Ferry strike announced in Greece for 3rd & 4th of September 2018 ends today

The ferry strike announced by the Greek seamen federation will end at the 4th of September. Most of the itineraries planned for the 5th of September will be normally operated. Our customers will get notified immediately about any itinerary modification that may occur.

The ferry strike had been announced by the Greek seamen federation (PNO) for Monday 3rd, and Tuesday 4th of September 2018. The strike was initially planned to last for 24h, hence ending at 23:59 of Monday. However, according to the latest announcement of the seamen's' association, it has been extended for another 24 hours.

All the itineraries that were planned to sail on these two days were affected, either cancelled or modified. Thus, if you are planning to travel on from the Greek mainland ports to the islands or vice versa, we suggest that you take pro-active actions to assure the minimum effect on your trip.

The reality is that there is no golden rule on how to deal with a strike. The reason is that a strike does not necessarily mean that all ferries are cancelled. Some operators might wait until the last minute before announcing a cancellation, while other operators might try to reschedule their itineraries and “bypass” the strike, either by pushing them on the 23:59 on the day before, or by performing only a segment of the scheduled itinerary.

You may find a complete guide on how to deal with ferry strikes in our blog post "Ferry strike in Greece 2018 - Tickets, Schedules & Hints". Some quick tips are listed below.

How to deal with ferry strikes in Greece?

On our side, the first thing that we can do is try to inform our customers of the upcoming strike via targeted e-mails and lay down the options that they have beforehand, in order to allow them some flexibility and make their lives easier. Generally, our guidelines are:

1. Avoid collecting your paper coupons until the day of departure. Even though you are eligible for 100% refund, coupons should be returned to the company or to the agency that issued the tickets in order for the passenger to be compensated. 

2.  If you learn about a possible strike contact Ferryhopper or the ferry company (or the agency that issued your tickets)  as soon as possible, and begin examining the possibility of modifying your travel arrangements accordingly. Especially if you have corresponding flights or non-refundable accommodation arrangements, this plan may save you a lot of money, time and stress.

3. If you have the option of changing your travel dates, it is advisable to search for an itinerary on the day before the strike, as itineraries on the days following the strike might also be affected by the general re-scheduling.