Paros is undoubtedly one of the most popular and most visited islands of the Cyclades and of Greece as a whole. Known for its proximity to other popular islands like Mykonos, Santorini and Naxos, it is known for its beautiful architecture, excellent beaches and hospitality, and delicious food. Moreover, the island has the well-known port village of Naoussa, where one can find some amazing restaurants and bars right next to the sea. Its close neighbour, Antiparos, is also a well-known and visited island, notably amongst campers. Generally-speaking, it is a fantastic island worthy of visiting during the summer. In terms of maritime transportation, Paros is surely one of the most favoured islands in Greece. Indeed, the island sees the most connections, arrivals and departures on all of the Aegean Sea, if the Saronic Gulf is not included. In the summer, it welcomes dozens of ships from most of the major Greek coastal service companies. During that period, there are also numerous high speed craft serving the island, and almost all the top ships of the Greek coastal service make calls there. As the island is part of the extremely popular Piraeus-Paros-Naxos-Ios-Santorini line, is connected with Naxos and the Lesser Cyclades, is included on popular summer Heraklion-Cyclades services, and has now recently been added to itineraries of ships leaving from Rafina, the island is guaranteed to have dozens of calls from different ships everyday. Thus, for a shipping enthusiast like me, such a place is ideal. During the summer of 2018, I got to discover many Cyclades islands for the first time in my life. Paros was one of them, as I stayed there with my family from 26 July to 29 July, just after having spent four days in Naxos. I arrived there with the BLUE STAR PATMOS of Blue Star Ferries, which brought me from Naxos to Paros on the morning of 26 July 2018. We stayed at nice house (which we had booked through Airbnb), which happened to have an incredible view towards the sea, and notably in the area where ships begin to approach the island's port, located in the town of Paroikia. Therefore, I could see several arrivals and departures from various Greek ferries and high speed craft. Hence, just like the post dedicated to the high speed craft that had called the port of Ios when I visited the island during the summer of 2017, this post will display all the arrivals and departures of ferries and high speed craft that I managed to capture throughout my stay in Paros. I took several pictures on the morning of 27 July, as well as on the morning and evening of 28 July, while also taking two additional pictures in the morning of 29 July, shortly before leaving the island in order to head back to Athens. Thus, I will show you each picture according to its respective date of capture. Without further ado, let the photo show begin. 27 July 2018: The first ship that I got to see that morning was the BLUE STAR PATMOS of Blue Star Ferries, on which I had traveled the day before. She was heading to Paros from Naxos. The impressive BLUE STAR PATMOS seen approaching the port of Paros. Built in 2012, she spent her first three seasons on the Piraeus-Chios-Mytilene line, before transferring to the Cyclades in late 2014. Since the summer of 2015, she has been serving Paros every summer. She was on the Piraeus-Syros-Paros-Naxos-Donousa-Amorgos-Ios-Santorini-Anafi-Astypalaia line in the summers of 2015, 2016 and 2017. In 2018, her service was limited to the Piraeus-Syros-Paros-Naxos-Ios-Santorini-Anafi line. The BLUE STAR PATMOS seen heading towards the port of Paros. I have traveled onboard her three times (the most times I have traveled with one ship on the Cyclades): the first time was on 7-8 July 2015 from Piraeus to Santorini, the second time from Santorini to Ios on 10 July 2017, and the third time was just a day before I took this picture, on 26 July 2018 from Naxos to Paros. After the BLUE STAR PATMOS had arrived in Paros, I saw a ship departing the port: it was the well-known high speed ferry HIGHSPEED 4 of Hellenic Seaways, which was departing the island in order to head towards Naxos. The HIGHSPEED 4 seen leaving Paros. Built in 2000, she has spent her entire career under the same owner. Hellenic Seaways was previously known as Minoan Flying Dolphins (1999-2002) and then as Hellas Flying Dolphins (2002-2005) before acquiring its current name in 2005. The HIGHSPEED 4 has impressively served Paros in all but two seasons throughout her 19 years of activity so far! Indeed, the only two times when she did not make calls to Paros were in 2005, when she was on the Piraeus-Chania line, and in 2009, when she was on the Piraeus-Syros-Tinos-Mykonos line. Thus, she is one of the most appreciated ships in the island and has been identified with Paros throughout all of her incredible career. The HIGHSPEED 4 leaving Paros in order to head towards Naxos, which she has also been serving every summer, except for 2005, 2009 and 2015. Since 2016, she has been deployed on the Piraeus-Paros-Naxos-Koufonisi-Amorgos line, a line that she also served successfully in 2014. The HIGHSPEED 4 seen exiting the port of Paros. The HIGHSPEED 4 now at full-speed on her way to Naxos, Koufonisi and Amorgos. Shortly after the BLUE STAR PATMOS had docked in Paros, she was already departing in order to return to Piraeus. The BLUE STAR PATMOS seen from the house where we were staying during our time in Paros. She is now departing the island in order to return to Piraeus. The much-acclaimed BLUE STAR PATMOS departing Paros. She operates from Piraeus to the Cyclades during the evening, and returns from the islands to Athens' main port during the morning. The BLUE STAR PATMOS having started her return trip to Piraeus. The BLUE STAR PATMOS, which I have grown to know very well thanks to the three great trips that I had with her. The BLUE STAR PATMOS now at open sea, making her return to Piraeus. Barely a few minutes after the BLUE STAR PATMOS had left Paros, I saw another ship approaching the port: it was the high speed craft NAXOS JET of Sea Jets. The NAXOS JET arriving in Paros, after having arrived from her namesake island, Naxos. The NAXOS JET was formerly known as the CYCLADES EXPRESS of NEL Lines, operating for them only during the 2010 season on the Heraklion-Santorini line. Afterwards, due to the company's financial problems, she was laid-up in Salamina from 2010 to 2016. That year, she was sold to Sea Jets, which went on to refit her during two years. She entered service for the first time in 8 years on the Rafina-Andros-Syros-Tinos-Mykonos-Paros-Naxos line, where she operated successfully. In the meantime, another ferry was seen approaching the island: it was the BLUE STAR NAXOS, which was arriving from Piraeus and Syros. Built in 2002, the BLUE STAR NAXOS has spent her entire career on the Cyclades under Blue Star Ferries. In these 17 years, she has spent all but three summer seasons calling the island of Paros! This was only during the summers of 2012, 2013 and 2014, when she was operating on the Piraeus-Syros-Tinos-Mykonos line. Since 2015, she has been operating on the Lesser Cyclades lifeline, being on the Piraeus-Syros-Tinos-Mykonos-Paros-Naxos-Irakleia-Schoinousa-Koufonisi-Amorgos-Santorini line in 2015, 2016 and 2017. In 2018, she was deployed on the Piraeus-Syros-Paros-Naxos-Irakleia-Schoinousa-Koufonisi-Donousa-Amorgos-Santorini-Astypalaia line (adding Donousa and Astypalaia, which were previously served by the BLUE STAR PATMOS). The BLUE STAR NAXOS approaching Paros. She connects Piraeus with the Lesser Cyclades on a daily basis through a very tight schedule leaving Piraeus at 06:45 every morning, and returning there the following day at 05:00. The crew only has one hour and thirty minutes to rest before her next departure there. This is why she is such an exceptional ship. While the BLUE STAR NAXOS was arriving in Paros, she would begin to see some company, as the high speed ferries TERA JET of Sea Jets and SUPERRUNNER of Golden Star Ferries were also racing against each other, having arrived from Mykonos. The BLUE STAR NAXOS approaching Paros, with the TERA JET and the SUPERRUNNER seen right behind. The BLUE STAR NAXOS begins to approach the port of Paros located in Paroikia. In the meantime, the