Greece is planning to charge entrance fees for visiting beaches, harbors and old towns on the most popular islands in the future. 34 island communities in the South Aegean are calling on the government in Athens to approve an official entrance fee for day visitors.
Following the example of the entrance fee for a visit to Venice, municipalities on numerous Greek islands are calling on the government to introduce a "compensation fee" for day visitors, according to the daily newspaper Kathimerini. Representatives of 19 islands in the Cyclades and 15 in the Dodecanese commissioned law professor Michael Papageorgiou to draft a bill to be submitted to the central government.
In particular, islands such as Symi and Santorini receive thousands of day visitors every day who do not stay overnight and therefore do not pay accommodation or guest tax. Nevertheless, they place demands on the infrastructure - such as water supply, electricity, sewage and waste disposal. In addition, rising electricity prices and the operation of energy-intensive seawater desalination plants further increase the costs for the municipalities.
A proposal has already been put forward on Symi: a fee of 3 euros per person for day visitors. The revenue is to flow directly into the municipal coffers and be used for cleaning, infrastructure, recycling and monument protection. The proposal is considered a pilot project - until a general legal regulation is created.
The type, amount and administration of the daily fee and its impact on tourism are now being debated in Parliament. If the law is passed, Greece would be facing a turning point - away from purely growth-focused tourism and towards a more regulated and sustainable visitor policy.
