Dubrovnik Airport to Old Town: Bus, Taxi & Transfer Prices 2026

The easiest way from Dubrovnik Airport to the Old Town is the Platanus airport shuttle bus: €10 one way, about 30 minutes to the cable car stop just above the Old Town walls, with a departure after every arriving flight. A taxi or ride-hailing car takes around 25–35 minutes and typically costs around €40–€60, while the local Libertas buses are cheaper but infrequent. For a driver waiting in arrivals at a fixed price, compare operators on our Dubrovnik Airport transfers page.

Dubrovnik Airport to Old Town: quick comparison

Option	Price	Journey time	Runs	Best for
Platanus airport shuttle	€10 one way, €15 return, under-6s free	About 30 min to the cable car stop, 35 min to Gruž	After every arriving flight, first to last flight	Old Town, Gruž port, solo travellers and couples
Libertas local bus (lines 11, 27, 38)	Around €4–€5	Longer, plus a change for the Old Town	A few times a day	Konavle villages, tight budgets
Taxi	Around €40–€60 to the Old Town	25–35 min (up to an hour in summer traffic)	24/7, rank outside arrivals	Families, late arrivals, door-to-door
Uber / Bolt	Price shown in app; Bolt estimates around €38–€57 standard	As taxi	24/7, subject to availability	App users
Pre-booked private transfer	Fixed price per vehicle, agreed in advance	As taxi	24/7, timed to your flight	Groups, Cavtat, Montenegro, Split, child seats

Croatia uses the euro, so all prices here are in EUR. Shuttle and bus fares are per person; taxi, app and transfer prices are per vehicle, which means a car can work out similar to the shuttle for three or four people.

Dubrovnik Airport shuttle bus (Platanus)

Dubrovnik Airport sits at Čilipi, about 22.5 km south-east of Dubrovnik. The official airport shuttle is run by Platanus. Buses leave from just outside the arrivals area near the main entrance – look for the white post marked “Shuttle bus”.

• Timetable: there are no fixed clock times. A bus leaves about 30 minutes after each flight lands, from the first arrival of the day to the last, every day including weekends and holidays. If your flight is delayed or you miss a bus, your ticket is valid on any departure that day.
• Stops: the first stop is the Old Town cable car stop, about 30 minutes from the airport, which is the closest point to the walls. The bus then continues to the main bus station at Gruž, about 35 minutes, which is around 500 m from the ferry port.
• Fares: €10 one way and €15 return; children under 6 travel free. One suitcase per ticket is included and stored in the hold.
• Tickets: buy online in advance (recommended in peak season), at the airport counter, at the bus station or at the cable car stop office. Tickets are not sold on board. Staff scan the QR code on your phone.

From the cable car stop it is a few minutes downhill on foot to the Ploče and Buža gates of the Old Town; for Pile Gate on the western side, walk through the Old Town along the Stradun or take a city bus. Note that cars cannot drive into the Old Town itself, so even taxis drop you at a gate. Platanus says timetables can change in April–May and October–December, so check platanus.hr if you travel outside the summer season.

For the return trip, the shuttle starts at Gruž bus station (platform 8), stops at Grawe about 5 minutes later and at the cable car stop about 10 minutes later. From the cable car stop to the airport takes around 25 minutes, but summer traffic leaving the city can add time.

Dubrovnik Airport bus: Libertas local lines

The city bus company, Libertas, runs suburban lines 11, 27 and 38 that serve the airport area, according to the airport. They are designed for the villages of Konavle rather than for air travellers: departures are only a few times a day, line 11 does not run on Sundays or public holidays, and the stop is on the main road outside the airport rather than at the terminal door. None of them goes directly to Pile Gate, so for the Old Town you would usually change at Gruž onto a city line. A city single costs €2.50 and the Cavtat fare is €4.00 on the Libertas price list. Unless you are staying in a Konavle village on the route, the shuttle is far more convenient.

Dubrovnik Airport taxi price

Taxis wait at the rank directly outside arrivals. Croatian taxi firms set their own tariffs, so there is no single regulated fare. Expect around €40–€60 to the Old Town or Lapad, depending on the company, the time of day and traffic. In July and August the 25–35 minute drive can stretch to an hour on the coast road into the city.

