A stunning Greek island beloved by British holidaymakers successfully managed to receive eight cruise ships and some 20,000 visitors in a single day this week, according to local officials.
Mykonos was previously identified by Greek PM as one of the areas worst affected by overtourism, as he vowed to introduce restrictions on cruise passengers there and on Santorini as soon as 2025, Bloomberg reported.
Last year, seven million passengers visited Greece aboard 5,230 cruise ships, compared to 4.38 million passengers and 4,614 cruise ships in 2022.
Residents unhappy with the image of large tourist numbers on prices and congestion have flagged cruises as a driver behind the problem.
But despite the tough rhetoric from the Greek government, Mykonos welcomed some 20,000 visitors via eight cruise ships at the island‘s main port on August 27, a feat hailed by the local mayor, according to Greek Reporter.
Christos Veronis, the mayor of Mykonos, said the numbers seen on Tuesday were “proof that Mykonos can handle very well a large number of cruise ships”, as he noted the absence of major tourist build-ups.
He added: “There are no queues anywhere, everyone gets off the boats, walks in the city, or goes to the beach.
“Cruises have a positive impact on Mykonos. Every island is different and there are unique elements that affect each destination.”
The president of Mykonos’ Municipal Port Authority Fund Athanasios Kousathanas Megas spoke to the outlet about the extensive work behind the scenes to ensure visitors to the Cyclades island have the best possible experience.
He said: “Mykonos is expected to receive approximately 1,000 cruise ship visits this year with approximately 1.5 million visitors. As you can understand this requires a lot of preparation and work on the island.
“Despite the constant overtourism claims we hear [about], today is proof that there is no problem on Mykonos as we have approximately 20,000 cruise ship visitors without any issues whatsoever.”
Cruises generated nearly £715 million in revenue in 2023 – more than double the figure of the previous year. In total, tourism accounts for a quarter of Greece’s economy, with record numbers of tourists travelling after the end of Covid pandemic restrictions.
But concerns persist about surging numbers of visitors on the islands, even among visitors. A recent survey pointed to issues with overcrowding on Mykonos particularly during the peak summer months.
The Greek Prime Minister’s backing of new curbs on cruises came after Princess Cruises’ decided to drop Santorini from some of its Sun Princess voyages over the summer because of potential “congestion”.
It comes amid a wave of anti-tourism protests across Spain this summer against with thousands of protesters on the streets of Spain in April to call for an end to “overtourism” in major hotspots like Barcelona and Majorca.