Zadar's street parking changes price with the calendar. Until 30 April, Zone 1 by the old town is €0.80 an hour and free after 16:00 on weekdays. From 15 June it's €1.60, three hours at most, charged until 22:00, Sundays included.
How I'd park: in Zone 2 or 3 on the mainland side, then walk onto the peninsula. The peninsula's own streets are Zone 0, kept for residents, and you get one hour there.
Parking in Zadar: Four zones, two seasons, one hour on the peninsula
1. Check the date before the price
Obala i lučice (OiL), the city company that runs paid parking, works to two calendars. From 1 October to 30 April it charges weekdays 08:00–16:00 and Saturdays 08:00–14:00. From 1 May it charges 08:00–22:00, Monday to Saturday. From 15 June to 31 August Sundays and holidays are charged too.
2. Learn the four zone prices
Off-season, Zone 1 is €0.80 an hour, Zone 2 €0.50, Zone 3 €0.40 and Zone 4 €0.30. Day tickets are €6.40, €4.00, €3.20 and €2.40. From 15 June Zone 1 goes to €1.60 with a three-hour limit, and Zone 2 to €1.30, or €18.20 a day. Zones 3 and 4 keep their prices all year. That summer day in Zone 2 costs more than four times the winter one.
3. Don't plan to park on the peninsula
The old town's streets are Zone 0. OiL keeps them for residents with permits, and everyone else gets one hour at most. eZadar gives the price as €0.80 an hour, charged around the clock, every day. If your hotel is on the peninsula, I'd use that hour to unload and ask the hotel where the car should sleep. No rule for hotel guests is published.
4. Pay with the app or a meter
OiL lists three ways to pay: an SMS to a number for each zone (Zone 1 is 708231, €0.13 a message), the Bmove app, and 42 parking meters. Localrent says Croatian SMS parking only takes local SIM cards; OiL doesn't say either way. With a foreign phone I'd install Bmove before arriving.
5. Use a garage when summer prices bite
City Galleria, a shopping centre north of the peninsula, has over 400 underground spaces: first hour free, then €1.50 an hour. The Voštarnica public garage has 630 spaces; Zadarski list reported €0.50 an hour in winter and €2 in summer in October 2024. At Gaženica ferry port, the port authority charges €0.80 an hour in winter and €1.30 in summer in Zone A.
In July I'd buy Zone 2's €18.20 day ticket rather than race a Zone 1 meter every three hours.
Car parks worth knowing
| Car park | Price | EV |
|---|---|---|
| City Galleria garagePolačišće 4, north of the peninsula; underground levels −1 and −2, open around the clock | First hour free, then €1.50 an hour. Two hours free with a SPAR receipt, three with a validated Cinestar ticket. Over 400 spaces. | Not published. |
| Voštarnica public garageVoštarnica, in the wider city centre on the mainland side; five levels | €0.50 an hour in winter, €2 in summer; weekly pass €60. 630 spaces. Figures from Zadarski list, October 2024; no current official price list found. | Not published. |
| Gaženica ferry port (Port Authority)Gaženica passenger port, south-east of the centre, where the bigger ferries leave | Zone A €0.80 an hour (1 October–31 May), €1.30 (1 June–30 September); zones B and C €0.50 / €0.70. First 15 minutes free in A and B. Free on Sundays and holidays except 15 June–31 August. | Not published. |
| Bus and railway station zone (OiL)By Zadar's bus and railway stations, south-east of the peninsula | €0.50 an hour, first hour free. | Not published. |
| Zadar AirportAt the terminal, inland near Zemunik; tariff in force since 1 January 2023 | €3.50 the first hour, €2 the second, €1.50 the third, then €1 an hour. No day tickets. First 10 minutes free once a day; a lost ticket is €150. | Not published. |
The cheapest way to park, by how long you stay
| If you stay | Cheapest | Cost | Watch out |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 hours in the centre | Bus and railway station zone (OiL) | €0.50 | first hour free, once a day |
| …and the cheapest central garage | Voštarnica public garage | €4 | Summer rate, 2024 report; winter €0.50 |
| …and the kerb, for comparison | Kerb, Zone 1 (off-season) | €1.60 | Off-season price. From 15 June to 31 August Zone 1 is €1.60 an hour with a three-hour maximum, charged Monday to Sunday 08:00–22:00. |
| A full day (10 h) | Bus and railway station zone (OiL) | €4.50 | first hour free, once a day |
| …and the cheapest central garage | Voštarnica public garage | €20 | Summer rate, 2024 report; winter €0.50 |
| …and the kerb, for comparison | Kerb, Zone 1 (off-season) | €6.40 | Off-season price. From 15 June to 31 August Zone 1 is €1.60 an hour with a three-hour maximum, charged Monday to Sunday 08:00–22:00. |
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Towed in Zadar: The pauk goes to Ravnice, opposite the hospital
1. Ring 023 302 100 first
OiL also runs the tow truck, which locals call the pauk, the spider. Its line for removed vehicles answers 24 hours and tells you whether your car was taken.
2. Go to Ravnice
The car pound is the Ravnice car park at Marka Marulića 4, opposite the city hospital. It's open 07:00–21:00, until 22:00 in summer. Outside those hours OiL sends you to the traffic police.
3. Bring €70, a licence and ID
For a car up to 1,500 kg the tow is €60 and storage €10 a day, so one night costs €70. If the truck is already there but you reach the car first, it's €30; a wheel clamp is €80. Foreign plates pay on the spot, cash or card, and you show your driving licence and an identity document.
