Pula Airport Transfer Options: My Personal Experience with Buses, Taxis & Car Rentals - Complete Information on Routes, Prices & Timetables
In this article I will tell you how to get to Pula Airport, and it to the center of the city of the same name and to other resorts of the Istrian peninsula by public transport, cab and rented car. About routes, schedules and prices for all these modes of transportation from Pula Airport, I will tell you in detail below.
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Pula Airport
Pula Airport (Croatian: Zračna Luka Pula) is located on the Istria peninsula in northwestern Croatia. The airport has a civil and military aviation terminal.
Arrival at Pula airport is convenient for vacationing in the resorts of Istria (Umag, Poreč, Rovinj, Labin) and the riviera resorts of Opatija (Opatija, Moščenicka Draga, Lovran, Icici) or the cities of northeastern Italy (Trieste, Venice), which can be reached from Pula by ferry.
In the small terminal you can count on a couple or three cafes, medical center and pharmacy, Duty Free, ATM, tour desk, VIP-lounge.
Pula Airport in Croatia
May be useful: Hotels near Pula Airport
Duty Free store
At Pula Airport there is a rather large Duty Free store with traditional for such places goods in the form of alcohol and chocolate. Istrian products include local wines, olive oil, traditional fig products, preserved olives, different types of honey and bee products, walnut oils, truffle products, locally produced cosmetics with lavender. Of course the Duty Free store will allow you to buy a couple of last minute souvenirs.
Duty-free here is good, there is a lot of choice, the price is as usual in airports
How to get from Pula airport to the city center
Unfortunately, transportation from the airport is more oriented to the fact that arrivals have to get there by cab, as well as by buses provided by the tour operator host.
Location map of Pula Airport
Buses from Pula Airport
Shuttle in the off-season runs only between Pula Airport and the Main Bus Station (Address: Trg 1. istarske brigade 1 52100 Pula), runs 3-4 times a day, the schedule is synchronized with the flights, i.e. after the arrival of the flight you need to get to the shuttle stop quickly and in an organized manner, the next bus may be very soon. The cost of a ticket to travel from the airport to the bus station is 6 euros for the 2023 season.
From the start of the tourist season, the shuttle will run between Pula Airport and Rovinj. Ticket prices are fixed for the season 2023 – 25 euro. Payment is possible by cash or bank card.
The bus stop is located near the exit of the arrivals area. There are bus ticket counters in the Pula Airport building. The bus is the most economical means of transportation from the airport to Pula and nearby towns.
If you want to save money on Pula airport transfers, take a bus to Pula airport
Schedule, routes and ticket prices of buses from Pula Airport
If you need to get to Vrsar, Funtana or the coastal resorts of Opatija, there are practically no options – only booking a transfer. If you want to save money, you can order a transfer to the bus station in Pula (Address: Trg 1. istarske brigade 1
52100 Pula) and then take an intercity bus. Or you can take a shuttle to the main bus station for 6 euro and then take intercity buses.
For most flights you don’t need to print tickets, you can show on your smartphone screen.
Fažana, Medulin, Premantura can be reached by public transportation from Pula.
Below are the bus fares from Pula airport to different places and resorts in Istria. The departure times of buses are linked to the arrival times of airplanes
Ceny biletów do destynacji w Istrii
| Destynacja | Cena biletu w euro |
|---|---|
| Pula (dworzec autobusowy) | 3,1 euro |
| Medulin | 5,1 euro |
| Novigrad | 36,5 euro |
| Poreč | 32 euro |
| Pula - plaża Verudela | 5,1 euro |
| Pula - plaża Puntažela | 5,1 euro |
| Rabac | 36,5 euro |
| Rovinj | 16 euro |
| Umag | 40,5 euro |
| Fazana | 5,1 euro |
You can buy a bus ticket from Pula Airport in advance online on the website of the bus company FILS Pula (English and Croatian) and Brioni (Croatian only). On the same sites you can see the exact departure times of buses on different days of the week, as they do not travel very often.
Please note that you cannot change the date of your trip once you have bought your ticket. You can also buy a ticket directly on the bus when boarding, but in this case you will pay an extra €1 for each ticket. The shuttles are usually quite comfortable and air-conditioned.
Some prices for trips from Pula Airport by FILS buses
Pula Bus Station
In Pula, the bus stops at the main bus station (Pula Autobusni kolodvor) and at the beaches of Verudela and Puntizela. From the main bus station in Pula you can already go by bus to other cities in Croatia, Montenegro, Slovenia. Below I have collected the most important information about the bus station in Pula that tourists need to know.
- Address of the bus station in Pula: Trg. 1 istarske brigade 1
- Pula Bus Station is located 1.2 km from the historic centre with its sights and 800 m from the famous Pula Amphitheatre. The railway station at Kolodvorska 5 and the port of Pula are not far from Pula Bus Station
- The telephone number of the bus station is +385 52 356 532.
- Services at Pula Bus Station: kiosk, ATM, coffee bar, fast food, toilet, luggage storage room
Popular domestic bus routes from Pula:
- Pula – Rovinj
- Pula – Poreč
- Pula – Umag
- Pula – Rijeka
- Pula – Zagreb
Popular international bus routes from Pula:
- Pula – Trieste (Italy)
- Pula – Venice (Italy)
- Pula – Ljubljana (Slovenia)
- Pula – Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
- Pula – Belgrade (Serbia)
Travel from Pula airport, with transfer at the railway station
If you want to get from Pula to other Croatian resorts by train, you will first have to go from Pula Airport to the Pula Autobusni kolodvor bus station, and from there walk to the railway station (Željeznički kolodvor Pula) for about 1.2 km.
