Chania authorities plan online booking system to curb overcrowding at Balos and Elafonissi

Field research conducted by scientists, mainly from the Natural History Museum and the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania, has given the municipality the tools to draw up a specific action plan for the Balos and Elafonissi beaches, according to Mr. Koukourakis. One of the measures under the plan concerns limiting overcrowding at the two sites.

“Over the last three to four years we have had a problem of overpopulation. Because of the good reputation these areas have, a very large number of people go there,” he said.

According to Mr. Koukourakis, authorities have already taken steps to reduce visitor numbers. At Balos, there are currently around 150 sunbeds, down from about 400 a few years ago. At Elafonissi, the number has fallen from 800 to 200. “It had turned into an ‘umbrella island’ — visitors would go there and see nothing but umbrellas. Without the umbrellas, people’s length of stay is reduced; it’s not like before, when they would stay from 8 in the morning until 8 in the evening,” he said.

He added that this measure alone is not enough. “When you have to manage 4,000 to 5,000 people a day, it’s frightening,” he said, “and extremely difficult to enforce rules” — citing, for example, tourists taking jars of the pink sand, which took millions of years to form.

Action plan

As part of a broader action plan, authorities are now proposing the creation of an online platform through which visitors wishing to enter the protected areas would book a specific date and time slot for their visit. “The appropriate number of people who can be present in each area at any given time will be determined based on carrying capacity,” Mr. Koukourakis explained.

“There is an action plan,” he said, noting that it would need to be implemented jointly by the Ministry of Environment, the region and the municipality. He said he expects the system to be ready by next year.