Question: Myself and a friend are arriving in Dubrovnik and need to travel to Novalja. Is there any direct transport from Dubrovnik to Novalja? If not, what’s the easiest, shortest and cheapest way to get there? Train? Bus?
Answer: Some of you who are heading to Novalja this summer for one of the many festivals held there may have booked flights to Dubrovnik. It’s not the closest airport to Novalja on the island of Pag (Zadar is; Split is second), but there’s certainly plenty of flights from the UK and Europe to Dubrovnik and you may well have found it cheapest to fly there.
So, if you’re looking for public transport options from Dubrovnik to Novalja, here’s what we’d recommend…if you’re trying to get between the two as quickly as possible. There is no direct transport from one to the other, so:
Option 1: Dubrovnik to Zadar to Novalja
Travel Dubrovnik to Zadar by bus (8 buses per day, with most in the morning; journey time 6-7 hours) and then Zadar to Novalja by bus (3 buses per day; journey time 2 hours).
The approximate one-way cost is 280 Kunas (200 Kunas Dubrovnik – Zadar; 80 Kunas Zadar – Novalja).
Option 2: Dubrovnik to Split to Novalja
Travel Dubrovnik to Split by bus (many per day; journey time 4.5 hours) and then Split to Novalja by bus (one per day; journey time 5 hours).
However, the Split – Novalja bus operates in the morning, so you’d most likely have to split this journey up into two days with a night in Split. (No bad thing.)
The approximate one-way cost is 340 Kunas (120 Kunas Dubrovnik – Split; 220 Kunas Split – Novalja).
TIP: If you’re keen to secure a seat on the Split – Novalja bus, tickets can be bought online (with a 5% discount!) on the Autotrans website.
Technically you could also do Dubrovnik – Split (4.5 hours); Split – Zadar (lots of buses on this route; 2.5-3 hours; approx. 95 Kunas) and Zadar – Novalja (2 hours) but then that does involve two stops!
Happy festival going!
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/novalja.jpg283424annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2015-06-19 19:50:042019-07-05 11:24:41Travel question: Getting from Dubrovnik to Novalja
We’re sure that many of you will be travelling from Split to Dubrovnik (or Dubrovnik to Split) this summer, so we thought we’d lay out the various options for getting between the two!
Split to Dubrovnik by Catamaran
Kapetan Luka have a daily catamaran operating in both directions from Split to Dubrovnik. The catamaran operates in the early morning from Split to Dubrovnik – stopping at Milna on Brac, Hvar Town, Korcula Town and Mljet – whilst the opposite journey operates in the late afternoon/early evening. Journey time between Split and Dubrovnik is 4 hours 15 minutes.
You can of course also split up the journey en route to either Dubrovnik or Split e.g. Dubrovnik to Korcula and then stay there for a night or two.
You can book tickets online on the Kapetan Luka website or using the search box below – during peak season, this would be advisable.
The catamaran does also operate in October, although only three times a week.
2017 Update:Kapetan Luka have a new daily catamaran operating between Split and Dubrovnik. This one stops at Bol on the island of Brac, Makarska, Korcula and Sobra on the island of Mljet when travelling between the two cities. Journey time between Split and Dubrovnik is 4 hours 30 minutes, and the sailing is also in the early morning from Split, with the reverse in the mid afternoon.
Jadrolinija also now have a catamaran connecting Dubrovnik and Split. Operating daily from early June to mid September, their catamaran stops at Bol on Brac, Hvar Town and Korcula Town en route. Sailing time between Split and Dubrovnik is 5 hours and 15 minutes. This catamaran sails from Split in the mid afternoon (reaching Dubrovnik at 9pm), and sails from Dubrovnik in the early morning (reaching Split at 12.30pm).
Split to Dubrovnik by Ferry
Jadrolinija used to run – for absolutely years and years – a coastal ferry service that stretched from Rijeka in the north down to Split and Dubrovnik, stopping off at a couple of the islands along the way (Hvar and Korcula). For 2015, this route has been cancelled – so there are no car ferry options between Split and Dubrovnik. 2017 Update: Details of this service being restarted in 2017 was released – however, by the summer, this has failed to materialise.