TERA JET and the SUPERRUNNER are seen racing against each other in order to see which ship will make it to the port first. Both ships became fierce competitors in 2017, the year during which they made their debuts on the Rafina-Cyclades service provided by their companies. The TERA JET was indeed deployed on the Rafina-Tinos-Mykonos-Paros-Naxos line, while the SUPERRUNNER (previously known as the SPEEDRUNNER IV of Aegean Speed Lines from 2009 to 2016) began service under her new owners on the Rafina-Tinos-Mykonos-Paros-Naxos-Ios-Santorini line. The BLUE STAR NAXOS, one of the best ships in Greece, seen approaching Paros. The never-ending racing contest between the TERA JET and the SUPERRUNNER. Due to both of them being excellent and very fast high speed craft, their owners engaged in both a price war and port racing contests in Tinos, Mykonos, Paros and Naxos (as the SUPERRUNNER then continues her trip to Ios and Santorini, while the TERA JET heads back to Rafina) in order to see which ship would moor first (with a view of impressing passengers). Despite the heated rivalry, both ships had an excellent first season, as they also did in 2018. No incidents and very rare engine failures have been reported so far. Thanks to them, their companies won the prestigious award 'Passenger Line of The Year' provided by Lloyd's List Greek Shipping Awards, in 2017 and 2018, respectively. While the show is taking place near the Northern part of the Paroikia Bay area, I got to see another ship, which had just been behind her fleetmate while heading towards Paros. It was the BLUE STAR DELOS of Blue Star Ferries, the sister ship of the BLUE STAR PATMOS, which had also arrived from Piraeus. The racing contest between the TERA JET and the SUPERRUNNER, two of Greece's best high speed craft. Two things the ships have in common is that they were both built in the same country, Italy, and in the same year, 1999. The racing contest coming to a close here. Due to her making a sharper turn, the SUPERRUNNER seems to be the one that will be docking in Paros first. In the meantime, the BLUE STAR DELOS was arriving in Paros at her own pace. I had traveled onboard her four days before taking this picture, as I was heading from Piraeus to Naxos (via Paros). The SUPERRUNNER seen near Paros, after having overtaken the TERA JET. She was hence the winner of the racing slot from Mykonos to Paros. The TERA JET seen following her rival from right behind. She is the flagship of Sea Jets, and has had two massively successful seasons so far while operating from Rafina to the Cyclades. In 2018, the island of Andros was added to her itinerary, hence she was deployed on the Rafina-Andros-Tinos-Mykonos-Paros-Naxos line. It impressive how she arrives in Paros at the same time as the SUPERRUNNER, as the latter does not serve Andros. The SUPERRUNNER seen advancing towards the port of Paros, right behind her rival. That summer, I had the chance to travel onboard her on 17 June 2018, heading from Ios to Mykonos, via Naxos and Paros. The BLUE STAR DELOS on her way towards Paros. Built in 2011, before her sister ship, she has spent her entire career so far on the Piraeus-Paros-Naxos-Ios-Santorini line (though she does not serve Ios during the summer), and has been hailed as the best day ferry in Greece by many. The TERA JET and the SUPERRUNNER having lowered their speed in order to begin their maneuvering procedures in Paros. The TERA JET and the SUPERRUNNER both beginning to head towards the port of Paros. The BLUE STAR DELOS is seen behind them. If you check the pictures I took during my trip with her, I had the exact same pattern of departures and arrivals when the ship was heading towards Paros. Indeed, I saw the BLUE STAR PATMOS leaving Paros in order to head towards Piraeus, then saw the NAXOS JET leaving the island in order to go to Mykonos, followed by the departures of the SUPERRUNNER and of the TERA JET from Paros to Naxos, followed shortly by the BLUE STAR NAXOS. Hence, I witnessed the same spectacle both from the sea and from the shore, within a span of five days. A nice view of the Paroikia Bay: the TERA JET and the SUPERRUNNER are heading towards the port of Paros, while the NAXOS JET has just departed, whereas the BLUE STAR NAXOS has just docked there. The two rivals, the TERA JET and the SUPERRUNNER, heading towards the port of Paros. You can see that the TERA JET makes a last attempt at trying to pass by the SUPERRUNNER shortly before docking. The NAXOS JET seen departing Paros. In her debut season under Sea Jets, the NAXOS JET would leave Rafina for the Cyclades islands in the afternoon, reaching Naxos in the evening and spending the night there. She would leave her namesake island in the morning, in order to return to Rafina in the early afternoon. The TERA JET operated on the same line as her (with the exception of Syros), but carried out the trip in the morning, returning to Rafina in the late afternoon of the same day. The BLUE STAR DELOS seen approaching the port of Paros. The BLUE STAR DELOS having entered the Paroikia Bay and heading towards Paros' port. The BLUE STAR DELOS and the NAXOS JET seen right outside of the port of Paros, repeating the same encounter that I had experienced four days earlier while traveling onboard the Blue Star Ferries ship. Another view of the BLUE STAR DELOS approaching the port of Paros. In the meantime, all three ferries that had been docked immediately departed it. All of them were heading towards the same destination: Naxos. The SUPERRUNNER had left first, followed by the TERA JET and then by the BLUE STAR NAXOS. The SUPERRUNNER taking the lead and heading from Paros to Naxos, during her second season under Golden Star Ferries. The TERA JET following her right behind. The summer of 2018 was her fifth consecutive in Greece and under Sea Jets. Both high speed ferries were being followed by the BLUE STAR NAXOS, which was also heading towards her namesake island. The TERA JET beginning to sail under full-speed towards Naxos, hoping to catch up the SUPERRUNNER. The BLUE STAR NAXOS on her way from Paros to Naxos. This was it for the day, and I really got to see how impressive the morning traffic in Paros is. 28 July 2018: The following morning, I unexpectedly saw some new faces which I had not seen the previous day. One of them was the ferry AQUA BLUE of Sea Jets (trading as Sea Jets Ferries), which was heading towards the port of Paros, followed by the BLUE STAR PATMOS which was arriving from Naxos. The veteran ferry AQUA BLUE preparing to enter the port of Paros. It was her debut summer under Sea Jets Ferries, which had acquired her in 2017. Before that, she was the notable IERAPETRA L of ANEK Lines (from 2009 to 2016) and of LANE Sea Lines (from 1999 to 2009). She had also operated earlier in her Greek career under ANEK Lines having served the Adriatic Sea initially as the KYDON (1991-1995) and then as the TALOS (1995-1999). Her debut season under Sea Jets Ferries marked her first summer of operations since 2014, when she had been operating on the Bari-Durrës line. After that year's summer, she suffered a severe fire incident while heading from Igoumenitsa to Perama for her annual refit, and was badly damaged. Due to her advanced age (she was built in 1975) and her damages following that fire, it was believed that she would be sold for scrap. However, miraculously, the ship was saved by Sea Jets Ferries, which bought her and repaired her in Perama and in Drapetsona in 2017, renaming her AQUA BLUE in 2018. For her debut season, the AQUA BLUE operated on an impressively long lifeline: the Thessaloniki-Skiathos-Skopelos-Alonissos-Andros-Syros-Tinos-Mykonos-Paros-Naxos-Santorini-Heraklion line. She thus connected Thessaloniki (Greece's second largest city, located in the Northern part of the country, in Macedonia) with the Sporades, the main Cyclades islands and Crete. This was the first time that a ship had been on such a line since the late DIMITROULA of GA Ferries, which had operated there until 2008. Due to her slow speed, the ship would arrive in Heraklion two days after leaving Thessaloniki. The BLUE STAR PATMOS arriving in Paros from Naxos, just like she had done when I did my trip with her two days before taking this picture. The