Split Airport closing in on Zagreb


Split Airport's General Manager Lukša Novak says the airport has never been closer to catching up to the country's busiest in Zagreb as it handled its second millionth passenger of the year yesterday, just under a month ahead of 2016. "Almost half of our annual traffic is achieved during July and August. Last year that amounted to some one million passengers", the General Manager said. This July, Split Airport was the busiest in the former Yugoslavia, handling 657.056 travellers. It marked the largest number of passengers ever welcomed by both an airport in Croatia and the region. "This is twice as many as Zagreb and 50% more than Dubrovnik", Mr Novak noted, adding, "During the four summer months we have the most passenger traffic in the country. We are extremely seasonal in character but when looking at it on a annual level we are in second place and have never been closer to Zagreb. This year we will handle 2.7 million passengers, same as Zagreb last year, and we will see how much more we will grow in the future".

Split has been the fastest growing airport in the country this year, adding an additional 298.653 passengers during the January - July period. In April alone its growth stood at 63% compared to the previous year. "In the aviation sector, 5% - 7% passenger growth on an annual basis is the norm. If you are lucky enough, you can double your numbers in about fifteen years. We have managed to achieve that in just six years, and that is a truly amazing feat. In 2010 we had barely 1.2 million passengers, while last year we ended up with 2.3 million travellers. There are few airports that can boast to be growing in the double digits for five consecutive years, and our numbers are still on an upward trajectory", Mr Novak said. In addition, Split remains Croatia's most profitable, recording a net profit of 11.5 million euros in 2016 and a turnover of 42.5 million euros. "The substantial passenger growth and the control of our expenditures has resulted in this level of profitability. We have not altered our fees over the past ten years as we do not want to jeopardise our growth with our pricing. I think this has proved worthwhile".

Commenting on the absence of the world's largest low cost airline - Ryanair - at Split Airport, Mr Novak said, "In Croatia, they [Ryanair] still operate exclusively from airports which provide support for their flights. We have held meetings with them and established contacts, however, for now, they will not come to Split as we have not changed our policy. Neither Split, nor Dubrovnik, need to stimulate carriers during the season as traffic continues to grow. That would only create a mess on the market. We are always open for talks, but we do not intend on changing our business policy". Several carriers have already announced the launch of new flights to Split next summer season, including airBaltic from Riga, Thomas Cook Airlines from London Gatwick, and Jet2 from Birmingham. easyJet remains Split's busiest airline followed by Croatia Airlines, Eurowings, SAS Scandinavian Airlines and Norwegian Air Shuttle.

Split Airport new terminal building (under construction)

Split Airport is currently building a much needed new terminal building in order to ease congestion. The facility will have the capacity to handle 3.5 million passengers per year and will separate arriving and departing passengers. Furthermore, once completed, the airport will boast a new baggage sorting facility, as well as a car park and bus terminal which will have the capacity to accommodate 900 vehicles over an area of 35.500 square metres. It will be linked to the passenger terminal via a pedestrian overbridge (closed with movable steps) over the state road. The project will also include the overhaul of the existing terminal. A consortium of Croatian companies have been contracted to carry out the work, including Kamgrad and Viadukt, which were involved in the construction of Zagreb Airport's new terminal that opened earlier this year."The new terminal will be a fantastic facility which will make us proud and will meet our needs for at least the next fifteen years", Mr Novak concluded. The new terminal building is set to open its doors to the public in July 2019.

Comments

  1. Anonymous09:02

    Congrats, Split! Keep up the good work!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous09:04

    Sooner or later it will become the busiest in Croatia. It will never have too many passengers during the winter but the volume of traffic during the summer will be enough to secure number 1 position.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:06

      Well one day when they expand their capacities maybe Ryanair can move its seasonal base there and keep a few destinations throughout the year. I am sure they could have one or two. I mean why couldn't they if OSI can?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:09

      Well in the text it says SPU does not want Ryanair... yet anyway

      Commenting on the absence of the world's largest low cost airline - Ryanair - at Split Airport, Mr Novak said, "In Croatia, they [Ryanair] still operate exclusively from airports which provide support for their flights. We have held meetings with them and established contacts, however, for now, they will not come to Split as we have not changed our policy. Neither Split, nor Dubrovnik, need to stimulate carriers during the season as traffic continues to grow. That would only create a mess on the market. We are always open for talks, but we do not intend on changing our business policy".