Seventy euros is nearly eleven winter day tickets in Zone 1. I'd rather pay the meter.
If your car has disappeared
- Who took it
- Obala i lučice (OiL), the city's parking company, runs the tow truck (the pauk). Ring first: the line answers around the clock
- Phone
- Removed vehicles, OiL, 24 hours: 023 302 100
Complaints, OiL tow office, Mon–Fri 08:00–15:00: 023 312 297
OiL head office, Andrije Medulića 2: 023 316 924 - Collect it at
- Ravnice car park, Marka Marulića 4, opposite the city hospital.
- Hours
- 07:00–21:00, in summer until 22:00. Outside those hours OiL refers you to the traffic police. OiL's parking-map page gives the office as Mon–Fri 08:00–15:00; the towing page's longer hours are for collection.
- What it costs
- Car up to 1,500 kg: tow €60, storage €10 a day; over 1,500 kg €90. Attempted tow (you arrive first) €30, wheel clamp €80. One night in the pound: €70.
- Bring
- Driving licence and identity document. Foreign-plated cars pay immediately, cash or card; only Croatian plates can be invoiced.
EV charging in Zadar: Two ELEN posts in town, eight Superchargers inland
1. Use the ELEN posts on the waterfront
HEP's ELEN network has two AC posts in town, each 2×22 kW, Type 2: one on Obala kneza Branimira facing the peninsula, opened in October 2019, and one on Ulica Bartola Kašića, from 2017. Charging was free back then. Today's price isn't on the city's pages.
2. Expect a €33 hold on your card
ELEN takes payment in its app, by QR code or by bank-card pre-authorisation. It reserves €33 at an AC post and €53 at a DC one, then releases what you didn't use. Make sure the card has room.
3. Fast-charge at Tromilja
Tesla lists a Supercharger at Tromilja, inland near the airport: eight stalls, up to 250 kW, open 24 hours and open to other CCS cars. Shell runs the site.
For a fast top-up I'd go to Tromilja; the town posts suit a long lunch.
Where to charge
- ELEN, Obala kneza Branimira — Obala kneza Branimira, the Jazine waterfront facing the peninsula. HEP's ELEN post, opened 24 October 2019: 2×22 kW AC, Type 2, two bays. It was free then; the current price is not published on the city's pages
- ELEN, Ulica Bartola Kašića — Ulica Bartola Kašića, by the former Technical School. Zadar's first ELEN post, opened 16 February 2017: two cars at once, Type 2. ELEN reserves €33 on your card at AC posts until billing
- Tesla Supercharger Tromilja — 8 stalls — Tromilja, inland near the airport; Shell runs the site. Up to 250 kW, open 24 hours, open to other CCS cars. Price per kWh is shown in the Tesla app, not published on the page
Free parking in Zadar: Free after four in winter, and a free first hour
1. Park after 16:00 from October to April
Off-season, the kerb is free after 16:00 on weekdays, after 14:00 on Saturday, and all day on Sundays and holidays. Zone 0 on the peninsula is the exception: it charges around the clock.
2. Take the free first hour
OiL's zone at the bus and railway stations charges €0.50 an hour with the first hour free. City Galleria also gives an hour free, two with a SPAR receipt and three with a Cinestar ticket. North of the city, the Petrčane car park only charges from 15 June to 31 August.
3. Don't count on a free hotel space
I found no Zadar hotel whose own site states that parking is free. One site I checked quotes a guest review that mentions it, which isn't the same thing. Ask before you book.
If you remember one thing: from 15 June, Sundays aren't free. Every price above was checked on OiL's own pages on 3 October 2026.
Free or nearly-free spots
Winter afternoons and every off-season Sunday
From 1 October to 30 April OiL charges weekdays 08:00–16:00 and Saturdays 08:00–14:00. After that, and all day on Sundays and holidays, the kerb is free, except Zone 0 on the peninsula, which charges around the clock.
The first hour at the stations and City Galleria
OiL's bus and railway station zone gives the first hour free, then €0.50 an hour. The City Galleria garage also gives an hour free, two with a SPAR receipt, three with a Cinestar ticket.
Petrčane, off-season
The resort village of Petrčane, north of the city, has an OiL car park of 160 spaces that only charges from 15 June to 31 August, €0.30 an hour.
⚠ The small print on 'free' parking
- The peninsula's Zone 0 is reserved for residents with permits. Everyone else may stay one hour at most, and eZadar gives the price as €0.80 an hour, charged around the clock, every day.
- SMS parking goes to a different number per zone (Zone 1 is 708231, €0.13 a message). Localrent says Croatian SMS parking only accepts local SIM cards; OiL doesn't say either way. Use the Bmove app or one of OiL's 42 meters.
- Summer runs on two calendars. OiL's 'summer mode' starts on 1 May with charging until 22:00, but the doubled Zone 1 and 2 prices and paid Sundays only apply from 15 June to 31 August.
- OiL's own day-ticket table is still in kuna (48 kn for a winter Zone 1 day, for example). The euro day prices in its zone list (€6.40 for the same day) are the ones to use.
- I found no low-emission or camera-controlled traffic zone in Zadar. The restriction that matters is parking: Zone 0 on the peninsula.
Take these places with you
Every place on this page as a file you can keep — car parks with their prices, the free and park-and-ride spots, the chargers and the pound.