AQUA BLUE, having arrived from Mykonos, seen heading towards the port of Paros. The BLUE STAR PATMOS seen approaching Paros as well. The BLUE STAR PATMOS on her way to Paros. The BLUE STAR PATMOS, which was on the Piraeus-Syros-Paros-Naxos-Ios-Santorini-Anafi line that season, seen heading towards Paros. The magnificent BLUE STAR PATMOS seen near Paros. The BLUE STAR PATMOS having entered the Paroikia Bay. Next to her (the small ship at the bottom left of the picture) is the small passenger boat HELLAS of Antiparos Speedline NE, which operates on the Paros-Antiparos line. A few moments after the arrival of the BLUE STAR PATMOS in Paros, the HIGHSPEED 4 was seen arriving from Piraeus. The HIGHSPEED 4 having quickly entered the Paroikia Bay. The HIGHSPEED 4, a favourite in Paros, approaching the island's port. The HIGHSPEED 4 maneuvering in Piraeus. She is now the only high speed ferry to operate for her company alongside the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED, following the sale of the HIGHSPEED 7 to Minoan Lines in 2018, which spent her first season under her new owners as the SANTORINI PALACE. The HIGHSPEED 4 seen approaching Paros, while the AQUA BLUE has already unloaded passengers and vehicles and loaded new ones. She was now leaving the islands in order to head to Naxos. The HIGHSPEED 4 and the AQUA BLUE, two completely different ships, seen together outside of the port of Paros. The HIGHSPEED 4 seen alongside the AQUA BLUE. The latter was built 25 years before the former, and had arrived in Greece 10 years before the high speed craft did. The AQUA BLUE was built in Japan, while the HIGHSPEED 4 was built in Australia. The AQUA BLUE heads towards Naxos, while the HIGHSPEED 4 heads towards her docking spot in Paros. The nice AQUA BLUE seen leaving Paros. The AQUA BLUE heading out of the Paroikia Bay. While the AQUA BLUE was leaving Paros, she spotted one of her fleetmates approaching the port. This was the ANDROS JET of Sea Jets, which, like the AQUA BLUE, was having her debut season under her new owners. The ANDROS JET and the AQUA BLUE seen near Paros. The AQUA BLUE heading from Paros to Naxos. The ANDROS JET meanwhile heads towards the port of Paros, having arrived from Syros. The ANDROS JET joined Sea Jets in late 2017, following a 20-year-long career in Turkey, having operated on the Yalova-Pendik line as the CEZAYIRLI HASAN PAŞA 1 for the Turkish company İstanbul Deniz Otobüsleri (İDO). After a conversion in Perama and in Chalkida, she entered service in 2018, on her company's inter-Cyclades lifeline. She was more specifically on the Lavrion-Kea-Kythnos-Andros-Tinos-Syros-Paros-Naxos-Donousa-Amorgos-Koufonisi-Schoinousa-Irakleia-Folegandros-Sikinos-Ios-Thirassia-Santorini-Anafi line. Taking over the service from her fleetmate, the classic ferry AQUA JEWEL, which was sent on charter to Azores-based company Atlântico Line for the summer, she endured a very troublesome first season. Despite being faster than the AQUA JEWEL she could not transport lorries, and was also plagued by a handful of engine failures, which resulted in several delays and multiple trip cancellations. This was not essential for a very long and demanding line. The ANDROS JET seen heading towards Paros, having arrived from Syros. The ANDROS JET on her way towards the port of Paros. Later that day, I saw the BLUE STAR DELOS approaching the port of Paros. As it was early in the evening, she had been returning to the island from Santorini and Naxos. After 20 minutes in the port, the BLUE STAR DELOS left Paros in order to begin her return trip towards Piraeus. The fantastic BLUE STAR DELOS on her way to Piraeus having left Paros. The BLUE STAR DELOS having left Paros in the evening, just before the incredible Cyclades sunset. 29 July 2018: That morning, I only took two pictures. Here, the BLUE STAR PATMOS is seen leaving Paros in order to return to Piraeus, just like her sister ship had done so the previous evening, as seen in the pictures right above. The HIGHSPEED 4 following the BLUE STAR PATMOS, though she was heading towards Naxos. Later that day, I would find myself onboard her, as I traveled with her in order to return from Paros to Piraeus. There is no doubt that these days were absolutely unique from a shipspotting point of view. Seeing so many well-known and acclaimed ferries and high speed craft come and leave one after the other was incredibly fascinating. Notably, I saw how the traffic in Paros is intense compared to other islands in Greece. The first day saw me witnessing countless arrivals and departures, including an entertaining racing contest between two rival high speed craft, while the second and third day showed both habitual as well as occasional visitors to the island. It really was a fantastic experience which I will hardly forget. #ferries #highspeedcraft #summer2018 #greece #cyclades #aegean #paros #paroikia #bluestarpatmos #bluestarnaxos #bluestardelos #bluestarferries #highspeed4 #hellenicseaways #naxosjet #terajet #aquablue #androsjet #seajets #seajetsferries #superrunner #goldenstarferries #hellas #antiparosspeedlinene

Trip: 21 July 2018. From Oropos to Eretria, with the ANNA MARIA of Gavanozis Shipping. The double-ended ferry ANNA MARIA was built in 2009 in Greece for the Greek company Gavanozis Shipping. She was deployed on the Oropos-Eretria line, connecting mainland Greece with the island of Evoia through the South Evoian Gulf. She remained there until 2014. In 2015 she was deployed on the Perama-Salamina line. She returned to the Oropos-Eretria line in 2016, before returning again to the Perama-Salamina line in 2017. She returned once again to the Oropos-Eretria line in 2018. The ANNA MARIA was the second double-ended ferry to be built for her company, following the AEOLOS which had been built two years earlier. The company then built another double-ended ferry, the AEOLOS II, in 2010. Both the latter and the ANNA MARIA operate for the Salamina Ferries joint venture, and alternate services between the Perama-Salamina line and the Oropos-Eretria line, depending on the summer season. Gavanozis Shipping (owned by the Gavanozis family) owned and operated six ferries as of 2018, with each one of them being deployed on one specific line. These were: -The ANNA MARIA, on the Oropos-Eretria line. -The AEOLOS, on the Glyfa-Agiokampos line (operating for the Edipsos Ferries-Glyfa Ferries joint venture). -The AEOLOS II, on the Perama-Salamina line. -The landing craft KAPETAN ARISTIDIS, on the Arkitsa-Aidipsos line (also operating for the Edipsos Ferries-Glyfa Ferries joint venture). -The landing craft THEOLOGOS ELENI, on the Rion-Antirrion line. -The landing craft MICHALAKIS III, on the Agia Marina-Nea Styra line. Having so far spent all but two of her first ten seasons of operations on the Oropos-Eretria line, the ANNA MARIA has been a familiar face on that well-known line. Indeed, it connects the small town of Oropos, which is located in the Attica region and is about an hour away North of Athens, with the small coastal village of Eretria, located in the Central part of Southern Evoia, Greece's second largest island, after Crete. The trip lasts only 20 minutes and is served by double-ended ferries, which have replaced landing craft since 2004. It is one of the oldest and most historical lines in the history of the Greek coastal service, as it has been active since the 1950s, when the legendary landing craft ERETRIA of Evoian Shipping began service there. During its golden era, it operated eight ships simultaneously. However, in recent years, the line has been mostly seasonal, being active from early April to late October. The summer of 2018 saw three ferries owned by three different companies operating on the line, with each ship leaving every 20-30 minutes from each port. As I have now provided you with the history of both the ANNA MARIA and the Oropos-Eretria line, I can now talk about my trip. Indeed, it was made on 21 July 2018, during my summer vacation stay in Greece. Having finished my summer internship at V-Ships Greece, I now awaited my family in order to begin our usual vacation time in Zakynthos and Aegina. In the meantime, I was free during the weekend of 21-22 July 2018, and, coincidentally, I had a very good friend