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:16

      Doubt it, as ZAG is also growing all the time, but year round. SPU can grow only that much considering it basically has only two or three strong monhts. So it would need to double their summer traffic which is hjardly possible, as it is not only airline/airport related, but also with limited Dalmatia infrastructure etc. So I don't really see SPU nor DBV closing in on ZAG on yearly basis, however during summer they will probably grow faster than ZAG.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:46

      If any low cost airline should open a base in Split it is Easy Jet. They are already Split's number 1 airline and operate to 16 destinations from Split.

      Delete
    5. Nick01:41

      Good for Mr. Novak, if Ryan air wants to come let them pay the same as all of the other carriers that have been flying into Split and Dubrovnik for many years. Why should they get a better deal then the other long time customers.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:05

    Already this month it will overtake Zagreb as busiest for between January and August.

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:09

      Yes but then Zagreb will return to number 1 in September.

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    2. Anonymous11:21

      No it won't.They Will change positions again in October,maybe even November.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:36

      October and November will be very strong at SPU so let's wait and see.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous23:07

      Zagreb is doing brilliant job, they're on path to 3.1 million this year and 3.55 million next year. Numbers for this year could be higher, but we can't expect Split numbers on the eve of new terminal opening in Zagreb, takes time for other airlines to come in.

      Priority is to bring TAP, EasyJet, Alitalia, SAS, Aegean, Finnair and few other Legacy carriers. Once these are well established, we can talk LCCs such as Ryan Air or Wizz coming back, not before.

      in 2018, We expect TransAvia France, Vueling, Violtea, EasyJet and few other airlines to start flying to Zagreb. Norwegian will most probably add Oslo and strengthen Oslo with 3 weekly instead of current 2.

      Getting few more carriers such as Korean Air and ANA wouldn't hurt either.
      If all goes well, next year we could expect 15-17% growth.

      Split and Dubrovnik will also do quite well next year, in fact all of Croatia's airports will, however we must be realistic, growth rates of 20-25% aren't sustainable and next year Dubrovnik and Split might not expand as fast, I predict perhaps not more than 12%.

      Zagreb will recover its number 1 position in October, when October figures are out. Zagreb is projected to handle 3.15 million this year. Split 2.85 million and Dubrovnik 2.35 million.


      Projections for 2017 Croatian Airports.

      Zagreb: 3.15 million
      Split: 2.85 million
      Dubrovnik: 2.35 million
      Pula: 700 000
      Zadar: 640 000
      Rijeka: 175 000
      Osijek: 40 000
      Brac: 20 000

      Zagreb numbers in 2018 will depend on number of new carriers it can attract, we know of 4, perhaps 5, if Zagreb can increase this to 7-8, than 17% growth is all but certain. With 5 new carriers and approximately 200 000 new pax from these carriers.

      2018 Data is just as good.

      Zagreb: 3.55 million
      Split: 3.15 million
      Dubrovnik: 2.55 million
      Pula: 800 000
      Zadar: 700 000
      Rijeka: 220 000
      Osijek: 460 000
      Brac: 32 000

      Things are looking up.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous01:31

      Hopefully its better than your last magnificent predictions.

      http://i.imgur.com/OCZqpCZ.png

      Delete
    6. Anonymous16:26

      @AnonymousAugust 26, 2017 at 1:31 AM

      Hopefully

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:05

    Well, shouldn't the ZAG fanboys call the CEO a hater as they have done to some others who said the same thing?

    On a more serious note, 2018 will be a very challenging year for SPU. Germans and Brits are returning to Turkey while the Russians have already done so this year. Same scenario with Tunis which is seeing a 30% growth yoy.

    We could see SPU return to growing 5% to 10% next year.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:10

      I think that might be the challenge for Croatian tourism in general next year. But from an interview with the tourism minister they are well aware of it.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:16

      You forgot BOJ. Very serious competitor with very similar profile to SPU. Almost same figures.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:16

      Yes...the only 'problem' is that year has 12, not 3 months....

