4 Flights Under an Hour: Review of Croatia Airlines Economy Flights on the Dash 8
The Dash 8 is not the most comfortable but gets the job done on short flights! Photo by: Evan Berman
I flew on Croatia Airlines 4 times on my Eastern European trip. All of the flights were under 1 hour– closer to 30 minutes!– and on Dash 8 Twin Propellers. The experience was adequate. That is not a complaint, rather the flights were so uneventful that it was hard to remember them!
The review of these flights are part of the Eastern European Experience. For more information on the trip, follow these links:
Flight: United Economy Class B737-800 CHS-ORD-SEA
Centurion Lounge, The Club SEA, and United Club: SEA Lounges
Flight: Turkish Airlines Business Class B787-9 SEA-IST
Istanbul Airport’s Famous Turkish Airlines Business Class Lounge and IGA Pop Up Lounge
Flight: Turkish Airlines Business Class B737 MAX 8 IST-BUD
Hotel: Ramada by Wyndham Budapest City Center
SkyCourt Lounge, Plaza Premium SkyCourt, and Platinum Lounge (Schengen): BUD Lounges
Flight: Lufthansa Economy Class A321-200 BUD-MUC and MUC-ZAG
Lufthansa Business Class Lounge MUC
1.5 Days in Split, Croatia, the Beauty of the Adriatic
Hotel Vestibul Split, Small Luxury Hotels of the World (Hyatt Partner)
Flight: Croatian Airlines Economy Class Dash 8 and ATR 72-600 (Twin-Prop Plane) ZAG-SPU-ZAG-SJJ-ZAG (This Article)
Primeclass Lounge ZAG
6 Hours in Zagreb
Wine Tasting and Learning about Croatian Outlook
2 Days in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Restaurants in Sarajevo
Hotel Aziza Sarajevo (AABooking)
Business Lounge SJJ
Air Serbia Premium Lounge and Business Club: BEG Lounges
Flight: Swiss Airlines Economy Class Embraer E190-E2 and A220-300 BEG-ZRH-LJU
2 Amazing Days in Ljubljana, Slovenia
Food Scene in Ljubljana
Day Trip around Slovenia: Postojna Cave, Predjama Castle, Bled Castle, and Lake Bled
Hotel Emonec Ljubljana, Slovenia (Rocketmiles)
Flight: Air Serbia Economy Class ATR 72-600 and A319-100 ZAG-BEG, LJU-BEG-SKP
1.5 Days in Belgrade, Serbia
Restaurants in Belgrade
Hotel: Hyatt Regency Belgrade (Hyatt)
3 Hours in Skopje, North Macedonia
Primeclass Lounge SKP
Flight: Wizz Air Economy Class A321-200 SKP-MXP
14 Hours in Milan and Monza, Italy
Hotel de la Ville Monza, Italy, Small Luxury Hotels of the World (Hyatt Partner)
Sala Montale and Emirates Lounge MXP
Flight: Emirates First Class A380-800 MXP-JFK
Conclusion
Introduction:
Each flight featured the same plane, a Bombardier Q400 Twin Propeller plane. As such, this review will differ from the usual format. I will lump all categories together, mentioning only the differences between the individual flights.
Pricing:
Price: 6,000 United miles, 6,200 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points, and $213.03 for the price of all flights combined
Earnings: 1,065 AmEx Membership Rewards Points (5x on Flights using the AmEx Platinum Card)
Booking:
ZAG-SPU:
I paid $71.47 for this short domestic flight from Zagreb to Split. This was a much better option than adding onto my existing award ticket from Munich to Zagreb as it would have caused the price to increase significantly in miles.
One thing to note here is that this fare includes a free checked bag, unlike many fares on domestic (or cheap intra-Europe) routes.
SPU-ZAG-SJJ:
Always search around for the price on different sites! In this case, not only was Chase Travel pricing the flight for nearly $10 less than Croatia Airlines’ website, but I was able to purchase the Economy Class fare which included a checked bag for $153, less than the 176.75 Euro ($190.42) that would have been required to include a checked bag booking directly.
