October the 11th, 2025 – United Airlines is set to introduce direct flights to Split in 2026, further boosting tourism from the USA.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Sinisa Malus writes, United Airlines will introduce a new seasonal summer route between Newark and Split next year, and the largest city in Dalmatia will become its second destination in Croatia after Dubrovnik.
It’s also the first scheduled flight to Split on a long-haul route. Operations will begin on April the 30th, 2026 and will operate three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from Newark and on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays from Split.
United Airlines will use its Boeing 767-300ER aircraft for its direct flights to Split in 2026, which can accommodate 167 or 203 passengers, depending on the configuration.
The moves show the latest strategy of United Airlines, which focuses on travellers with higher spending power who are looking for destinations outside of major European capitals, according to CNBC. The company offers them the opportunity to reach these places directly, without connecting at major airports. This puts them in direct competition with Delta, which is also fighting for premium passengers.
americans with deeper pockets are being targeted with the united airlines direct flights to split in 2026
Split is part of the Star Alliance member’s transatlantic expansion, which will include the addition of Bari in Italy and Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Commenting on the network expansion, Patrick Quayle, United’s senior vice president of global network planning and alliances, said United has an unparalleled international network.
“We pride ourselves on connecting our passengers to unique, trendy destinations that no other American airline serves. With the addition of these new flights and the return of all of our new routes from last year, United now flies to 46 cities across the Atlantic, more than any other airline, and is the undisputed US leader,” said Quayle.
The new United Airlines direct flights to Split will be “stretched out” during the summer season until September the 5th. In addition to Dubrovnik, the carrier will operate up to ten weekly rotations to Croatia next summer. Split Airport otherwise recorded 561,394 passengers in September this year, which is more than last September (535,233 passengers). After the first nine months of this year, Split has seen as many as 3,430,085 passengers, and a new annual record will be set by the end of the year.
Croatia has been trying to improve its direct connection with the United States for some time now.
more guests from america are arriving
The reason for the introduction of the United Airlines direct flights to Split, in addition to the continued connection to Dubrovnik in 2026, lies in the fact that Dalmatia and the south of Croatia are the most interesting for American tourists. According to eVisitor data, from January to the end of September this year, more than 238,000 Americans visited Dubrovnik, which is an increase of almost 14 percent compared to the same period last year. They achieved more than 640,000 overnight stays, which made them the second most visited foreign visitor, right behind European visitors like the British.
Just last week alone, the Croatian National Tourist Board presented the Croatian tourist offer at the ILTM North America luxury travel fair in the Bahamas. This is one of the key business events for connecting global luxury travel suppliers with specialised advisors from the USA, Canada and Mexico. The main exhibitor at ILTM is the Croatian National Tourist Board in partnership with the Croatian Chamber of Commerce.
“We’re pleased that our American partners, who mostly consider Croatia as a top destination, have very specific inquiries and announce an intensification of sales of Croatian destinations. This is a clear signal and announcement of growth in the coming years, especially when such announcements come from respected professionals.
The American market undoubtedly remains our most promising distant market, especially in the premium and luxury segment, and is all the more impressive owing to a whole series of significant investments in the luxury level of tourism offer in Croatia, from American brands such as Hyatt Regency and Curio by Hilton to the Materra wellness hotel near Osijek. We’re particularly looking forward to the announced investments of domestic groups such as Maistra and Valamar,” said Leila Krešić-Jurić, Director of the Croatian Tourist Board’s North American Representative Office.
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