Behind the unimaginable mass of large coastal shipping ships lies a fleet of much smaller ships connecting mostly small islands to each other, as well as forgotten mainland destinations to island destinations. Routes in the smaller Cyclades, others connecting Crete to nearby islands, and commercially barren lines on most of them are operated by 22 small coastal shipping companies, with a total of 37 small vessels. Postage, as the sailors call them, which ensures the smooth flow of daily life for the islanders, as well as the transfer of summer travelers from one destination to another. And whose captains know the needs of the islanders like family. This is often the case.

There are currently 25 small and medium ferry companies operating in Greece. Together, they control a fleet of 57 ships cruising the Aegean and Ionian Seas, along with 43 ships from major companies such as Attica Enterprises, Minoan Lines and ANEK. Thus, this summer, 100 coasters daily serve the 115 islands of our country, either connecting them to the mainland or connecting them. XRTC Consultants mapped these small liners along with the rest of the market, identifying a fleet of 20 high-speed and conventional vessels from medium-sized companies and another 37 from small companies.

Small ferry companies operate mostly on barren and inter-island routes.

The ecosystem of small coastal companies, controlling no more than one to three ships, consists of 22 companies operating mainly on barren and inland lines. “We must emphasize that many of the above companies, despite being local, are introducing innovative management structures, introducing preferred card programs, online booking, web check-in, e-ticketing, like larger companies, and developing cruise product. “, notes XRTC. It also emphasizes that “most of these companies repair or in some cases build their ships in Greece, which requires special approval and support from the state, as well as all public authorities. But the main condition is the development of a corporate profile with for the purpose of attracting bank capital.

Among the three medium-sized companies, according to XRTC Consultants, Fast Ferries and Levante Ferries operate with charter vessels throughout the year, and Seajets (which, according to market sources, due to the size of its fleet, but also the number of routes, now follows classified as large companies) uses most of its high-speed vessels only during the high tourist season. “Seajets, representing the interests of Mario Iliopoulos, is the largest private Greek shipping company with a fleet of 24 vessels (20 fast and 4 conventional). It has the largest fleet of high-speed vessels in the Aegean and serves 33 islands in the Cyclades, both with services from Piraeus, Lavrion, Crete, Thessaloniki, Rafina, and with services within the Cyclades,” the XRTC study says. Fast Ferries operate 4 ships, 3 regular ferries and one fast ferry, on the routes of Rafina, Andros, Tinos, Mykonos, Naxos, Paros, Koufonisia and Piraeus, Syros, Mykonos, Naxos. The third medium sized ferry company is Levante Ferries which operate on the Patras, Kyllini, Zakynthos, Kefalonia, Ithaca lines with 4 vessels.

As for the large coastal ferries, they control a total of 43 ships and are described in the study as “the backbone of the market, as they transport passengers and, above all, most of the cargo to and from the islands, while covering the needs of residents throughout the year to the island country without stopping by large passenger ferries, the average length of which is 145 m. Since 2015, their fleet has not shown significant fluctuations. In the last 3 years it has a constant number of 43 vessels, while their average age is steadily growing, reaching 23 years.