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:17

      Croatia has lost a lot of holiday makers during the Yugoslav war especially to the then emerging markets like Turkey and Tunisia. Now they are coming back and people start to recognize it as a wonderful destination. Of course they will never get those 299€ 2 weeks all inclusive tourists, which will eventually return to turkey, whatever dictatorship there is. Cheap rules it.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:20

      Turkish and Greek market has far more premium offer than Croatia. You make it sound as if HR offers a superior product to the other two. Lol

      Delete
    6. Anonymous09:23

      Lol you make it sound as if you have no economic sense. Turkey has fare more low cost offerings in percentage terms, which drives the numbers. Same thing with Wizz.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous09:26

      West Europeans will continue to drive the numbers in Croatia, Greece and Spain. Eastern Europeans will go to Tunisia, Turkey etc.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous09:39

      Aren't Bosnians number one tourists in Croatia?

      Delete
    9. Anonymous09:47

      Greece and Turkey are touristic super powers for Croatia. Number of tourists in 2016:

      Greece - 30 mil
      Turkey - 25 mil
      Croatia - 16 mil

      Among the foreigners thst visited Turkey the biggest percentage is from Germany

      And for your money you are going to get the most in Turkey, far ahead of Croatia

      Delete
    10. Anonymous10:00

      Exactly what I say. Its about the price. Try book a 5 star hotel in Dubrovnik for two weeks in July and one in Turkey.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous10:09

      S obzirom na površinu Turske, Grčke i Hrvatske, Hrvatska je turistička supersila naspram Turske i Grčke. Ili to nema baš nikakvog utjecaja kad se tako izbacuju brojke?

      Delete
    12. Anonymous10:11

      For Bosnians I don't have the numbers but yes sounds reasonable if all "weekend tourists" and those coming for just one day are counted in. However that is not comparable to other tourists who really bring money into the country.

      For challenge with Turkey next year - I would not be so sure. Yesterday the German foreign minister in an interview clearly warned its citizens to not go on holidays to Turkey. Often other European countries' politicians follow such German advices swiftly.

      Delete
    13. Anon@09:39AM
      Far from it. They are not even in top10.
      1. Germany
      2. Slovenia
      3. Austria...

      Delete
    14. Anonymous10:26

      Ok, so those who come just for a day or stay at the home of a friend/relative etc. are obviosuly not counted.

      Delete
    15. Anonymous10:47

      Actually it does not have so much importance - otherwise Russia would be first tourist destination. It is much more important the level of touristic development, level of service, prices, value for money etc.
      For example Mallorca had 13 mil tourists and it is almost 20 times smaller than Croatia.
      Got my point?

      Delete
    16. Anonymous11:07

      Croatia has a long way to go before it can consider itself a tourist force. Turkey saw double digit growth of German tourists which is more than encouraging.

      Delete
    17. Anonymous20:16

      Anon@11:07AM

      Croatia, this year, will have a ratio of almost 4 tourists per capita annually. This is highest not only in the EU but also in the world (This is according to data which does not include very small countries with a population well under half a million like Vatican and Andorra).

      Saying that "Croatia has a long way to go before it can consider itself a tourist force" is the most absurd thing I have read on this site.

      Delete
    18. Anonymous20:41

      I have to agree with the new philosophy of the Ministry of tourism. Get away from the number of tourists and concentrate on getting fore money from each tourist. The coast is already overcrowded during the summer. Time to raise the summer prices to get the same income from a smaller number of tourists. It would make it a more enjoyable vacation is there were smaller crowds.

      Delete
    19. Anonymous23:00

      Croatia's growth was fuelled by the unrests in MENA. let's see what happens next year when traditional markets open up

      Delete
    20. Anonymous01:04

      @AnonymousAugust 25, 2017 at 9:47 AM

      Data for 2015.


      1 Republic of Macedonia 3,023,059
      2 Germany 2,810,350
      3 United Kingdom 2,397,169
      4 Bulgaria 1,900,642
      5 France 1,522,100
      6 Italy 1,355,327
      7 Turkey 1,153,046
      8 Poland 754,402
      9 United States 750,250
      10 Serbia 727,831

      @AnonymousAugust 25, 2017 at 11:00 PM

      All EU destinations are boosted by unrest and instability in MAGREB and Turkey.

