Four Seasons Hinitsa Bay SEA Opens

Greece has opened public consultation on the environmental study for the AKS Hinitsa Bay Resort, a step the stalled Four Seasons-backed project needs before it can move deeper into licensing. (ekathimerini.com) The project sits in Ermionida, in the eastern Peloponnese near Porto Heli, and is being promoted by a company of Irish businessman Paul Coulson. Four Seasons said in December 2024 that it planned to manage the redeveloped resort and private residences at Hinitsa Bay. (ekathimerini.com) (press.fourseasons.com) In Greece, a Strategic Environmental Assessment reviews the likely environmental effects of a development plan before the state signs off on the planning framework behind it. For Hinitsa Bay, that approval must come before a presidential decree on the Special Spatial Development Plan for Strategic Investments and before building permits. (ekathimerini.com) (ypen.gov.gr) That sequence helps explain why the project is still at an early stage. EKathimerini reported on April 22, 2026 that the redevelopment remains in the first phase of licensing, even though Four Seasons announced its role two years earlier and Coulson’s first transaction tied to the project came four years ago. (ekathimerini.com) The redevelopment plan itself is large. Four Seasons said the resort is intended to include 80 rooms and suites, 30 bungalows, and 14 branded private villas, alongside restaurants, a spa, sports facilities and beach access. (press.fourseasons.com) Greek reporting on the environmental study has described a broader mixed tourism scheme with a five-star hotel unit, tourist residences and support facilities. ProtoThema reported in July 2024 that the Strategic Environmental Impact Study outlined a 257-bed hotel component and residences of up to 1,500 square meters. (en.protothema.gr) Porto Heli has already been drawing heavy investor interest. EKathimerini reported in 2023 that Coulson had bought the AKS Hinitsa Bay and AKS Porto Heli hotels, plus land in the area, for a reported €50 million, as concerns about overdevelopment grew alongside expectations of tourism growth. (ekathimerini.com) The consultation now gives residents, local authorities and environmental groups a formal window to comment on the project’s ecological footprint and scale before the state decides whether to clear the plan for the next stage. What happens after that is still the same slow chain: environmental approval, presidential decree, then building permits. (ekathimerini.com)