The trip trade is essential to Greece, with tourism accounting for round 1 / 4 of the rustic’s financial system. Then again, it’s conceivable to have an excessive amount of of a just right factor.
Within the post-pandemic trip rush, Greece has turn out to be increasingly more widespread – and fascinating locations like Santorini, Mykonos, and Rhodes, are suffering to stay alongside of the call for.
During 2023, Greece welcomed a complete of five,230 cruise ships wearing over 7 million passengers to the island. This can be a dramatic 9.41% build up in cruise send arrivals and a 51.26% surge in passenger numbers from 2022.
The staggering choice of cruise passengers is inflicting overcrowding at the islands, maritime visitors jams that may be a deterrent to cruisers and different vacationers, and hindering the standard of lifestyles for the locals – with a specifically serious have an effect on on Santorini.
“Santorini is essentially the most delicate, Mykonos would be the 2d. Even though many Greek islands are straining underneath the load in their recognition, those are those ‘which are obviously struggling,’” Top Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis advised Bloomberg.
In 2023, Santorini skilled 800 cruise send calls, bringing about 1.3 million cruisers to the Mediterranean sizzling spot – a 17% build up in cruise tourism numbers from 2022 this is upending the lives of the 15,000 everlasting citizens who survive the island.
“There are other people spending some huge cash to be on Santorini they usually don’t need the island to be swamped,” Mitsotakis added. “Plus the island can’t manage to pay for it, even with regards to safety.”
In the meantime, Mykonos hosted 749 send calls in 2023, which is a rise of 23% in only one 12 months.
Whilst no cruise barriers had been installed position as of but, Mitsotakis mentioned it’s one thing he expects to occur in 2025. The brand new laws will most likely come with proscribing the whole choice of island berths which are to be had to cruise ships and/or a bidding procedure to name at the islands.
A number of Eu Ports Prohibit Cruise Tourism
Ever for the reason that Covid-19 pandemic ended, cruising has been on the upward thrust. The choice of cruise passengers exceeded 31 million in 2023, with 2 million extra other people cruising ultimate 12 months than they did in 2019.
With that quantity most effective anticipated to develop, different Eu locations (and a few in the USA) have already taken measures to restrict the choice of cruise tourism to stop overcrowding and to mitigate the unfavorable environmental have an effect on that may include welcoming a lot of vessels – and specifically older vessels that might not be as sustainable as more recent builds.
Learn Additionally: Juneau Has the same opinion on Cruise Send Passenger Limits
Top Minister Mitsotakis’ announcement is following within the footsteps of locations like Venice, Italy, Majorca, Spain, and Barcelona, Spain.
In 2021, Venice applied a brand new vacationer charge to mitigate crowds at the Italian town’s busiest days – a rule that took impact previous this 12 months on April 25, 2024. The cost applies to guests irrespective of if they arrive by way of land, aircraft, teach, or sea.
In Might of 2024, Majorca moved ahead with new proposals to resume restrictions that may save you mega-cruise ships from docking in Palma, the capital town of the biggest of Spain’s Balearic Islands.
If licensed, the constraints would proceed to cap the choice of cruise ships that may talk over with the port to 3 consistent with day, with just one allowed to hold over 5,000 passengers – a measure that has been in position since 2022.
Then again, the brand new proposal additionally seeks so as to add further taxes for cruise passengers – together with a charge to reach in port and a separate charge to go into Palma.
In October of 2023, Barcelona applied its personal partial cruise send ban to stop ships from docking on the Spanish town’s northern docks or the Global Business Heart. The aim of this variation was once to stay cruise ships farther from town middle in an effort to reduce exhaust gasses in Barcelona’s maximum populated spaces.
Simply a few weeks in the past on Might 24, 2024, Barcelona Mayor Jaume Collboni introduced that the coastal town could be taking further movements to restrict the choice of cruise passengers visiting consistent with day to handle final overcrowding considerations.
