Santorini still a hotspot
Santorini joined the list of top Greek destinations for 2026 — named alongside Athens, Milos, Paros, Rhodes, Naxos, and Crete — with luxury resorts continuing to draw visitors. At the same time, overtourism is flagged as Santorini’s biggest challenge for preserving local character and sustainability (travelandtourworld.com) (hercampus.com).
Greek authorities and Santorini’s municipality introduced a daily cap of 8,000 cruise-ship visitors in 2025 to ease peak-day crowding and spread arrivals more evenly through the week. (greekreporter.com) Santorini logged roughly 800 cruise-ship calls in 2023, carrying about 1.3 million cruise passengers that year, with peak days seeing as many as 17,000 disembarkations into Fira and Oia. (flyingtogreece.com) The national plan includes a summer levy of €20 on cruise passengers disembarking at Santorini and Mykonos and proposals to limit simultaneous ship dockings and anchoring slots to curb mass day-tripping. (etias.com) Official statistics and media estimates show differing scales of arrival: Statista notes inbound air arrivals exceeded 750,000 in 2024, while Greek outlets estimate total annual visitors around 3.4 million. (statista.com (flyingtogreece.com)) Regulatory tweaks also include a ship-scoring system to prioritise reliable, lower-impact operators and a freeze on new hotel beds while public funds are redirected to upgrade existing accommodation. (travelandtourworld.com (euroweeklynews.com)) Greek policymakers point to tourism’s national weight—around €20 billion in 2023—to justify targeted measures that aim to protect Santorini’s infrastructure and local economy while keeping visitor revenue flowing. (etias.com)
