Santorini video shows daytime hell for tourists | world | News

The whitewashed houses and churches with their blue domes sloping down to the deep blue sea are some of Greece’s most iconic views. The island of Santorini is reported to attract 3.4 million visitors each year, far outnumbering its approximately 20,000 permanent residents.

Every day, especially in the peak summer months of June to September, thousands of tourists visit the island, most of them on cruise ships and day ferries.

Most boats stay there until at least 8:00 p.m. so their passengers can enjoy the famous sunset views from the many cliff-top viewing points.

However, this, coupled with those who have chosen to stay overnight on the island, is leading to continued overcrowding at this important time of day, as a new Tiktok video from user @ohthatstravel shows.

“Sunset reality in OIA Santorini,” the user wrote. “Plan plenty of time.”

In the video, a dense crowd of people can be seen lining the walls of Oia at various levels, many with cell phones in hand to take the famous Instagram photos. Other tourists, either trying to find their own spot to watch the sunset show or simply trying to navigate the city to their accommodations or restaurants, can be seen making their way through the crowds.

The number of visitors seen in this video continues to rise, increasing pressure on the island’s infrastructure. This summer it was reported that 17,000 tourists arrived on the island in one day in July, with residents being asked to restrict their movements in an unprecedented announcement by an island city council.

It was also recently revealed that locals were asked by a Santorini politician, Panos Kavalaris, to stay indoors to make more space for visitors.

“Not only do we have to put up with them, but now we have to hide in our homes to make room for them,” an Oia resident told iNews.

In a Facebook post that was later deleted, the city council wrote: “Emergency announcement. Another difficult day for our city and our island with the arrival of 17,000 cruise ship visitors! We ask for your attention and reduce our movements as much as we can!”

Some days, locals wake up to the sound of footsteps and conversations, while trespassing tourists walk the centuries-old rooftops in search of the perfect picture. This has caused structural damage and resulted in costly repairs that must be borne by the owners. Locals have taken it upon themselves to post signs saying “No Climbing,” “Private Property,” and “Stay Outside.”

Several steps have been taken to curb overcrowding and excessive tourism on the island. In August, Mayor Nikos Zorzos, firmly convinced that the reported “saturation” of tourist flows can be successfully managed, said that an existing digital system that distributes the arrival of cruise ships to avoid traffic jams would be remobilized open to the idea of ​​a special event entry fee for tourists.

As a solution, government officials also suggested increasing the existing disembarkation fee from 30p to over £8 per passenger. Mayor Zorzos said he would “welcome with joy” the measure, but only if the additional funds were allocated to the local administration.

While videos of Santorini during the day and at sunset paint a bleak picture of vacationing on the island, other videos taken after sunset paint a completely different picture.

According to a local, the island no longer becomes as busy at night as Times Square in New York City, but instead turns into a ghost town.

Gianluca Chimenti, a local tour operator and resident of Santorini for 18 years, told CNN Travel that while social media is flooded with images of severe overcrowding in the island’s hotspots, “the truth is that the island is empty.” Im “It’s like never before, it’s the worst season ever.”

The city centers are dead by 9 p.m. and the restaurants and hotels are far from full. So if you’re looking for a convenient time to visit Santorini to avoid the crowds, head there from October onwards and don’t head out until after dark.