There is a year-round Jadrolinija car ferry that operates from Split to Vela Luka on the island of Korcula. As an alternative to the above ferry, you could utilise this – perhaps staying on Korcula for a bit! – before then taking a ferry from Korcula to Orebic on the mainland, and then driving down to Dubrovnik. (It’s a bit of a different alternative, admittedly!)
Split to Dubrovnik by Bus
Luckily, these two Croatian coastal gems are connected numerous buses that run daily. Journey time is around 4 and a half hours – although do note that in peak season (July and August), you may be delayed by an hour of more if the coastal road is especially busy with holiday traffic.
The route stretches through a portion of Bosnia & Hercegovina (called the Neum corridor), so do keep your passport on your person/in your hand luggage and not in the suitcase you’ve put in the hold!
This is a transit route through Bosnia & Hercegovina, so you won’t need a visa for the country (if you otherwise would – EU/US/Canadian/Australian nationals don’t).
Neum
Buses normally use Neum as a comfort break – a chance to stop for the loo, stretch your legs and to snap a few pics of ‘you in Bosnia’. Luckily, it’s a pretty nice view! There’s also a shop there if you fancy stocking up on ‘duty free’ (booze and cigarettes) and a few little knick knacks; snack options are a little thin on the ground unless you like biscuits, crisps and soft drinks/water.
Check schedules for the route – whether for Split to Dubrovnik or Dubrovnik to Split on the Split Bus Terminal website. The Dubrovnik Bus Terminal also displays this information, but it’s not quite as user friendly.
Split to Dubrovnik by Air
Trade Air have a few flights a week in each direction between Split and Dubrovnik; flight time is 40 minutes.
If you’re driving between Split and Dubrovnik, there are two road options – either the scenic coastal road for the whole route, or inland on the A1 motorway as far as Ploce – where the motorway ends – and where you need to then towards the coastal road to continue the journey.
Which one you take is up to you in terms of whether you’re under time pressure or not. The coastal road is beautiful of course – but it can be very busy during the summer months!
Split to Dubrovnik Private Transfer
Visit Croatia Recommends A popular transport option for travel between Split and Dubrovnik is a private transfer. This door to door car service makes for easy and comfortable travel between these two cities. Best of all, prices are fixed and very competitive – cheaper, in fact, than a taxi with prices starting at €210. In addition, you can choose your pickup time and whether you’d like to modify the trip to include stops along the way, making the transfer into an excursion. For a free quote on Dubrovnik to Split transfers contact Octopus Transfers Croatia.
Split to Dubrovnik by Train
This one’s a no go! Dubrovnik has no train station, for starters…and train services up and down the Croatian coast don’t really exist. But you’ve luckily got plenty of other transport options – as detailed above!
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/blog-split-to-dubrovnik.jpg350700annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2015-05-19 14:33:452024-03-04 13:46:18Getting from Split to Dubrovnik…and Dubrovnik to Split!
Who would have thought it? We’re over halfway through August, which means we are most definitely hurtling towards the end of summer. (Although, personally, I definitely think summer runs until the seasons change in September. But then, I like to be an optimist about the weather.)
Some of you who are perhaps yet to take your summer hols, or are looking for a late summer trip to ease yourself back into autumn ways, may be thinking of visiting Croatia in September. You may be pleased to learn that September is considered the best month to visit amongst those in the know – the weather is still good (yes, you will – most probably – still be able to swim in the sea!), the high season crowds will have departed for home by the end of August, but everything – tourist-related – is still very much open.
The island of Vis
However, you probably have a whole list of questions – what’s there to do? Where shall we go? We’re here to help you with these questions and more if you’re considering visiting Croatia in September!
The weather in Croatia in September
First things first. This is something we always get asked – is the weather in Croatia still good in September? Yes, very much so. It may come as no surprise really – as a Mediterranean country, the summer weather continues long into September. The last few years have seen very hot summers in Croatia, and this glorious weather definitely hung around in the ninth month of the year. (In fact, even into early October too!) This year there’s also been a rather hot summer in Croatia with temperatures in so many places reaching the very high 30s celsius. In fact, during July, temperatures for practically the entire country were classified as being “very warm” or “extremely warm” (poor Vis was the only place in Croatia to simply be “warm”), whilst most of the country was considered to be either “dry” or “very dry”.
