In Greece, calls for both more cruise facilities and controls

With year-round cruising already a fact, cruise stakeholders in Greece are calling for the immediate upgrading of infrastructures in the country’s ports to handle the increasing cruise ship approaches, arrivals and passengers.

Prime minister threatens limits

As Greece experiences a very hot summer the cruise community sees the construction of cruise terminals and waiting areas to provide shade for passengers as a priority. Meanwhile, popular islands like Santorini have already seen ships avoiding the port citing overcrowding.

‘Overcrowding’ is a new term being used, with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis threatening to limit cruise ship visits to the country’s islands to help them to cope with what he calls 'overtourism.'

'I think we’ll do it next year,' Mitsotakis told Bloomberg, which reports the PM saying new rules could mean restrictions on the total number of berths or the introduction of auctions for slots.

Tourism 25% of the economy

Tourism accounts for about 25% of Greece’s economy, with record numbers of tourists travelling after the ending of COVID-19 pandemic measures. INSETE Intelligence put the total of visitors last year at 32.7m, 18% up on 2022, and numbers were up 25% in the first three months of this year.

Data released by Hellenic Ports Association (ELIME) said that last year, Greek ports handled 7,003,150 passengers compared to 4,629,650 in 2022 and 5,230 cruise calls, up from 4,780.

Santorini has a problem

Mitsotakis noted a strain on the most popular cruise destinations. He said the island of Santorini has a problem, with the sheer number of vessels potentially putting off other tourists. 'There are people spending a lot of money to be on Santorini and they don’t want the island to be swamped,' Mitsotakis said. 'Plus the island can’t afford it, even in terms of security.'

Santorini, with only 15,000 residents, had 800 ship calls in 2023, carrying 1.3m people, 17% higher than in 2022. Mykonos handled 749 cruise calls in 2023, up 23% year on year.

Celestyal Cruises in support

On Mitsotakis’ reported comments, Chris Theophilides, CEO of Piraeus-based Celestyal Cruises, said: 'We fully support this desire for responsible tourism. We must all bring responsible economic benefits to each of the regions we visit. The Greek authorities' stance is to be applauded and we are ready to support their efforts,' Theophilides said.