ATHENS – Τhe departure of tourists from the ports of Attica for the Easter holidays (from 15/4 to 25/4) showed a significant increase compared to 2021, when there were restrictive measures due to the pandemic.

According to data from the Shipping and Island Policy Μinistry, there was an increase in passenger departures of 150 pct compared to last year in the port of Piraeus, for destinations in the Cyclades and Dodecanese islands, Crete and the Saronic Gulf.

Specifically, passengers increased to 166,609 in 2022 from 66,563 in 2021 and vehicles that departed increased to 26,695 this year from 8,624 last year.

Respectively, passenger traffic from the port of Rafina increased by 579 pct during the same period.

Coast Guard officials said that the most popular destinations this year were the Cyclades islands, Crete and Rhodes.

However, shipping firms noted that passenger traffic in 2022 was up to 20-25 pct lower on many routes in comparison with 2019, when there were no pandemic restrictions and can therefore be considered comparable.