--- iata: ZAD name: Zadar Airport city: Zadar country: Croatia lastUpdated: '2026-09-03' officialWebsite: 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/' sources: - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/how-to-get-here/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/parking-2/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/traffic-statistics/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/about-us/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/frequently-asked-questions/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/new-departures-terminal-unveiled/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/restaurant/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/duty-free-travel-value-shop-2/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/security-measures/' - 'https://zadar-airport.hr/en/passenger-information/' - >- https://www.prioritypass.com/lounges/croatia/zadar/zadar-airport-business-lounge - 'https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zadar_Airport' quickFacts: - >- Zadar Airport (Zračna luka Zadar), IATA ZAD / ICAO LDZD, sits at Zemunik Donji about 7–8 km east of central Zadar (airport FAQ ~7 km; how-to-get-here page ~8 km / ~20 minutes by road). Operator: Zadar Airport Ltd. Official site: zadar-airport.hr. Northern Dalmatia’s Ryanair leisure base — do not confuse with Split (SPU), Dubrovnik (DBV), or Zagreb (ZAG). - >- Official airport traffic-statistics table: 1,639,601 passengers in 2025 (+2.86% vs 1,593,996 in 2024) with 7,804 aircraft movements and 520 kg cargo. Extreme seasonality — August 2025 alone was 364,473 passengers versus January’s 1,808. Through June 2026 the same table already shows 602,569 passengers year-to-date (+7.84% vs H1 2025). - >- One passenger campus at Zemunik. On 24 Jul 2026 the airport unveiled a new €17 million departures terminal that roughly doubles capacity toward about three million passengers a year (official unveiling release). Croatia’s only commercial airport with two runways: primary ~2,500 m (13/31) and secondary ~2,000 m (04/22); field elevation about 88 m / 289 ft AMSL. - >- Ground options: Liburnija public bus Zadar ↔ airport €5 one-way including bags (~20 minutes to the Old Town; 90-minute city-network transfer on the same ticket); 24/7 taxi stand opposite arrivals; large on-airport car-rental desk set. No passenger rail to the terminal yet (county has published longer-term rail ambitions — treat as future, not live). - >- Security follows classic EU cabin-liquid rules on the airport security page (containers ≤100 ml inside one sealed transparent ≤1 L bag). FAQ advises arriving at least 1 hour before domestic and 3 hours before international flights. Free passenger Wi-Fi is stated on the FAQ. - >- One airside passenger lounge: Zadar Airport Business Lounge after security / passport control, right of Duty Free beside the café bar (Priority Pass / LoungeKey directories). Published day hours often 08:00–21:00 with a winter seasonal closure roughly mid-November through late March — confirm the live membership app before you rely on it. bentoTips: - label: Timing title: Summer Ryanair banks own this airport — winter is almost another place detail: >- Official monthly traffic: August 2025 hit 364,473 passengers while January managed 1,808. Ryanair’s base plus easyJet, Croatia Airlines, Eurowings, Lufthansa, Austrian, LOT, Norwegian, Wizz Air and other leisure carriers stack mid-morning and late-afternoon waves in peak season. Build far more check-in and security buffer on July/August Saturdays than the compact campus suggests; shoulder and deep-winter days can feel nearly empty. summary: >- Peak-summer ZAD is a leisure crush; winter ZAD is a quiet regional strip — pad for the season you actually fly. category: timing - label: Layout title: 'One compact campus — new departures hall, still follow Schengen signs' detail: >- Landside: check-in / bag drop, arrivals reclaim, rental cars, parking links. Airside: security into the commercial zone (Duty Free & Travel Value Shop, café bar), then boarding; Business Lounge sits after security/passport control past Duty Free on the right beside the café. Re-read FIDS after the shops for Schengen vs non-Schengen holds. Meeting point: landside arrivals after reclaim. summary: >- Single Zemunik campus with a July 2026 departures expansion — easy to walk, hard peaks when leisure banks stack. category: terminal - label: Food title: Sunset Café + restaurant landside; airside café by Duty Free detail: >- Official restaurant page: landside Sunset Café Bar (coffee, sandwiches, cakes, papers) and Zadar Airport Restaurant for a sit-down plate; airside café bar in international departures next to Duty Free. Fine for a coffee and a snack — long gaps are often better spent in Zadar Old Town than fighting peak airside queues. summary: >- Café and restaurant cover the basics — budget for peak prices and summer queues, not a food hall. category: food - label: Live checks title: 'Two runways help — bora, storms, and August roads still bite' detail: >- Dual runways (≈2,500 m + ≈2,000 m) give ZAD more operational flexibility than single-strip Dalmatian peers, but Adriatic thunderstorms, strong crosswinds/bora, and extreme leisure peaking still ripple banks. Check live FIDS and your airline app before leaving