Retail alcohol sales end at 9 pm throughout the city in summer. Shops may remain open, however, and bars may continue serving drinks. That distinction is crucial for late arrivals and evenings on the beach.
What Split actually decided
Since 19 August 2026, a time restriction on retail sales of alcoholic drinks has applied throughout the administrative territory of the City of Split. Every year from 1 June through 15 September, shops and other covered outlets may sell alcohol only between 06:00 and 21:00. Sales end from 21:00 until 06:00 the following day—not possession, and not automatically every form of serving alcohol.
The City Council adopted the decision on 29 July. It was published in municipal Official Gazette No. 36/2026 on 11 August and took effect on the eighth day after publication. In its first year, the rule therefore did not apply retroactively from 1 June, but began in practice on 19 August. From 2027 onward, the summer window runs as normal from the first day of June through 15 September.
The rule covers the entire city—not just the old town
Thinking only of the Riva, Diocletian's Palace or the nightlife areas misses the point. The decision names the entire administrative territory of the City of Split. A supermarket in a residential district, a kiosk near the port or an outlet outside the historic centre is therefore not exempt merely because of its location.
Conversely, the decision must not be extended to all of Dalmatia. Solin, Podstrana, Kaštela, Trogir and island settlements are separate cities or municipalities and would need their own local decision to impose the same restriction. A ten-minute drive across an administrative boundary is not reliable travel advice: opening hours, local rules and the question of who can drive safely remain separate matters.
Summer rule for shops and kiosks
6 am to 9 pm window for summer retail alcohol sales in Split, distinguishing other goods and hospitality
More forms of selling are covered than supermarkets alone
The Official Gazette defines retail broadly. It lists retail premises and warehouses with sales, markets, kiosks, stalls, vending machines, mobile sales and outlets at fairs and events. It does not matter whether alcohol is the core business. Even an outlet that carries beer or wine as only part of its range must stop selling it during the restricted hours.
For visitors, this means neither a small late-night kiosk nor a vending machine is automatically a loophole. A market stall or mobile outlet cannot continue selling merely because it has no conventional supermarket entrance. The rule follows the act of selling, not what the business looks like.
The shop may stay open after 9 pm
The most common misreading is that Split closes its shops after 9 pm. That is not true. A shop can keep its regular opening hours and continue selling water, food, toiletries and other goods. Only alcoholic drinks and other beverages containing alcohol may not pass through the till during the restricted period.
In practice, bottles may be locked away, shelves covered or tills configured to reject the item. The technical solution chosen by a retailer does not change the rule. Someone reaching the checkout with beer at 21:05 is not entitled to an exception because the trolley also contains other goods or the shop door is still open.
Bars and restaurants are not covered by this retail decision
The municipal decision relies on a new provision of Croatia's Trade Act and regulates retail sales. Hospitality businesses—such as bars, restaurants and cafés—are therefore not the subject of this specific sales ban. They may continue serving drinks within the terms of their own authorisation and opening hours.
This is no guarantee that every bar may remain open indefinitely or sell takeaway alcohol. Hospitality is governed by other regulations, municipal opening hours, noise rules and operating permits. The correct takeaway is this: summer retail alcohol sales in Split end at 9 pm; lawful service by a hospitality business is a separate matter.
Late arrival at an apartment: water and breakfast yes, wine perhaps not
Anyone arriving by ferry, plane or car late in the evening can still use an open shop for ordinary groceries. Wine, beer or spirits, however, should be sorted out before 9 pm. This matters especially when accommodation has neither reception nor catering and guests are providing for themselves on the first night.
A bottle already lawfully bought in Split is not prohibited by the decision. It governs the sale, not the private carrying of a legally purchased drink. Other rules may still apply to drinking in public, behaviour on the beach, protection of minors and house rules. Permission to possess something does not automatically mean permission to drink it everywhere.
