Cruise ship

A critically ill man has been airlifted from a cruise ship off the Ionian island of Corfu, the Athens-Macedonian news agency reports.

A Greek navy helicopter collected the 71-year-old tourist from the Bermuda-flagged Sea Princess cruise liner and transferred him to the island's airport where he was picked by an ambulance, according to the same report.

French police have rushed to Nice’s bustling port after theyr were tipped off that explosives were reportedly spotted being loaded onto a cruise ship.
The deadly device was reportedly found on a pallet being placed on a ferry which was packed with tourists.
According to reports, the police operation is ongoing.

Many cruise liners visiting Greece face long delays waiting off the ports of Piraeus and Thessaloniki due to the pilot services' lack of staff and equipment.

Piraeus Port Authority (OLP) is not only planning to create four new mooring slots for cruise ships at the southern side of the port that will be able to receive vessels of up to 390 meters in length, but in the medium term it is also preparing the creation of a luxurious hotel and shopping center, as well as entertainment and food service spots.

The 4th Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum opened on Tuesday in Athens with Shipping Minister Panayiotis Kouroublis announcing that the government is preparing to invite international cruise companies visiting Greece to invest in port infrastructure projects.

Cruise tourism activity is projected to record a 15 percent decline this year as the sector is going through a recession in the Eastern Mediterranean, according to Theodore Kontes, head of the Union of Cruise Ship Owners & Associated Members (EEKFN).

Over 1,100 cruise passengers arrived at Burgas port with the first in 2017 cruise ship tour, BNR reported.

Most of the tourists travelling on Costa Neo Riveira ship are French nationals. All tourists are elderly couples who choose to visit cultural and historical destinations in Bulgaria such as Sozopol, Nessebar, Kotel and Tryavna.

Revenue from Greek tourism was down by 919 million euros compared to last year, according to the final data on the sector released by the Bank of Greece (BoG). The reports showed that the average spending by tourists amounted to 68 euros in 2016.

European travel and tourism giant TUI has reiterated its target of reaching at least 10 percent growth this year after seeing solid demand for winter and summer bookings, despite lower demand for Turkey and North Africa.

The Greek cruise market is bracing for a serious contraction next year, according to figures on cruise ship calls scheduled for Greek ports in 2017.