February 1, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as there is a slight reduction in Istanbul-Zagreb flights in February, while Animawings announces another seasonal line between Bucharest and Dubrovnik after Blue Air. 

Animawings, the Romanian subsidiary of Greek Aegean Airlines, introduces seasonal flights between Bucharest and Dubrovnik.

Namely, Ex Yu Aviation reports that the first flight between Dubrovnik and Bucharest has been announced for Saturday, June 18. Fights will run until the second half of September (September 17) using A320 aircraft with a capacity of 174 seats in the passenger cabin. Animawings will thus offer a total of 4,872 seats between the two cities.

Croatian Aviation reports that Blue Air will also operate twice a week on this route from June 28. 

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that Turkish Airlines plans to operate 10 times a week between Istanbul and Zagreb in February this year. 

Although there were 13 weekly Turkish Airlines flights on the Istanbul-Zagreb route in January, there will be three fewer weekly flights in February. This reduction is expected given the state of the pandemic in Europe, but also the fact that passenger traffic in February is relatively low.

Turkish will thus maintain daily operations to Zagreb, with two flights a day announced every Monday, Thursday, and Sunday.

A321, B737-800, B737-900ER, B737 MAX8, and MAX9 aircraft with a capacity of 151 to 188 seats in the passenger cabin have been announced. In addition, Turkish Airlines is offering 12,558 seats between Zagreb and Istanbul in February.

Turkish Airlines also plans to operate to Dubrovnik Airport in February. Two flights a week have been announced, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, from February 5 to February 26. This makes up 7 return flights on which Turkish Airlines offers 2,266 seats to and from Dubrovnik Airport.

At the very end of last year, this airline also used wide-body aircraft type A330-200 and A330-300 to Zagreb, mainly due to additional ad-hoc demand for cargo.

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

February the 1st, 2022 - The City of Dubrovnik has had numerous issues with proposals for Mt. Srdj which towers above it and which is also home to the Srdj Fort Imperial. Those issues are continuing as Dubrovnik takes the Srdj Fort Imperial through enforcement.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Suzana Varosanec writes, the new legal procedure between the City of Dubrovnik and the Razvoj golf company has passed to the field of enforcement.

According to information on the matter from the City of Dubrovnik, they initiated enforcement proceedings against Razvoj golf in the local Municipal Court for the purpose of handing over the Srdj Fort Imperial, which was the subject of a concession agreement terminated back on June the 4th, 2020 (and concluded way back in 2009).

The City of Dubrovnik had previously peacefully requested the return of this property, they say, but without any success, and therefore enforcement proceedings were initiated as the next step. The enforcement request seeks the transfer of real estate of 18,899 square metres free of persons and property to the City of Dubrovnik as the bailiff.

After the unanimous decision of the City Council of the City of Dubrovnik to terminate the contract for the concession of the Srdj Fort Imperial, they noted that in the further steps taken by their legal service, the concession was to be deleted from the land register.

Regarding the termination of the concession agreement from Razvoj golf, they pointed out even then that they had fulfilled all of the obligations, adding that the decision for termination was illegal and unfounded.

In addition to announcing the next legal steps, they also warned of international arbitration against the state due to the investment in Srdj, and according to many, this is a much more interesting case due to the claim totalling a massive half a billion euros.

On the other hand, the tender for the concession of the Srdj Fort Imperial has no direct connection with the golf project, pointed out Dubrovnik Mayor Mato Frankovic.

To make what is now going on in this phase of the situation it's important to point out that Razvoj golf had initially sued the City of Dubrovnik for the sale of two plots on Srdj, which, after the end of the dispute initiated by the Republic of Croatia, turned out to be state property, and not city property.

For more, check out our politics section.

January 31, 2022 - The hunt for Dubrovnik seasonal workers begins, with chefs and waiters most in demand for the 2022 tourist season. 

Hotel houses and caterers in Dubrovnik are looking to fill the missing workforce ahead of the 2022 tourist season, reports Slobodna Dalmacija.

The labor market is flooded with tenders, workers are wanted outside Croatia, and no one wants to repeat last year's mistake when employment was delayed due to fear of closing the emitting markets. As a result, some seasonal workers have gone abroad, and some have been recruited in the northern Adriatic. But what are the salaries attracting labor?

According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, the average salary in Croatia in November 2021 was HRK 7,333. However, the median net income was HRK 6,149, which means that half of the employees had a lower and half a higher income than that amount. Income in the so-called "real sector" in tourism has always been lower than the national average.