      Traditionally very cheap destinations, Egypt once had 14 million tourists, not long ago. I presume they'll have same number in very short time if country's security situation stabilizes.

      Turkey will also attract significant numbers back, cheap and sun to boot.

      Croatia is still recovering from bad history, however 17.5 million visitors expected this year, 20 million likely next year.


      For a country for 4.4 million that is quite a bit.
      1 Germany 2,277,378
      2 Slovenia 1,298,501
      3 Austria 1,237,969
      4 Italy 1,119,932
      6 Poland 757,523
      5 Czech Republic 696,151
      7 United Kingdom 596,444
      8 France 494,698
      9 Hungary 486,448
      10 Slovakia 389,806
      11 Netherlands 389,510
      12 South Korea 377,779
      13 United States 337,464
      14 Bosnia and Herzegovina 333,039
      15 Sweden 256,612
      16 Switzerland 235,037
      17 Spain 222,523

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:09

    Any idea how many passengers they will have in August.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:10

      around 570.000

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:11

      Not sure but the last few years there are generally less passengers in August then in July which I find a bit odd.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:12

      Oops didn't see anon's comment at 9.10 when I wrote my comment above.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:12

      July is the month with the highest density of school holidays in Europe, weheras school in many countries already begins in August.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:15

      Thanks, that makes sense. 570,000 is a fantastic results for August.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous09:17

      That would be 17% growth on 2016. Nice

      Delete
    7. Someone wrote that Split is seeing 26% growth in August so it will be more than 570.000.

      Delete
  6. Anonymous09:13

    So Split has already handled 2 million passengers this year! Nice job. I think Zagreb will in the next couple of days too.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous09:14

    Such a shame the terminal isn't already done up as I have heard SPU is already turning down airlines because it can't fit them all because of capacity restraints.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:21

      +1 hopefully they finish the terminal in the projected time and there are no more delays.

      Delete
  8. Anonymous09:15

    Healthy domestic competition :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous09:19

    Next year Split will have 3 million passengers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:13

      Yes that is actually likely!

      How incredible is that!?

      Delete
  10. Anonymous09:19

    So I guess we'll be seeing more Croatian airports topping the charts which puts the rest in jeopardy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:51

      The last time I checked Belgrade is topping all charts :)

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:54

      BEG- The only serious airport in a country of 7 million.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:56

      Yes and a country that does not have one of the nicest if not the nicest coastlines in Europe to generate travel.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:01

      Still, Belgrade is topping the chart :)

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:02

      Get your point, but then it must be LHR which has the nicest coastline in Europe- just joking ;)

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:04

      The joke isn't particularly funny as London is a world financial center, world transfer hub, world tourist destination for obvious reason etc so your comparisons don't really stand. What we can compare is Belgrade and Zagreb.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:07

      The comparisons between Serbia and Croatia are completely dumb (and I don't get why some people are so obsessed with it here and I have no doubt it is driven mostly by people sitting in the diaspora). They are two completely different markets and don't have that much in common.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous10:13

      Right. But if anyone wants to compare sth with each other, they have to establish a common bottomline on what to compare. So any comparison is senseless. London is the financial centre of the world, Croatia has the nicest coastline, Belgrade is the biggest City in the EX-Yu etc. Can we compare pax numbers of airport, of regions, of countries as a whole? It is total nonesense and comparison does not make too much sense

      Delete
    9. Anonymous10:14

      I personally find the charts very entertaining and fun. There's nothing best to see all airports competing against each other. Maybe ZAG will hold the crown soon or even SPU, why not?

      Delete
    10. Anonymous23:19

      Belgrade is topping cause it is a LCC base, However airport had tiny revenue compared to traffic it handled, showing how disproportionate ratio of income to traffic is.

      Zagreb had €158 million turnover last year, and decent €5.5 million NET profits despite massive investment in to new infrastructure.

      Zagreb strategy of expansion is right, get legacy carriers in, get paying traffic in, numbers will come. LCCs are when airport wants to increase pax numbers.

      Many airports in Eastern Europe and Central Europe are doing this, but barely making any profits, or large turnover.