All in all, we expect the weather in Croatia to be great this September! The Croatian Meteorological Society has plenty of forecasts in English – at the moment, they obviously don’t show much data for September, but take a look at their seven-day forecasts a little closer to the time.
The sea off the coast of Croatia – having had all summer to warm up – will be great, temperature-wise, in September. Yesterday, for example, temperatures reached around 23/24C for many places, with the sea a few degrees colder in the north of the coast.
Disclaimer: Yes, of course, the weather everywhere is starting to turn a little crazy. So don’t hold it against us if conditions in Croatia inexplicably turn winter-y during September. That’s definitely not supposed to happen. And it’s very, very unlikely to happen. But if anything insanely crazy, weather-wise, happens…don’t blame us!
What’s on in Croatia in September?
Croatia has established itself as something of a prime festival destination in the last few years, with more and more dance festivals being added all the time to each year’s calendar. September is when the festival season winds down, but there’s still a couple of events taking place, both in Istria. The brand-new-for-2013 Unknown is being held in Rovinj from 10th to 14th September, with names like Jessie Ware, The Horrors, Jamie xx and SBTRKT all on the bill. Now in its second year, the electro festival Dimensions will be on in Pula from 5th to 9th September, making use of Fort Punto Christo that’s close to the town. (Dimensions is the “little sister” of Croatia festival favourite Outlook, which is on itself in Pula from 29th August to 2nd September.)
For the less dance music type events, there’s the Split Film Festival on from the 14th to the 21st September. The historical festival Gioistra – now in its seventh year – will be held in Porec from 13th to 15th September, with assorted costumes, revelry, sports, street entertainers and products on sale, all re-enacting 18th century times. The second Korkrya Baroque Festival is an international music festival on the island of Korcula, being held from 7th to 13th September. Zagreb hosts both the general entertainment festival RujanFest (literally, ‘SeptemberFest’) from the 13th to the 22nd September, as well as the 46th edition of the International Puppet Theatre Festival (9th to 14th September).
For those more keen on sports events, Croatia will host the Davis Cup tie against Great Britain in Umag (which means clay!) on the weekend of 13th to 15th September. And yes, Wimbledon champ Andy Murray is expected to play. Tickets can be bought on the ticket portal Eventim.hr.
Be sure to pop into the tourist office of wherever you are to ask for events taking place locally!
Where should I go in Croatia in September?
As we’ve covered so far, the weather will be great in September, so it’s hard not to pick a location on the coast. Dubrovnik should be as busy it always is, and there’s certainly a large number of cruise ships scheduled to dock during that month, bringing thousands of (day trip) passengers at a time. Split has had a great season so far, so it wouldn’t be any surprise to see this place as bustling as it has been. (Seeing as it’s Croatia’s second largest city, it is relatively lively all year round!) Some of the more popular islands, such as Brac and Hvar, and other popular locations on the coast (the Makarska Riviera) are still likely to receive a good number of visitors, even whilst the season starts to wind down.
If you’re after something a little quieter, perhaps consider the most outlying of all the larger Croatian islands – Vis. As a quieter and slightly mystical destination any time of year, we think this place would be divine in September. Other islands to check out include those in the Kvarner bay such as Krk, Cres, Losinj or Rab, all of which are perhaps not as well known amongst non-Continental European visitors.
Istria is of course one of the most popular destinations in the whole of Croatia, with delights such as Porec, Rovinj and Pula all located here. The county has suffered a slight fall in visitor numbers this year, but will still see good numbers overall. If you’d like to visit, why not consider something like a foodie or activity-based holiday – two things the region does very well! Check out Istria Tourist Board’s guides to gastronomy and sport.
From a logistical point of view, almost all flights from the UK to Croatia still operate in September – and well into October too. The one exception to this is Ryanair’s flights from London Stansted to Rijeka Airport stopping at the end of August. See our Flights to Croatia page for details of all routes to Croatia from the UK.
Do note that in almost all cases, ferry schedules will still be running to summer timetables until the end of September. Certainly, almost all of Jadrolinija‘s local routes remain the same until the end of September, as does their twice-a-week coastal route that runs Rijeka – Split – Stari Grad (Hvar) – Korcula – Mljet – Dubrovnik and vice versa. The exception lies with some of their international sailings (to Italy) that reduce in frequency in September, and again further in October. Venezia Lines‘ sailings between Istria and Venice will only operate from Porec and Rovinj during September.