"The lowest salaries in tourism are paid to cleaners and kitchen support staff, around HRK 5,000 net per month. The average salary of a waiter in a Dubrovnik hotel is between HRK 6,000 and 7,500," says Dolores Lujić, commissioner of the Croatian Tourism and Hospitality Union. There is no data for restaurants, but given the high demand for waiters, she is convinced they are not lower. Receptionists are in the rank of waiters.

"Coefficients are generally not applied to them. So, for example, cooks and chefs in a top restaurant in Dubrovnik receive HRK 12 thousand or from HRK 15 thousand to 20 thousand," says Lujić.

According to the Croatian Employment Service advertisements, the most sought-after occupations are chefs and waiters. In Dubrovnik-Neretva County, 67 ads were opened for chefs and 52 for waiters in the entire area. Julijo Srgota, head of the Regional Office of the Croatian Employment Service (CES) in Dubrovnik, says that employers do not rest; advertisements arrive daily from the beginning of the year.

According to the Law on Foreigners, for some jobs, employers must obtain a positive opinion from the CES and the so-called "labor market test", and only then submit an application to the Ministry of the Interior for a residence and work permit for a foreign worker. On the other hand, the tourism sector can obtain work permits for workers from third countries without a labor market test, but only for up to 90 days during a calendar year.

In 2021, the CES office in Dubrovnik received 1,887 applications for employment of third-country nationals. In Dubrovnik-Neretva County, the CES issued 286 positive opinions last year, 10 are being processed, and 1,070 work permits have been issued. On the other hand, the institute refused 71 and suspended 361 work permits. The most significant number of requests related to jobs in construction and catering and tourism, such as building worker, cook, waiter, assistant chef, carpenter, bricklayer, valet, reinforcement worker, civil engineer, and facade worker. Since employers are obliged to enclose income data in their request for the opinion of the CES when hiring foreigners, it turns out that the average salary of a worker who came here from third countries to work as a chef is HRK 5506.9, waiter HRK 5462.6, and baker HRK 4631.8, while employers reported an average salary of HRK 4876 for a maid or HRK 4461 gross for a cleaner.

The average salary of employees in the Dubrovnik Tourist Board in 2019 was HRK 7,724 net. 

The County Chamber of Commerce performed a salary analysis in Dubrovnik-Neretva County companies for 2020. According to their data, the average salary in the provision of accommodation and food preparation services is HRK 4971 net, in trade HRK 4743, in transport HRK 6276, and in administrative and support service activities (90% being travel agencies) HRK 5166.

Compared to 2019, the most significant decline in monthly wages was recorded in accommodation services in tourism and food preparation (22 percent), and the smallest in transport, while in construction it increased by five percent and averaged HRK 4552.

"The highest average monthly net salary was paid in the supply of electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning, HRK 6,811. Paradoxically, the lowest average wage in the county is in the field of education, HRK 3,890.

This applies to private institutions and companies, not schools financed from the budget, but it says how we treat this activity. The data are exact, based on the data presented by entrepreneurs in their final financial reports to Fina," says Nikolina Trojić, President of the Chamber.

Commenting that the average income in the Dubrovnik area is lower than the state, Trojić noted that the coronavirus hit a large part of businesses much harder and that many employees depended on government support for job preservation (HRK 4,000).

Through the Dubrovnik Student Center, the student population, in most cases, works in tourism and catering. In 2021, 6878 contracts were signed through the student service. For comparison, in 2020, 4097 contracts were signed through student services, and in 2019, 10,364 contracts.

"Most often, hourly rates for students last year were between 30 and 35 kuna, and the most sought after jobs were waiters, support staff in catering, cleaners, maids, and other hotel housework," says Marko Potrebica, director of the Student Center Dubrovnik.

For more, check out our business section.

ZAGREB, 22 Jan 2022 - Msgr. Roko Glasnović was ordained the new Bishop of the Dubrovnik Diocese on Saturday.

Glasnović was born on 2 July 1978 in Šibenik to father Nikola and mother Marija née Palić. He attended a theological seminary and studied theology in Split from 1999 to 2005. He was ordained a priest in 2005 in Šibenik.

He has performed numerous pastoral duties at the Šibenik Diocese.

January 21, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as 14 Volotea flights to Split and Dubrovnik airports will run this summer. 

Spanish low-cost airline Volotea is planning 14 scheduled flights to two Croatian airports this summer, reports Croatian Aviation.

Namely, Volotea will operate 14 seasonal routes from France, Italy, and Greece to two Croatian airports - Split and Dubrovnik, in the summer flight schedule, which starts in late March.

Although the airline planned more lines to Split and Dubrovnik, the start date has been postponed from season to season due to the pandemic. The three previously announced lines will not be in operation this year either. Moreover, the airline has removed them from its list of destinations, so it is to be assumed that they will not be launched in the near future.