I chose to make this an “award flight”– there was no award space available, but I redeemed 6,200 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points at 1.5 cents each (those with the Sapphire Reserve can redeem for 1.5 cents each through the portal while those with the Sapphire Preferred can only redeem for 1.25 cents each, well below the optimal redemption value) to reduce the price by $93 to $59.70 as shown below.
SJJ-ZAG-BEG:
Finally, I booked my flight from Sarajevo back to Zagreb (before continuing on to Ljubljana via Belgrade and Zurich) using United miles. The price was just 6,500 United miles and $20.90, a reasonable sum compared to the $200+ that this ticket was selling for in cash.
Lounges:
ZAG-SPU:
There are no lounges on the domestic gates side of ZAG, so my initial visit through Zagreb Airport consisted solely of heading to the gate. However, I transited through Zagreb on international flights twice in two days, so I got to experience the Primeclass Lounge on the International side quite a bit!
SPU-ZAG:
There are no lounges in Split Airport, so I arrived 45 minutes before the departure and headed straight to my gate which was boarding.
ZAG-SJJ, ZAG-BEG:
On each of my visits to the Zagreb Airport international gates, I explored the Primeclass Lounge. Stay tuned for a full review, but this lounge is decent. While the food is lacking (the sweets were tasty, but the sandwiches and other “real food” were rather disappointing) and there is a limited alcohol selection, the space is very quiet and peaceful. No more than 5 people were in the lounge during either visit. That’s a tradeoff many would be willing to make.
SJJ-ZAG:
Before my flight from Sarajevo to Zagreb, I visited the sole lounge at SJJ, the descriptively named Business Lounge. While the drink selection was better– including decent wines– this was quite a basic lounge. There was no fresh food, just packaged sandwiches, desserts, and snacks. I had an ok sandwich, a solid mini bottle of red wine, and a mediocre boxed chocolate croissant.
The highlight was sitting at the window looking out at the fields where tunnels were dug to connect the airport with the city and help people escape during the Bosnian genocide in the 1990s. Sarajevo is a fascinating city, but the lounge was nothing more than a small room outside of the terminal with ok food and drink. This one was even crowded!
Recaps:
All Croatia Airlines flights featured the same setup of 2-2 seats in Economy.
ZAG-SPU:
Flight Info:
Route: ZAG-SPU (Zagreb, Croatia’s Zagreb Franjo Tuđman International Airport to Split, Croatia’s Saint Jerome Airport)
Date: Sunday, March 19, 2023
Flight: OU 380 (Croatia Airlines)
Plane: Bombardier Q400 (Dash 8)
Seat: 16F (Economy Window)
Upgrades: N/A, no Star Alliance Status
Est. Departure: 2:35pm local time (9:35am EDT)
Taxiing: 2:27pm local time (9:27am EDT)
Takeoff: 2:31pm local time (9:31am EDT)
Gate: 11 (Main Terminal, Domestic Flights)
Est. Arrival: 3:25pm local time (10:25am EDT)
Touchdown: 3:13pm local time (10:13am EDT)
Arrived at Gate: 3:17pm local time (10:17am EDT)
Gate: Bus stand (Terminal 2)
After clearing customs and retrieving my bag from baggage claim, I headed to the check-in, barely making the cutoff due to the lateness of our bags from Munich (come on Lufthansa, where’s that sense of German punctuality?!?). After that, I cleared security and headed right towards the domestic departures gates. Boarding was wrapping up, so I headed straight to the gate and out onto the tarmac after stopping for a view of our twin-propeller plane that would fly the short route to Split.
As is common on small planes, any suitcases or large bags were to be placed on the cart and placed with the other checked bags, to be retrieved after the flight. Everyone that I saw boarded from the front of the plane despite the use of both doors. The good news was this tiny plane was not nearly full and so took little time to complete boarding.
As for the flight itself, it seemed as though the flight was over before it began! We had time for water and nothing else as the total flight time was only 42 minutes!
Meals:
I assumed correctly that on a flight this short, there would be no meal service. Cups of water were distributed 15 minutes after takeoff, after which it was time to prepare for landing!
Sleep:
I did not sleep at all on these short flights and truthfully, you would not be able to do so– the combination of the short flights and tight planes was not conducive to sleep.
