Chania: The course of cruises in the port of Souda is stable

In 2021, despite the restrictive measures for the Covid-19, cruises in Chania started in 2021, regaining a large part of its dynamics after the period of 2020, when the pandemic “moored” cruise liners in ports.

2021 can be characterized as a transitional year, however, its characteristic was that ships sailed in the port of Souda from April until the last days of December, strengthening the local economy and tourist traffic in the region.

According to the data presented by state news agency AMNA, 76 ships sailed, to the port of Souda in 2021, carrying 45,619 passengers. It is noteworthy that the occupancy rate of cruise ships due to health constraints was one third of the total capacity of the ships.

Another important event was the selection of new companies to choose the port of Souda as a cruise destination, while a small number of ships sailed from the Venetian port of Chania.

With the exception of 2020 when only 10 ships with a total of 105 passengers sailed in Souda, in recent years in Chania the cruise industry has recorded consistently high numbers in number of ships and passengers. According to the official data of the Hellenic Ports Association 132 ships with 265,956 passengers had sailed to Souda in 2019. In 2018, 78 ships with 139,944 passengers had arrived, in 2017 84 ships with 128,067 passengers, in 2016 86 ships with 147,915 passengers, while in 2015 59 ships with 96,612 passengers had arrived in the port of Souda.

Encouraging for the current year of 2022 are the data so far regarding the interest of cruise companies for the port of Souda as there are 110 arrival announcements.

As the president of the Port Fund of the Prefecture of Chania, Dimitris Virirakis, stated to AMNA, “the data so far for the arrivals of 2022 are optimistic. In fact, there are indications for an extension of the period as the first arrival for 2022 is scheduled for January 15. ”

The President of the Port Fund emphasized the cooperation of the service with the local bodies of Chania, with the state, the tourist bodies of the region and those involved with the operation of the port such as the Port Authority, pointing out that the positive results of recent years are the result of the joint effort of all.