I'm heading to Croatia with three others in late June. We'll need to take the bus from Zadar to Sibenik the day after we arrive in Croatia, and from Sibenik to Split a week later, to catch the ferry to Italy. My question is, would it be wise to purchase bus tickets in advance (online, for example), or just get them at the bus station on the day of travel? I wouldn't normally worry too much about it if I was on my own, but I'd rather err on the side of caution if there could be an issue, traveling with a small group during the peak season.
I haven't been to those parts of Croatia (but rather further south), but I'm not even sure it's possible to buy bus tickets online and in advance. You should be OK just showing up a bit early or getting them the day before. Unless it's a very busy, high demand route, you shouldn't have problems getting tickets (the worst thing that could happen is you'll have to wait for the next bus, so it's worth checking the frequency assuming this info is available and accurate)
Thanks for the comment, Agnes. It looks like you can buy in advance on the BusCroatia website, though perhaps it links to a 3rd party vendor. There are several buses a day, per their online schedule, so I think we'll see how the first trip goes and maybe buy our Sibenik-Split tickets when we get to Sibenik from Zadar.
In the past I purchased an advanced bus ticket for my ride between the bus station at Split and the airport. I did this to be on the safe side because I had a very early flight and I wasn't sure what time the bus ticket vendors would open up. The bus driver had a bewildered look when I gave him my printed ticket, but he didn't question it. I like the ease of buying in advance so I don't have to worry about buying while I'm there.