyJet will additionally return to Dubrovnik, Zadar and Pula, but in a significantly reduced form, with very few destinations and a small number of weekly flights compared to the 2019 season.

Lines to Dubrovnik

Amsterdam - Dubrovnik, from July 23, twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays, from July 28 four times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays,

Edinburgh - Dubrovnik, from July 21, twice a week, Tuesdays and Saturdays,

Manchester - Dubrovnik, from July 22, twice a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays,

Naples - Dubrovnik, from July 20, twice a week, Mondays and Fridays.

Return to Pula

Amsterdam - Pula, from July 22, twice a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays,

London Luton - Pula, from July 25, once a week, Saturdays,

Basel - Pula, from July 25, once a week, on Saturdays,

Berlin - Pula, from July 25, once a week, on Saturdays.

Lines to Zadar

Amsterdam - Zadar, from July 26, twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays,

Basel - Zadar, from July 25, three times a week, on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays,

Berlin - Zadar, from July 25, once a week, on Saturdays,

London Luton - Zadar, from July 25, twice a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

The company will launch 12 international routes to the 3 mentioned airports, not including Split to which easyJet has been flying since the beginning of July this year. Changes are still possible and depend on the epidemiological situation in Croatia.

Croatian Aviation also reports that Air France started traffic to Croatia at the beginning of July (except for Split, which will begin in the middle of the month), and the company has already announced an increase in the number of weekly flights:

From August 1, the Paris-Dubrovnik line will operate four times a week (until then only two flights a week), on Mondays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

From July 27, the Paris-Split line will operate as many as 6 times a week (until the specified date 3 times a week), every day except Saturday.

The Paris-Zagreb route currently operates four times a week, but as of July 27, there will be as many as 11 flights a week on the route. Namely, Air France will significantly increase the number of flights, introducing two flights a day every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, while on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, it will operate once a day.

Aircraft type A319 / 320/321 has been announced on all routes to Croatia, while aircraft of smaller capacity, type E190, will operate towards Split.

Furthermore, British TUI, an extremely important airline that normally operates to 4 airports in Croatia during the summer flight schedule; Dubrovnik, Split, Rijeka and Pula, will likely not start regular traffic to destinations in Croatia this summer.

Croatian Aviation reports that due to the impact of the pandemic, the company grounded its fleet and canceled numerous destinations in its network, including those in Croatia.

This summer, TUI will not operate on as many as 8 lines to Dubrovnik:

London (Gatwick) - Dubrovnik,

Cardiff - Dubrovnik,

Glasgow - Dubrovnik,

Manchester - Dubrovnik,

Birmingham - Dubrovnik,

Bristol - Dubrovnik

Sheffield - Dubrovnik,

East Midlands - Dubrovnik.

It is important to note that all routes to Dubrovnik from Great Britain had one or two flights a week, they were mainly used to transport tourists from the TUI group (cruisers and packages that include hotel accommodation), and wide-body aircraft came to Dubrovnik regularly, like the B787-8 or even a larger version of B787-9.

As for Split Airport, 3 lines have been canceled:

London (Gatwick) - Split,

Birmingham - Split,

Manchester - Split.

At Pula Airport, TUI canceled 6 lines:

London (Gatwick) - Pula,

Birmingham - Pula,

Bristol - Pula,

Sheffield - Pula,

East Midlands - Pula,

Manchester - Pula.

TUI used wide-body aircraft, mostly B787-8. The only line to Rijeka (London Gatwick - Rijeka) has also been canceled for this summer season.

In addition to the significant loss for airports to which TUI UK normally flies in the summer flight schedule, the loss is even greater for the tourism sector, which has collaborated with this company in the sale of travel arrangements.

Finally, Croatian Aviation reports that Italian national airline Alitalia has announced its modified flight schedule for August, which has no destinations in Croatia.

The company will significantly increase the number of destinations from August, mainly to destinations from which many tourists traditionally come to Italy (a significant increase in weekly flights to Asia and the USA).

During the summer flight schedule, the company operated to Split and Dubrovnik from Rome (Leonardo da Vinci Airport - Fiumicino). The lines are not currently in operation, and the company does not intend to launch them in August, either. Given that both lines were in operation until the end of September, we can expect that the well-known Italian company will not return to Croatia this year.

Croatia Airlines operates from Zagreb via Split and Dubrovnik to Rome, and on direct flights from Rome to Croatia, there is also Vueling, so passengers who want to travel between Croatia and Italy have a choice in the form of direct flights, as well as those with one stop on the way from or towards Zagreb.