Experience:
We took off a few minutes ahead of schedule which is always nice, unless you’re running late! 😉 This was quite an efficient flight ass we pulled up to the gate 8 minutes ahead of schedule– impressive with a scheduled flight time of only 50 minutes! In short, it was short but easy.
Customs and Bags and Arrival:
As this was an domestic flight, there were no customs. We arrived at a gate (not bus gate) and I got my bag and called an Uber all within 10 minutes of landing. As I said, very efficient!
From the airport, I took the roughly 30 minute car ride into the historic city center. It was not immediately clear to me where the hotel was upon being dropped off, which was a nice as it allowed for a bit of a retreat from the hustle of the main tourist area while still having the perfect and convenient location!
SPU-ZAG:
Though I had a terrific time in Split, it was time to continue onwards towards Sarajevo so I headed to the airport for the reverse of the previous trip, a short jump from Split to Zagreb this time!
Flight Info:
Route: SPU (Split, Croatia’s Saint Jerome Airport) to ZAG (Zagreb, Croatia’s Zagreb Franjo Tuđman International Airport)
Date: Monday, 3/20/2023
Flight: OU 655 (Croatia Airlines)
Plane: Bombardier Q400 (Dash 8)
Seat: 9A (Economy Window)
Upgrades: N/A, no status
Est. Departure: 4:25pm local time (11:25am EDT)
Taxiing: 4:18pm local time (11:18am EDT)
Takeoff: 4:22pm local time (11:22am EDT)
Gate: 2 (Main Terminal, Domestic Flights)
Est. Arrival: 5:15pm local time (12:15pm EDT)
Touchdown: 4:57pm local time (11:57am EDT)
Arrived at Gate: 5:04pm local time (12:04pm EDT) * bus stand.
Gate: N/A, bus stand (Main Terminal)
Once again, for boarding we walked onto the tarmac and boarded exclusively from the front door of the plane. There were no groups called, everyone just boarded at once. We started at 4:03pm and boarding was complete at 4:15pm. You have to love the quick and easy process of boarding a twin-prop!
Once again we took off and landed ahead of schedule, this time our takeoff was a mere 3 minutes early while we arrived at the gate 11 minutes early. That’s about all there is to say! Once again, we got a cup of water and nothing else.
Meals:
Nothing! Though again, on a flight that is less than 40 minutes, that is to be expected. Unless of course you are flying a Gulf or Asian airline!
Sleep:
My comments here are the same as the previous flight from the other direction– it’s both too short and uncomfortable to sleep on this flight.
Experience:
I’m not the biggest fan of the Dash 8 planes. They are loud and generally uncomfortable. That said, they serve a purpose as inexpensive ways to fly short distances. With that viewpoint, it was nice to be able to zip up the coast to Zagreb and spend an entire day in Split without having to worry about a train or bus schedule. While the experience was lackluster, it is nice to be able to wipe out the long travel times!
I found it rather amusing that this flight had “Business Class.” indeed, there were small curtains pulled across for maybe 10 minutes (again of the 40 minute flight, the vast majority of it was spent either ascending or descending!) to give a bit of privacy. I really cannot imagine who would book into Business Class here as I can’t imagine the service is comparable with some of my favorite short-haul flights on Qatar Airways! 🙂
Customs and Bags and Arrival:
As with the ZAG-SPU flight, there was no customs as we were flying domestically. I had checked my suitcase to Sarajevo and took advantage of the layover to visit Zagreb, walk about a bit, and get some food and drinks!
The Uber only took 20 minutes so shortly after the plane landed, I was walking around in the capital city!
ZAG-SJJ:
After a couple of hours in Zagreb, highlighted by a wine tasting and good conversation with the bartender, it was time for the next flight heading onward to Sarajevo.