A beach evening or picnic needs no stockpile—just timing
For a planned evening by the sea, the main change is the time of the purchase. Anyone wanting drinks should buy them in good time and also arrange water, rubbish bags and a safe way home. The rule is no reason to stock up for a week in the afternoon. It merely changes the last lawful checkout time for alcohol.
Glass bottles, noise and litter remain poor companions at bathing areas regardless. Individual beaches, parks, accommodation providers or events may have their own rules. Golden Beach therefore does not turn Split's new decision into general permission to drink outside hospitality venues. It answers only when and where retailers may sell.
Online orders, delivery and takeaway are not a guaranteed workaround
Croatia's new trade legislation also regulates online sales of alcoholic drinks and requires reliable age verification. Split's decision additionally names mobile and various non-fixed forms of selling. Anyone ordering through an app after 9 pm should therefore not assume that a digital interface overrides the local time limit.
For restaurant delivery or takeaway, the legal classification may depend on the individual business and its permit. A blanket promise would be irresponsible. The practical answer is simpler: buy private supplies from ordinary retail before 9 pm; for later consumption, use an open hospitality business operating lawfully.
Why the rule returns every summer
The Trade Act amended in June 2026 allows municipalities to restrict sales of alcoholic drinks between 21:00 and 06:00 throughout their territory when this serves to protect health, public order, cultural heritage or the environment. Split uses this framework seasonally. The city selected the period when visitor numbers and night-time pressures are especially high.
The decision is therefore neither a spontaneous weekend ban nor a one-off response to a single event. Its wording makes it an annual measure. Outside the period from 1 June to 15 September, this particular local summer restriction does not apply; national rules protecting minors, ordinary opening hours and other legislation naturally remain in force.
Fines target sellers and businesses—not tourists across the board
The Trade Act requires retailers and other covered sellers to comply with local restrictions. Its fine provisions apply to legal entities, responsible persons, sole traders and other sellers who continue selling despite the decision. The city has therefore not created a new blanket tourist fine for trying to buy a beer after 9 pm.
That does not make an argument at the checkout worthwhile. Staff must refuse the sale and, together with the business, bear the legal risk. Visitors gain nothing by pressing a seller to make an exception. Calm planning before 9 pm is easier than any debate over five minutes, a shop that remains open or supposed ignorance of the rule.
What travellers really need to remember
Four points are enough for summer in Split: the rule applies throughout the city; it covers retail every year from 1 June to 15 September; sales are permitted only from 06:00 to 21:00; and hospitality is not covered by this particular retail decision. In the first year, 2026, practical application began only on 19 August.
If you visit a neighbouring town, check its own rules. If you arrive late, plan the apartment shop accordingly. And if you see an open supermarket after 9 pm, do not conclude that its alcohol section is available too. Split has not imposed a night-time curfew—it has defined a narrow sales window.
Evidence
Sources & date
Sources support the facts. Planning notes and recommendations are Golden Beach editorial assessments.
- Official Gazette of the City of Split, No. 36/2026City of Split · 11 August 2026; checked 22 August 2026text of the local decision, city territory, forms of sale, time window, seasonal period and entry into force
- Act amending the Trade ActNarodne novine NN 59/2026 · 9 June 2026; checked 22 August 2026statutory authority for local restrictions from 21:00 to 06:00 and parties addressed by the fine provisions
- Decision restricting sales of alcoholic drinks enters into force in SplitHRT / Hina · 19 August 2026; checked 22 August 2026practical start on 19 August 2026 and public explanation of the seasonal rule
- Split's RivaeBusiness Flavio / Wikimedia Commons · photographed 15 October 2013; licence checked 22 August 2026lead and social image, CC BY-SA 3.0; night-time Split context
- Split – Stari Pazar / TržnicaFred Romero / Wikimedia Commons · photographed 18 August 2019; licence checked 22 August 2026inline image, CC BY 2.0; market and retail-outlet context
