Over 11,000 complaints were filed this summer on Greece’s MyCoast platform, highlighting illegal sunbeds, blocked access to beaches, and safety gaps. Halkidiki and Eastern Attica ranked highest among reported violations

The regions of Halkidiki, Eastern Attica, and the Dodecanese emerged as the top offenders in terms of unlawful occupation of coastal space.

All of this is feeding into what’s become known in Greece as the “Towel Movement”—a peaceful but persistent effort by citizens to reclaim the public beaches by simply laying down their towels wherever the law says they have the right to

With beach tourism being a cornerstone of Greece’s summer economy and lifestyle, these enforcement efforts aim to preserve public access and environmental integrity

Members of a special task force have carried out over 5,000 inspections nationwide of more than 1,100 businesses so far

Most reports filed for illegal coastal activity through the MyCoast app concerned beaches in Halkidiki, Preveza and eastern Attica

In the pursuit of restoring beach accessibility for all, Euronews highlights the crucial role of local citizens using the MyCoast app to report violations, while the app identifies compliant businesses.

Greek citizens have downloaded the beach report app 52,000 times

Northern Greece's Halkidiki region is particularly under scrutiny due to rising reports of violations and arbitrary actions.

The MyCoast app was a high-profile Beach App in response to last summer’s “towel movement”, in which local residents – beginning on the island of Paros – mobilized to stop the relentless spread of sunbeds and umbrellas for hire on Greek beaches. Unveiled by the Ministry of Digital Governance ahead of the current summer season, […]

More than 1,900 reports of unauthorized sunbeds, umbrellas, and public beach violations have been filed through the myCoast app

In efforts to clamp down on beach and shoreline use violations, the Greek government is now also engaging the public through the ‘MyCoast’ app

The app is among the most prominent measures announced by the government in the wake of last summer’s “towel movement”

Greek authorities hope the newly-launched, free ‘MyCoast’ app will help clamp down on public beach violations