Getting to and around in Croatia

Table of contents

Getting there

Main entry points

Airports

There are eight major airports in Croatia:

  • Zagreb
  • Split
  • Dubrovnik
  • Pula
  • Rijeka (on the island of Krk)
  • Zadar
  • Brac
  • Osijek

Visitors from Europe are very likely to arrive at any of these airports. If you're arriving from outside of Europe, you're most likely to arrive in Zagreb if you're using a legacy airline based outside of Europe.

There are a good number of budget airlines serving a number of these airports in Croatia, so from Europe there should be several options for cheap flights.

Land crossings

Most visitors to Croatia actually arrive by car, as many large European countries are within easy driving distance: Italy, Germany, Austria, Hungary, and the Czech Republic, and Slovakia.

If driving, you're likely to cross the border with either Slovenia or Hungary. Slovenia borders both Italy and Austria in turn, meaning most will pass through on their way from Northern Europe.

Going by train, you'll be arriving via mostly the same routes as when driving.

By sea

At the moment, there are only ferries to Croatia from Italy. However, there is service from several cities:

Ancona, Pescara, and Bari are all served by one of these ferry companies: Jadrolinija, Split Tours, and SNAV.

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Getting around

By plane

The most expensive way to travel around in Croatia is usually flying, but by booking well in advance, some real bargains can be had.

There are regular services between Zagreb and other main airports by Croatia Airlines. These include Split, Pula, Zadar, and Dubrovnik. Summertime routes go to Brac and Osijek.

By train

Train tickets are relatively inexpensive compared to Western Europe. There are daily services between all the major cities in Croatia, and most smaller ones. There's a fast train between Zagreb and Split which takes 5 and 1/2 hours.

By bus

In every large town there's a bus station (in Croatian: Autobusna Stanica), where you can buy tickets and get time tables.

Bus services in Croatia are excellent and connect the smallest village with the rest of the country. For longer distances, there are very comfortable express buses. New highways criss-crossing the country means journey times are relatively short, and tickets are in the main inexpensive.

By car

Driving in Croatia is straightforward, and a raft of new highways have recently been built. Driving is on the right-hand side of the road and road signs are European standard.

If you want a beautiful driving experience, take the Adriatic road (Jadranska magistrala), between Dubrovnik and Rijeka.

By ferry

There are regular services between the Croatian islands and the mainland year round. During tourist season, there are more frequent sailings to the main destinations. The islands are also well connected between each other.


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