Rhodes welcomed today, Friday, January 2, the first cruise ship of 2026, marking both the start of the year at the islands tourist port and in Greece. The impressive Viking Vesta from Viking Cruises arrived carrying 949 passengers, the majority of whom were U.S. citizens.
The cruise ship docked at Rhodes tourist port at 6:19 a.m., arriving from Ku?adas?, Turkey, and will remain on the island until the afternoon, when it will depart for its next stop, Heraklion in Crete.
The Municipality of Rhodes held the customary official reception for the captain, officers, crew, and of course the passengers. Attendees included the President of the South Dodecanese Municipal Port Fund Vasilis Vagianakis, Deputy Mayor of Communications Giorgos Pattas, CEO of the Rhodes Tourism Promotion Organization (PROTOUR) Anastasios Konstantaros, Director of Technical Works of the Port Fund Marika Deligianni, Head of the Public and International Relations Department of the Municipality of Rhodes Maria-Agapi Karampini, as well as Head of Promotion and Information of the Tourism Department Vlasis Fakiolis.
Also present at the reception were Rhodes Chief Port Authority Maria Kiposoglou, Commander of the 8th Regional Coast Guard Administration Dimitris Zarazanis, Head of Security at Rhodes tourist port Panagiotis Dokos, shipping agent Pavlos Georgiadis, and representatives from Customs and the Passport Control Department.
The President of the South Dodecanese Municipal Port Fund Vasilis Vagianakis and Deputy Mayor Giorgos Pattas exchanged commemorative plaques and gifts with the cruise ship captain, Anders Gillis Steen. This was followed by the cutting of the traditional New Years cake (vasilopita), offered by Mr. Georgiadis, with the hidden coin won by the ships first officer, Rolf Fredrik Malmberg, who received a commemorative gift.
Staff from the Tourism Department of the Municipality of Rhodes offered visitors printed and digital informational material about the island, as well as traditional melekounia sweets. The ships captain and the first visitors to Rhodes expressed their enthusiasm for the warm welcome and thanked the organizers for the flawless reception.
2026 is shaping up to be a particularly dynamic year for maritime tourism in Rhodes, one of Greeces most popular cruise destinations. The Municipality of Rhodes, PROTOUR, and the Municipal Port Fund continue to work systematically on further developing maritime tourism and upgrading and strengthening port infrastructure.
