January 24, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as S7 Moscow-Zagreb winter flights have been dropped, and Eurowings drastically reduced winter operations to the capital city.

In mid-December last year, Russian S7 Airlines announced a new route between Moscow and Zagreb. The first flight was announced for January 23, 2022, reports Croatian Aviation. 

Although the airline exclusively confirmed this news to Croatian Aviation, the flights did not operate. Namely, only 6 days ago, the airline withdrew regular flights between Moscow and Zagreb, justifying the move with demand below expectations.

Flights were announced from January 23 until the end of the winter flight schedule, i.e., until the end of March this year, with the possibility of continuing operations in the summer flight schedule. However, this will not happen, and this Russian airline will continue to operate on seasonal flights from Moscow to Pula, Zadar, and Split.

Russian Azur Air announced regular operations to Zagreb, at one point, even with wide-body aircraft, but the line was canceled after only a few rotations.

On the other hand, on Friday, January 21, the new regular Aeroflot and Rossiya Airlines line between Zagreb and St. Petersburg was launched. The first flight from St. Petersburg carried 97 passengers to Zagreb (Load Factor 61%), and flights take place according to the announced flight schedule, twice a week, on Fridays and Sundays.

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that German low-cost airline, Eurowings, has drastically cut the number of flights to Zagreb Airport since the beginning of this year due to reduced demand. January and February are traditionally the two worst months of the year regarding air traffic in Croatia and the region. Still, this year, just like the previous ones, demand is adversely affected by the coronavirus pandemic in Europe and the world.

For this reason, Eurowings has canceled numerous departures to and from Zagreb International Airport. 

On the Stuttgart - Zagreb - Stuttgart line, Eurowings made its last flight on January 9 this year, and there are no regular flights between the two cities until February 7. Furthermore, 14 return flights were canceled in the mentioned period, which is 4,368 fewer seats to and from Zagreb.

On the Cologne - Zagreb - Cologne route, Eurowings operates regularly, twice a week, but some weekly flights have been canceled, as many as 10, which is 3,120 seats less than planned!

The Dusseldorf - Zagreb line last operated on December 28, 2021, as all flights for January and February were canceled. The next flight is announced for March 1. Zagreb lost an additional 6,120 seats from 17 canceled rotations.

The Prague - Zagreb line was supposed to start operating in the winter flight schedule this year, but it did not happen. Eurowings has already extended the start of operations on this line several times, and the first flight has been announced for March 8. A total of 6 rotations planned for January and February were canceled, which is an additional 1,872 fewer seats.

From the beginning of the year to March, Eurowings canceled 47 return flights on four international routes, which caused Zagreb to lose 15,480 seats.

The number of lost seats is relatively small compared to Ryanair's canceled flights, of which there are significantly more. Namely, from the beginning of January to the end of February, Ryanair withdrew more than 45,000 seats to and from Zagreb International Airport!

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

January 16, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as TUI Zadar flights are on the list of Croatian destinations this summer, while Austria Airlines will temporarily suspend Vienna-Zagreb flights from Monday. 

TUI fly Belgium, a member of the well-known TUI group specializing in organized tourist trips to a number of well-known leisure destinations, including Croatia, has announced a number of destinations in the upcoming 2022 summer flight schedule.

In the past summer season, TUI Group planes flew to Pula, Dubrovnik, and Split, and this year, according to the announcements, we can expect them in Zadar as well, reports Croatian Aviation.

Just like last year, TUI has strengthened its network of destinations this year by adding four new airports to its list.

The list of airports for 2022 according to which TUI fly Belgium plans to operate along Zadar includes Havana (Cuba), Aruba (Netherlands Antilles), and Ohrid (Northern Macedonia).

According to currently available data, flights from Brussels (BRU) to Zadar have been announced from April 23 to October 1, and TUI fly Belgium aircraft on this route should operate twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Croatian Aviation adds that although the summer season and the whole of 2021 were very challenging for the airline industry, it seems that this airline believes that the 2022 summer season should be more successful, so in the announcement for the upcoming season, all destinations from 2021 remain on the list of destinations, including four new ones.

In 2022, TUI fly Belgium plans to offer 95 destinations and 168 routes, and flights should take place from airports such as Brussels, Ostend, Antwerp, Charleroi, Liège (Belgium), and Lille (France).

Furthermore, Ex Yu Aviation reports that Austrian Airlines will temporarily halt Vienna-Zagreb flights from Monday, for the third time in the last two years. The service should be suspended until at least February 28. 