from high school who had come to Evoia for a few days with his family. I decided to go visit him for the day, which required me to travel from Athens to Oropos by bus and then take the ferry to Eretria, followed by a taxi ride to the hotel where he was staying. As a result, I would return to Evoia for the first time since 2000, having been there when I was barely a few months old. Moreover, it was first-ever trip on the Oropos-Eretria line, my first-ever trip on an open-type double-ended ferry, my first-ever trip with a ship owned by Gavanozis Shipping, and my first-ever trip to Evoia by boat. Hence, this trip with the ANNA MARIA was historical in all aspects. The ANNA MARIA seen approaching the port of Oropos, shortly after I had arrived there by bus. The beautiful all-white ferry ANNA MARIA seen heading towards Oropos. The ANNA MARIA having just arrived and docked in Oropos. The ANNA MARIA seen in Oropos. Another view of the ANNA MARIA, shortly before boarding her. Another view of the ANNA MARIA, in what was her eighth season on the Oropos-Eretria line, and her first one since 2016. The ANNA MARIA in Oropos, shortly before boarding her. The open garage of the ANNA MARIA seen shortly after boarding her. Like most Greek-built double-ended ferries, there is a staircase next to the ramps leading passengers to the upper decks, where the accommodation superstructure and the bridge are located. The ANNA MARIA has additional garage decks for vehicles on both the starboard side and the port side, in case the main garage is full. Above each side ramp, the ship had a sign displaying, in Greek, the details of her services and the contact information of her company. It stated that the ship leaves Eretria every hour, when the clock reaches 00', while she departs Oropos every hour, when the clock reaches 30'. Underneath the telephone number, the sign says, in Greek, 'Thank you for choosing our ship, the ANNA MARIA, for your trip'. The second deck, which is the bottom part of the accommodation superstructure. It features an indoor lounge area. Underneath the windows, the ship's name is written in Greek, as it is the case with most open-type double-ended ferries. The modern lounge area of the ANNA MARIA, featuring several lounges and chairs available to passengers. The lounge area, which also has some funky lamps, as well as a small bar which sells water, soft drinks, snacks and ice cream. One of the corners of the lounge area, also featuring an arcade game machine for gamers. All the ship's windows in this deck are round. This was primarily due to the style that was seen in many Greek open-type double-ended ferries built between the mid 2000s and the early 2010s, including the ANNA MARIA and her fleetmate, the AEOLOS II. The forward section of the garage, now full (including on the side ramps). A view of the second deck of the accommodation superstructure, which features a large outdoor area (with numerous aligned white chairs attached to the floor) surrounding the indoor area, which serves as the crew's cabins. The above deck is the bridge, which has a full 360-degree panoramic view. The roof above the bridge is painted in yellow and red, a feature seen in all ferries owned by Gavanozis Shipping. The outdoor area of the second deck of the accommodation superstructure, filled with many aligned white chairs. Another sign displaying the timetable of the ANNA MARIA on the Oropos-Eretria line, which was printed and hanged on the accommodation superstructure. The outdoor area, along with the inflatable life-raft box, seen as we depart Oropos. The 'gate' mast of the ANNA MARIA seen as the ship departs Oropos in order to head towards Eretria. Shortly after leaving Oropos, I saw one of the two other ships operating on the line heading towards the opposite direction. It was the ARIS III of Psomas Shipping, which was returning from Eretria. The ARIS III, built just a year after the ANNA MARIA, seen heading towards Oropos. The ARIS III on her way to Oropos. Crossing the ARIS III as she heads towards Oropos. Her company has had a long history on the Oropos-Eretria line. Indeed, they began service in 1967, after having deployed the newly-built landing craft ARIS on the line. They operated her until 2002, when she was sold to GM Shipping. She still sails for that company to date on the Ionian Sea, under the name GRIGORIS M, operating as a Ro-Ro carrier on the Igoumenitsa-Corfu-Paxoi-Ereikousa-Othonoi-Mathraki line. After five years of inactivity, the company ordered a new double-ended ferry, the ARIS II, which began service in 2007 on the Oropos-Eretria line. Three years later, the ARIS III was built, and replaced her elder fleetmate, which was sold to Croatian company Rapska Plovidba. She operates under the name BARBAT on the Stinica-Mišnjak line. The ARIS III on her way to Oropos. This was her ninth season of service under Psomas Shipping. All of them have been spent on the Oropos-Eretria line, with the exception of the summers of 2015 and 2016, when she was on the Perama-Salamina line. The ARIS III seen heading towards the port of Oropos. The ARIS III operated on the Rion-Antirrion line from November 2018 to February 2019. She has now arrived in Perama, as it was announced a few days ago that she has been sold to Italian company Delcomar. She is due to be replaced by a newly-built double-ended ferry named ARIS IV, which has been ordered by her company and will normally be ready in 2020. The new name and the line where the ARIS III will be deployed have not been announced yet. Ten minutes after passing by the ARIS III, the third ship operating on the line during the 2018 season, the double-ended ferry PROTOPOROS XIII of Tsokos Lines, was seen heading from Eretria to Oropos. The PROTOPOROS XIII is the youngest and largest ship operating on the line, as she was built in 2017. Therefore, I saw her operating during the second season of her career. She had spent the first one on the Oropos-Eretria line as well. The PROTOPOROS XIII seen heading from Eretria to Oropos. She was the eleventh ship to be ordered and built for Tsokos Lines, which has been a present figure on the line since being founded in 2004. She was the eleventh order (despite being the thirteenth ship of the company to be named PROTOPOROS) as the PROTOPOROS XI is still under construction, while the PROTOPOROS XII was built in 2018 (but left Greece a few months ago as she had been sold to Tanzanian company Zan Fast Ferries). The beautiful red PROTOPOROS XIII was built in 2017, replacing the PROTOPOROS IX, which had been built in 2016 for service on the Oropos-Eretria line, but had been sold in early 2017 to another Tanzanian company, Azam Sealink, being renamed AZAM SEALINK 2. Coincidentally, another ship previously owned by Tsokos Lines and operating on the Oropos-Eretria line, the PROTOPOROS V (operating from 2011 to 2012), was sold to the same company in 2012, and still operates there as the AZAM SEALINK 1. Both ferries, just like the former PROTOPOROS XII (now known as the SEA STAR I) operate today on the Dar Es Salaam-Zanzibar line. The PROTOPOROS XIII heads towards the port of Oropos. She is also part of the Salamina Ferries joint venture, and operated on the Perama-Salamina line during the winter, before returning to her usual service on the Oropos-Eretria line during the spring, the summer and the early fall. Another view of the PROTOPOROS XIII as she heads towards Oropos. Five minutes after passing by the PROTOPOROS XIII, we arrived in Eretria. The ANNA MARIA did not need to maneuver due to her being a double-ended ferry: the vehicles and the passengers leave from the opposite side of the one they had entered while boarding in Oropos. The ANNA MARIA having just arrived in Eretria, and now unloading passengers and vehicles. Just ten minutes after arriving in Eretria, the ANNA MARIA departed the port in order to return to Oropos. The ANNA MARIA departing Eretria and heading towards Oropos. And this officially marked the end of my trip. It was short due to the small distance separating the two ports, but it was still very pleasant and overall a nice experience. The ANNA MARIA is a very good ferry and is just what the line needs. She can operate on several other short-distance routes without any problem. Now, I was ready to go see my friend and his family, after having landed in Evoia for the first time in 18 years. #annamaria #gavanozisshipping #salaminaferries #summer2018 #greece #southevoiangulf #aegean #oropos #eretria #evoia #arisiii #psomasshipping #protoporosxiii #tsokoslines #tribute

