Cruising in Greece scored a record high in 2024, bringing eight million passengers to 49 Greek destinations, industry experts have disclosed.
While official figures have not yet been released, sources speaking to the state-run Athens-Macedonian News Agency (AMNA) reported a historic record in cruise ship tourism, exceeding even pre-pandemic levels.
According to data from the Hellenic Ports Association the number of cruise ship passengers reaching Greek destinations has been growing rapidly since 2022.
From 4,629,650 passengers that year, the number rose to 7,003,150 in 2023 before climbing to eight million in 2024.
Santorini reigns among Greek most popular cruise ship destinations
The island of Santorini remains the most popular cruise ship destination in Greece, despite the recent unusual seismic activity that rattled the area for weeks in January and February.
At present, cruise ships are not allowed to approach the island due to the government’s preventive measures put into place at the peak of the geological phenomenon.
However, the competent ministries of Maritime Affairs, Tourism, and Civil Protection have drafted a new joint ministerial decision in order to greenlight cruise ship access to Santorini at different times than domestic passenger liners, for safety reasons.
According to the Santorini port authority, 6000 passengers onboard five cruise ships are expected in March, and another thirty-five cruise ship arrivals in April.
The first cruise ship for the season is expected on Santorini on March 23, carrying 1200 passengers.
This summer, a 20-euro (about $22) tax per person will be charged for the first time on cruise ship visitors to the islands of Santorini and Mykonos during peak season as part of ongoing efforts to avert overtourism. The respective tax for other Greek ports is set at five euro per person.
Cruising is a pillar of Greek tourism
Speaking at the CLIA Cruise Week 2025 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, on Thursday, the – now outgoing – Greek Minister of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy Cristos Stylianides said cruising is a vital component of the Greek economy and tourism.
“Through collaboration and open dialogue with the industry, we are aligning efforts to enhance cruising in Greece,” he added.
When it comes to shipping decarbonisation, Stylianides said Greece has a clear strategy while upgrading its port infrastructure.
“Greek ports can provide onshore power supply (OPS) and facilitate greener operations in the future. In collaboration with the Greek Ministry of Environment and Energy, a plan has been drafted to provide cold ironing facilities at twelve island and mainland ports at least,” Stylianides asserted.
Those facilities will provide cruise ships with power supply from the dry land to reduce the use of ship engines for energy production, with the goal of diminishing air pollution and fuel consumption and thus making cruising more environmentally sustainable.