Greece remains the 3rd most popular holiday destination for cruises in the EU after Italy and Spain, with an annual 5,500 port calls, according to data from the Piraeus Chamber of Commerce & Industry.
The ports of Piraeus, Santorini, and Mykonos accounted for over half the port calls (55%) in 2024. The Piraeus Chamber of Commerce presented its findings at the Piraeus Municipality during a meeting with stakeholders, including proposals to yield better results.
Among the proposals put forward at the event is setting up port clusters to concentrate all support services for cruise ship visitors; offering high-quality services at competitive prices is also imperative, along with joint marketing efforts; leveraging technology by developing and promoting dedicated mobile apps aimed at presenting Piraeus as a tourist destination, highlighting shops, museums, and historical sites; and the deployment of personnel at the disembarkation area to greet passengers, provide information, make recommendations, and encourage exploration of the city.
Installing interactive tourist “beacon” signs throughout the port and the city of Piraeus linked with mobile apps for enhanced navigation and visitor engagement was also proposed, as well as promoting Greek products in cruise ship restaurants and shops.
In 2024, Greece welcomed over 40 million visitors, with more than 8 million cruise passenger movements recorded, representing approximately 2 million individual cruise travelers annually in the country.