      Zagreb wants to double revenue by 2020, to €320 million and profits to €20 million. Not likely to happen with LCCs taking poke at Legacy carriers.

      You still get decent prices out of Zagreb, for anywhere in the world, and things will only improve when more carriers come in.

      30-32 total next year.

      Delete
    11. Aleksandar04:20

      ^

      And here with have a good example of a mega frustrated individual.

      At BEG there are 19 year-round LCC routes from 6 different airlines (wizz, transavia, easyjet, flydubai, Norwegian, pegasus) overall there are about 74 year round routes by 26 airlines. LCCs are a small portion of Belgrade's traffic.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous08:34

      Hahaha yes, I think our frustrated friend confused BEG with BUD.
      BEG did the right thing, it's home to two airlines, a lowcost and a legacy carrier. That's the right way to do it.

      I have an impression that you want to make it seem as if ZAG is smarter than WAW, PRG, BUD, ATH or BEG. Hardly so.

      By the way, Belgrade will be linked with China by a legacy carrier, not a lowcost. The same airline that walked away from the premium heavy ZAG market. lol

      Delete
    13. Anon@8:36AM
      Who's twisting your knickers?

      Delete
  11. Anonymous09:22

    Remember that next year SPU will be open 24/7 according to the minister. Now what I did not understand the minister is whether this will just mean they will be open over night for emergencies or will they also handle normal traffic.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:25

      If they will be open for regular traffic it would help reduce congestion during the day.

      Delete
  12. Anonymous09:26

    Wow! Congratulations Split!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous09:27

    Bravo Hrvatska!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous09:29

    If Mostar wakes up and offers cheap flights like they plan from this winter, it will hurt Split

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:32

      lol yeah I'm sure its really going to hurt them.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:39

      That was a good joke :) Made my day!

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:41

      U kojem paralelnom svemiru?
      Si prosao ikad BiH cestama?

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:42

      I think he met that people going to Medjugorje would not go via Split anymore, they would go direct to Mostar.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:18

      I agree it would hurt SPU. But by how much: max. 10.000 first year - 20.000 long term maybe - generally like 0.5% or so which will not be really noticeable.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:27

      Rather 5000 the first year

      Delete
  15. Anonymous09:33

    SPU is currently a nightmare. That new terminal can't come soon enough.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:37

      One more season of madness to come.

      Delete
  16. Anonymous09:33

    With all due respect to the airport CEO there is no chance Split will overtake Zagreb anytime soon.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:39

      It already has.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12:55

      Normal and usual comparisons are done on yearly basis....

      Delete
  17. Anonymous09:38

    What about that suggestion to build a new airport for Split?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:19

      Haven't heard of that anymore in a long time...

      Delete
  18. Anonymous09:39

    Split is Croatia's most successful airport. Biggest profit, biggest revenue, busiest during the summer. The only thing that really lets it down is the terminal but this will change soon as well.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:47

      I still think Dubrovnik is better managed.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:53

      I agree. Were Split magnificently managed it would already have a new terminal.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:54

      ZAG is relatively badly managed. It's embarrassing that INI will have more flights to Stockholm this winter than they eill.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:04

      Why embarrassing? Flights from INI to NYO costs a fraction of that from ZAG to ARN. Agian price.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:10

      Anon 9:54. What are you talking about comparing INI to ZAG over one city pair, which is not even same city pair. Would INI guys need to kill themselves over not having flights to 95% of destinations BEG or ZAG do? Jesus....

      Delete
    6. Because INI has more flights to Stockholm makes the airport badly managed? How about all other destination that serves? Should we just ignore that fact?
      Get real.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:17

      INI is very well managed. An airport that served 1 thousand passengers in 2014, now serves 300 thousand.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous10:18

      I'm from Serbia but the INI obsessed trolls are getting too much. Give it a break people. I'm glad for your happiness but no need to pollute every topic.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous11:01

      Well Stockholm is not some backwater village in central Germany so it's embarrassing that ZAG doesn't have more flights to there. It's a fact that Nish has been far more aggressive in attracting new carriers and in creating a competitive market. Costs matter the most and INI has realized that, that's why LX is increasing flights.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous11:24

      I am sorry Anon 10:18am but you cannot just not mention it, SKP and INI, for me, are the ex-Yu stars, forgotten by God airports that now turned into a huge success story.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous11:29

      Be humble in your success rather than troll every non related topic.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous12:29

      Zagreb has 5 weeky flights to Stockholm by two companies during summer. And there would be flights during winter too. Absolutely enough. What are you talking about?

