A new fee will come into effect in Greece from July 21, which will be collected by cruise companies based on the number of passengers who dock at Greek ports, Greek Sky TV reported, quoted by BTA.
The fee was announced back in September last year and officially published yesterday in the Greek state newspaper. According to the government decree, from June 1 to September 30, the fee will be 5 euros per passenger for all ports, except for Mykonos and Santorini, where it will be 20 euros.
In October and from April 1 to May 31, the fee will be 3 euros per passenger (12 euros for Mykonos and Santorini), and in the period with the lowest activity - from November 1 to March 31 - the amount will decrease to 1 euro (4 euros for both islands).
The payment will be made by cruise companies, shipping agents or Greek ship operators.
One third of the funds collected will be allocated to finance the municipalities where the ports are located, in order to improve local infrastructure and tourist services. Another third will go to sites under the Public Investment Development Program of the Ministry of Shipping, while the rest will be included in the budget of the Ministry of Tourism.
Tourism Minister Olga Kefaloyani said in September that the new fee is expected to bring in around 50 million euros per year. The funds will be used to develop port infrastructure, improve cruise flow management, attract smaller vessels with more affluent passengers, and conduct a study on the economic impact of cruise travel and its impact on local communities.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis commented: “Cruise tourism has burdened Santorini and Mykonos, and that is why we are taking measures.“