Or check out Adriagate – they offer last minute discounts on accommodation for destinations all over Croatia!
All in all, if you’re visiting Croatia next month, we hope you enjoy your stay! Why not drop us a line on email, Twitter or Facebook to let us know how it went – we’d love to hear from you!
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/vis.jpg283424annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2013-08-21 13:41:192024-03-04 13:46:10Visiting Croatia in September
Statistics for the number of visitors travelling to Croatia in the first seven months of 2013 were released today – and despite some doom and gloom and uncertainty for this year’s summer season, they do indeed still show an increase on last year’s figures.
In total 6.6 million tourists – which includes both foreign and domestic – holidayed in Croatia from January to July 2013, which is an increase of 3% on the same period last year. These visitors stayed for a total of 36.5 million nights, which is an increase of 2.5%. Of these numbers, almost six million were foreign visitors to the country (up 4%), who stayed for 33 million nights (up 3.3%).
The month of July alone also saw increases in visitor numbers. 1.1% more tourists visited the Croatian coast and Zagreb (the two main tourist centres in the country!) than in July 2012, 3 million visitors in total. These visitors stayed for a total of 21.3 million nights, which is also an increase of 1.1% on the same month last year. Of these numbers, 2.8m were foreign visitors (an increase of 1.7%) who stayed a total of 19.3 million nights (up 2.5%).
The majority of the Adriatic counties all posted increases in visitor numbers and nights stayed for the month of July, although there were also some falls. Istria, in particular, received 3.2% fewer visitors who stayed for 2.2% less nights. Zadar county was the only one in Dalmatia to record a fall in visitor numbers and nights stayed – of 1.6% and 3.5% respectively – whilst the other Dalmatian counties recorded relatively healthy increases. Split-Dalmatia county saw 6% more tourists who stayed for 5% more nights, whilst Dubrovnik-Neretva county – home, of course, to the wonderful and ever popular Dubrovnik – received 4.4% more visitors and 3.6% more nights. (For the purpose of completeness, we can mention that Sibenik-Knin county got 3.8% more visitors who stayed for 4.7% more nights.)
It was away from the coast, in Zagreb, that the largest increases in visitor numbers and nights stayed was recorded. 14.6% more visitors came to Zagreb in July 2013 than in the same month last year, staying for 18.6% more nights.
Source: Jutarnji
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/rovinj_aerial.jpg282425annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2013-08-08 13:16:422020-06-23 14:50:38Croatia tourism statistics for January to July 2013 are in!
There’s been quite a bit of press recently about an exclusive new guided tour that’s being offered in Dubrovnik – one that is sure to thrill fans of a certain hit TV series and popular set of novels. US-based tours company Viator are offering a new ‘Game of Thrones’ Walking Tour of Dubrovnik that takes in many of the locations used during the filming of the show, including the sights that double up as King’s Landing and Blackwater Bay. There’s obviously plenty of Dubrovnik’s main sights to see as well – taking advantage of viewpoints from where you can look over and imagine yourself in King’s Landing, such as from Dubrovnik’s wonderful Old Town walls or Lovrijenac Fortress. So whilst you enjoy taking in and imagining everything as it looks like in the TV series, you’re also experiencing the wonderfully historic sights of Dubrovnik, one of the most beautiful and most popular places to visit in Croatia. The tour also teaches participants a little more about the Targaryens, Baratheons, Starks and other noble families featured in Game of Thrones. And maybe, just maybe, it’s a way to comfort yourself after a recent unexpected and violent plot in the TV show!
Looking out to Lovrijenac Fortress from the Old Town Walls
This walking tour is clearly a must for any Game of Thrones fans that are visiting beautiful Dubrovnik, but we can imagine that it would be plenty of fun for those that aren’t even that well acquainted with the show. Join the tour and make your friends jealous at having seen the “real” locations from Game of Thrones!
Viator’s tour takes three hours and departs at 10.15am. It includes entrance fees (for the town walls and Lovrijenac Fortress) as well as the facilities of a local guide. Hotel pick-up and drop-off isn’t included, but since it’s so easy to get around Dubrovnik’s Old Town and Dubrovnik itself, that’s hardly needed!