      Delete
    13. Anonymous14:05

      OU flies seasonally to ARN and DY has one weekly flight in winter. Overall in winter INI will have one flight more.
      I think W6 would be a nice fit on NYO-ZAG

      Delete
    14. Anonymous16:48

      Hm, how many flights from INI to FRA, MUC, VIE, AMS, FCO, BRU, LHR, LGW, MOW, DXB, DOH, IST, CDG.....? And how many airports in ex YU do have those or many of those? You INI guys are really overly obsessed. Okay, INI has some flights, not totally dead any more, good for the public, good for the airport, but please don't make it into something it is not....
      ZAD has DUB service, ZAG doesn't, hence ZAG is a disaster of an airport?

      Delete
    15. Anonymous18:12

      Dublin can't be compared to Stockholm as hundreds of thousand of people from ex-YU didn't emigrate there but they did to Sweden.

      Delete
    16. Actually many thousands of people, at least from Croatia, have migrated to Ireland. There's approx 20,000 of them just in Dublin. New, post-war migrants, mostly very new w/out Irish citizenship, meaning they tend to travel back home very frequently.
      Scandinavia does need better connection, that is true. However, this isn't necessarily connected with how the airport is run. And the airlines are finally doing something about it. OU will extend its seasonal service and Norwegian will increase the number of flights to ZAG.

      Delete
    17. Anonymous18:52

      Anon 4:48PM, INI is currently connected to 11 destinations if we include NYO. And this all happens in less than 2 years. Above all, we see a nice cocktail of legacy and LCC and at least one important city - ZRH and 4 carriers. Only 2 years ago, there was only 1 carrier flying to 1 destination. Now you understand why we are all so excited about INI. It serves the entire southern area of Serbia, northern MK, eastern Montenegro.

      Delete
    18. Anonymous18:56

      It's one thing to be excited, it's another to spam about it all day in a non related topic.

      Delete
    19. Anonymous22:57

      Every nation spams about certain things so it's not exclusive to Serbia

      Delete
    20. Anonymous01:23

      @AnonymousAugust 25, 2017 at 9:39 AM

      Zagreb airport has more revenue and in normal circumstances more profit, however new terminal doesn't grow from watering it regularly.

      So profits for 2015 and 2016 are down a bit, Zagreb airport revenue for 2016 is around €158 million. Profits around €5.5 million

      Delete
  19. Anonymous09:41

    Honestly I am surprised that Dubrovnik is behind Split. Dubrovnik being such a beautiful city I would expect them to have more tourists then Split and they also have more winter traffic then SPU.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:20

      DBV town is much much smaller and catchment area is so much more smaller, too!

      Delete
    2. What does that have to do with the traffic? Dubrovnik is so much smaller and doesn't have all these near by destinations and islands that travelers go to.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:25

      Thank you anon @ 10.20 Excuse my ignorance but is Split the second largest city in Croatia?

      @ frishki. I wasn't trying to upset or offend anyone, I was just asking a question, I don't know much about Croatia outside of Zagreb. Non ex-Yugoslav person here. Hope to visit soon.

      Delete
    4. No ones offended. It's just a fact. ;)

      Delete
    5. Anonymous15:42

      DBV covers just Dubrovnik and the surrounding area. SPU covers basically the rest of Dalmatia.

      Delete
  20. Anonymous09:58

    Once SPU gets larger terminal infrastructure, taxi ways, and 24 hour service it has potential to break the 10 million pax barrier. Numbers speak for themselves, and the growth is rising at an unprecedented pace.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:09

      10 mil? Do you think that summer demand to Dalmatia is endless? Where would those people sleep? :) Besides, seasonality is a killer and it wont change any time soon. They can have 500k per month in summer, hell, even mil by some magic....but check November for instance...who fily fly? Corporate passengers?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:13

      Only 10? Why stop there? I sense 15!

