Thessaloniki is fast becoming a major cruise ship destination with the city expecting a 250 percent increase in arrivals this season compared to last.
The spike in cruise ship arrivals is also evident across Greece, with many islands and ports experiencing upward trends.
Details of the cruise ship boom for Greece were announced by the Minister of Tourism Vassilis Kikilias in an interview with SKAI television recently.
Kikilias said the Thessaloniki Port Authority had revised upwards its figures from an expected 180 percent increase in cruise ship arrivals a few weeks ago.
“We’re now talking about a 250 percent rise,” he said, adding that the upward trend doesn’t stop there.
The year-round island destination of Rhodes is expected to see 450 cruise arrivals this year.
Kikilias said that Mykonos and the mainland port of Kavala are also seeing cruise figures increase. Meanwhile, Piraeus port, the country’s largest, is recording a 130 percent rise in cruise ship arrivals after launching this year’s season much earlier in March.
Looking at cruise activity overall in Greece, the Hellenic Ports Association (ELIME) expects a 25 percent increase over pre-pandemic 2019 levels based on bookings so far and performance in the first five months of 2022.
According to the same data, increased cruise activity compared to 2019 is expected in the Cycladic islands of Santorini, Mykonos, Paros and Milos.
