“We are delighted to have 135 calls and 270,000 cruise guests this year,” said Boudrogiannis Dimitrios chairman of the Souda Port Committee.

Those numbers are more than 20 percent up on 2018, and the trend will continue in 2020, when the Greek port is expecting over 150 cruise calls, said Dimitrios.

The port is the home to Chania on the island of Crete, considered to be among the most attractive Mediterranean ports, said Dimitrios.

“Our destination is no doubt one of the most diversified cruise destinations in Mediterranean Sea with a great spectrum of excursions provided,” he said.

“Our port infrastructure has specific limits and soon we will extend these limits in order to accommodate more cruise vessels,” he said. “For us, the first priority is to extend the cruise season and then have year-round traffic.”

The port authority plans to expand the passenger terminal, and is working on a Master Plan for the cruise business, Dimitrios said.

“All Cretan cruise ports can provide shore excursions to almost the whole island with no problem,” Dimitrios continued. “Part of our strategy is to attract the best cruise lines in terms of quality to our port and destination, contributing to the sustainable development of the region.”