As part of my five-day stay in the island of Ios during my first days in Greece for the summer of 2017, I decided to take advantage of the ship spotting opportunities occurring daily at the island. Indeed, on 13 July, after walking around the island in order to discover it more in depth, I reached the port, where I managed to see an impressive shipping spectacle, with several high speed craft arriving all one after the other in order to dock, unload passengers, load new ones and departing immediately afterwards for other different destinations. This was mainly explained by the fact that, during the high season, high speed craft all arrive in Ios at noon, depending on the connections they make with other islands on the Cyclades, as well as the ports of Piraeus and Rafina in Attica, or even the port of Heraklion in Crete. Ios has generally been connected with other popular Cyclades islands, notably its closest neighbour Santorini, but also Paros, Naxos, Mykonos and islands on the Western Cyclades such as Sifnos, Milos or Folegandros. The previous day, while walking near the Chora (the capital of the island, located on the hill just above the port), I had already seen two ships arriving at and leaving the port of Ios, these being the high speed craft HELLENIC HIGHSPEED of Hellenic Seaways, and the ferry AQUA SPIRIT of Sea Jets Ferries. Indeed, the former arrived first, docked immediately, and soon left for Santorini, while the latter was waiting near the dock in order to unload and leave for Thirassia, as part of her busy inter-Cyclades service. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED seen maneuvering on 12 July 2017 in Ios, after having arrived from Sifnos. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED seen leaving the port of Ios, while the ferry AQUA SPIRIT prepares to dock. This month turned out to be her last one while operating in Greece, as she was sold by Sea Jets Ferries to Canadian company BC Ferries. She was replaced after two years of service with Sea Jets by her former NEL Lines inter-Cyclades partner, the AQUA JEWEL, which was bought by the same company, following NEL Lines' demise and a three-year-long lay-up due to an engine failure she had suffered in 2014. The AQUA SPIRIT is now in Canada, has been renamed NORTHERN SEA WOLF, and is due to begin operations there during the summer of 2018. She is notably the first ship Sea Jets has ever sold in its 13-year history. On 13 July 2017, therefore, the spectacle mentioned above included four high speed ferries operating under three different owners, as well as a small high speed tour boat. As I was heading towards the port of Ios from the Chora, the first ship I noticed was the small high speed tour boat CAPTAIN KOULIS of the Santorini Boatmen Union. That ship, built in 2007, operates on the Santorini-Nea Kameni-Palaia Kameni-Ios line, and is sometimes deployed to transport cruise ship passengers from Santorini to Ios, or passengers from cruise ships docking near Ios, as the port is too small to fit them. The CAPTAIN KOULIS as seen from the port of Ios upon my arrival at the latter. That day, the CAPTAIN KOULIS was serving as a shuttle for passengers transported by the cruise ship CELESTYAL NEFELI of Celestyal Cruises, seen in the background. The CAPTAIN KOULIS heading towards the CELESTYAL NEFELI in order to get more passengers from the latter to Ios. The CAPTAIN KOULIS heading towards the CELESTYAL NEFELI. The CAPTAIN KOULIS seen here returning to the port of Ios. The small CAPTAIN KOULIS approaching the port of Ios. 2017 marked her eleventh season in Greek waters, having been built in Chalkidiki and serving the well-appreciated Santorini Boatmen Union ever since. She is named after the legendary Captain Kyrgiakos Koulis, who served in the Hellenic Navy for many years and was much adored by the Aegean Sea residents, particularly the ones from the Cyclades. The CAPTAIN KOULIS seen in Ios. She was the first of four sister ships that were built for the Santorini Boatmen Union in Chalkidiki. The other ships are the ORPHEAS, the NEFELI and the YPAPANTI. The CAPTAIN KOULIS was the flagship of the company from 2007 until 2013, when the much larger passenger boat GARBIS was delivered, followed by her sister ship, the SANTORINI, in 2015. Both ships were built in Santorini. The CAPTAIN KOULIS is also the company's hospital ship, being able to transport any sick Cyclades residents across the entire region when necessary, something for which she has been much acclaimed. The CAPTAIN KOULIS having just docked in Ios. The CAPTAIN KOULIS departing Ios again and heading towards the CELESTYAL NEFELI. The CAPTAIN KOULIS heading towards the CELESTYAL NEFELI. As the CAPTAIN KOULIS was leaving again, at this moment the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED emerged. It was the second straight day I was seeing her in Ios (and in general at the time). The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED preparing to maneuver in Ios. The funnel of the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED, with the background being white and featuring the well-known three dolphins of Hellenic Seaways, painted in red. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED preparing to maneuver in Ios. Built in 1997, she operated in 2017 on the Piraeus-Sifnos-Ios-Santorini line, where she was very successful. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED had been bought by Hellenic Seaways in 2009, initially being named HELLENIC WIND. However, she did not start to operate for them until 2016. This was because she was not initially part of the company's plans, being instead chartered every summer from 2010 to 2015 to the Portuguese company Atlântico Line, being deployed on the Azores Archipelago lifeline. She finally entered the company's plans following the 2015 season, being converted in Perama and being renamed HELLENIC HIGHSPEED. She entered service in 2016, on the Rafina-Tinos-Mykonos-Paros-Ios-Santorini line, where she met much success. She however had to leave that line in 2017, as she replaced the HIGHSPEED 6, which had been operating on the Piraeus-Ios-Santorini line and had been sold to Spanish company Naviera Armas following the summer of 2016. The island of Sifnos was added to the line for the 2017 season, a move which was seen as very successful. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED was hence arriving from Sifnos, and she is seen here maneuvering in the port of Ios. In the meantime, the CAPTAIN KOULIS was once again returning from the CELESTYAL NEFELI to Ios. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED maneuvering. The CAPTAIN KOULIS seen in Ios. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED having completed her maneuvering procedure and preparing to dock in Ios. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED having docked in Ios. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED having docked in Ios and immediately unloading passengers. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED unloading passengers in Ios. Another picture of the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED unloading passengers and vehicles in Ios. In the meantime, another high speed ferry was arriving in Ios and waiting her moment of docking. That was the CHAMPION JET 2 of rival operator Sea Jets. The CHAMPION JET 2 spent the summer season on the Heraklion-Rethymnon-Santorini-Ios-Naxos-Paros-Mykonos line, thus connecting Crete with the Cyclades, on one of the most popular seasonal lines in the Greek coastal service. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED still unloading passengers and vehicles and ready to take the incoming passengers and vehicles to her next destination, Santorini. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED having finished her loading of passengers and vehicles and now departing the port of Ios. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED performing her departure maneuvering procedure. