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Bus Transport

The bus is the preferred way of getting around Croatia with an extensive network of bus companies serving both domestic and international routes. Even the smallest villages have some sort of bus connection. Generally, bus travel is a faster and more comfortable way to travel than the train, although fares are around 20% more expensive than rail travel. New motorways in parts of the country have reduced journey times.

Eurolines operate international services to Zagreb, Rijeka, Split and Zadar with the majority of international Eurolines services operating out of Zagreb. International cities served include Berlin, Budapest, Cologne, Frankfurt, Ljubljana, Munich, Nuremberg, Sarajevo, Stuttgart and Vienna.

Smaller bus companies also operate international services with a large number of different bus operators in Zagreb serving destinations in Austria, Germany and Slovenia and other bus companies operating international services from their regional base. International services from Rijeka are handled by Autotrans and those from Osijek by Panturist.

Most bus companies operate frequent domestic services from their regional base with big cities like Zagreb and Split handling dozens of competing operators. Apart from the ferry, buses are the only way for independent travellers to get around southern Dalmatia as there is no train service south of Split.

All buses operate from a central bus station (autobusni kolodvor, autobusna stanica) which is usually located within walking distance of the train station. The ticket counter usually sells tickets for all buses regardless of the route or company which offers the service. You normally get a ticket for the next available service unless you ask for a specific departure. In the bigger bus stations such as the Zagreb bus station, there may be separate ticket windows for international departures.