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Source: AFP
Greece connected Tuesday began charging a taxation connected land cruise ships, the latest European effort to tackle soaring visitant numbers to the continent's astir fashionable destinations.
Cruise ships docking astatine the fashionable islands of Santorini and Mykonos volition wage 20 euros ($23.62) per passenger.
"In accordance with the law, the taxation volition beryllium applied successful Santorini, Mykonos and different islands successful lesser measures," a concern ministry spokesperson told AFP.
Cruise ships to smaller islands volition wage a taxation of 5 euros per passenger, according to the caller regulations.
Greece hopes to bring successful up to 50 cardinal euros a twelvemonth with the tax, which volition use during the precocious tourism season, from June 1 to September 30.
Greece adopted the authorities past twelvemonth successful an effort to curb soaring tourer numbers to often-overcrowded destinations, the latest state successful Europe to instrumentality specified measures.
Italian authorities successful Venice, 1 of the world's apical tourer destinations, past twelvemonth introduced payments for time visitors, who indispensable wage an entree interest of 5 euros ($5.90) connected definite days.
In Spain, the authorities has cracked down connected amerciable short-term tourer rentals, with sites similar Airbnb and Booking.com ordered to instrumentality down thousands of ads amid section alarm astir progressively scarce and unaffordable housing.
The hugely fashionable land of Ibiza successful June began limiting the fig of incoming tourer cars and caravans due to the fact that of the expanding numbers of visitors.
Locals successful Barcelona and elsewhere successful Spain, the world's 2nd most-visited country, person held protests against over-tourism.
Saturation constituent
Greece plans to usage the money raised to upgrade over-strained infrastructure connected the islands, including their ports, which are often excessively tiny to person aggregate cruise ships astatine once.
Tourism, and the cruise industry successful particular, is booming successful Greece.
Cruise vessel rider numbers surged 13.2 percent past twelvemonth to 7.9 million, according to the Hellenic Ports Association, which predicts the inclination volition continue.
Mykonos, known arsenic a enactment destination for planetary jet-setters, received astir 1.3 cardinal visitors past year, up 8.4 percent from the erstwhile year.
Perched connected a volcano, Santorini received much than 1.3 cardinal passengers past year, up 4 percent.
The land past twelvemonth constricted cruise vessel arrivals to 8,000 passengers per day, yet connected the archetypal time of the tax, 4 ships with astir 8,400 passengers were scheduled to dock successful Santorini, according to larboard authorization figures.
Famed for its sunsets, the land is saturated with tourists successful immoderate areas, causing postulation jams, h2o shortages, discarded absorption headaches and different problems.
Some residents besides kick astir the contamination generated by the ships, portion section businesses accidental passengers often enactment conscionable a fewer hours and walk little.
But not everyone is blessed with the caller tax.
The caput of the section larboard authority, Athanasios Kousathanas-Megas, demanded connected Friday that the authorities hold the rollout, complaining the taxation creates "unfair competition" betwixt highly taxed islands and the rest.
The cruise manufacture has deed backmost astatine criticism, saying cruise passengers are a tiny number of full tourists and make $2 cardinal successful revenues per twelvemonth for Greece.
Last year, 40.7 cardinal tourists visited Greece, up 12.8 percent from 2023, according to authoritative figures.
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Source: AFP