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July 9, 2020 - The City of Zadar has secured a title that it will proudly wear in 2021 - European City of Sport!

Dalmacija Danas reports that president of ACES Europe, Gian Francesco Lupatelli, informed the mayor of Zadar, Branko Dukic, and the team of the Administrative Department for Culture and Sports, which worked on the candidacy, that Zadar was declared the European City of Sport in its category.

As the reasons for winning the title, with which Zadar will be in the company of several other European cities, President Lupatelli stated:

"Congratulations on the award because your city is an excellent example of a city of sport that serves as an instrument for health, integration, education and mutual respect of citizens, and these are the main goals of ACES Europe! Also, Zadar has developed a sports policy with excellent infrastructure, programs and activities."

The Mayor and the team of the Board for Culture and Sports, with a presentation and answers to the questions of the commission, successfully presented Zadar in the candidacy process:

"I am extremely pleased that ACES Europe has recognized the social contribution of the City of Zadar to the sports sector," said Mayor Branko Dukic on the occasion of receiving the title of European City of Sport, which is particularly concentrated on assessing the activities of the City towards sports associations and their communities. However, it also focuses on the associations themselves towards their community, the promotion of sports through fair play, the availability of sports for the widest possible groups of citizens through the pleasure of exercise but also the desire to achieve results, progress and sport as a tool that helps maintain human health.

Dukic stated that in a comprehensive candidacy document, the City of Zadar presented all the components required by ACES Europe - from the review of budget allocations for sports, program goals of the City of Zadar in sports and further plans to a detailed review and description of all associations that the City co-finances with the results and accompanying photos, programs of associations of various profiles - from those in preschool, through school, students, associations of persons with disabilities, and the elderly population. Also, the capacities of the infrastructure in sports with accompanying photos, activities in sports tourism, the connection between the City of Zadar and the Croatian Olympic Committee as well as the scientific community in sports, activities in the field of marketing and communication in sports were presented, and competitions of exceptional importance for Zadar.

The City of Zadar, with its sports infrastructure, recreation and sports programs intended for citizens of all ages, encouragement to play sports, and experience in organizing prestigious international sports competitions, has met the criteria needed for this award, concluded Mayor Dukic. He added that this title will be used in tourist promotion for Zadar to be recognized at the European level as a city that cares about sports through all the noble values that it promotes.

For now, it is known that Lisbon is the European capital of sport in 2021, while other results are still awaited. Zadar made the first online candidacy in the history of this award, which has been awarded since 2001, and was among the first to receive results.

The Mayor and the Board of Culture and Sport were invited to the award ceremony in the European Parliament in Brussels in December 2020.

The event will bring together a number of dignitaries, members of the European Commission, ministers, mayors and various experts in the field of sports. All awarded cities will receive titles and flags for 2021, and a sponsorship agreement will be signed by which Zadar will commit to promoting the title. The award will be an excellent opportunity to exchange experiences with different cities that will be declared sports cities next year, as well as an opportunity to exchange contacts and establish sports cooperation.

From now on, the City of Zadar is in the ACES family, and in 2021, it will carry out numerous activities with the signature of the European City of Sport, all in order to enter the narrower competition or win the title of the best among the selected.

ACES Europe (Association of European Capitals and Cities of Sport) is a Brussels-based non-profit association that awards European Capitals, Cities, Communities and Cities of Sport.

Every year in different categories, about 30-40 European cities receive titles in the categories Capital - City - Town (up to 24,999 inhabitants) - Iceland - Community - (candidacy of more than 3 neighboring cities or municipalities) - Region (as a regional unit) or local self-government. Croatia is a county, provided that at least two cities from that region have previously won a title in one of the ACES Europe categories. In the City ACES Europe category, about 15-20 cities in the City category are expected this year. The category European City of Sport is a category of cities with 25,000 - 499,999 inhabitants, while the European Capital of Sport is a category of cities with 500,000 or more inhabitants, or it is the capital of a European country. In the Capital category, only one city in Europe is chosen each year: Malaga 2020, Lisbon 2021, Den Hague 2022, Glasgow 2023, Genoa 2024 (candidacies for Capital 2025 are underway, and the winner will be announced at the end of 2021).

The video, recorded for the needs of the candidacy, brings the atmosphere of a city that lives for sports and the successes of its athletes, as well as a detailed overview of sports represented in the city with special emphasis on Zadar's strongest assets and an overview of all sports fields and halls in the city.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

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

Croatian Aviation reports that as confirmed by SAS, due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and reduced demand, the company does not plan to launch numerous seasonal routes to Croatia from Scandinavia in this year's summer flight schedule.

