Two cruise ships will sail into the port of Thessaloniki on Sunday morning, and their passengers will be served at two different passenger stations: the “Macedonia” passenger station, located in the emblematic preserved building of 1910 at the western entrance of the city, and the new passenger station port station in the renovated Warehouse 8, situated on platform 9, spanning 230 meters in length.
This marks the first time that the city port welcomes two cruise ships simultaneously, thanks to the creation of the second passenger station.
In more detail, the “Europa 2” cruise ship of the “Hapag Lloyd Cruises” company, arriving from Kavala, will sail to berth nine at 8 am on Sunday. Its passengers will be served at the new passenger station and will have the opportunity to witness traditional dances during their disembarkation in the presence of representatives from the city’s partner agencies. They will be warmly welcomed in the fully refurbished ‘intra Schengen’ section of Warehouse 8, which has undergone installations of office and passport control facilities, as well as LED lighting. Four new bumpers have also been added to the dock in front of the warehouse. The renovated section of the terminal has been adorned with photos and special visuals showcasing the city.
The second ship, the Celestyal Crystal of Celestyal Cruises, which utilizes Thessaloniki as its home port, is expected to dock at berths 4-8 at 10 am, arriving from Piraeus. The cruise ship’s passengers departing for Kusadasi in Turkey in the evening of the same day will utilize the “Macedonia” station, as has been the case every Sunday since its first arrival on April 5. The same ship is expected to make ten more visits to Thessaloniki during 2023 (already having arrived 21 times). From September 3rd onwards, it will be replaced by the “Celestyal Journey,” a new luxury cruise ship of the same capacity but with larger spaces and balconies belonging to the same company.
It is worth noting that a total of 68 cruise ship arrivals are planned in Thessaloniki for this year, compared to 61 in 2022, 17 in 2021, six and five, respectively in the record years for Greek tourism in 2019 and 2018, four in 2017, and 24 in 2016.
