Until recently, the main problem facing the picturesque island of Santorini is the crowds of tourists trying to find space between the whitewashed walls of Oia as they chase the best place for sunset photos. Then, earlier this year, another problem appeared, one that existed deep under Santorini.
Between January 26 and February 22, more than 20,000 earthquakes were recorded in accordance with the Interdisciplinary Risk and Crisis Management Committee of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (EKPA).
Families and tourism workers evacuated the volcanic island after the state of emergency that also affected the nearby islands of Anafi, Amorgos and Ios. The construction activity stopped and the quiet period of the island became even quieter.
Santorini, located on the caldera of an ancient volcano, owes its existence – and much of its amazing beauty – to seismic forces, and recent events were a reminder of how close the geological cracks are, writes the CNN.
Earthquakes have been reduced and the state of emergency was withdrawn in early March. Those who were forced to leave returned, the schools reopened and the construction of hotels continued.
Now, as summer is approaching, when the island’s hotels are usually full and arrivals of ships and cruise ships bring crowds to its narrow roads, Santorini is waiting to see how earthquakes will affect the peak season.
Rapid recovery
The resident of Santorini and owner of a car rental and travel agency, Filaretos Dimoglou, said his family remained on the island during the seismic activity.
“Many workers who come to the island in winter have left because the construction was stopped. They left because they had no job, “he said. “You understand that everything is fine when schools are open. If something goes wrong somewhere, the first thing the state does is to close schools, for example, in heavy snow or fires. ” As the father of two children, he said he would not risk the lives of his children if he believed that the situation was not safe for them.
Dimoglou said that what is needed now is a state -funded tourism promotion campaign to spread the message that Santorini is again open to work.
Petros Zimimos, director of Hellenic Holidays in New York, said he received questions for Santorini from his clients, but did not believe that the situation was affecting bookings.
“People have been delayed to buy experiences in Santorini, such as tours, wine tastings and cruises,” he said.
“Santorini needs to improve its image again. Every businessman, restaurant, sailing company, cooking lesson organizer, everyone should contribute to the creation of an environment that shows that Santorini is fantastic again. “
Hoteliers on the island reacted to the fall of demand for April and May, in the first two months of the season, with attractive prices and greater flexibility in bookings.
Markos Heidemen, whose family has five hotels in Santorini, said they had no cancellations. However, reservations were slowed during the peak of seismic activity.
“For a long time, there were many false news … Obviously, people were holding a standby stance and they were not very sure of booking,” he said.
“Now that trust is quickly recovering, especially for such a favorite destination as Santorini, we are seeing more bookings coming. People want to travel to the island for emblematic sunsets, unforgettable experiences and world -class hospitality. “
“If I were a traveler, I would like to be able to decide two or three weeks ago, or even at the last minute, if I really want to go, based on the facts,” he said. “I can’t stress enough that everything has come back to normal.”
Holidays continue normally
Dania Mike-Feldman and her husband Henry, retired, are excited to spend three nights in Santorini as part of a trip to Greece that had been postponed for a long time. The last thing they were concerned with was the recent seismic noise that affected the country’s most popular tourist destination, she said.
“I guess we are typical New Yorkers. Henry said ‘Why worry about it now? We will be there in June, ”Mike-Feldman told CNN. “We didn’t think so much.”
Mike-Feldman said that their friends who returned from cruises from Santorini told them that the destination is “an island you need to see”.
Now is the focus of their big holidays in Greece. Mike-Feldman noted that, although they were worried about the well-being of the residents of Santorini, they understood that seismic activity was “a geological phenomenon that occurs there at times”.
“We heard that many visitors and locals left the island because the vibrations were significant and scary,” he said. “We are optimistic. We thought that if something was destroyed, it would happen earlier than later. Then we heard that the seismic activity was declining and people returned. “
Mike-Feldman said they had not thought of canceling their journey because of the earthquakes.
When asked about travel insurance, he said they had received full coverage. “Not only because of the vibrations in Santorini, but because we live in a world with viruses and other things. We want to make sure we are covered, “he said.
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