In the summer flight schedule, Scandinavian Airlines operates from numerous airports in Scandinavia to Pula, Split and Dubrovnik, though the company decided against launching numerous lines to Croatia this time around.

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SAS already operates on several lines to Croatia, from Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm to Split, and from Copenhagen to Pula.

The company has no plans to launch flights to Dubrovnik in July, and it is almost certain that many other routes will also not be in this year's summer flight schedule.

Numerous lines to Split have been canceled

In the summer flight schedule, SAS operated from as many as 9 destinations to Split, while this year only 3 previously mentioned lines will be in traffic.

The company does not plan to launch lines from Tromso, Harstad, Alesund, Trondheim, Bergen, Stavanger, Kristiansand, Aarhus and Gothenburg to Split this year. However, from most of the mentioned destinations, it is possible to travel with one transfer via Copenhagen, Oslo or Stockholm, also with SAS.

Lines from Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm to Dubrovnik are also not on sale and will most likely not be available this year.

Pula Airport and SAS

Pula has been connected to Bergen, Oslo, Stavanger, Gothenburg and Copenhagen in previous summer seasons, but SAS operates only on the line from Copenhagen to Pula and does not plan to launch other lines this summer.

Zadar - a newly planned destination

This summer, the company planned to introduce the Copenhagen - Zadar route and thus add another Croatian airport to its destination network. The flights were originally planned twice a week, but have been completely withdrawn from sale for this year.

July 6, 2020 - From the first of July, low-cost airlines finally took off for Zadar Airport.

HRTurizam reports that 5,270 tourists visited Zadar on July 2 (14.6 thousand on the same day last year) or 36 percent of last year's figures.

This tells us that. tourist traffic is recovering somewhat and that the Adria Tour has not left long-term negative consequences for Zadar. At least according to current data.

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Ryanair, Europe's largest airline, has been flying 10 flights to/from Zadar since the beginning of July. Also, the Polish national airline LOT landed in Zadar on July 3, and the flight from Warsaw to Zadar will operate once a week, like many others.

According to the eVisitor system, Zadar ranks sixth in terms of tourist arrivals in the Republic of Croatia from the beginning of the year to the end of June (43,000 arrivals). Most of the work was done in household facilities (42 percent) and hotels (32 percent), while camps, non-commercial accommodation and other catering accommodation with an additional 26 percent of turnover statistically filled the overall figures.

Clearly, all these data are far from last year's record numbers of tourist traffic in Zadar, but given the pandemic circumstances in March, April and May and the fact that tourism is just beginning to happen, they are not catastrophic, especially after the Adria Tour.

When it comes to overnight stays of domestic and foreign guests for the same six-month period, with 150 thousand overnight stays, Zadar holds the ninth position in Croatia ahead of Split, Opatija, Crikvenica and other destinations.

"The decline in tourist traffic is significant, but in the case of Zadar, it is not so catastrophic. Of course, we all expect a speedy recovery of tourist traffic due to the importance of tourism in the economy of Zadar and the whole country, so the fact that most European countries see Croatia as a safe destination is now really encouraging. It seems that better numbers can be expected during July and August, when many will head to tourist destinations outside their countries, but we can also expect a significant arrival of domestic guests. The re-establishment of air traffic is especially important for Zadar," emphasized the Zadar Tourist Board.

Thus, when compared to last year's figures for tourist traffic in Zadar, June's 30 percent share in overnight stays and 25 percent in arrivals, in circumstances when most European countries have not yet opened their borders, it really does not seem so bad. And that is within the framework at the national level, as well as forecasts before the start of the season. Surely everyone would sign 30% of the turnover immediately before the start of the tourist season, and anything beyond that will be a great result in this uncertain year.

During June, most tourist overnight stays in Zadar were realized by Croats with a share in total overnight stays of 30 percent, and after domestic guests, the best were Germans with 22 percent, followed by Austrians with 13 percent, Slovenes with 11 percent, Czechs with 5 percent, Hungarians with 3 percent, while guests from Poland, Slovakia, Italy and Bosnia and Herzegovina each had a 2 percent share in total overnight stays.

Domestic tourists realized a little more than 22 thousand overnight stays, while foreign guests had about 51 thousand overnight stays. When it comes to organizing tourist arrivals, 79 percent of guests came individually, while 21 percent of tourists arrived in Zadar through travel agencies.