From our first Volkswagen Beetles to a fleet of 3,750 vehicles, Kompas has been part of people's journeys for more than six decades. We have grown alongside tourism, opened new branches and introduced services that are now an everyday part of car hire.
Kompas is the oldest and largest car rental company in Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia. Today, our network comprises 40 branches. With the largest vehicle fleet in the region, we serve holidaymakers, business travellers and anyone who needs a car for everyday life.
It all started with 25 Beetles
The story of car hire at Kompas began in 1963. At first, cars were rented with a driver, but more and more holidaymakers and business travellers wanted to travel independently, choosing when to leave, where to stop and how long to stay.
Kompas recognised this need. Drawing on the experience of Austrian colleagues, it launched self-drive rentals with 25 Volkswagen Beetles purchased from Autotehna in Zagreb. By the end of 1963, 85 Volkswagens were available, alongside Mercedes vehicles.
RIT - LIT Rent it here - leave it there
As early as 1964, Kompas opened the first airport car rental branches in this part of Europe, in Ljubljana, Zagreb and Belgrade. A year later, it introduced its ‘RIT - LIT Rent it here - leave it there’ programme, allowing customers to collect a car at one location and return it at another across Europe.
Today, one-way car hire is a familiar part of travelling. In the 1960s, it offered a new possibility: a journey no longer had to end where it began.
Kompas and Hertz
Cooperation with Hertz began in 1966 with a business and technical cooperation agreement with Hertz Italiana. In 1972, Kompas Hertz Rent a Car began operating as an independent company under licence from Hertz International. The partnership lasted until 2003 and marked an important chapter in the history of Kompas.
Today, we operate as Kompas Rent a Car and no longer hold a Hertz licence.
From the Kompas archives
Kompas in Večernji list in 1974
The 2 April 1974 edition of Večernji list reviewed the car rental options of the time and named Kompas as Hertz's representative. In Zagreb alone, customers had access to 56 vehicles: 28 at hotel locations and another 28 at Pleso Airport. The range included the Fiat 850 and 128, Audi 60, 80 and 100, Mercedes and BMW 2.5.
The article also recorded the benefits available at the time: a Kompas card offering discounts of 10 to 25 per cent, and Hertz's offer of every seventh rental day free, alongside weekend and seasonal discounts. This newspaper account shows how vehicle choice, branch availability and customer benefits were already an important part of our service more than half a century ago.
Read the original article in CroatianThe years that shaped Kompas
- 1963Launch of the first car rental agency in what was then Yugoslavia.
- 1964Opening of branches at Ljubljana, Zagreb and Belgrade airports, the first in this part of Europe.
- 1965Introduction of the ‘RIT - LIT Rent it here - leave it there’ programme and one-way rentals.
- 1966Start of cooperation with Hertz Italiana.
- 1971Services available at 70 locations in Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia.
- 1972Start of operations under licence from Hertz International.
- 1986Introduction of the first reservation system.
- 1987Introduction of the first centralised accounting system.
- 1995Introduction of the first centralised car rental management system.
- 2003End of operations under the Hertz licence.
- 2005Introduction of the first GPS navigation devices to the rental offering.
Kompas today
Our head office is in Dubrovnik, with branches throughout Croatia connected to our regional network. With a fleet of 3,750 vehicles and 40 branches, we continue to develop our car rental services for leisure and business travel.
Our people are behind every rental. We help you choose a car to suit your passengers, luggage and travel plans, and arrange collection and return. We want you to have clear information before you set off and someone you can contact throughout your rental.
Tell us where you're going. We'll help you choose a vehicle.
Find a car →