From the railway station in Pula there are trains to remote corners of Central Istria: Vodnjan, Kanfanar, Pazin, as well as to the largest Croatian railway stations – Rijeka and Zagreb.
I haven’t used the train in Pula, but they say that as an alternative to the bus it’s not bad either
Taxi from Pula Airport
The taxi stop is located directly in front of the Pula Airport terminal. You can take a taxi to the centre of Pula or any Croatian seaside resort. Below I will tell you what to consider when travelling by taxi from Pula Airport.
Taxi will be advantageous to take from Pula Airport when travelling in a company or with children. Judge for yourself, a shuttle bus from Pula Airport to Porec costs 32 Euros per person and a taxi costs around 80-90 Euros. So, when travelling with two or three people, it will be much more convenient, faster and more budget-friendly to take a taxi.
Taxis in Pula are quite comfortable and, so far, not as expensive as in other countries
Taxi price from Pula airport
The cost of 1 kilometre is about 1.3 euros. The cost of 1 piece of luggage is 1.3 euros. There are surcharges for travelling at night, on Sundays and weekends. When boarding a taxi, make sure that the driver switches on the meter or agree on the fare in advance
Car hire at Pula airport
Renting a car is the best way to travel around Croatia. By renting a car, you will be able to see the most interesting beaches, national parks and nature reserves of the country without being tied to tour groups or public transport.
You will be able to make stops along the way wherever you want and for as long as you want. Please note that for trips to neighbouring Montenegro or Bosnia you do not need to buy additional insurance – a green card, which you will be given in the rental car together with the car, is enough.
Renting a car in Croatia is not suitable for you if:
- You plan to spend time only in major Croatian cities – Zagreb, Split, Dubrovnik. Intercity buses will comfortably take you from one city to another. In the cities themselves, you can travel by local public transport or walk. Car parking in Croatia’s major cities is often problematic and costs money
- You want to spend all day and night on the beaches in any of Croatia’s coastal resorts.
- You have not budgeted for car hire costs, car deposit, money for toll roads. To give you an idea of what I am talking about, the cost of renting a car per day in Croatia is at least 35 euros. The amount of the deposit, which will be blocked on your card when the car is handed over to you, will be from 850 to 3000 euros depending on the class of the car
Renting a car in Croatia is suitable for you if
- You are staying in a small village for a long period of time with children, where shops and restaurants are a problem. As a result, you just need a car for shopping trips
- You want to see all the most interesting parts of the country without a tour group in a small period of time – for example 1 week. Although Croatia is a small country, it is stretched out along the Adriatic coastline: the distance from Umag in the north to Dubrovnik in the south is 700 kilometres. It is also possible to travel the whole country by intercity transport, but it will be extremely tiring
- You are sufficiently independent and can make your own travelling route
Please note that the permitted speed limit in Croatian cities is 50 km/h and 130 km/h on motorways. A rented car can be transported to the Croatian islands by ferry, but cannot be taken to Italy.
In high season, it is simply unrealistic to book a car locally, so I advise everyone to book a hire car, in advance.
Prices for car rental at Pula airport
Prices for car rental at Pula airport
| Car class | Price per day | Deposit |
|---|---|---|
| Compact cars | 21 euro | 500 euro |
| Mid-range cars | 25 euro | 500 euro |
| SUV | 25 euro | 500 euro |
| Minivan | 65 euro | 500 euro |
| Luxury cars | 93 euro | 500 euro |
| Cabriolet cars | 46 euro | 500 euro |
The prices in the table are current as of November 2023. For the latest prices, check the available cars on this site
In order to find a great option of car rental in Pula airport and in Croatia in general, based on the ‘price/quality’ ratio, I recommend using the following three services comparing offers of different car rental companies: DiscoverCars, EconomyBbooking, AutoUrope.
Top 3 places to visit near Pula
Brijuni is a group of islands off the west coast of Istria. The islands are separated from the mainland by the Pheasant Strait and are located 6 kilometres from Pula. 14 of them have the status of a national park. On the largest island there are several hotels and individual villas. There is also the former residence of President Tito, where in his time crowned dignitaries and heads of state used to come here.
There are several restaurants, a sports complex, a water sports centre, diving, fishing, boat and yacht rentals, several tennis courts, a tennis school, a golf course (9 holes), a riding school, bicycle and electric car rentals.
Rabac is a friendly resort town, terraced down to the sea and immersed in greenery. Families with children and young people come here in summer and middle-aged couples in spring and autumn in search of nature and peace.
A resort centre on the east coast of Istria, 50 km from Pula airport, which became popular in the 60s and 70s. Rabac is a suitable place for lovers of water sports and active holidays: there is a wide range of boats equipped for fishing and scuba diving, canoes, catamarans and numerous diving schools.
Kamenyak National Park is a unique place that will leave an unforgettable impression on every tourist. The park is famous for its beautiful beaches with the purest water, which is delicately blue in colour. Here you can enjoy swimming in lagoons with a ‘marble’ bottom and watch a lot of fish, which will be a real pleasure for lovers of the underwater world.
The park is also known for its natural attractions, including dinosaur footprints that can be seen on site. For extreme sports enthusiasts, there are special cliff jumping spots to add adrenaline to your holiday.
In addition to the beautiful beaches and natural attractions, the park also offers tasty snacks at one of the bars, which offer a variety of dishes including freshly grilled calamari. There is a fee to enter the national park, however, if you prefer to walk, you can park in front of the entrance and walk to the beach for free.