"Due to the rapidly evolving pandemic situation, during the second half of January and part of February, certain flights have been cancelled, but the majority are on sale from February onwards. Zagreb Airport is in contact with airlines across the world. However, due to the confidential nature of such contacts, we cannot share any more information at this time," Zagreb Airport said. 

Croatia Airlines will continue to fly between Vienna and Zagreb with three weekly flights planned. 

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

January 13, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia with more bad news for Zagreb Airport as 5 Ryanair Zagreb lines have been canceled and KLM reduces the Amsterdam-Zagreb line until the end of January. 

Croatian Aviation reports that Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair canceled 12 scheduled flights from Zagreb in January this year. The number of weekly departures to 4 more international lines has been further reduced, and the airline has now made additional changes and canceled 5 more lines until the beginning of March!

Passengers were sent notices about the canceled flights last night, in which it is clearly stated that they are not entitled to compensation in accordance with EU 261 regulations. Of course, the airline offered passengers a free change of date or refund, but the bigger problem is that according to most cities where the cancellation occurred, there is no option of a direct flight with another airline from Zagreb.

Route cancellations until March:

Zagreb - Dusseldorf Weeze, from March 2,

Zagreb - Frankfurt Hahn, from March 4,

Zagreb - Naples, from March 4, 

Zagreb - Oslo Torp, from March 2,

Zagreb - Sofia, from March 2. 

By canceling these flights, Ryanair will have 88 fewer return flights from Zagreb Airport in February, and consequently 15,840 fewer seats.

Croatian Aviation also reports that Dutch KLM has reduced the number of weekly flights on the scheduled flight between Amsterdam and Zagreb. Until January 10 this year, KLM operated twice a day between the two mentioned cities, arriving in Zagreb in the afternoon and evening.

Due to reduced demand, KLM has canceled certain evening flights to Zagreb, which depart from Zagreb to Amsterdam at 6 am the next day.

Namely, until the end of January, KLM will operate from Amsterdam to Zagreb in the evening flight three times a week, on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, while afternoon flights between the two cities remain in daily traffic. In total, by the end of January, the airline will have 10 weekly flights between the capitals of the Netherlands and Croatia.

According to the schedule, KLM should operate 14 times a week or twice a day between Amsterdam and Zagreb at the beginning of February, but the realization of flights will depend exclusively on passenger demand, which is still determined by the pandemic and passenger restrictions in Europe.

The Croatian national airline, Croatia Airlines, operates daily between Amsterdam and Zagreb in the morning, with aircraft from the A320 family.

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

January 9, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as Korean low-cost carrier T’way Air is putting Seoul-Zagreb flights back on the table this year, that is, once the pandemic allows it. 

Ex Yu Aviation reports that Korean T’way Air Seoul-Zagreb flights are back on the table with the introduction of the low-cost airline's Airbus A330-300 wide-body aircraft in February. Flights should commence from Seoul to Zagreb once the pandemic allows it as all permits have already been obtained for four-weekly flights between the South Korean and Croatian capital. T’way is also planning flights to Singapore and Sydney this year. 

Recall, Korean Air will not return to Zagreb this year due to the pandemic. The airline ran on a seasonal basis to the Croatian capital since 2018. 

Ex Yu Aviation adds that Korean Air was dominant between Seoul and Zagreb when it last operated flights in 2019, with over 95% of passengers originating from South Korea. 

"The only other South Korean city with notable traffic to Zagreb is its second-largest - Busan. In 2019, 4.691 passengers travelled indirectly between Busan and Zagreb on a single itinerary based on OAG data. The overwhelming majority of Korean travellers enter Croatia on a separate ticket via other European markets after spending several days in their original point of origin," reports Ex Yu Aviation. 

When speaking about if T’Way would take passengers from Korean Air, Croatian Ambassador to South Korea Damir Kusen recently said:

"We believe that this will certainly be an attractive option for younger travelers to Croatia due to the significantly lower priced tickets and will stimulate a new category of passengers."

T’way will also secure another two A330s in 2022 in hopes to become South Korea’s second-largest airline.

T'way would certainly be an excellent replacement in Zagreb for Korean Air. 

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

January 7, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as MyWings cancels the newly introduced Zagreb-Pristina line from February 2, 2022. 

On December 15, 2021, the Kosovo tour operator MyWings introduced a regular route between Zagreb and Pristina, in cooperation with two Croatian airlines, Trade Air and Croatia Airlines. The line, however, will soon be canceled, reports Croatian Aviation.

The regular line between Pristina and Zagreb was introduced on December 15, less than a month ago, and three flights a week were announced. Shortly after the operations were established, flights were canceled on Mondays, and the remaining flights will be canceled soon.