As mentioned, this tour is exclusive to Viator so can’t be found anywhere else! It takes place daily and costs £47.33/$72.66/€55.00 for adults or £23.67/$36.33/€27.50 for children aged 4 to 11. Children under 4 go free.
More shocking than the Red Wedding, Game of Thrones walking tours launch (NBCNews.com, 6th June 2013)
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/DBV-walls-lovrijenac-0383-1.jpg425640annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2013-06-07 11:46:532019-09-06 11:02:52Game of Thrones Tour in Dubrovnik
A few months ago, we were very happy to receive a lovely follow-up email from a traveller to Croatia (who we assisted in their travel plans via email), which told of their happy experiences whilst enjoying a summer holiday in the country.
Very recently, we were happy to receive another such email from a traveller (that we also assisted, pre-trip, via email) from Latin America who visited a number of towns and cities in Croatia. His comments are well worth reading as he provides a number of very useful tips on the places he visited, whilst it’s also interesting to note his experiences as he visited Croatia in December – and as Croatia is often considered a summer-only destination, it’s great to see an enjoyable visit during this particular month.
Zagreb’s Cathedral
So, here’s what our happy traveller had to say:
I’m back from my trip to Croatia and it was great in every sense including the weather. We were able to visit Zagreb and stayed at the Dream Hotel near the airport on our first and last nights. The hotel is quite new and the furniture is custom made for the limited area of the rooms. The service was more than expected with buffet breakfast (I expected toast and coffee!) including fruit, juices and with eggs made to one’s request. The personnel was very helpful and even prepared breakfast at 5 a.m. before driving us to the airport for free as advertised!
We later visited Vukovar where some of my wife’s relatives live. A new museum of a prehistoric culture is being built. It will be inaugurated in 2013, so there’s an additional tourist attraction besides the war-related things. We visited it and it’s located next to the Danube River with an unobtrusive design on the hill.
From Zagreb we flew to Dubrovnik. It’s definitely one of the most beautiful cities I’ve seen, and I have seen quite a few in Europe and America (the continent). We stayed at the Excelsior because of the location on the beach and within walking distance to the Old Town. I followed your advice and drove the airport bus to Pile Gate and then took a taxi saving some kunas. This was offset by the taxi #91 back to the airport gave us some extra turns as what was supposed to cost 30-35K ended up being 45K with little traffic… The hotel is a 5* and the buffet breakfast has an extensive variety as expected. We paid for a room with seaview which was worth it. As you indicated, we didn’t need a tour guide and just wondered around with a map. Since this is the low season, it was great not to have too many tourists around. The food we had at a Konoba to the right of St. Blaise Church was excellent even if the waitress was not too happy doing her job. Walking on the walls was one of the highlights as it gives a different perspective of the town. Even though we stayed only 1 day, we were able to wonder around all of the Old Town and took many pictures. 🙂
From Dubrovnik we flew to Split (via Zagreb). We stayed at the Palace Judita per your recommendation and were fascinated with the hotel and it’s service. It was worth the looong walk with luggage from the bus station. After Dubrovnik, Split doesn’t seem as impressive or beautiful, but was worth visiting. It would be better to visit Split first. Too many graffiti on the walls give a bad impression. It’s rather difficult to determine where the Palace starts and ends and the shops outside the walls are not a nice sight although they do offer bargains. A map was more than enough and no tour is needed even on a 1 day rush visit. At the hotel, Marija, the manager, recommended Konoba Varos, and we were delighted with the good service and seafood which was fresh, tasty and well accompanied with a local wine. This is a restaurant we will remember for a long time!
Back in Zagreb, we visited the old part of the city. It’s too bad that new buildings are built along old ones because the city has very nice neo classical and gothic architecture in some places. The area near the cathedral is well kept and the cathedral is worth visiting even considering we had seen some impressive ones in Spain, particularly Toledo’s.
Lastly, the Croatian language lessons on your web page were most helpful. Although my pronunciation was not too accurate, the words helped to communicate (although many people speak English). I enjoyed trying to use the different words and phrases and most people were helpful. [Note: See Croatian for Travellers]
Thanks so much for your help in making this trip such a nice one and without ugly surprises! We’d like to return to Croatia although it’s expensive to fly from Guatemala.