Nevertheless, the summer program for Croatia looks significantly better compared to 2021 operations. There are several weekly rotations on most lines, but it should be noted that the company has confirmed that reductions (or increases) in the announced schedule are still possible, and this will depend solely on the pandemic that directly affects passenger demand.

Volotea plans to travel to Dubrovnik from:
Lyon, from 16.04., 2 times a week, Tuesdays and Saturdays,

Nantes, from 09.04., 3 times a week, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays,

Bordeaux, from 16.04., 2 times a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays,

Toulouse, from 23.04., 2 times a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays,

Marseille, from 09.04., 2 times a week, Tuesdays and Saturdays,

Bari, from 06.07., once a week, Wednesday,

Athens, from 29.05., 2 times a week, Wednesdays and Sundays.

Volotea plans to travel to Split from:
Venice, from 27.05., 2 times a week, Tuesdays and Fridays,

Lyon, from 17.04., 2 times a week, Wednesdays and Sundays,

Nice, from 13.04., once a week, Wednesday,

Marseille, from 10.04., 2 times a week, Wednesdays and Sundays,

Toulouse, from 17.04., 2 times a week, Wednesdays and Sundays,

Bordeaux, from 17.04., once a week, Wednesdays,

Nantes, from 10.04., 2 times a week, Wednesdays and Sundays.

Volotea is one of the few airlines that flies from a number of French cities to Croatia during the summer season. Air France and Croatia Airlines, as well as many low-cost airlines, connect Croatian airports and several airports serving Paris, but Volotea offers the possibility of direct travel between Split and six French cities, which is certainly important in terms of tourism.

On all 14 routes to Croatia in the upcoming summer flight schedule, Volotea plans to use its A319 and A320 aircraft with a capacity of 150 and 180 seats in the passenger cabin, respectively.

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

January 19, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as two Polish Lot Zadar lines will return this summer, and Brussels Airlines Split and Dubrovnik flights have been announced from April. 

Polish national airline, LOT Polish Airlines, will resume traffic between Zadar and Rzeszow, the largest city in southeastern Poland, in the upcoming summer flight schedule, reports Croatian Aviation.

Namely, LOT has announced on its official website that the Zadar-Rzeszow line, a city in southeastern Poland with just under 200,000 inhabitants, will return this summer. This route was introduced by the Polish airline in the summer of 2020, and regular operations also took place in the summer flight schedule in 2021.

Flights between the two cities will run once a week, every Saturday, starting on June 18, and the Polish airline plans to use DashQ400 aircraft with a capacity of 78 seats.

In addition to the regular route from Rzeszow, LOT Polish Airlines will operate to Zadar Airport on a regular route from its main hub - Warsaw.

Flights between Warsaw and Zadar should start on Saturday, April 30. Larger capacity aircraft, such as the Embraer E195, which has a total of 112 seats will operate on this route.

Like other airlines, LOT Polish Airlines is currently working on finalizing the summer flight schedule, so in the coming weeks, we will know the official 2022 summer flight schedule. 

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that Brussels Airlines has announced its 2022 summer flight schedule, which includes two Croatian airports - Split and Dubrovnik. 

Although the airline was expected to increase the number of weekly rotations to Croatia, judging by the published schedule for the summer season, this will not happen.

Namely, the Brussels - Split - Brussels line has been announced from Saturday, April 23 to the very end of the summer flight schedule, Saturday, October 29. Two flights a week are currently announced on Saturdays, both on Saturdays, offering 642 seats on its A319 and A320 aircraft on a weekly basis between the two cities.

The Brussels - Dubrovnik - Brussels line is on sale from April 2, and flights are announced once a week, also on Saturdays. Unlike flights to Split, the route to Dubrovnik should run until October 1. Airbus A319 aircraft with a capacity of 141 seats in the passenger cabin has been announced between Brussels and Dubrovnik.

Brussels Airlines has previously confirmed that it will not return to Zagreb International Airport, which was expected given that Ryanair has introduced a regular route between Brussels Charleroi Airport and Zagreb, and Croatia Airlines operates from the main Belgian airport from Zagreb. This year, Brussels does not plan to operate to Zadar Airport, but only to keep seasonal operations to Split and Dubrovnik.

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

January 17, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as there are currently no international winter flights to Dubrovnik Airport 

Dubrovnik Airport ended 2021 as the third busiest Croatian airport after Split and Zagreb. As things currently stand, the beginning of 2022 did not bring new regular international routes to Dubrovnik, but the airport instead was temporarily left without its regular international Turkish Airlines and Vueling lines, reports Croatian Aviation.

