Parking in Zadar with a hire car
Parking in Zadar is paid by zone, and the historic core of the peninsula is a pedestrian zone that no car enters without a City permit.
Can you drive into Zadar old town?
No. The historic core of the Zadar peninsula is a legally defined pedestrian zone, and no vehicle may drive in without a special City permit. Permits are given only for listed purposes and set time windows, such as deliveries between 06:00 and 07:30, garage owners inside the zone, and transport of seriously disabled or ill people. Residents get no blanket exemption, and general visitor driving is not one of the permit purposes.
The pedestrian zone does not cover the whole peninsula. Obala i lučice, the city parking company, runs paid parking on parts of the peninsula, including a zone reserved for peninsula residents where everyone else may park for up to 1 hour. Parking charges are the renter's cost under the rental conditions and are not part of the daily rate you are comparing when renting a car at Zadar Airport.
Where do you leave the car?
Obala i lučice runs the paid parking on public land on the peninsula and on Branimirova obala under a City of Zadar concession. It is divided into a blue first zone and a white second zone, which differ in parking rules and price. On Branimirova obala the company also manages a 53-space lot and the 115-space Ljepotica lot.
Garage Center, at 112. brigade ZNG 1, is a semi-open car park with 630 spaces, open 24 hours. Its operator gives the walk to the Old Town as 10 minutes.
- Branimirova obala
- A 53-space lot and the 115-space Ljepotica lot, run by Obala i lučice.
- Garage Center
- 630 spaces, open 24 hours, at 112. brigade ZNG 1.
- Residents' zone
- Reserved for peninsula residents; everyone else may park for up to 1 hour.
How do the parking zones work?
Zadar's public paid parking is divided into Zone 0 for peninsula residents, Zones 1 to 4, Petrčane, and the bus and railway station car park, each with its own SMS number. You pay at a parking meter, by texting the car's registration plate to the number shown for the zone, or through the e-Parking app or portal.
Only some zones have a maximum stay. Zone 1 is limited to 3 hours from 15 June to 31 August, and in Zone 0 everyone except residents is limited to 1 hour.
Parking charges and fines are the renter's cost under the rental conditions, in the same list as fuel and tolls. Damage to the wheels, undercarriage, windscreen and interior is what standard cover does not include. If the rental company is invoiced for a fine from your rental period, the amount and the administrative costs are charged to the deposit taken on the car. Some companies retain the deposit for 30 to 45 days after the car is returned.
What changes in high summer?
From 15 June to 31 August, parking in Zone 1 is limited to a maximum of 3 hours.
What about the other towns and the airport?
At Krka National Park, visitor parking at the main Lozovac entrance and at the other park entrances is free. In the town of Skradin, where the park boat to Skradinski buk leaves, the parking spaces are privately owned and charged.
At Plitvice Lakes National Park, visitor parking at Entrance 1 and Entrance 2 is paid at the payment stalls on the way out.
Most cars bookable at Zadar are based at the airport; the rest are at a rental office in town.
Questions
Can you park in Zadar old town?
Not inside the pedestrian zone, which no vehicle enters without a City permit. Parts of the peninsula outside the zone have paid parking, including a residents' zone where everyone else may park for up to 1 hour.
How do you pay for parking in Zadar?
At a parking meter, by texting the registration plate to the SMS number shown for the zone, or through the e-Parking app or portal.
Is parking in Zadar harder in summer?
From 15 June to 31 August, parking in Zone 1 is limited to a maximum of 3 hours.
Who pays a parking fine on a hire car?
The renter. A fine invoiced to the rental company after the car is returned is charged to the deposit with the administrative costs, and some companies retain the deposit for thirty to forty-five days.
Is parking ever included in the rental?
No. Parking is the renter's cost, in the same list as fuel, fines and tolls.
Does the car have to be clean when I bring it back?
If it comes back so dirty that the inspection is hindered, it is washed at your expense.