Seismic Activity in Santorini Raises Concerns for Tourism

The intense seismic activity surrounding the Cycladic island of Santorini, in Greece, is causing concern to the tourist industry, with international tour operators however, not yet reporting any cancellations for the coming tourist season.

The fact that the season has not yet begun, both in terms of international arrivals and cruises, allows the global tourism industry—which has heavily invested in Santorini—to wait and see what happens in the coming days before making decisions regarding flight bookings, accommodations, and cruise ship itineraries.

As a global destination, Santorini naturally attracts international media interest. The island welcomed 3.4 million tourists in 2023 (including air arrivals, ferry passengers, and cruise visitors). In 2024, international air passenger traffic (arrivals and departures) reached 1,543,796 passengers, marking a 1.8% increase compared to 2023.

Despite initial not so promising projections, Santorini once again recorded positive growth in both international and domestic air arrivals in 2024.

So far, major international media outlets have not reported or provided assessments regarding the immediate impact on the island’s tourism activity in terms of bookings or cancellations. Large tour operators, as reported, are currently just monitoring the situation without taking any initiatives for the time being.

Additionally, on the island, hoteliers have not reported abnormalities regarding business activity, with potential clients calling for for inquiries, and cancellations being considered normal. However, it is clear that the situation could become more uncertain in the coming days if the trends continue.

To this day, the recommendations from foreign governments to travelers heading to Santorini have been limited to updating their travel advisories based on announcements from Greece’s Ministry of Civil Protection and Climate Crisis. The guidelines from both the UK Foreign Office and the German government have followed this framework.

Tourism stakeholders on the island are working to maintain a sense of calm as they face the ongoing crisis. Their focus is on preventing any overreaction and carefully managing the situation. With the hope that conditions will stabilize in the coming weeks, their primary objective is to safeguard the island’s reputation ahead of the new season, set to begin in March.

Source: tovima.com