Greece has announced a raft of measures aimed at tackling overtourism with passengers arriving at Greek ports facing a huge hike in fees to enter the country.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Saturday (September 7) Greece will also ban new short term lets in parts of Athens for a year in a bid to address Greece’s housing crisis.
He also announced higher disembarkation fees for cruise ship passengers, especially on the islands of Santorini and Mykonos.
On Santorini, government officials have said the current fee of 27p per passenger could rise from between £8.44 (10 euros) to £12.66 (15 euros).
From April to October an accommodation tax will be increased with the money raised pumped back into local communities under the plans reported by Bloomberg.
Under new plans, Greece will also expand its “Golden visa” program for investors willing to put at least £211,000 (€250,000) into local start-ups. Foreigners previously had to purchase property to qualify for the visa.
Bank of Greece figures show the country received a record 36.1 million visitors last year, with 11.6 million arriving in the first six months of 2024.
In June, Mr Mitsotakis said restrictions on cruise ships would be introduced at Greece’s most popular islands.
He told Bloomberg Santorini was a particular problem, telling the publication the island doesn’t want to be swamped. Mr Mitsotakis said while Santorini was “the most sensitive” destination, Mykonos was the second “clearly suffering” under the strain of so many tourists.
Athens’ steps to rein in the negative side of tourism is mirrored elsewhere in Europe, with countries including Spain and Italy also introducing measures in holiday hotspots to manage tourist numbers.
The moves come amid demonstrations among locals who complain of negative impacts on the affordabilty and availability of housing as well as environmental and traffic concerns.
Announcing a string of measures aimed at outling his administration’s economic policies for the year ahead, Mr Mitsotakis told his audience at the Thessaloniki International Fair he hadn’t come “with a bag full of gifts”.
Mr Mitsotakis announced pension and minimum wage hikes, as well as measures designed to boost exports, improve productivity, help with housing shortages, encourage the young to stick with farming and address the country’s low birthrate.
On the growth in tourism, Mr Mitsotakis said short-term rentals should not be “demonized”, but promised not to allow any new ones in central Athens for at least the next year.
His conservative party saw its share of the vote plunge by about a third in last June’s European elections while runner-up left-wing Syriza also saw its numbers decline.
The Greek leader noted his government has more than a thousand days until the next national election to implement its program and claimed that his party is the only stabilizing force in Greek politics.