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED preparing to depart Ios. As the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED was departing, the CHAMPION JET 2 (having arrived from Santorini) was slowly beginning to head towards the port, which is too small to fit two ferries at the same time. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED has completed her departure maneuvering procedure and begins to head towards the port's exit. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED begins to head towards the port's exit. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED leaving Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 heading towards the dock of the port of Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 approaching the port of Ios. Built in 1996 in Australia, she was acquired by Sea Jets in 2015, alongside her younger sister ship, the CHAMPION JET 1. She spent her first two seasons on the Piraeus-Mykonos-Naxos-Santorini line, before switching lines with the CHAMPION JET 1 and being thus deployed on the Heraklion-Rethymnon-Santorini-Ios-Naxos-Paros-Mykonos line. Coincidentally, 13 July 2017 marked exactly two years and one day since my trip with the CHAMPION JET 2's sister, ship, the CHAMPION JET 1, when I was heading from Santorini to Piraeus. Moreover, during that trip, I had also passed by Ios before arriving to Piraeus. The CHAMPION JET 2 heading towards the dock while the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED leaves for Santorini. The CHAMPION JET 2 approaching the dock of the port of Ios after having arrived from Santorini, while the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED heads towards that same island. The speedy CHAMPION JET 2 fully heading towards the port of Ios. She had briefly operated on the Heraklion-Rethymnon-Santorini-Ios-Naxos-Paros-Mykonos line in September and October 2016 when the CHAMPION JET 1 went to undergo her winter refit earlier than expected. 2017 however marked her first summer operating there full-time. The CHAMPION JET 2 heading towards the dock of the port of Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 seen in Ios. Another view of the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED leaves Ios for Santorini. The CHAMPION JET 2 preparing to maneuver in Ios. The HELLENIC HIGHSPEED leaving Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 seen maneuvering in Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 maneuvering in the port of Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 almost finishing to maneuver in Ios. One final picture of the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED as she exits the port of Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 almost done with her maneuvering procedure. The CHAMPION JET 2 having just maneuvered, and now preparing to dock in Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 docking in Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 having almost docked in Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 having just docked and unloading a significant amount of passengers. While the CHAMPION JET 2 unloads passengers and vehicles, the smaller CAPTAIN KOULIS leaves Ios in order to reach the CELESTYAL NEFELI once again. The CHAMPION JET 2 and the CAPTAIN KOULIS, two completely different ships, seen together in Ios. The CAPTAIN KOULIS leaving Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 loading passengers ahead of her departure to her next destination, Naxos. The CHAMPION JET 2 departing Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 leaving Ios. The CHAMPION JET 2 departing Ios in order to head towards Naxos. Just like the CHAMPION JET 2 was waiting for the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED to depart from Ios, something similar occurred with the former's own departure. Indeed, the next ship waiting for her moment of docking was none other than the CHAMPION JET 2's direct competitor, the much-acclaimed HIGHSPEED 7 of Hellenic Seaways. The HIGHSPEED 7, having also arrived from Santorini, begins to head towards the dock of the port of Ios, while the CHAMPION JET 2 heads from Ios to Naxos. The HIGHSPEED 7 is considered to be one of the best, if not the best, high speed craft in Greece. She was built in 2005, and was previously known as the HIGHSPEED 5, the name she bore from her entry to service until 2016. The name change occurred because of her tragic fire incident in 2015, whereupon, following her repair, she was deployed as a completely new ship, with the view of leaving her past experience as the HIGHSPEED 5 behind. She has since made a successful comeback with Hellenic Seaways. The HIGHSPEED 7, just like the CHAMPION JET 2, connects Crete with the Cyclades by operating on the Heraklion-Santorini-Ios-Paros-Mykonos line (unlike the CHAMPION JET 2, she does not operate in Rethymnon and Naxos). This season was her fourth overall on that line, having spent two seasons as the HIGHSPEED 5 (in 2013 and 2014, the latter year was her most successful to date) and two as the HIGHSPEED 7 (2016 and 2017), having missed the entire 2015 season because of her fire incident that same year. The HIGHSPEED 7 preparing to dock in Ios. She has been, ever since her delivery, the youngest 'Highspeed' among the seven that Hellenic Seaways have operated in their thirteen years of operations. Only three operate as of 2017: the HIGHSPEED 7, the HIGHSPEED 4 and the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED. The HIGHSPEED 7 preparing to maneuver in Ios. It was the first time in my life that I saw this ship standing right in front of me. The HIGHSPEED 7 almost ready to maneuver in Ios. One of the two modern funnels of the HIGHSPEED 7 featuring, as it was also the case with the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED, the three dolphins of Hellenic Seaways. The HIGHSPEED 7 almost ready to begin her maneuvering procedure in ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 maneuvering in Ios. Recently, following the announced sale of Hellenic Seaways to Attica Group, part of that deal includes the sale of the HIGHSPEED 7 to Minoan Lines. Should the deal be accepted by the Geek Competition Authority, Hellenic Seaways could potentially lose one of its best ships, though no decision will be made until at least the start of 2018. Regardless of the sale occurring, should the ship be sold to Minoan Lines, this would most likely mean she will remain in Greece (with Minoan Lines having expressed earlier this year their intention to enhance their presence on the Aegean Sea, beyond their daily service on the Piraeus-Heraklion line). The HIGHSPEED 7 maneuvering in Ios Regardless of her potential sale, we can still admire her as she is just like that day in Ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 maneuvering in Ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 almost done with her maneuvering procedure in Ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 having completed her maneuvering procedure and preparing to dock in the port of Ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 almost docked in ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 almost berthed in the port of Ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 having just docked in Ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 unloading dozens of passengers and vehicles in Ios. After a quick stay in the pier of the port of Ios, the HIGHSPEED 7 left immediately, in order to reach Paros before her competitor, the CHAMPION JET 2, while the latter is heading towards Naxos. The HIGHSPEED 7 departing the port of Ios. The amazing HIGHSPEED 7 leaving Ios. The CAPTAIN KOULIS returns to dock in Ios once more. The little CAPTAIN KOULIS heading towards the port of Ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 heading towards the exit of the port of Ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 leaving Ios for Paros. The HIGHSPEED 7 departing the port of Ios. The HIGHSPEED 7 leaving Ios, in what could have been my first and last time seeing her under the colours of Hellenic Seaways. We will see what the future will determine. The CAPTAIN KOULIS resting in the small cruise dock