Greek Islands Can’t Keep Destructive Tourist Crowds Away
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis wants to restrict cruise ships on popular islands where traffic and waste problems are worsening.
Accelerating tourism on the Greek island of Santorini is challenging local infrastructure.
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Santorini’s whitewashed streets will heave with millions of visitors this summer. Not everyone on the Greek island will be happy to see them.
“Tourism destroys the vineyards,” wine producer Matthew Argyros said in an interview. “I raise a red flag for the island.” His family winery, set up in 1903, produces from about a quarter of the island’s vineyards, and he warns that agricultural land prices have rocketed in the area as developers clamor for space to build more holiday lets.