Namely, the Kosovo tour operator withdrew tickets from this line after February 2, 2022. Until that date, flights should run regularly, twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Croatian Aviation writes that objectively speaking, the line was introduced at the wrong time, and that they do not remember when one airline reduced the number of rotations and determined its end in less than a month since the line was introduced. The line is no longer announced for the summer flight schedule and there are no direct flights between the two cities after February 2, 2022.

Croatia Airlines is selling tickets for these flights through a code-share agreement between the mentioned partners in this project, and the last flight available for booking with the Croatian national airline is February 2, 2022. Croatian Aviation concludes that the question is whether, when, and who will try to re-introduce a regular line between Pristina and Zagreb after this Kosovo tour operator failed. 

But this isn't all the bad news hitting Zagreb Airport.

Recall, before the holidays, Croatian Aviation was contacted by several passengers who had tickets on Ryanair flights in January but were informed by the airline that their flight had been canceled, without further explanation as the airline was not required to compensate for the cancellation if more than 15 days before the travel date.

Croatian Aviation thus reported that flights on the following routes had been canceled:

Zagreb - Brussels Charleroi - Zagreb, from 09.01. to 02.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Sofia - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 02.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Dusseldorf Weeze - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 02.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Frankfurt Hahn - Zagreb, from 09.01. to 04.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Karlsruhe - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 01.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Memmingen - Zagreb, from 07.01. to 04.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Naples - Zagreb, from 07.01. to 04.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Podgorica - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 01.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Oslo Torp - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 02.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Malmo - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 01.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Basel - Zagreb, from 07.01. to 04.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Manchester - Zagreb, from 09.01. to 03.02.2022.

In addition, the number of weekly operations has decreased on certain lines:

Zagreb - Gothenburg - Zagreb, from 3 to 2 flights a week,

Zagreb - Milan Bergamo - Zagreb, from 4 to 2 flights a week,

Zagreb - Paphos - Zagreb, from 2 to 1 flight per week,

Zagreb - London Stansted - Zagreb, from 7 to 4 flights a week.

Croatian Aviation added that it is very likely that the suspended lines will not return to traffic in early February, but only with the summer flight schedule, which is expected given the low demand and new travel complications caused by the pandemic.

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

January 5, 2022 - Split Airport is the busiest Croatian airport in 2021, dethroning Zagreb Airport for the first time in history! 

The three leading Croatian airports, Zagreb, Split, and Dubrovnik, published their monthly statistics for December, thus rounding off the annual statistics for 2021. Split Airport has confirmed its status as the busiest Croatian airport in 2021!

As Croatian Aviation already announced a few months ago, Split Airport is now officially the busiest airport in the Republic of Croatia. Namely, in 2021, a total of 1,577,584 passengers traveled through the airport. On the other hand, Zagreb, which has always been busier than Split, recorded 173 thousand fewer passengers than Split Airport in 2021. 

In December 2021, 24,568 passengers passed through Split Airport, which is significantly more than in December 2020 (only 8,665 passengers). As expected, the largest number of passengers was generated by Split in the summer months, and August was the busiest with almost half a million passengers.

Unlike the 2021 airport champion, Zagreb was not as busy in summer, though August was the most active month with only 194 thousand passengers. In December 2021, almost 180 thousand passengers traveled through Zagreb, which is an increase of 138 thousand compared to the same month in 2020. In 2021, a total of 1,404,478 passengers traveled through the Franjo Tuđman passenger terminal.

The third-busiest airport is Dubrovnik. In 2021, Dubrovnik recorded 927,934 passengers. In December, 11,738 passengers traveled through Dubrovnik Airport (4,325 passengers during the same month in 2020). As Croatian Aviation announced a few months ago, it was difficult to expect that Dubrovnik would exceed one million passengers in 2021.

Dubrovnik generated 597,787 passengers more than in 2020, Split recorded an increase of 903,218, and Zagreb the least - 479,655!

In 2021, 3,909,996 passengers traveled through the three busiest Croatian airports. Although it may seem that this is a relatively large number, the same three airports in 2019 recorded 9,633,688 passengers. In 2020, Split, Dubrovnik, and Zagreb had only 1,929,336 passengers.

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

January 4, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as 12 Ryanair Zadar summer flights have been postponed until June.

After announcing the temporary cancellation of 12 routes from Zagreb Airport, Irish low-cost airline Ryanair has postponed the start of operations on the same number of routes from the Zadar base, reports Croatian Aviation.

Ryanair had already announced the start of operations on almost all seasonal routes from Zadar Airport at the very beginning of the summer flight schedule (from the end of March this year), though this will no longer happen. Namely, on 12 international lines, Ryanair postponed all operations until the beginning of June. This airline did the same with the lines from the Zagreb base.