of Ios. A view of the cruise ship CELESTYAL NEFELI of Celestyal Cruises. She had been chartered by the Greek cruise line since 2016, and her stint with them is certainly over now, as she has again taken her former name prior to this charter, being renamed GEMINI. Right next to her, a few minutes after the departure of the HIGHSPEED 7, the sister ship of the HELLENIC HIGHSPEED emerged. It was the SUPERRUNNER of Golden Star Ferries, formerly known as the SPEEDRUNNER IV of Aegean Speed Lines. Having already seen this ship as the SPEEDRUNNER IV in the past, it was somehow surprising to see her under new colours and under a new name. Indeed, the ship was purchased by the Andros-based Golden Star Ferries after the 2016 season, becoming the first high speed craft in the history of the company. The summer of 2017 was her debut season with her new owners, as she was deployed on the Rafina-Tinos-Mykonos-Paros-Naxos-Ios-Santorini line. The SUPERRUNNER was hence arriving from Naxos, after also serving the Cyclades ports of Tinos, Mykonos and Paros from Rafina, which is her company's base port. The SUPERRUNNER operated for Aegean Speed Lines from 2009 to 2016, spending most of her seasons with them on the Western Cyclades. She was, as the SPEEDRUNNER IV, the flagship of her former company. Her sale has since left Aegean Speed Lines with only one ship as part of their fleet, this being the sister ship of the SUPERRUNNER, the SPEEDRUNNER III. The SUPERRUNNER ready to dock in Ios. Her first season with Golden Star Ferries was very successful, despite strong competition from Sea Jets, which had also deployed two high speed ferries from Rafina to the Cyclades, the TERA JET and the PAROS JET, at very low fares. The SUPERRUNNER preparing to maneuver in Ios. The SUPERRUNNER ready to maneuver in Ios. The SUPERRUNNER seen in Ios, shortly before her maneuvering procedure. The SUPERRUNNER ahead of her maneuvering procedure in Ios. The SUPERRUNNER maneuvering in Ios. The SUPERRUNNER maneuvering in Ios. One of the two funnels of the SUPERRUNNER, featuring the logo of Golden Star Ferries, as well as the colours of the company, with the vertical yellow stripe being traditionally at the back of the funnel, as it is the case with the company's two other ships, the SUPERFERRY and the SUPERFERRY II. The SUPERRUNNER completing her maneuvering procedure in Ios. The SUPERRUNNER having completed her maneuvering procedure and docking in Ios. Just a few minutes later, the ship already departs the port in order to reach her final destination, Santorini, prior to making the return trip back to Rafina. The SUPERRUNNER departing Ios. The summer of 2017 marked the first summer during which she and her two other sister ships operating in Greece (her third sister ship operates in Spain for Trasmediterránea as the ALMUDAINA DOS) worked for three different owners: the SUPERRUNNER for Golden Star Ferries, the SPEEDRUNNER III for Aegean Speed Lines and the elder HELLENIC HIGHSPEED for Hellenic Seaways. Though the SPEEDRUNNER III in 2016 operated for Levante Ferries, it was a charter and she was still owned by Aegean Speed Lines. All ships, built in Italy as part of the MDV 1200-class, had previously operated together for SuperSeaCat on the Baltic Sea in the early 2000s before beginning their careers in Southern Europe in the late 2000s. The SUPERRUNNER departing Ios for Santorini. The SUPERRUNNER exiting the port of Ios following her departure maneuvering procedure. The SUPERRUNNER leaving Ios. The SUPERRUNNER departing Ios. The SUPERRUNNER heading towards the port of Ios' exit. The CAPTAIN KOULIS returning to Ios yet again. While the SUPERRUNNER heads from Ios to Santorini. The CAPTAIN KOULIS seen from the entrance gate of the beautiful Church of Agia Eirini, which is the church located right next to the port of Ios. It is a typical Cyclades-style church, and is one of the most recognisable in Greece. The SUPERRUNNER seen from the Church of Agia Eirini, heading from Ios to Santorini. The SUPERRUNNER and the CAPTAIN KOULIS seen together in Ios. The beautiful CAPTAIN KOULIS heading towards the port of Ios once more. The SUPERRUNNER seen from the entrance gate of the iconic Church of Agia Eirini. The SUPERRUNNER heading towards the exit fo the port of Ios. The SUPERRUNNER passing by the CELESTYAL NEFELI and leaving Ios. One final view of the SUPERRUNNER as she heads towards Santorini. There is no doubt that this day, and these few hours, were absolutely unique for a shipping enthusiast like myself. Seeing four well-known and very successful high speed craft and a small high speed tour boat come and leave one after the other was a scene I will never forget, and is undoubtedly one of my favourite experiences during my vacation in Ios during the summer of 2017. #highspeedcraft #summer2017 #greece #cyclades #aegean #ios #hellenichighspeed #highspeed7 #hellenicseaways #aquaspirit #championjet2 #seajets #seajetsferries #captainkoulis #santoriniboatmenunion #superrunner #goldenstarferries

The year of 2016 was for me a year full of surprises in regards to seeing various ships from the Greek coastal service for either the first time in my life or for the first time under different liveries and colours. However, the biggest hit of the summer came at the most random moment of my summer stay in Greece. Indeed, that moment lasted just five minutes, but it was quite significant for me. So these five minutes occurred during my stay in the island of Zakynthos, an island that has been the setting of several of my blog posts this year. It happened during a regular summer morning, at a time where my family and myself would go and spend some time on the island's well-known beaches. We tend to go to the same ones, but, just out of curiosity, my parents wanted to see another beach for a few minutes. It was called Vassilikos, being named after the village that is located on the Eastern peninsula of the island. It is a very famous beach, but it was the first time we ever went to see it. And there, upon arriving on the shore, I quickly saw the beautiful turquoise sea, which was the first image someone would normally see upon arriving in the area. However, I randomly turned my face towards the right to see whether we would be able to see the island of Marathonisi (which I talked about on the Zakynthos Tour Boats Blog Post back in March), when I suddenly saw a big classic white boat standing in front me. The picture was the following: The beautiful-and recognisable-boat standing right in front of me in Vassilikos Beach in Zakynthos. I saw the ship and was completely shocked. I blinked my eyes twice to make sure I was not dreaming. But, right after the second blink, I realised that what I was seeing was actually real. Indeed, this classic white boat was none other but the legendary yacht CHRISTINA O, which belonged to the historic Greek shipowner Aristotelis Onassis. This ship, although not a regular passenger ship like the ferries or the high speed craft from the Greek coastal service, is, perhaps, the most popular Greek ship of all time. She has been the center of much media attention, especially when she was owned by Onassis, as the latter was, from the 1950s to his death in 1975, among the richest and most famous men in the world at the time. Onassis remains the greatest Greek shipowner to have lived, having owned 100 tankers at the time of his death through his company, Olympic Shipping. This company is still active today in honour of his legacy, operating supertankers under the Greek flag. His personal life aside, Onassis has been the idol of many Greek entrepreneurs, and has even inspired me in some ways. He was certainly very charismatic and controversial, but he always treated his crew with respect, offering them excellent standards of living both aboard ships and ashore. He frequently stressed a good maintenance of his fleet, and always sought to improve his maritime relations with both Greek and foreign authorities. But most importantly, Onassis was inspired by Greece, loved the country, and maintained a Greek heritage throughout the entirety of his activities worldwide. And these aspirations serve as the bases of the Alexandros S. Onassis Foundation, which he founded at the time of his death, and named after