      Delete
    3. Anonymous01:28

      @AnonymousAugust 25, 2017 at 9:58 AM

      Perhaps 10 million by 2035/40, not before.

      Split will hit 4 million in 2020, but beyond 5 million pax in 2025, I am quite uncertain where new traffic is going to come from. Zadar and Dubrovnik airports aren't that far from Split. I'd understand if only one airport served entire Dalmatia, sure Split would all but certain hit 10 million by 2030.

      @AnonymousAugust 25, 2017 at 10:13 AM

      lol

      Delete
  21. Anonymous10:13

    "Split has been the fastest growing airport in the country this year, adding an additional 298.653 passengers during the January - July period."

    Now that is really impressive. Congratulations Split.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:15

      Agree, especially for an established airport which already had good traffic numbers.

      Delete
  22. Anonymous10:22

    Am I the only one who thinks that the new planned capacity with new terminal is too little- they will reach 3.5 mill in 3 or 4 years!

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:26

      Yes I was thinking the same. But I think that is the capacity of the new terminal but with the old terminal that will make total capacity 4.5 million. Although I still think that will be small for the next 15 years like the CEO says.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous05:24

      @AnonymousAugust 25, 2017 at 10:22 AM

      The capacity is there, designed capacity is 5 million, first phase 3.5 million, the actual capacity is 5 million + old terminal 2 million and you have total capacity of 7 million, 37000sqm terminal, designed to handle large volume, loads of open spaces and no jetways, eventually terminal can be expanded in future phase to accommodate for up to 4 jetways.

      Split Airport is purely an holiday airport, and it is unlikely airport would exceed 7 million pax in med-term, perhaps around 2040, airport could handle something like 7 million but i don't think we need to worry about that yet. Zadar and Dubrovnik airports are relatively close, and both airports are getting their infrastructure improved to handle large volumes too.

      Delete
  23. Anonymous11:05

    Any chance of seasonal TATL flights from Split? Were there ever transatlantic flights from Split during Yugo times?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous21:35

      Never from/to SPU. BEG, ZAG, LJU and DBV were TATL destinations :

      From BEG : New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Cleveland, Detroit, Montreal, Toronto by JAT (initialy B707, later DC10) ; New York and Washington by Pan AM

      From ZAG : New York, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Montreal, Toronto by JAT (again B707/DC10), New York and Washington by Pan Am, Toronto by Air Canada (L1011 initially, B767 later)

      From Ljubljana : New York, Cleveland, Detroit by JAT (B707/DC10)

      From Dubrovnik : New York and Chicago by JAT (B707/DC10), New York and Washington by Pan Am

      The flights listed above were scheduled flights.

      And considering Pan Am, flight from ex-Yu were operated with 727/737 to FRA/MUC, and then 747 to JFK, and again smaller plane from JFK to Washington, all under the same flight number and directly checked luggage. Only ZAG had PanAm's nonstop widebodied service to JFK during last 2 years of its existence, on A310.

      Split, Skopje, Dubrovnik, Ljubljana had some TATL charters to Toronto, Vancouver, Philadelphia, but never scheduled services. And even Adria operated some TATL flights on DC-8, for a short period of time.

      Hope satisfied with the info. Cheers!

      Delete
    2. Skyservice flew one season from Toronto to Split as regular service.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous22:08

      @ easyjet
      correct. Skyservice did operate one season from Toronto to SPU, but it was about 10-15 years ago, after Yugoslavia felt appart. My info is about the flights during "Yugo times" which was the question to which I answered.

      Delete
  24. Anonymous11:13

    IT IS STILL AN AWFUL EXPERIENCE IN JULY AND AUGUST. THE WORST I HAVE EXPERIENCED IN EUROPE

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:24

      Anon 11.13 AM
      Obviously you don't travel much?

      Delete
    2. ...and you love to scream and shout.

      Delete
  25. Anonymous11:26

    This is the official start:

    http://www.exyuaviation.com/2016/09/split-terminal-construction-to-start-in.html

    Good luck SPU!

    How many runways?

