Maritime passenger traffic in Greece via ferry boats was down in July in the three major ports in the Attica region, Piraeus, Rafina, and Lavrio, according to relevant data from the Ministry of Shipping.
Nearly 5% fewer passengers used the three ports to sail to the Aegean Island destinations compared to the same month in 2023. The drop is mainly attributed to three factors; the high cost of ferry tickets, the overall increase in living expenses affecting the average Greek citizen, and the rising prices of accommodations on the islands.
As the Ministry of Shipping revealed, in July, which is a critical month for summer vacations and by extension for tourism revenues, maritime passenger traffic in Greece fell below the 2 million passenger threshold.
Specifically, 1,915,673 passengers traveled from the three ports in July, compared to 2,011,587 passengers in July 2023 (a decrease of 4.76%).
Of the three ports, only Lavrio recorded a slight increase in traffic, with 132,362 passengers in July this year compared to 130,588 in July 2023.
The Port of Piraeus saw a decline of 50,000 passengers (1,029,632 this year compared to 1,079,332 last July), and a decrease was also noted on the Argosaronic routes, where 428,615 passengers were transported on 2,632 trips to and from the nearby islands compared to 452,697 passengers on 2,296 trips in July 2023. From Rafina, 325,064 passengers were transported compared to 348,970 last year.
