According to initial data collected by the Croatian National Tourist Board from the Croatian airports, Croatia will be connected with 517 unique lines in domestic and international air traffic during the upcoming summer flight season. Accordingly, a double-digit increase in the number of passenger aircraft operations is expected compared to last year's summer flight schedule.
"The significant increase in the number of unique airlines is the best indicator that Croatia remains a safe and attractive tourism destination. Numerous airlines have recognized a soaring demand for Croatian destinations, so they have expanded their programs. We are particularly pleased with the increasing number of long-haul air links, which are becoming a meaningful contributor to the overall Croatian tourism results", said the director of the Croatian National Tourist Board, Kristjan Staničić, adding that air transport is critical in connecting Croatia with the world, especially the southern part of Croatia with the essential source markets.
Overall, almost all airports expect increased traffic, and the most robust passenger aircraft operations are planned for Zagreb Airport, Split Airport, and Dubrovnik Airport. Looking at the key markets, the largest number of passenger aircraft operations are planned for Germany, the UK, Italy, France, and Poland.
During the summer flight season, Croatia anticipates direct connections with 41 foreign countries, mainly from Europe, while intercontinental connections are also planned, such as Canada, Qatar, the USA, and the UAE.
This year also marks a come back of direct air link between Croatia and South Korea on the route Zagreb-Seoul from mid-May to the end of October, organized by the Korean carrier T'way Air. Meanwhile, a new route between Croatia and Saudi Arabia was announced, which, according to the plans of the Dubrovnik airport, should be implemented by the carrier Flynas from mid-June to the end of August, with added flights between Riyadh and Dubrovnik.
With the long-haul network expansion, Croatia will connect with 133 foreign cities, three more cities than the summer flight schedule last year. The individual airports with the most planned operations on routes to Croatia are Frankfurt/Main-Frankfurt Airport, Vienna-Vienna International, Munich-Franz Josef Strauss, and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.
There are about 80 new unique connections, primarily due to Ryanair, which significantly expanded its programs in Croatia in 2024. Croatia Airlines also has several new routes, such as flights on the routes Zagreb-Athens, Zagreb-Berlin, Zagreb-Stockholm, Zagreb-Tirana, Split-Istanbul, etc.
During the summer flight season, around 70 different airlines will operate flights between Croatia and abroad, and the carriers expecting the most rotations are Croatia Airlines, Ryanair, Easyjet, Eurowings, and Lufthansa.
Please note that information released are announcements, which may be prone to changes.