Hypertourism: Ports take measures for cruises – no more cheap fees

The government is considering measures to more efficiently and effectively manage the country's cruise ports.

On Thursday (1/08), a meeting was held at the Presidium of the Government with the participation of the Ministers of Tourism Olga Kefaloyannis, Shipping Christos Stylianides, State Akis Schertsos and TAIPED Managing Director Dimitris Politis. The meeting confirmed the positive trend of tourist flows this season, as well as the need to find sustainable solutions and responses to the pressure exerted by the concentration of tourist flows in certain popular destinations in our country, for the benefit of both local communities and the tourism product as a whole.

The Ministers agreed that, particularly in the cruise sector, which has grown steadily in recent years, it is necessary to examine policies on cruise port fees, which are currently at very low levels, alternative port management models, as well as digital fleet management tools that will facilitate a more streamlined and efficient management of growing demand, always in the interests of local communities. Specific measures to address these issues will be announced in the near future.

Traffic chaos in Santorini's alleys due to overtourism

Over the past few days, images of traffic chaos in Santorini have appeared on social media, especially during the hours when the cruise ship disembarks thousands of people on the island. As you will see in the photos below, the situation in Santorini, as in other popular cruise ship destinations, is stifling to say the least for both visitors and residents.

At the same time, the island's infrastructure is not able to accommodate the crowds of people arriving here every day. These paintings have even crossed the country's borders, and the France Press agency published an article dedicated to this issue. Last year, Santorini welcomed around 3.5 million tourists, accounting for 1 in 10 visitors to Greece:

• That's an insane number when you're talking about an island with a population of only 15,500.
• In 2023, 800 cruise ships will carry about 1.3 million passengers.
• Currently, about a fifth of the island is occupied by buildings.

The caldera is home to a huge number of hotels with swimming pools and jacuzzis overlooking the volcano – the most attractive, but expensive options for tourists.

“We we must set limits if we do not want to slide into overtourism,– Santorini Mayor Nikos Zorzos told AFP. There should not be a single extra bed… neither in big hotels nor in Airbnb apartments”.

The island has already posted signs from residents asking visitors to respect the island.”RESPECT… This is your vacation, but it is also our home.”– says the statement from the Save Oia organization.

Local authorities have set a limit of 8,000 cruise passengers per day, a measure expected to be in place from next year. But not all local officials agree. Antonis Pagoni, head of the Santorini Hoteliers Association, believes the solution lies in better management of the flow of visitors.It is impossible that (for example on Monday) there would be 20-25,000 visitors from cruise ships and the next day there would be zero,” he said.

Pagoni also said the congestion was mostly limited to certain areas of the island, such as Fira. In the south of the island, the volcanic sand beaches were less crowded, despite July being the high season, he said.

The modern tourism industry has changed the behavior of visitors

“I heard people telling their families, 'I'm in Turkey,'” – smiles tourist guide Kostas Sakavaras. – They think the church is a mosque because they were in Turkey the day before.” The average tourist coming to the island has changed, according to a veteran guide.Instagram has redefined the way people choose where to visit,” he said, explaining that everyone wants to get the perfect Instagram photo to validate their expectations.

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