Welcome to Citizen Femme’s new series, The Take (Off), where each month our managing editor Katie Silcox shares a personal opinion – hot take, you might say – about travel.
This month she explores why the cruise tax in Mykonos and Santorini is necessary – and why it might not actually be enough.
Earlier this week (21 July 2025), Mykonos and Santorini introduced a €20 tourist tax to anyone arriving by cruise ship between June and September. And I’m all for it.
On arrival at other Greek islands, cruise ship passengers can expect to pay between €1 and €5, depending on time of year.
Cruise ships in Santorini, Greece
Introduced as a “sustainable tourism fee” the money collected is intended to support local infrastructure that is struggling under the weight of (let’s be honest) far more tourists than the small islands can handle, as well as to help curb over-tourism, and encourage visitors during off-peak seasons instead.
While €20 might not sound a lot, the additional fee will soon rack up – on both sides.
From a passenger point of view: let’s say you’re a family of four. You’ll pay €20 per person per island (Mykonos and Santorini) which adds €160 to your holiday budget – and that’s before factoring in any other island stops.
From the Greek authority’s point of view: according to the Hellenic Ports Association, 768 cruise ships sailed into Mykonos during the 2024 season, with more than 1.29 million passengers disembarking. You do the maths.
I personally think the fee should be higher – to make people really stop and think before booking. Or, if I’m very honest, I actually believe that both of these islands should simply stop letting so many cruise ships in.
Tourist crowds in Little Venice, Mykonos
I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve been caught up in the fray as a cruise ship arrives and thousands of people, in barely staged exits, clamour to disembark and make their way onto the islands (very much getting in my way too). And don’t even get me started on the eyesore the ships often are to the coastline. But all of this is the least of the problems they can cause.
Neither Mykonos nor Santorini are big islands. Both are home to an estimated 15,000 permanent residents: equal to the number of guests on just five average-sized cruise ships – which also happens to be the average number of cruise ships that both islands can expect to welcome each day during summer. This means the number of people visiting both islands grows by roughly 100% each day (or around a 12,000% increase each summer).
Yes this brings money onto the island, but cruise ship passengers spend nowhere near as much as those staying overnight do, who spend on hotels (which, by the way, also charge a tourist tax of between €1.50 and €15 per night, depending on type of accommodation and relevant regulations), but who also spend over an extended period of time, and island-wide. Tourists with a few days and nights on an island are more likely to visit areas further afield, spreading the tourism-money love, so to speak.
Tourism crowds in Santorini
Cruise ship tourism tends to benefit the owners of very few shops, bars and restaurants, for a very limited time. Often with just a few hours on shore, passengers spill into the small and narrow streets in Mykonos Town or Santorini’s Fira – causing people-jams in the lanes, and in the nearest (very lucky) tavernas.
The mass-swell in numbers that cruise ships bring also creates some very real problems for island residents: overcrowding, infrastructure strain (water, waste management etc) and increased noise, littering and traffic all make day-to-day life harder to manage.
While I don’t expect a €20 tourism tax fee for cruise ship passengers to Mykonos and Santorini to really curb or solve any of the above issues, it will (hopefully) go some way to improving infrastructure – for tourists and locals alike.
It might also help extend the time of year that people consider visiting – the Greek islands are a wonderful place to explore throughout April, May and October too, each of which is considered ‘shoulder season’ and comes with less of a fee in the new initiative.
Lastly, the new cruise tax may, in time, make the cruise liners think harder about where they decide to dock and when. Greece has over 200 inhabited islands to visit after all. In theory, the hundreds of thousands of people aboard visiting cruise ships could be spread more evenly between many other islands. Although I doubt many islanders would welcome the idea with open arms.
How much are the cruise tax fees in Mykonos, Santorini, and other Greek islands?
- Peak season (1 June – 30 September): €20 in Mykonos and Santorini, €5 for all other ports
- Shoulder Season (1 – 30 October and 1 April – 31 May): €12 in Mykonos and Santorini, €3 for all other ports
- Winter Season (1 November – 31 March): €4 in Mykonos and Santorini, €1 for all other ports.
How do you pay the cruise ship tax in Greece?
The cruise ship tax in Greece is very new, so processes are still being put in place. But so far the most common practice is for your cruise line to automatically add the charge before you pull into port. If you choose not to disembark they will refund the fee. Check with your individual operator for details.
Will other countries introduce a cruise tax?
Yes, other countries in Europe and across the world have either added or are considering introducing higher taxes to those arriving via ports. These include:
- In Europe: Lisbon, Barcelona, Norway, Scotland, Iceland
- Worldwide: New Zealand, Hawaii, Mexico, the Bahamas, Barbados, Alaska
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