The following lines from Zadar have been postponed and have a new start date:

Zadar - Aarhus, from June 3, twice a week,

Zadar - Nuremberg, from June 2, three times a week,

Zadar - Bari, from June 2, twice a week,

Zadar - Bologna, from June 2, twice a week,

Zadar - Milan Bergamo, from June 2, twice a week,

Zadar - Turin, from June 3, twice a week,

Zadar - Maastricht, from June 3, twice a week,

Zadar - Gdansk, from June 4, twice a week,

Zadar - Vaxjo, from June 1, twice a week,

Zadar - Bournemouth, from June 4, twice a week,

Zadar - Liverpool, from June 2, twice a week,

Zadar - Manchester, from June 4, twice a week.

The two-month postponement is justified by the airline's low demand caused by the pandemic and the reintroduction of passenger restrictions across Europe.

If passenger restrictions remain in force as we approach the start of the summer flight schedule, there is no doubt that other airlines will be forced to modify their operations as well. As a result, there will be fewer weekly operations than planned or the complete cancellation of operations, as Ryanair has already done on 12 lines from Zadar for the spring of this year.

Croatian Aviation concludes by asking how this airline will continue to react to the reduced demand and whether it will additionally cancel flights from Zagreb and Zadar, adding that such moves do not instill confidence in existing and potential passengers.

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

December 30, 2021 - The latest flight news to Croatia as LOT Warsaw-Zagreb flights will run daily in January, and NYE charter flights have departed from Zagreb to Italy and Portugal. 

LOT Polish Airlines will operate daily on a regular route between Warsaw and Zagreb in January 2022, reports Croatian Aviation.

Unlike last winter when LOT drastically cut and temporarily suspended traffic to Zagreb, this airline has been operating regularly towards Zagreb Airport - the only destination in Croatia in the winter months, since the beginning of this year's winter flight schedule.

On the Warsaw-Zagreb line, daily flights have been announced for January, in the morning and afternoon, depending on the day of the week. The Embraer fleet, type E195, E190, E175, and E170, will operate on the route. These aircraft have a capacity from 76 to as many as 118 seats.

LOT will offer a total of 5,072 seats on 31 return flights between the capitals of Poland and Croatia in January, and one-way tickets can be purchased in January for 960 kuna.

In addition to passengers traveling directly between the two cities (business, tourists, and VFR passengers), this airline is also used by a relatively large number of transfer passengers who continue their journey through Warsaw to other destinations in Europe and the world. Furthermore, before the pandemic, several tourists from Asia, mainly from Japan and South Korea, came to Croatia with this airline.

Croatian Aviation also reports that Croatian private airline Trade Air operated two charter flights from Zagreb on Wednesday. These are organized New Year's trips to Italy and Portugal (Catania and Porto).

At 9 am, B737-800 aircraft departed from Zagreb for Porto. The return from Porto is scheduled for January 2, 2022. 

An F100 aircraft, registration number 9A-BTE, departed from Zagreb at 10 am to Catania, Italy. The return flight is also expected on Sunday, January 2, 2022.

The flight to Porto is organized by Idea putovanja from Zagreb, while the flight to Catania is organized by Palma Travel, also from Zagreb. Croatian Aviation reports that the flights are well filled, despite the current passenger restrictions.

On December 30, at 9 am, a Croatian Airlines aircraft type A320 should take off from Marrakesh. 

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

December 28, 2021 - The latest flight news to Croatia as 14 international Croatia Airlines Zagreb routes will run in January, while Ryanair drastically cuts its lines in Zagreb during the same month.

Croatian Aviation reports that in January, the Croatian National Airline will continue to connect Zagreb with a total of 14 international destinations. This is the same number of destinations as in December, and it should be noted that the number of weekly operations has not been drastically reduced, as was the case in January this year.

Croatia Airlines will operate from Zagreb in January 2022 to:

Amsterdam, daily (A319 with 144 seats),

Vienna, 3 times a week (DashQ400 capacity 76 seats),

Brussels, 10 to 12 times a week (DashQ400),

Dublin, 2 times a week (A319),

Frankfurt, 21 to 28 times a week (A319, DashQ400),

Copenhagen, daily (A319, DashQ400),

London, 3 times a week (A319),

Munich, 10 to 12 flights a week (DashQ400),

Paris, daily (A320, A319),

Pristina, 2 times a week (DashQ400), ACMI charter Trade Air,

Rome, daily via Split (DashQ400),

Sarajevo, 6 times a week (DashQ400),

Skopje, 4 times a week (DashQ400),

Zurich, 10 to 14 flights a week (DashQ400).