Flight Info:
Route: ZAG (Zagreb, Croatia’s Zagreb Franjo Tuđman International Airport) to SJJ (Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina’s Sarajevo International Airport)
Date: Monday, 3/20/2023
Flight: OU 342 (Croatia Airlines)
Plane: Bombardier Q400 (Dash 8)
Seat: 12D (Economy Aisle)
Upgrades: N/A, no status
Est. Departure: 10:00pm local time (5:00pm EDT)
Taxiing: 10:04pm local time (5:04pm EDT)
Takeoff: 10:09pm local time (5:09pm EDT)
Gate: 17 (Main Terminal, International Gates)
Est. Arrival: 10:50pm local time (5:50pm EDT)
Touchdown: 10:46pm local time (5:46pm EDT)
Arrived at Gate: 10:49pm local time (5:49pm EDT) * bus stand.
Gate: N/A, bus stand Main Terminal
I spent time in the Zagreb Primeclass Lounge before heading down the escalator to the lower gates. I arrived at the gate just as boarding began. These gates are bus gates. We got onto the bus at 9:47pm and arrived 7 minutes later. All passengers were on 1 bus so we were done boarding just 9 minutes after boarding the bus!
The flight lasted for an eternity at 37 minutes– a whole 2 minutes longer than the SPU-ZAG leg! 😉
Meals:
We started with canapés before a choice between a filet and lobster… 😉 Just kidding, unsurprisingly we had no meal service once again on this short flight!
Sleep:
Again, there was no chance of sleep on this short flight.
Experience:
The flight from Zagreb to Sarajevo was just as short and uneventful as the first two Croatia Airlines flights.
Customs and Bags and Arrival:
Customs took no time at all, I was able to enter the country in 1 minute though I had my first of several random searches in security.
In fact, it was so quick that I had to wait for my bags before entering as they had yet to come out. After the short delay, I was able to take an Uber to my hotel and arrived 35 minutes later.
SJJ-ZAG:
My next flight was also with Croatia Airlines, from Sarajevo to Zagreb. I got to know the Zagreb airport very well! 🙂
Flight Info:
Route: SJJ (Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina’s Sarajevo International Airport) to ZAG (Zagreb, Croatia’s Zagreb Franjo Tuđman International Airport)
Date: Wednesday, 3/22/2023
Flight: OU 345 (Croatia Airlines)
Plane: Bombardier Q400 (Dash 8)
Seat: 15F (Economy Window)
Upgrades: N/A, no status
Est. Departure: 4:10pm local time (11:10am EDT)
Taxiing: 3:58pm local time (10:58am EDT)
Takeoff: 4:01pm local time (11:01am EDT)
Gate: 4 (Main Terminal, International Gates)
Est. Arrival: 5:00pm local time (12:00pm EDT)
Touchdown: 4:39pm local time (11:39am EDT)
Arrived at Gate: 4:43pm local time (11:43am EDT) * bus stand.
Gate: N/A, bus stand Main Terminal
After my time in the underwhelming SJJ Business Lounge, boarding commenced at 3:45pm, exactly on time. Once again, there were no boarding groups and it took only 10 minutes for the boarding to be completed.
The flight was 38 minutes long, 5 minutes more than the outbound. Once again, the flight was uneventful and seemed to be over as soon as it began!
Meals:
Unsurprisingly, there was no meal service again on this flight!
Sleep:
The same story applies here, no chance for sleep given the lack of legroom/comfort and the short duration of the flight.
Experience:
The flight from Zagreb to Sarajevo was just as short and uneventful as the first two Croatia Airlines flights. We again barely spent any time at cruising altitude, seemingly ascending then proceeding to descend to the airport.
Customs and Bags and Arrival:
Customs was once again a quick process. I was able to clear customs after just 2 minutes and after collecting my bag, it was time to head to check in for my next flight to Belgrade on Air Serbia. Then, back to the Primeclass Lounge Zagreb once again!
Recap:
Croatia Airlines is a Star Alliance member and while not as famous as Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, and United Airlines, they provide lots of connectivity in Eastern Europe– an area not traditionally known for lots of options. I flew Croatia Airlines 4 times during my time in Eastern Europe in March and had a decent experience. The flights were all on Dash 8 planes and lasted less than 1 hour each. While not terribly memorable, it was an easy and convenient way to get around in this part of the world!
Next up: the recap of Zagreb Primeclass Lounge and my time in Croatia’s capital Zagreb.
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