PREMIUM
Far away destinations have been at the forefront of Zagreb Airport’s top unserved routes in the year leading up to the pandemic. The United States was the largest unserved market with 137.827 indirect travellers while cities in Asia also saw notable passenger flow to and from the Croatian capital, driven primarily by tourism. The situation completely changed in 2020. Due to Zagreb having a considerable number of seasonal routes in Europe, many didn't operate last year due to the pandemic, propelling them to the top of the list of unserved destinations. New York was the top unserved route out of Zagreb in both 2019 and 2020, while Chicago was also within the top three two years ago. Out of the ten top unserved routes in 2019, five were in Asia, two in North America, two in Australasia and one in Europe.
The list below represents the total number of indirect passengers that flew to/from Zagreb to/from any airport located within a certain city (this includes the total for points which have multiple international airports, such as New York and Tokyo).
Top ten unserved routes to/from Zagreb in 2019
New York - Zagreb - New York
Zagreb was likely to see its first nonstop flights to the United States after almost two decades in either 2020 or 2021. Croatia’s former Minister for Tourism, Gari Capelli, announced the service for 2020. Two years ago, he said, "Following the arrangement with American Airlines between Philadelphia and Dubrovnik this summer, which will act as a trial run, we are already in advanced talks for the introduction of a nonstop service from New York to Zagreb. I hope that we will have this route operational next summer". Fast forward to 2021, and there is an ongoing global pandemic, American has terminated its Dubrovnik service and Mr Capelli is no longer member of the government. Although London Heathrow is mostly used as the point for transfer between New York and Zagreb, from which passengers connect onto a range of airlines, it is Lufthansa that carries the largest number of travellers between the two cities, via Munich and Frankfurt. Thanks to its close cooperation with the German carrier, Croatia Airlines is the second largest feeder carrier on the transatlantic service.
Top transfer airports on New York - Zagreb - New York route in 2019
Top transfer airlines on New York - Zagreb - New York route in 2019
Tokyo - Zagreb - Tokyo
In the year leading up to the 2020 Summer Olympic Games, which were to take place in the Japanese capital, Croatia was a popular destination for Japanese tourists, with Zagreb Airport being their main point of entry into the country. This is reflected in the 20.817 passengers that flew between the two cities. Croatia and Japan were negotiating an Air Service Agreement in 2019 which is a precondition for the establishment of nonstop flights. At the time, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, “A tentative framework has been reached until the conclusion of an Air Services Agreement between the two countries. Considering the possibility and forecasts, there is sufficient air traffic demand for scheduled air services between Japan and the Republic of Croatia in the future".
Top transfer airports on Tokyo - Zagreb - Tokyo route in 2019
Top transfer airlines on Tokyo - Zagreb - Tokyo route in 2019
Chicago - Zagreb - Chicago
With 17.783 passengers, Chicago was the third busiest unserved routes to and from Zagreb. Similar to New York, Lufthansa, in combination with Croatia Airlines, were the most popular feeder airlines on the market, with Munich being the preferred transfer point of choice. Lufthansa, Croatia Airlines and United, all of which are Star Alliance members, have a wide-ranging codeshare partnership among each other for flights between Croatia and the United States, with Chicago being one of the cities included in the deal.
Top transfer airports on Chicago - Zagreb - Chicago route in 2019
Top transfer airlines on Chicago - Zagreb - Chicago route in 2019
Singapore - Zagreb - Singapore
Croatia has become a popular tourist destination for Singaporean travellers who hold one of the world’s most powerful passports. In addition to healthy point-to-point demand, a number of passengers transfer via Singapore to reach Croatia. This prompted initial contact between Zagreb Airport and potential carriers in the city-state prior to the pandemic. Middle Eastern airlines have dominated in the transfer of passengers between the two cities. Emirates (during the summer) and its partner Flydubai (over the winter) carried the most travellers between Zagreb and Singapore. They are closely followed by Qatar Airways and Turkish Airlines. LOT Polish Airlines, which launched flights from Warsaw to Singapore in 2018, also proved a popular choice with some of the cheapest fares on the market.
Top transfer airport on Singapore - Zagreb - Singapore route in 2019
Top transfer airlines on Singapore - Zagreb - Singapore route in 2019
Sofia - Zagreb - Sofia
Despite their close proximity, Sofia has been one of Zagreb Airport’s top unserved routes for years. The two capital cities were finally to be connected with a nonstop air service during the summer of 2020 as Croatia Airlines was to launch three weekly flights with its Dash 8 Q400 turboprop. However, the Covid-19 pandemic had other plans. Star Alliance members again dominated in the transfer of travellers between Zagreb and Sofia via Vienna, Munich, Istanbul and Frankfurt. Air Serbia accounted for 14% of all passengers who travelled indirectly between the two by plane.
Top transfer airports on Sofia - Zagreb - Sofia route in 2019
Top transfer airline on Sofia - Zagreb - Sofia route in 2019
Due to the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, the top ten unserved routes from Zagreb changed, with traffic volumes significantly down. The list below only displays cities that had no commercial flights to the Croatian capital whatsoever for the duration of last year.
Top ten unserved routes to/from Zagreb in 2020
