Greece retains one of Europe’s cleanest coastlines, achieving a 97.1% “excellent” rating in the European Environment Agency’s annual bathing water survey for 2025.
Out of the country’s 1,734 monitored sites—comprising 1,733 coastal locations and one inland site—1,684 met the highest quality standard (Excellent), while 42 sites in Greece were categorized as just “Good”.
EU Overall Water Quality / Source: European Environmental Agency
This places Greece among the top-performing countries in Europe, alongside Cyprus, Bulgaria, and Austria, which all saw over 95% of their bathing waters rated excellent.
The joint report, published by the EEA and the European Commission, evaluated a total of 22,289 locations across the EU-27, Albania, and Switzerland. 84% of all sampled coastal and inland sites achieved the “excellent” grade, while 95% met at least the minimum requirements set by the EU’s Bathing Water Directive (BWD). Less than 70% of bathing waters in Belgium, Hungary, Poland, Estonia and Albania were classified as excellent.
The EU’s environmental authorities evaluate water safety by testing for two specific types of bacteria: E. coli and intestinal enterococci which serve as indicators of faecal contamination that originates from raw sewage or agricultural manure.
Exposure to these pathogens, which leak into rivers and coastal areas, can lead to gastrointestinal illnesses, as well as ear, eye, and upper respiratory tract infections for bathers.
EU Coastal Water Quality / Source: European Environmental Agency
The 2025 grades were determined by compiling data across four bathing seasons, spanning from 2022 to 2025.
The bathing water survey does not monitor chemical pollutants such as pesticides, pharmaceuticals, nutrients, or microplastics. Instead, these are regulated and assessed under a separate piece of EU legislation known as the Water Framework Directive (WFD).
Consequently, a coastal or inland site can have “excellent” bathing water quality but, in theory, could still fail to meet the broader ecological objectives of the WFD. Conversely, an excellent or good status under WFD does not necessarily make the water safe for bathing.