Ask the driver to confirm the price or the use of the meter before you set off, and check whether card payment is accepted. If you are going a long way – to Montenegro, Split or Mostar – agree the full price, including waiting at the border, in advance.

Uber and Bolt at Dubrovnik Airport

Both Uber and Bolt operate in Dubrovnik and the surrounding Konavle area, including airport pickups. You choose the pickup point in the app, which may not be the nearest exit. Bolt’s published route estimate for the airport to Dubrovnik is about 27 km and 29 minutes, with a standard ride around €57 and a cheaper option from around €38; Uber shows its price before you confirm. Surge pricing in summer can make app rides as expensive as a taxi, and early-morning or late-night waits can be longer.

Pre-booked private transfers from Dubrovnik Airport

A pre-booked transfer means a driver meets you in arrivals with a name sign, follows your flight if it is late, and drives you straight to your accommodation at a price agreed beforehand. Since the Old Town is car-free, a good driver will drop you at the gate or street nearest your apartment. It is worth considering when:

• you land late at night, or your accommodation is in Lapad, Babin Kuk, Cavtat or the Pelješac peninsula rather than by a shuttle stop;
• you are a family needing child seats, or a group with luggage that would need two taxis;
• you are heading across the border to Kotor or Budva, or up the coast to Split, where a fixed price avoids surprises;
• you want to avoid queuing for the shuttle or for a taxi in peak season.

Compare operators on our Dubrovnik Airport transfers hub or browse transfers in Dubrovnik. Local companies in our directory include Transfers Dubrovnik, M-Dub Dubrovnik Private Transfers, Adria Luxury Travel Dubrovnik, Day Trip Dubrovnik (Taxi Mata) and Transfer Novi Herceg Novi. Contact them directly for a quote and confirm what is included – waiting time, child seats, luggage and any border fees.

Dubrovnik Airport to Cavtat, Montenegro, Split and Mostar

Dubrovnik Airport to Cavtat

Cavtat is the closest resort to the airport – about 6 km and around 15 minutes by car – so many visitors stay there rather than in Dubrovnik. The shuttle does not go to Cavtat and local buses are infrequent, so a taxi, app ride or short transfer is the practical choice. Bolt’s estimates for this route start at around €15. See Cavtat transfers.

Dubrovnik Airport to Kotor and Budva (Montenegro)

The airport is the nearest major airport to the Bay of Kotor. The drive runs south through Konavle to the Croatia–Montenegro border, then around the bay. Allow around 1.5–2.5 hours to Kotor and 2–3 hours to Budva, depending on the queue at the border. Croatia is in the Schengen area and Montenegro is not, so there are full passport checks, and in summer waits can be long. Make sure your driver and vehicle have the paperwork to cross. See Kotor transfers and Budva transfers.

Dubrovnik Airport to Split

Split is roughly 230 km up the coast, usually 3–4 hours by car. Since the Pelješac Bridge opened in 2022, the main route stays inside Croatia and no longer has to cross the short Bosnian coastline at Neum, though some drivers still use the old road. See Split transfers.

Dubrovnik Airport to Mostar

Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina is a popular day trip or onward stop, around 2.5–3 hours by road with a border crossing. See Mostar transfers.

Tips for arriving at Dubrovnik Airport

• Night arrivals. The shuttle runs until the last flight, but if your flight is badly delayed after midnight, a pre-booked driver who tracks your flight removes the worry.
• Buy shuttle tickets online in summer. Queues at the counter can be long when several flights land together.
• Use official taxis or apps. Ignore people offering rides inside the terminal. Official taxis have a roof sign and wait at the marked rank.
• Payment. The shuttle takes cards online and at the counter. Not every taxi accepts cards, so ask before you get in or carry some euros.
• Tipping. Not required; rounding up a taxi fare or adding a few euros for help with heavy bags is common.
• Peak traffic. The coast road into Dubrovnik and the cruise-ship hours around the Old Town and Gruž port slow everything in July and August. On departure day, leave plenty of time for the airport.