Greece is considering a cap on cruise ship numbers at selected destinations as part of a plan to reduce the negative effects of overtourism.
That protection would involve the introduction of a limit on berth availability and anchoring slots, as well as the launch of a bidding process for cruise companies.
The popular southern Aegean islands of Santorini and Mykonos have been named as the places most in need of protection by Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, speaking to Bloomberg.
Santorini is the most sensitive, Mykonos is the second
Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of Greece
Santorini played host to 800 cruise ships in 2023. Those brought with them 1.3 million passengers, overwhelming the idyllic whitewashed island of just 15,000 permanent residents.
Mykonos too saw huge incoming cruise ship numbers, just 50 fewer than Santorini. That figure of 750 liners was up 23 per cent from the previous year.
In the wake of a decade-plus long financial crisis for Greece, tourism has become an even more important part of the country’s economy. Just under 33 million visitors descended upon the mainland and islands in 2023, and the sector is expected to generate €21 billion in 2024.
But, as the Greek ombudsman recently pointed out, that success may be in jeopardy if the country is unable to manage tourist numbers and resources effectively, or if it allows the coastal beauty that attracts so many holidaymakers to deteriorate. Tourism “urgently” needs to be approached “in a sustainable way” the report said, so that Greece does not “exhaust its potential, wasting it and making our tourist destinations unattractive over time.”
This view was echoed by Mitsotakis in his recent comments. “There are people spending a lot of money to be on Santorini and they don’t want the island to be swamped. Plus, the island can’t afford it, even in terms of security,” he said.
Indeed, if the island nation does not itself address the problem, it may find tourist numbers dwindling for all the wrong reasons. Princess Cruises’ has already noted “cruise ship congestion” and adjusted some 2024 itineraries to avoid Santorini stops as a result.
The dilemma for Greece comes at a time when other port destinations as far apart as Amsterdam, Juneau, Alaska and Barcelona have also introduced measures to address what Barcelona’s Mayor in 2019 called “a feeling of collapse” caused by the arrival of the huge vessels and the influx of footfall they bring.