Thanks very much, dear traveller, for taking the time to email us after your trip and for your kind comments as well! We’re very happy to hear you enjoyed visiting Croatia, and thanks for providing us (and other travellers) with some great tips!
If you’d like any assistance in planning a visit to Croatia (this is a free service – and we don’t try and push any kind of company or service on you!), please do email us at webmaster@visit-croatia.co.uk. We’d be more than happy to help – and would love to hear your experiences of visiting Croatia!
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/zagreb_cathedral.jpg441272annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2012-12-30 21:41:362018-11-21 11:09:00Reader’s email: Experiences on visiting Croatia in December!
Yesterday saw the unveiling of tourism statistics that show visitor numbers to Croatia – both foreign and domestic – for the first six months of the year. These figures reveal overall visitor numbers, as well as showing statistics for the individual counties in Croatia, and the numbers of tourists arriving from different countries.
So, to tackle the overall statistics first, it was revealed that Croatia received 3,418,306 tourists between January and June this year, which is up 6% on the same period last year. Of this, the vast majority were foreign tourists – 2,922,632 (up 8%) – whilst 495,674 were Croatian(a drop of 4%).
Visitors stayed for 14,456,034 nights in the country (up 5%), which once again were mostly made by foreign tourists (12,898,639 nights – up 7%) rather than domestic (1,557,395 – another fall, this time of 6%).
Stunning Dubrovnik
All counties included in these statistics have seen visitor numbers go up – with the exception of Sibenik-Knin county, which has seen a drop by 1% in visitor numbers. Top honours go to Dubrovnik-Neretva county (unsurprisingly, home to Dubrovnik!) which saw 13% more visitors in the first six months of the year, as did Lika-Senj county (where the stunning Plitvice Lakes National Park is located, as well as Velebit National Park). The former county also saw 15% more overnight stays during the same period, whilst the latter achieved 10% more.
The top visited county was the ever-popular Istria, which saw 975,391 people visiting from January to June, an increase of 5% over the same months last year. Other counties to enjoy good visitor growth include Split-Dalmatia (8% growth; 503,713 visitors); Zadar county (7% growth; 295,707 visitors) and Zagreb (5% growth; 298,850). Indeed, Zagreb enjoyed an increase of 11% in the number of nights stayed by tourists, clearly showing that those visiting Croatia’s capital are staying for longer.
Taking a look at the different foreign nationalities visiting Croatia in the first half of this year, the largest increase was posted by visitors from Japan of which there were 38% more (staying for 37% nights) when comparing this time period to the same one last year. British visitors also posted a very healthy increase (25% more, staying for 26% more nights), as did Belgian visitors (26% more, staying for 16% more nights), Dutch visitors (22% more, staying for 24% more nights) and Swedish visitors (21% more, staying for 21% more nights).
Just for the month of June, Croatia received 1,618,472 visitors in total (1% more than June 2011), who stayed for 8,330,928 nights (which is being recorded as the “same” as last year!). Dubrovnik-Neretva county again posted the best increase of 11% more visitors (164,426 in total), who stayed for 13% more nights (756,345). Rather interestingly, Istria actually posted a drop in both visitors numbers (down by 5%) and overnight stays (also down by 5%) for June 2012 over June 2011.
Rather pleasingly (given where we are based!), it was British visitors that posted by far the biggest increase for June 2012 over the same month last year – 36% more Brits visited, staying for 34% more nights.
Source: Croatian National Tourist Board
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/14_big.jpg399600annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2012-07-10 11:57:432018-03-05 12:03:06Croatia’s tourist statistics for the first half of 2012
I want to know that if I come from Budapest to Zagreb by flight and want to catch a train to Dubrovnik the same day is it possible? My flight reaches at around 12 noon and there is a train at 2pm , how far is the airport from the station? Thanks. A.M.
I’m afraid that you’ve been wrongly informed – there are no trains from Zagreb to Dubrovnik as Dubrovnik has no train station. The closest to Dubrovnik that you could travel to is a town called Ploce, but this is still 2 hours north of Dubrovnik. If you did take a train here from Zagreb, you could change here for a bus to continue your journey; however, a train to here from Zagreb is still a long journey, 13 hours.
