August the 22nd, 2025 – With more and more American tourists visiting the country, more direct flights are needed between the USA and Croatia.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Croatia is making efforts to expand its direct connectivity with the United States as the number of tourists from there continues to rise.
Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman discussed “the potential establishment of direct flights between Croatian and American airports” during recent meetings with local leaders across the pond in Florida. The Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) stressed that long-haul markets like the USA are key to growth and that “we must actively encourage the launch of new routes” to improve accessibility.
During the first half of the year, over 260,000 Americans visited Croatia, a 16 percent increase over the same period last year, reports Ex-Yu Aviation News.
Dubrovnik, currently the only Croatian airport with direct flights to the USA, served by United’s daily rotation from Newark for most of the summer, is leading the effort to secure more flights to the country. It has also been served in the past by Delta, which operated flights from New York’s JFK Airport for one season in 2021, and American Airlines with a route from Philadelphia in 2019.
“We’re the only airport in Croatia with direct service to the USA. Although we’re currently connected to New York, one route is proving insufficient. We need another one, similar to the one we had a few years ago,” said Dubrovnik Airport CEO Viktor Šober back in late 2024.
He added that the primary challenge is the lack of aircraft and delays in the arrival of new jets due to production and supply chain issues.
US carriers are expected to announce their network additions for the 2026 summer season in the coming weeks. American Airlines has already done so, adding new seasonal flights from Philadelphia to Budapest and Prague, as well as flights between Dallas and Athens, all of which will fly daily with Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners. Delta has also announced new routes from the West Coast of the US, with flights from Los Angeles to Barcelona and Rome.