According to earlier announcements and the Dubrovnik Airport winter flight schedule, Turkish Airlines and Vueling aircraft were to fly from Istanbul and Barcelona to Dubrovnik until the end of the winter flight schedule.

According to the earliest announcements, Turkish Airlines was supposed to operate up to four times a week in Dubrovnik this winter, but the flight schedule was quickly revised by the airline. The last recorded Turkish Airlines flight on a regular route to Dubrovnik was recorded on January 8.

According to the earliest announcements, Vueling was supposed to operate twice a week this winter in certain periods, i.e., on Thursdays and Sundays, but Vueling made its last recorded flight between Barcelona and Dubrovnik on January 9.

According to available information, the first available date to purchase Turkish Airlines tickets from Dubrovnik to Istanbul is Saturday, January 22. From January 22 to March 26, Turkish should continue to operate to Dubrovnik Airport twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Vueling's return to Dubrovnik is expected on March 3, when the Spanish low-cost airline should continue to fly to Dubrovnik twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays.

From January 9 to January 22, there was no international air traffic at Dubrovnik Airport, and Dubrovnik is connected to international destinations by Croatia Airlines planes, but with a transfer at Zagreb Airport.

Although 2022 may not have started with many scheduled international flights at Dubrovnik Airport, Croatian Aviation concludes that we can certainly be pleased that a significantly larger number of international flights from Dubrovnik are already announced for the summer flight schedule.

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

January 13, 2022 - Despite the summer season still being far away, there is no time to lose in the ''Pearl of the Adriatic'', as there is much to plan ahead in the first third of the year. Thus, the first course of the year was held for directors of cultural institutions in Dubrovnik.

A meeting with the directors of cultural institutions in Dubrovnik was held today in the Great Hall of the City, led by Deputy Mayor Jelka Tepšić and Head of the Administrative Department for Culture and Heritage Julijana Antić Brautović, with the aim to plan ahead of the first third of the year, reports Dubrovački Vjesnik.

The first regular course of this year focused on the programs and work plans for the first three months of 2022, as well as the upcoming events. The directors informed about the ongoing activities and announced the programs that the cultural institutions of the City of Dubrovnik are preparing for the Feast of St. Blaise, as well as the programs for the Night of Museums, which will be held on January 28.

This event, which is extremely popular in Croatia and Dubrovnik, should take place mostly "online" this year due to the current epidemiological situation and in accordance with current measures. according to the instructions of the Croatian Museum Society.

A special topic was the preparation of the program to mark the 750th anniversary of the Dubrovnik Statute, as well as numerous other projects that should be implemented during 2022.

If you want to learn more about what the Pearl of the Adriatic can offer you on your next trip, such as activities, tours, points of interest, tips, transport, restaurants, and more; then you should check Total Croatia's guide, Dubrovnik in a Page. Now available in your language!

For more, check out our dedicated travel section.

January 12, 2022 - In the past two days, stormy winds on the Croatian coast on Tuesday tore down trees and electrical cables, raised the roofs of houses and overturned vehicles, and some citizens were without electricity for several hours.

HRT News reports that yesterday the County Center 112 Rijeka received several reports of disasters caused by stormy winds in the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, according to the website of the Directorate of Civil Protection.

In the area of ​​the municipality of Čavle, several telephone poles were broken and a tree fell on the road. In Crikvenica, in King Tomislav Street, the wind blew away part of the tin roof of the family house. A telephone pole in Selce was broken, a tree in the yard of a family house was knocked down in Dramalj, and a truck overturned on a local road in the Kraljevica area. An electric cable fell on the family house in Križišće.

In the area of ​​Rijeka, the tree fell on a personal vehicle in Braće Stipčić Street and in the Orehovica area, and in a warehouse in the port, the wind blew away part of the tin roof. Due to broken poles on the transmission network of Tribalj, Drivenik, and Grižane in Vinodol municipality 1000 users were without electricity from 12:22 pm to 14:26 pm, and in Bribir in Vinodol municipality 200 users from 13:15 pm to 15:14 pm.

In Split-Dalmatia County, the County Center 112 Split received about 20 reports during the day about fallen trees, broken branches, traffic signs, and various objects that fell on the road and obstructed traffic. According to the reports, the competent services were informed. There were no reports of major damage.

In Dubrovnik-Neretva County, the "Dr. Franjo Tuđman" bridge was closed to all traffic due to strong winds from January 10 at 4:50 pm to January 11 at 11:00 am. It was closed again at 3:50 pm, the Civil Protection Directorate reported.

For more about the weather in Croatia, be sure to check Total Croatia's guide.

To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

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.