You could travel from Zagreb to Dubrovnik by bus. Firstly, take an airport bus (from outside the terminal building) to the main bus station in Zagreb. The journey time is approximately half an hour. Then, from here there are a number of buses per day to Dubrovnik (see timetables at www.akz.hr). Journey is long, however! (About 11-12 hours.)
If you need to reach Dubrovnik quickly, then flying is obviously the best method. There are several flights per day (in summer) with Croatia Airlines. Tickets aren’t always even that expensive, but it depends how far in advance you book.
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpg00annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2012-05-29 18:46:452012-05-29 18:46:45Travel question: Train from Zagreb to Dubrovnik?
British Airways are currently running their “Goodbye Winter” sale and, although perhaps we in the UK haven’t (luckily) had the harshest of winters this year, it’s always nice to have something to look forward to for next year – right?
Amongst their deals to many of their destinations, I’ve noticed that they’ve also listed mini-breaks to Dubrovnik for some really rather excellent prices. As the airline fly year-round to this wonderful Croatian city (even in winter they fly four times a week – Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays) a mini-break is more than do-able. They’re advertising a deal that includes a return flight plus three nights in a three-star hotel (on a half board basis) from only £169 per person, which is based on two sharing.
I keyed in a few dates, and personally couldn’t find that price (although I’m not saying it doesn’t exist!); however, the best deal I could find was still a pretty amazing £193.50.
If you fancy ramping up the glamour, I’ve also come across the same flight + three nights package – but in a five-star hotel! – for only £247.
Their flights to Dubrovnik didn’t seem to be part of their sale, although they are offering one-way flights to the city during January, February and March from only £61.
In general, Croatia has had a particularly mild winter so far, especially so in Dalmatia, which is expected to continue into the New Year. Without all of the summer crowds, early 2012 could be a great time to visit!
Note: The BA sale ends on 24th January 2012.
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpg00annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2011-12-29 14:30:392011-12-29 14:30:39Fancy a break in the New Year? How about a 3 night mini-break in Dubrovnik for under £200!
Folllowing yesterday’s post in which we talked about the number of British visitors to Croatia this year, newspaper reports today further discuss Croatia’s popularity amongst Brit travellers, as news, statistics and quotes emerge from the World Travel Market event currently taking place in London.
What’s interesting to pick up from today’s press reports is that beyond Dubrovnik (and Dalmatia), other regions of Croatia are apparently far less popular with British visitors. Meri Matesic, head of the Croatian National Tourist Office in London was quoted by newspaper Novi List revealing the regional breakdown of British visitors to Croatia. She stated that around 60% travel to Dalmatia’s delights (aside from Dubrovnik there’s of course Split; the Makarska Riviera; and islands such as Hvar, Brac and Korcula to name just a few), with around 20% holidaying in Istria and the remaining 20% going to destinations around Zadar or on the Kvarner Riviera.
It’s all about Dubrovnik…sort of
The newspaper Vjesnik reports that Darko Ivic of the Istrian hotel group Plava Laguna (now known as Plava Laguna – do keep up, Vjesnik!) saying that British visitors account for only 3% of the nights stayed at their hotels. Mr Ivic states, “The British are not going to Istria, we lost them during the war. We are no longer able to get them [as visitors], the younger generation of Brits do not know about us.”
However, it seems Dubrovnik’s popularity amongst Brits may simply go from strength to strength. Currently making great efforts to position itself as a year-round destination, the city is being promoted with a campaign in which it is advertised as “A City For All Seasons”. (See this photo of a recent advert in a London newspaper, and this photo of an advert we saw on the side of a London bus!) Vjesnik reports that 13 hotels are to remain open in Dubrovnik during winter, and of course regular, direct flights from the UK (there are four flights per week from London Gatwick to Dubrovnik with British Airways) mean the city is easy to reach, even just for short break.
The final point of interest to pick up from today’s reports is that Ms Matesic states that Ryanair brought 12,000 passengers to Rijeka Airport with its twice-weekly flights from London Stansted this year, which she says is a good result. Given that direct flights to Rijeka Airport from the UK were reintroduced this year, it’s a promising figure.
Sources: Vjesnik, Novi List
https://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Fotolia_16639355_XS-1.jpg288416annazhttps://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/visit-croatia-logo5.jpgannaz2011-11-08 20:10:272021-12-20 13:32:32More on British visitors to Croatia – and the popularity of Dubrovnik
