155 passengers with tickets for a stopover wanted to travel cheaply to Piraeus.
So, here’s something for the travel nerds: On Easter Monday, exactly 155 passengers with tickets for Syros actually boarded the ferry heading to Piraeus.
That’s the official count—no more, no less.
Interesting, right?
Late one evening at a Greek island port, about 155 ferry passengers flat-out refused to disembark, even though their tickets clearly listed the island as their final stop.
The thing is, these folks meant to travel all the way to Piraeus on the mainland. This threw a wrench in the usual disembarkation process.
The ferry had been zigzagging through a complicated route—starting from Thessaloniki, stopping at places like Mykonos and Syros, and finally ending up in Piraeus.
Travel demand was nuts due to the festive season, so the vessel was packed. That meant the 155 passengers couldn’t just pay a fine and stay on board for the rest of the ride.
Apparently, this isn’t a new problem. Some passengers buy tickets to an intermediate stop—cheaper, easier to get—while planning to go further anyway.
That led to quite a bit of scrambling: port authorities, the crew, and the ferry company all had to work together to sort things out.
One captain with plenty of sea miles under his belt said this sort of thing pops up a lot, especially when ferries are full and everyone’s in a rush to get somewhere.
He didn’t mince words—these stunts can put operational safety at risk and create headaches for everyone involved.
Rather than abandon the group at the island, the ferry company made a call. They sent out an emergency ferry from Piraeus to pick up the 155 passengers (and their vehicles), shuttling them straight to the mainland.
That’s not a cheap fix, but it did show the company was willing to put service and passenger care first, even when things got messy.
Details |
|
|---|---|
Number of affected passengers |
155 |
Ferry involved |
Blue Star Mykonos and Blue Star Paros |
Original intended destination |
Syros (stated on tickets) |
Actual intended destination |
Piraeus |
Route |
Thessaloniki to Piraeus via multiple islands |
Incident timing |
Late evening, Easter Monday |
Additional measures |
Emergency ferry service from Syros to Piraeus |
Key points:
- Passengers misusing ticketing by declaring intermediate stops to gain cheaper fares
- Full ferry capacity prevented standard fines or extensions
- Co-operation required between staff and port authority
- Deployment of extra ferry service ensured continued travel for affected passengers
- The event highlighted challenges ferry companies face during busy periods
It’s a pretty good action: ticketing tricks and crowded ferries can lead to all kinds of operational headaches. Sometimes, you’ve got to improvise to keep things moving. If you’re curious, there’s more on ticketing irregularities and the headaches they cause.
