Dubai's low-cost airline flydubai today launched its first flight to Dubrovnik,  a city in southern Croatia.

Onboard the flight was a delegation of representatives from the airline, together with members of the media and social media. The delegation was met by the State Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism, Tonči Glavina; the managing director of Dubrovnik Airport, Frano Luetić; the airlines’ representative in Croatia, Predrag Popovic; and the country manager, Austria and Croatia for Emirates, Martin Gross. On arrival, the inaugural flight was met with a traditional water cannon salute.

Flydubai will operate Dubrovnik as a seasonal summer route, offering four flights a week between April 10 and October 25. With the launch of flights to Krakow in Poland on April 8 and the upcoming launch of flights in June to Catania in Italy and to Thessaloniki in Greece, flydubai’s route network in Europe will reach 26 points with 135 weekly flights.

Jeyhun Efendi, senior vice president commercial operations (UAE, Middle East, Europe & CIS) at flydubai, said: “ Flydubai is the first airline to offer passengers convenient, direct flights from Dubai to Dubrovnik. Our new service reflects flydubai’s commitment to open up 71 previously underserved markets on our network of more than 90 destinations. We offer affordable travel options in both Business and Economy Classes together with an enjoyable experience on board our young fleet of Boeing 737 aircraft.”

Business Class passengers benefit from a dedicated 24-hour Business Team to assist with bookings and enquiries throughout the journey, as well as a priority check-in service, comfortable spacious seats and dining options. flydubai offers its Economy Class passengers a variety of features onboard including comfortable seating, a range of tasty snacks to purchase during the flights and the award-winning in-flight entertainment system with more than 1,000 hours of films, television, music and an extensive range of Arabic, English and Russian content. The airline’s latest offering includes wi-fi connectivity and Live TV on selected flights.

Emirates will codeshare on this route as part of the Emirates flydubai partnership announced in July 2017. For bookings under the codeshare, Emirates passengers will receive complimentary meals and the Emirates checked baggage allowance on flights operated by flydubai in Business and Economy classes. With the partnership, passengers from the hundreds of destinations spanning six continents in over 80 countries will have an opportunity to travel to Dubrovnik via Dubai.

“Opening this new route is an exciting and significant development for Emirates, flydubai, Croatia and the UAE. Not only can travellers in this region take a flight with flydubai from Dubrovnik and connect seamlessly in Dubai to an exciting range of Emirates’ destinations, but we will also bring in more tourists to Croatia from Dubai and beyond, boosting the economy and extending business relations,” said Gross.

Dubrovnik is a city in southern Croatia located on the spectacular coastline of the Adriatic Sea. The city of Dubrovnik, known for its Old Town, is included in the Unesco list of World Heritage Sites.

Luetić said: “We welcome the launch of flydubai flights from Dubai to Dubrovnik. This is a significant milestone both for our airport and the entire Dubrovnik region. Connectivity is of paramount importance in today's global world and this new route will make Dubrovnik more accessible for tourists from the Middle East, Asia and Australia and contribute to the further development of the region’s tourism sector.”

Another hidden gem of the Adriatic coastline is Tivat in Montenegro and is under a two-hour drive from Dubrovnik which provides an opportunity for a European touring holiday. Tivat is also a flydubai destination served by three flights a week.

Flydubai operates flights to 26 destinations in Europe including Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, Macedonia (FYROM), Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Turkey, Ukraine.

Flight Details

flydubai flights will operate four times a week between Dubai International, Terminal 2 (DXB) and Dubrovnik Airport (DBV).

Business Class return fares from Dubai to Dubrovnik start at Dh6,005 ($1,634.6) and are inclusive of all taxes and 40kg checked baggage. Economy Class return fares from Dubai to Dubrovnik start at Dh2,315 ($630.1) including 7kg of hand baggage. - TradeArabia News Service