Getting to Croatia by bus from the UK
Not that long ago, I wrote about travelling to Croatia from the UK by train. Travelling by train has, of course, rather romantic connotations and making the dash across part of Europe to Croatia by rail would be a rather fancy way of starting your holiday. These days, many travellers are also rather conscious of avoiding air travel where possible, trying to reduce their carbon footprint. So, whilst it’s certainly possible to travel to Croatia from the UK by train, can you do the same by bus? And should you?! Well, let’s see – how can you travel to Croatia by bus from the UK?
Is there a direct bus from the UK to Croatia?
No, there is not.
Wait, come back! There are still some possible ways of travelling to Croatia by bus!
You can get to Croatia from the UK by bus with one transfer of bus, although do consider two transfers to give yourself more options. You might be surprised by how many major European cities do in fact have direct bus services to Croatia, meaning there are a number of different routes available to you.
When travelling by bus, do also consider the timings of your travel. If you depart the UK early on day 1, you’ll be reaching Croatia in the evening of day 2 of travel. That means there’s just one night on the bus. If you depart the UK in the evening of day 1 of travel, you’ll be reaching Croatia in the morning (or lunchtime) of day 3 of travel – meaning you have two nights on the bus.
On very long bus journeys (hello my fellow South American travel buddies!), some people prefer nighttime journeys as the hours fly by when you’re asleep. Other travellers perhaps can’t sleep on a bus no matter what, so two nights on buses isn’t a plus for them.
How long does it take to get to Croatia by bus from the UK?
You’ll be looking at a total travel time – if you do the journey all in one go – of around 34 to 37 hours.
Wait, come back! I wouldn’t recommend that you undertake the journey to Croatia by bus all in one go. Why not take the opportunity to stop off along the way and do some exploring? A night or two in Paris? Exploring a German city you’ve never been to before?
Some of the above-mentioned total travel time does also include transfer time (or rest time) which can be around two to three hours. Which – if you do plan on doing the whole journey all in one go – is essential for you to stop and stretch your legs, perhaps have a nice meal and maybe even do a bit of souvenir shopping.
What are the best bus routes to Croatia from the UK?
So let’s choose London as our starting point in the UK (sorry, non-Londoners…I know the world doesn’t revolve around us except it mostly does) and Zagreb as a destination to get to by bus from the UK. Here are some options for making the journey by bus.
Note: Prices shown below are given as a range as they depend on how far in advance you book a ticket. You may find tickets are slightly less or more expensive than the prices shown below.
Option 1 – Via Paris and Munich – 36 hours and 5 minutes travel time
| From | To… | Departure Time | Arrival Time | Journey Time |
| London Victoria | Paris (Bercy Seine) | 07.00 | 17.35 | 10 hours 35 minutes |
| 3 hours 25 minutes stopover | ||||
| Paris (Bercy Seine) | Munich Central Bus Station | 21.00 | 08.50 | 11 hours 50 minutes |
| 2 hours 10 minutes stopover | ||||
| Munich Central Bus Station | Zagreb | 11.00 | 20.05 | 9 hours 5 minutes |
| PRICE: £85 – £95 | ||||
Option 2 – Via Berlin – 35 hours and 10 minutes travel time
| From | To… | Departure Time | Arrival Time | Journey Time |
| London Victoria | Berlin Sudkreuz | 09.30 | 05.55 | 21 hours 25 minutes |
| 1 hour 25 minutes | ||||
| Berlin Sudkreuz | Zagreb | 07.15 | 21.40 | 14 hours 25 minutes |
| PRICE: £80 – £100 | ||||
Option 3 – Via Antwerp and Dusseldorf – 33 hours and 35 minutes travel time
| From | To… | Departure Time | Arrival Time | Journey Time |
| London Stratford | Antwerp Rooseveltplaats | 23.30 | 08.55 | 9 hours 25 minutes |
| 1 hour 55 minutes stopover | ||||
| Antwerp Rooseveltplaats | Dusseldorf | 10.50 | 13.50 | 2 hours |
| 2 hours 50 minutes | ||||
| Dusseldorf | Zagreb | 16.40 | 08.50 | 16 hours 10 minutes |
| PRICE: £100 – £125 | ||||
Option 4 – Via Frankfurt and Munich – 32 hours and 30 minutes travel time
| From | To… | Departure Time | Arrival Time | Journey Time |
| London Victoria | Frankfurt Central Train Station | 21.00 | 12.35 | 15 hours 35 minutes |
| 1 hour 10 minutes stopover | ||||
| Frankfurt Central Train Station | Munich Central Bus Station | 13.45 | 19.00 | 5 hours 15 minutes |
| 2 hours 30 minutes | ||||
| Munich Central Bus Station | Zagreb | 21.30 | 6.30 | 9 hours |
| PRICE: £94 – £116 | ||||
All bus journeys above are with Flixbus.
Once you’ve reached Zagreb, you can easily travel on by bus or train to other destinations in Croatia. Or perhaps stay in Zagreb for a few days, not travelling anywhere!
Do I have to travel via Germany?
Not especially, although routes through Germany generally tend to be the quickest. Those fast autobahns certainly help!
You’ll certainly need to travel in a general southeastern direction. to reach Croatia, that’s for sure. So another possibility would be to travel via northern Italy, for example:
Option 5 – Via Paris and Milan – 35 hours 10 minutes travel time
| From | To… | Departure Time | Arrival Time | Journey Time |
| London Victoria | Paris (Bercy Seine) | 07.00 | 17.35 | 10 hours 35 minutes |
| 3 hours 10 minutes stopover | ||||
| Paris (Bercy Seine) | Milan | 20.45 | 09.15 | 12 hours 30 minutes |
| 1 hour 15 mins stopover | ||||
| Milan | Zagreb | 10.30 | 20.25 | 9 hours 55 minutes |
| PRICE: £107 | ||||
Should I travel to Croatia by bus from the UK?
Bus travel across Europe is obviously relatively cheap, but what with the existence of low-cost airlines (and national carriers trying to act like low-cost airlines sometimes) flying is cheaper than ever these days. Especially if you make use of some travel hacks, such as travelling mid-week, travelling out of season, wearing all your clothes when you board to avoid paying luggage fees…
As you can see from the prices above, bus travel is cheap-ish and but not super cheap! And that’s fair enough, as you’re making journeys of around 35 hours in length.
So it’s not cheap and it’s a very long journey, but at least you benefit from departing and leaving in the centre of each city. Think of it as an adventure – because what else is travel? I’d certainly recommend it as an experience providing you are able to make stops – at least for one night, if not more – in the cities on the way to Croatia. A bit like interrailing but by bus.
Another possibility would be to mix up your travel methods. Perhaps take a train to Paris, then a bus to Munich and then another train to Zagreb? Or buses to Milan, then a train to an Italian Adriatic city, such as Ancona, and then a ferry across to Croatia?
Whatever way you choose to travel to Croatia, I wish you happy travels!