Santorini bus strike halts cruise ship arrivals, costing over €425,000

On 22 June 2026 bus drivers on the Greek island of Santorini staged a one‑day strike, protesting new port‑allocation rules that require 70 % of cruise passengers to disembark at the old harbour in Ormos Fira and the remaining 30 % at Athinios. The union said they lack the minimum infrastructure, timetable coordination and parking facilities needed to handle the thousands of visitors.

Four cruise ships – the Sinfonia (2,126 passengers), Norwegian Pearl (2,504), Celebrity Ascent (3,200) and another vessel – were scheduled to land about 7,734 tourists. Because of the strike the ships either cancelled the landing or postponed it, leaving roughly 8,000 cruise passengers stranded on the island.

The disruption is estimated to have caused a direct economic loss of at least €425,000 for Santorini. The island, home to 15,500 residents, receives around 3.4 million tourists a year and caps daily cruise arrivals at 8,000 passengers, also levying a €20 per‑passenger tax. Local authorities called the strike “inexplicable” during the peak season, while cruise‑industry expert Ioannis Bras warned that the episode highlights broader challenges for Greece’s rapidly growing cruise tourism sector.