Pula to Zadar
one-way car hire.

How far is Pula to Zadar by car?

Pula to Zadar is 393 km by road from Pula Airport to Narodni trg in the old town, a drive of 4 h 55. Zadar Airport is 391 km from Pula Airport, 4 h 50, and the Plitvice Lakes are 271 km away at Entrance 1, 4 h 00.

Times are without traffic or stops; summer queues and toll plazas add to them. Leave that margin when you set the return time.

Can I collect in Pula and return the car in Zadar?

Yes. Zadar is one of the return cities for a one-way Pula hire, with Zagreb, Split and Dubrovnik. Choose Zadar in the Drop off tab of the form above; the price each car shows is then the one-way price, the charge for returning elsewhere included, and it varies by car. The search lists Zadar airport (ZAD) and City delivery for Zadar, and your voucher gives the return point for your car.

Each car keeps its own deposit, card rule and free-cancellation mark.

Which road runs from Pula to Zadar?

The drive starts on the motorway through Istria, the Istrian Y: 91 km of motorway, the A9 north to Kanfanar and the A8 through the Učka tunnel to Matulji. The A7 round Rijeka and the A6, 81 km inland, bring the route to the A1 at Bosiljevo 2.

From Bosiljevo 2 the A1 runs 196 km south, past Ogulin, Brinje, Otočac, Perušić, Gospić, Sveti Rok, Rovanjska, Posedarje and Zadar centar, to the Zadar istok exit, signed Zadar 2 on older maps and on the airport’s site. From there the D424 towards Sukošan and Zemunik, a short local road and the D422 bring the car to the airport.

That stretch of the A1 runs through ten tunnels: Mala Kapela, 5,760 m and the longest in Croatia, then Brinje, 1,540 m, Brezik, Plasina, 2,300 m, Grič, 1,244 m, Krpani, 105 m, Sveti Rok, 5,681 m, Ledenik, Bristovac and Čelinka. It crosses the Gacka bridge, 466.3 m, and, on the Maslenica to Zadar section, the Maslenica bridge, 378.80 m. Before the A1, the A7 round Rijeka has four tunnels and the A6 twelve, the longest of them Tuhobić at 2,143 m.

The stretch between the Sveti Rok and Posedarje junctions is the one the bora closes. In bora conditions it has been shut to all traffic, as on 15 November 2024 and 6 April 2025, or kept to passenger cars, as on 2 October 2025, so check HAK’s road report on 072 777 777 before setting off.

How much are the tolls from Pula to Zadar?

An ordinary car pays class I, and tolls are the renter’s (clause 12): 12.10 EUR to Bina Istra for the Istrian Y, from the Pula plaza to Matulji through the Učka tunnel, and 19.40 EUR to HAC from the Rijeka (Grobnik) plaza on the A6 to the Zadar istok plaza. Until the barrier-free Crolibertas system applies in full, planned from 1 March 2027, both work by ticket: pay at the exit in cash or by card. A van over 1.90 m high or a car towing a trailer is class II and pays more.

Average daily traffic on the A1 in 2025 was 47,984 in August, 40,948 in July, 27,907 in September and 11,533 in January, so an August drive shares the motorway with about four times the January flow; allow for it when you set the return time.

Where can I stop for fuel between Pula and Zadar?

The Istrian Y, the A7 and the A6 have seven service areas with fuel on the way to the A1, the last of them Kupjak, which also has food and rooms. On the A1 south, fuel is at Dobra, Sokolac, Janjče, Zir and Jasenice, 23 km before the Zadar istok exit. Modruš, Jezerane and Lički Osik are shop and parking stops, and Brloška Dubrava, Ličko Lešće, Jadova and Marune are parking only.

The car goes back with the fuel it left with (clause 3), so Jasenice is the last motorway fuel stop before the return.

Where is the car returned, and where can I park in Zadar?

Zadar Airport, ZAD, has one passenger terminal, and its traffic is seasonal, much heavier in summer than in winter. A large rent-a-car area fills the middle of the car park in front of the terminal, between the taxi strip and the public parking, with two rent-a-car service points near Arrivals. More rent-a-car parking and a new entrance were planned in July 2026, so the layout may change; the return point for your car is the one on your rental voucher.

The historic core of the Zadar peninsula is a pedestrian zone for city permit holders, so park outside it and walk in. Paid parking is run by Obala i lučice in zones with their own SMS numbers, paid at a meter, by text or in the e-Parking app; zone 1 has a 3-hour limit from 15 June to 31 August. Garage Center at 112. brigade ZNG 1 has 630 spaces, open around the clock, a 10-minute walk from the old town.

What do I need to hire the car in Pula?

A national licence with Latin-script details valid to the last day, and a physical embossed credit card in the main driver’s name where the car asks for one (clauses 14 and 16). The charge runs in 24-hour days, fuel goes back at the level it left, and some companies hold the deposit for 30 to 45 days after the return (clauses 1, 3 and 17). What standard cover excludes on a Pula car is set by the rental conditions for Croatia: the wheels, the undercarriage, the windscreen and the interior (clause 5).