Croatia Airlines Expands International Network from Zagreb to Five Additional Cities

Croatia Airlines held a formal ceremony today at Zagreb Airport to celebrate the launch of new seasonal service to five additional European cities, including Hamburg, Bucharest, Milan, Madrid, and Prague.

Croatia Airlines Celebrates the launch of Five New International Routes From Zagreb Airport on Tuesday, July 1st, 2025 - Courtesy Croatia Airlines

On Tuesday (July 1, 2025), Croatia Airlines held a formal ceremony at Zagreb Airport to mark the launch of new seasonal flights to Hamburg, Bucharest, Milan, Madrid and Prague.  The major international expansion was celebrated with a special welcome of passengers arriving on the first seasonal flight from Hamburg to Zagreb.  The new Airbus A220-300 arrived just after noon, and the welcome event was attended by diplomatic representatives from Germany, Romania, Italy, Spain, and the Czech Republic.

Flights between Hamburg and Zagreb will operate three times weekly on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays.  The first seasonal flight to Bucharest also depart this afternoon, and the route will now operate three times weekly on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.  Service between Zagreb and Milan will commence on Wednesday (July 2), and will also operate thrice weekly on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.  Flights between Zagreb and Madrid will start on Thursday (July 3), and will operate on Mondays, Thursdays. And Saturdays.  Finally, the new service to Prague will start on Friday (July 4), with flights on Mondays, Wednesday, and Fridays.  These summer seasonal routes will operate through October 2025.

In Tuesday’s announcement, Croatia Airlines’ Commercial Division Director, Slaven Žabo, said,

“Our fleet renewal with Airbus A220 aircraft has enabled a significant expansion of our destination network from our home base, Zagreb Airport, and we’re delighted that the launch of five new seasonal routes strengthens Zagreb’s position as a desirable and more accessible destination on the global tourism map.  As Croatia’s flag carrier, we are thereby providing further support to Croatia’s tourism and economy as a whole, while also reinforcing our importance in the development of Croatia’s transport infrastructure.  We are especially pleased that passengers on these new seasonal routes will, in addition to a better choice of travel options, be able to enjoy a first-class flying experience aboard our new A220 aircraft.”

Also commenting on the carrier’s international expansion, Zagreb Airport’s President and CEO, Huseyin Bahadir Bedir, said,

“Zagreb Airport welcomes Croatia Airlines’ introduction of new direct summer flights to Hamburg, Prague, Milan, Madrid, and Bucharest.  We congratulate our esteemed partner on this expansion, and look forward to our continued success together in the future.”

This summer, Croatia Airlines will offer direct service from Zagreb to 23 international destinations, including Amsterdam, Athens (via Dubrovnik), Barcelona, Vienna, Berlin, Brussels, Bucharest, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Hamburg, London (Heathrow), Madrid, Milan, Mostar, Munich, Paris, Prague, Rome (via Split/Dubrovnik), Sarajevo, Skopje, Stockholm, Tirana, and Zurich.  During this period, the carrier will be connecting Croatia with a total of 30 international destinations, across 31 European airports, operating 55 scheduled international routes.

Croatia Airlines launched their largest-ever fleet renewal program in 2024 with the introduction of their first two Airbus A220s, as part of their plan to replace the entire existing fleet with 15 new aircraft by 2027.  During 2025, the carrier has received three more of the type, and will be operating five A220s during the tourist season this year.

Founded on August 7, 1989, as Zagreb Airlines (Zagal), the carrier began passenger revenue service in December of the same year.  On July 23, 1990, Zagal changed its name to Croatia Airlines, with the new carrier operating their first commercial flight from Zagreb to Split on May 5, 1991.  On April 5, 1992, Croatia Airlines operated their first international flight, also with service between Zagreb and Frankfurt.  The carrier is a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), as well as Star Alliance.  Croatia Airlines’ fleet currently includes four Airbus A319s, two Airbus A320s, five Airbus A220s and four Q400s.

Source: Croatia Airlines