the city, and treat the short Zemunik road as a delay risk when summer traffic stacks. summary: >- Ops are usually weather- and bank-driven — pad the landside clock in peak season and verify ZAD, not SPU/DBV. category: status lounges: - name: Zadar Airport Business Lounge zone: >- Airside after security checks and passport control — proceed through Duty Free; lounge is on the right next to the café bar (Priority Pass / LoungeKey location text). International departures flow. hours: >- Priority Pass / LoungeKey commonly list 08:00–21:00 daily, with a winter seasonal closure roughly 10 Nov–late March (PP scrapes often show through 31 Mar; some Mastercard lounge-directory scrapes show through 29 Mar). Confirm the live app and desk board on the day — treat scraped hours as advisory. access: - >- Priority Pass / LoungeKey / DragonPass as published on those networks (PP typically max ~3 hour stay; children under 2 often free — check your membership rules) - >- Airline contract / Business Class when your carrier points you here (confirm on your ticket/app) - >- Airport FAQ confirms a business lounge airside after security with Wi-Fi, drinks, snacks, and TV — walk-up day rates are not clearly published on the airport site; treat third-party day-pass quotes as unverified until the desk confirms bestFor: - >- Priority Pass / LoungeKey holders on summer international departures with 60–180 minutes before departure - Travellers who need a quieter seat away from the July/August gate crush - >- Anyone whose flight falls inside published lounge hours (not mid-winter closure) summary: >- ZAD’s only passenger lounge — compact airside room past Duty Free with soft drinks, alcohol, snacks, Wi-Fi, and TV as published on Priority Pass. Worth it with network access on a busy summer bank; skip in the winter closure window, if the desk is shut for your flight, or if you only have a short connection. No showers on published PP amenity lists. verdict: depends terminal: 'Main terminal (airside, international departures)' amenities: - Soft drinks and alcoholic drinks (as published) - Snacks / light refreshments - Air conditioning / Wi-Fi - Flight information / television - Newspapers / magazines (as published) - Accessible entry noted on Priority Pass - No showers on published Priority Pass amenity lists waterOptions: - kind: purchase name: Bottled water at Sunset Café / airside café / retail zone: airside price: Typically about €2–€4 for 0.5 L (outlet-dependent; confirm at till) summary: >- Sealed bottles at landside Sunset Café Bar / restaurant and the airside café beside Duty Free if you want a guaranteed aircraft bottle. Classic 100 ml rules apply at security — buy airside or carry an empty bottle through screening. location: >- Landside Sunset Café Bar / airport restaurant and airside café bar next to the Duty Free & Travel Value Shop terminal: Main terminal - kind: refill name: Washroom tap refill (no published public fountains) zone: airside summary: >- The airport does not publish drinking-fountain locations on its passenger pages. As at many Croatian airports, washroom cold taps after security are the practical free refill once you clear classic 100 ml screening — carry an empty bottle. Prefer sealed retail water if you need guaranteed quality for a long sector. location: >- Airside washrooms after security in the international departures commercial zone (near the café / Duty Free cluster) terminal: Main terminal isBestValue: true airportistScore: 6.9 slug: zad region: Europe --- > Markdown for [/airports/zad](/airports/zad). Append `.md` to any page URL (or send `Accept: text/markdown`) for an agent-readable copy. - [HTML page](/airports/zad) - [Lounge directory](/airports/zad/lounges.md) - [Sitemap](/sitemap.md) # Zadar Airport (ZAD) Zadar, Croatia · Europe Northern Dalmatia’s Ryanair leisure base at Zemunik: a compact single campus with a July 2026 departures hall, classic 100 ml security, a seasonally closed Business Lounge, and a €5 Liburnija bus into Zadar — easy to walk, easy to underestimate in August. ## Airportist Score **6.9 / 10** - Comfort: 6.8 - Navigation: 8.0 - Food: 5.8 - Transport: 7.4 - Disruption resilience: 6.2 ## At a glance - Passengers: 1,639,601 (2025) - Terminals: 1 passenger campus (new departures hall opened Jul 2026) - Typical security: 15 min - On-time: 76% - Disruption: normal ## Best for - Summer leisure arrivals and departures for Zadar, Nin, Pag, and northern Dalmatia - Ryanair / easyJet passengers using the compact single-campus layout - Travellers taking the €5 Liburnija bus into Zadar Old Town - Priority Pass holders when the Business Lounge is in its summer open window ## Watch out for - Extreme seasonality — August crush vs near-empty winter banks - Classic EU 100 ml liquids; no published CT leave-liquids-in-bag lanes - Business Lounge winter seasonal closure roughly mid-November through late March - Peak-summer check-in/security queues that outgrow the compact campus ## More intel - [Lounge directory](/airports/zad/lounges.md) (free) - [Getting there](/airports/zad/getting-there.md) (free) - [Amenities](/airports/zad/amenities.md) - [Traveler tips](/airports/zad/tips.md) - [Water](/airports/zad/water.md) - [Full guide](/airports/zad/guide.md) - [Disruptions](/airports/zad/disruptions.md) - [Reviews](/airports/zad/reviews.md)