Piraeus Port Expects Increased Cruise Arrivals This Year

Piraeus Port Authority chairman George Anomeritis, Greek Shipping Minister Miltiades Varvitsiotis and Costa Deliziosa cruise ship captain Giacomo Longo during the welcoming ceremony of the Costa Deliziosa cruise ship at Piraeus Port.

The Costa Deliziosa is the first cruise ship that sailed into Piraeus Port in 2014.

Cruise traffic in Piraeus this year is expected to rise by 12 percent and passenger traffic to reach nearly 2.31 million, Piraeus Port Authority Chairman George Anomeritis informed recently.

Mr. Anomeritis made the announcement on 3 January during the welcoming ceremony of the 2,890-passenger capacity vessel Costa Deliziosa of Carnival Cruises, the first cruise ship of the year to dock at Piraeus Port.

According to Mr. Anomeritis, Piraeus Port – with new berths, new international passenger terminals and plans to expand piers – is the most important port hub in the Mediterranean due to the safe and quality services it provides.

Piraeus Port is planned to expand and be able to receive three additional large cruise ships through a National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF) investment of 110 million euros.

“The outlook for OLP in 2014 is positive as this year the expansion of the cruise port will begin,” he added.