Unlike last year, when DashQ400 aircraft were used on almost all routes, this January Croatia Airlines will still use the Airbus fleet, mainly to larger European hubs with a significant number of transfer passengers, such as Frankfurt, Paris, and Amsterdam. The Airbus fleet will also travel to Dublin, Copenhagen, and London, and at the very beginning of the new year to Munich.

Until mid-January, Croatia Airlines will continue to connect Osijek and Munich, while daily flights from Split to three international destinations are available - Frankfurt, Munich, and Rome.

Recall, before the holidays, Croatian Aviation was contacted by several passengers who had tickets on Ryanair flights in January but were informed by the airline that their flight had been canceled, without further explanation as the airline was not required to compensate for the cancellation if more than 15 days before the travel date.

Croatian Aviation reported that flights on the following routes had been canceled:

Zagreb - Brussels Charleroi - Zagreb, from 09.01. to 02.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Sofia - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 02.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Dusseldorf Weeze - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 02.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Frankfurt Hahn - Zagreb, from 09.01. to 04.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Karlsruhe - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 01.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Memmingen - Zagreb, from 07.01. to 04.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Naples - Zagreb, from 07.01. to 04.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Podgorica - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 01.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Oslo Torp - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 02.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Malmo - Zagreb, from 08.01. to 01.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Basel - Zagreb, from 07.01. to 04.02.2022.,

Zagreb - Manchester - Zagreb, from 09.01. to 03.02.2022.

In addition, the number of weekly operations has decreased on certain lines:

Zagreb - Gothenburg - Zagreb, from 3 to 2 flights a week,

Zagreb - Milan Bergamo - Zagreb, from 4 to 2 flights a week,

Zagreb - Paphos - Zagreb, from 2 to 1 flight per week,

Zagreb - London Stansted - Zagreb, from 7 to 4 flights a week.

Croatian Aviation adds that it is very likely that the suspended lines will not return to traffic in early February, but only with the summer flight schedule, which is expected given the low demand and new travel complications caused by the pandemic.

Ryanair failed to attract enough passengers to its routes during the pandemic, and a bigger problem for the airline itself is very poor yield, which is confirmed by 10 euro tickets one way even a day or two before the flight.

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

December 22, 2021 - The latest flight news to Croatia as Croatia Airlines Barcelona-Zagreb flights return next summer, and Pristina-Zagreb flights are reduced in January and February. 

The Croatian national airline, Croatia Airlines, will reintroduce a scheduled flight between Zagreb and Barcelona in the 2022 summer flight schedule, reports Croatian Aviation.

The flight between the two cities was introduced for the first time in the summer of 1999, and then again in the summer of 2009. The line operated regularly until the summer season of 2020 when it has not been in operation due to the pandemic.

The Croatian national airline expects a recovery in demand on this route in the next summer season, so tickets for direct flights between the two cities are already on sale.

The first flight was announced at the very beginning of the summer flight schedule, on March 27, and by mid-April, there will be two flights a week, every Thursday and Sunday. As of April 19, the third weekly flight is on sale, every Tuesday, and Croatia Airlines plans to keep three-weekly flights until the end of the summer season, i.e., October 29, 2022.

A319 aircraft have been announced on all flights between Barcelona and Zagreb, which have a capacity of 144 seats on Croatia Airlines. In the first 7 months of next year, Croatia Airlines will offer more than 26,000 seats on this route.

Along with Croatia Airlines, Spanish airline Vueling should operate between Barcelona and Zagreb next summer, twice a week, every Tuesday and Saturday, and in August and Thursday, so there should be as many as six weekly flights on this route at the peak of the summer season.

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that the number of weekly operations on the new line between Zagreb and Pristina, which started on December 15 this year, will be reduced.

From the beginning of January to the end of February next year, the Kosovo tour operator will operate between Zagreb and Pristina two instead of three times a week.

Croatia Airlines and Trade Air will soon reduce the number of weekly operations on Kosovo's MyWings. During this period, flights are canceled on Mondays, so Zagreb and Pristina will be directly connected on Wednesdays and Saturdays. This is an expected move by the tour operator given that the line was introduced recently and that demand is generally low in January and February, especially now with the pandemic.

From the beginning of March, MyWings will again operate between Pristina and Zagreb three times a week (and on Mondays), and from the end of March, there will be a significant increase in capacity on the line - instead of the 76-seat DashQ400 aircraft, the 144-seat A319 aircraft will operate.

By March next year, there will be an increase in demand on the line, and the tour operator will carry out certain marketing activities to attract as many potential passengers as possible.

The prices of return tickets have now been reduced and can be purchased for as little as 150 euros.

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