    ReplyDelete
  26. Anonymous11:26

    Split overtaking Zagreb would be a massive achievement but I'm not sure they will be able to make it to be honest. Zagreb will also grow strongly in the years to come.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Anonymous12:14

    Amazing year for Croatian airports all round.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Anonymous12:45

    Second millionth passenger arrived from Zagreb on flight OU654 :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous13:55

      It doesn't matter, what matters here is that SPU has now made a historic record. Please read the article carefully:

      "This July, Split Airport was the busiest in the former Yugoslavia, handling 657.056 travellers. It marked the largest number of passengers ever welcomed by both an airport in Croatia and the region."

      This is even more than BEG which is currently on the top list.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous14:02

      That's just one month. Belgrade will be back on top this month.

      Delete
  29. "This is twice as many as Zagreb and 50% more than Dubrovnik",

    Love this comment from the article.... same thing isn't it?? Lol

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous15:01

      Eh...no it isn't. Twice as many is 100% more.

      Delete
    2. Ahhhh.... joke is on me than lol. Oops!

      Delete
    3. Anonymous15:38

      Ok, I might have a blonde moment but does it mean that DBV also outperformed ZAG by 50%?

      Delete
    4. For July Zagreb had 351532, Dubrovnik had 442122 and Split has 657056. So yes, Dubrovnik had more pax than Zagreb. Both had more than Zagreb in August last year too and this should be the same as last year.

      Just noticed a 747 parked at Dubrovnik on the webcam. Looks more like a cargo or possibly a corporate version. Hard to tell.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous16:46

      I ja potrcim prva 3 metra brze od Bolta

      Delete
    6. Anonymous21:39

      An 4:10
      Saudi VIP 747

      Delete
  30. I thought they had already overtaken Zagreb. Amazing result, but the new terminal can't come soon enough!
    Next year, you'll have a Scandinavian invasion of Dalmatia, hehe!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Anonymous18:58

    If the 2 millionth passenger arrived today to SPU and there are 6 days left to go this means that so far 471000 passengers passed, meaning that the July record is not likely to be beaten.
    On the other hand, if 2,28 million pax flew in 2016 then this record will definitely be beaten this year. SPU can easily make more than 280000 pax by 31/12/2017.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Anonymous19:26

    What's the lf on BEG-SPU flights? And what is the structure of pax using this flight?

    ReplyDelete
  33. Anonymous20:27

    No need for LCC in Croatia, they only bring the party tourists and for lack of another word financially challanged tourists who take up space and don't spend as much as yachting crowd.
    I am glad that the Ministry of tourism is now looking for quality of tourist rather then quantity.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous22:53

      FYI both easyJet and Ryanair are lowcosts while Thompson, Thomas Cook... are far from being legacies

      Delete
    2. Anonymous22:57

      Very smart. Being picky and selective is a sure way to grow traffic and ensure elite visitors.

      Allowing Wizzair, Ryanair, Easyjet and Vueling all to the same airport would only bring financially challenged tourists, right? That's exactly what Barcelona El Prat BCN did, and look what happened! It recorded more than 5 million visitors... in July alone! BCN is closing in on 50M annual passengers and they are not exactly low quality tourists.

      Delete
  34. Anonymous00:02

    In case you have not been following the news Barcelona, Venice and Dubrovnik have been over run with tourists. I would love to see Barcelona and Venice but the idea of crowds turns me off.

    You miss the point, it is not about quantity of tourists but quality, where you can earn the same amount of money from a smaller crowd.

    The major of Dubrovnik's plan to limit the number of cruse ships from 6 per day to 2 per day next year is a good start, as he said it will have a cost in the short term but will relieve pressure on the infrastructure and make it more pleasant of a trip.

    Lets face it, I would rather have the tourists who fly in on a legacy carrier, stay at expensive hotels , eat at restaurants and charter yachts rather then a family driving in their old Lada with a trunk full of food and not spending anything but just contributing to the congestion.

    Croatia is a small country it does not need 50 million people it just needs to make more money from a smaller sustainable amount.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:24

      you think you're model works for Plitvice and Krka National Parks?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous14:18

      Plitvice and Krk are even easier to solve.
      They should do the same as Alcatraz in SF or the Statue of Liberty where they sell the tickets on line in advance at a certain time slot. you might have to plan ahead and buy the tickets a week in advance for a particular day and restrict the number of tickets. That is already be done at major attractions throughout the US

      Delete

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