Croatia’s travel year turns on three dates, none of them the first of a month. Ferry tariffs rise on 29 May and revert on 28 September. The peak timetable runs 3 July to 30 August. Weather guides never mention any of them.
Two calendars, and they do not line up
Every line checked in the 2026 register runs the same tariff season: off-season from 1 January to 28 May and again from 28 September to 31 December, season in between. That is four months of higher fares. The timetable season is a different and shorter thing, and it varies by line.
| Line | Route | Off-season | Shoulder | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 634 | Korčula (Dominče) – Orebić | 14 sailings a day | 20 a day | 22 a day, 3 Jul – 30 Aug |
| 602 | Vis – Split | 2 sailings a day | 2 to 3 a day | 3 a day, 3 Jul – 20 Sep |
| 807 | Elafiti – Dubrovnik | 4 a day Mon–Sat, 2 Sun and holidays | 4 a day Mon–Sat, 2 Sun and holidays | 4 a day Mon–Sat, 2 Sun and holidays |
| 9604 | Ubli – Vela Luka – Hvar – Split | 1 rotation a day | 1 rotation a day | 1 rotation a day |
| 9807 | Ubli – Korčula – Polače – Sobra – Šipan – Dubrovnik | Sobra, Šipanska Luka and Dubrovnik only | Sobra, Šipanska Luka and Dubrovnik only | Full route, 3 Jul – 30 Aug only |
Line 9604 is the one to notice. It runs a single rotation a day whatever the month, so the Split to Hvar catamaran is no more frequent in August than in February — what changes is the price and how many other operators are running alongside it. See the Split–Hvar corridor for the full list of services on that one route.
Sailings a day on line 634, Korčula to Orebić, by month. The steps fall on 29 May, 3 July, 31 August and 28 September, not on the first of anything. Source: Agencija ZOLPP, 2026 state coastal line register and per-line timetables, verified 19 August 2026.
What the tariff boundary is worth
The gap between the two tariff seasons is largest on vehicles and smallest on children. A car under 5 m to Vis is 28 per cent more expensive in season; a foot passenger to Hvar is 56 per cent more. The tool below is the published 2026 tariff, not an estimate.
Crossing
Travelling as
Tariff period
Two further tariffs exist on these lines and run all year: an islanders' tariff and a public-service tariff, both below the visitor rate. Neither is available to a visitor and neither appears above. Anyone quoting you those numbers is quoting a residents' fare.
Treating the timetable season and the tariff season as one thing
They share no boundary. Fares go up on 29 May, five weeks before the timetable peaks on 3 July, and stay up until 28 September, four weeks after the peak ends on 30 August. The expensive period is twice as long as the busy one.
The two windows worth knowing are therefore the last week of May and the last days of September, when off-season fares coincide with a working sea and a decent timetable. Neither shows up in a month-by-month weather guide, because neither is about weather. The climate case for a month is a separate argument and it points at September.
Getting there, not just getting around
The air side has its own seasonality and it is steeper than the sea side. In June 2025 Split airport handled around 578,000 passengers; in November 2025 it handled 62,250. Zagreb handled 337,851 in the same November, which is why an out-of-season trip is usually an inland-entry trip. The airport picture and flight routes set the outer limit on when a trip is practical at all.
Money is one thing that no longer varies: Croatia adopted the euro on 1 January 2023 at a fixed 7.53450 HRK to €1 and joined the Schengen area the same day, so there is no exchange step and no internal border from elsewhere in the Schengen zone at any time of year.
What to decide before you book
- You are bringing a vehicle. Cross before 29 May or after 28 September: €40.60 to Vis rather than €52.00.
- You need the full southern catamaran. Line 9807 runs its complete route only 3 July to 30 August.
- You want frequency. Line 634 runs 22 sailings a day at peak against 14 off-season.
- You are flying out of season. Enter through Zagreb. Split fell from about 578,000 in June 2025 to 62,250 in November.
Find flights and hotels for your dates
What do you need to work out next?
The dates are set. These are the moving parts they act on.
Where to stay
Does the base change out of season?
Split airport handled 62,250 passengers in November 2025 against about 578,000 in June.
Getting around
Which of the 68 routes survive winter?
17 of them are commercial lines with no public service obligation.
When to go
Which month is best on the weather alone?
September holds 17 days above 25°C at Split Marjan; October holds one.
Planning
Once the dates are set, what comes next?
From 31 August to 27 September season fares hold although the peak timetable has ended.
Ferry data: Agencija za obalni linijski pomorski promet (ZOLPP), 2026 state coastal line register and per-line timetables. Climate data: DHMZ (meteo.hr), climate normals 1971–2000. Passenger figures: Državni zavod za statistiku (DZS), monthly airport traffic releases.