his late son, Alexandros Onassis. The latter was supposed to be the man that would carry on his shipping empire for the decades to come. However, he tragically lost his life in 1973, following an airplane crash near Ellinikon. He was an air transport enthusiast (his father also founded and owned the company Olympic Airways before it was nationalised and later bought by Aegean Airlines) and was riding his favourite airplane, the Piaggio P136, along with two pilots that were testing the plane. In fact, it is believed that the plane left from the CHRISTINA O prior to its tragic crash. Alexandros' death had a profound effect on his father, who never recovered and ended up sadly losing his life two years later, thus ending the immense shipping enterprise he had built. However, both the Onassis Foundation and Olympic Shipping continue to exist today, carrying the immense legacy and history Onassis left. Among his various endeavours, which include owning the beaches of Monaco or whale-hunting frigates, one of Onassis' most famous possessions was perhaps the one of his historic yacht. The CHRISTINA O was built in 1943 in Canada as an anti-submarine frigate for the Canadian Navy during World War II. She was completed in the city of Montréal as the HMCS STORMONT. As a frigate, she participated notably in the Battle of the Atlantic against the Germans, and was also present at the Normandy landings in 1944. After the end of the war, she and her sister ships were deemed to surplus requirements. In 1947 she began a conversion from a frigate to a yacht in Germany, though these plans were initially abandoned and she remained laid-up awaiting a buyer. The moment that defined her career came in 1954, at the age of 11. The ship was bought by Onassis with the view of converting her into a luxurious superyacht. The Greek shipowner originally wanted to buy her and 10 other frigate sister ships in order to operate them as passenger ships in the Greek coastal service. However, the Greek Government at the time unfairly opposed his planned deployments, and he instead decided to buy just one of these frigates, which happened to be the HMCS STORMONT. She was brought back to Germany, where she began immediate conversion. Her exterior and current look was designed by Cäsar Pinnau, while the interiors were designed by the illustrator Ludwig Bemelmans. The ship was renamed CHRISTINA, which was the name of Onassis' daughter. She was also involved in her family's shipping environment, just like her older brother Alexandros. She inherited Aristotelis' fortune and fleet after his death, and was the President of the Onassis Foundation until her sudden death in 1988. After 3 years and $4 million invested for her conversion from a frigate to a yacht, the CHRISTINA finally set sail. She served as Onassis' main point of refuge from public life and from stressful moments. She was usually docked in either Monaco or the Greek island of Skorpios on the Ionian Sea, which was owned by the Onassis family during the second half of the 20th century. She was also his main mode of transportation during his summer vacations. Her crew was very well experienced and always maintained her according to the perfection demanded by her owner. As Onassis became popular worldwide, the ship also became a hit, being one of the most recognisable modes of transportation on the world. She reached a rise to international stardom in 1957, when she was used for Onassis' Mediterranean summer cruise, which hosted several celebrities, such as Greek opera singer Maria Kallas (who also became Onassis' love interest for many years), British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill, Welsh actor Richard Burton, Prince Rainier of Monaco, British actress Elizabeth Taylor, Swedish actress Greta Garbo, Egyptian King Farouk I, future United States President John Fitzgerald Kennedy and his wife (and Onassis' future wife) Jacqueline. The list goes on and on. The cruise became very popular, and the Greek destinations were particularly the most acclaimed highlights, therefore promoting tourism in Greece. The ship features an elegant master suite, eighteen staterooms for guests, a library, a large dining room, a music hall, a kid's play zone, three lounge areas, a fitness center and an amazing outdoor pool with a minotaur-themed mosaic floor that could rise at the push of a single button to become a dance floor. She also has a special indoor bar, called 'Ari's Bar', in honor of the shipping magnate's nickname. She can fit approximately 250 passengers, which was quite a big number for a yacht during the 1950s. She also had an airbase on her stern, and this is where she would usually carry Alexandros' doomed plane, the Piaggio P136. The ship was also the host of two historical weddings: the marriage of Prince Rainier of Monaco with famous American actress Grace Kelly in 1956, and the wedding of Aristotelis Onassis to former United States First Lady Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy in 1968. The historic CHRISTINA O seen in Vassilikos Beach in Zakynthos. She has kept the exact same appearance as the one she had when she was owned by Onassis. Everything seemed to be perfect for the ship (despite her advancing age) when tragedy struck the Onassis family in 1973, after Alexandros' death. Aristotelis' first wife Tina died the following year, and she was then followed by Aristotelis himself, who was unable to cope with his son's loss and had lost the will to live and to operate his ships. As a result, after his death, the ship was initially laid-up in Skorpios, before she was donated by her namesake, Christina Onassis, to the Greek Government in order to operate as a presidential yacht in 1978. As a result of this donation, she was renamed ARGO and was installed in Floisbos, operating frequently from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. However, her role soon became diminished and she was subsequently abandoned by the Greek State, which did not even bother to convert her into a historic floating museum or to organise historic cruises with her. She was therefore abandoned in Floisbos and listed for sale. Many auctions failed, until she was finally bought by Greek shipowner Giannis Pavlos Papanikolaou in 1998. The latter was among the Onassis family's good friends and business partners, and, having traveled aboard the ship as a child, he sought to redeploy the ship as a tribute to her previous owner. She was therefore renamed CHRISTINA O in 1999, and she was heavily refurbished during two years, in Rijeka, in Croatia. She returned to service in 2001 under her new name, operating under charter to several groups that wished to travel aboard her. Papanikolaou died in 2010. Three years later, the ship was again listed for sale. She was apparently bought by Russian interests, and she still remains active despite the various disputes over different owners and charterers. She at least operated in Greece in 2016, as I was able to see her in Zakynthos, and, in 2017, when she underwent a refit in Perama. She is currently the thirty-first largest yacht in the world, while also being the seventh oldest yacht among the Top 100 largest yachts in the world. Quite a remarkable record for this historic ship, more than sixty years after she was first deployed for the great Aristotelis Onassis. A final picture of the CHRISTINA O in Vassilikos Beach in Zakynthos, before we left the beach. I would go on to see her two days later in the Laganas Beach as well, though I unfortunately did not have a camera that day. My summary of this post is simple: in just five minutes, I managed to witness history. This short visit of the Vassilikos Beach, which was originally a random visit of the place, just to have a look at the beach, turned out to be one of the most memorable moments of my summer. It marked the first time in my life that I saw this legendary ship, and I truly managed to get a taste of the glorious legacy her owner left, and which I have gone to idolise thanks to his historic shipping career. #summer2016 #greece #ionian #zakynthos #christinao #yacht #onassis #legend

Trip: 20 July 2016. From Kyllini to Zakynthos, with the ZAKYNTHOS 1 of Kefalonian Lines. The ZAKYNTHOS 1 was built in 1973 in Germany as a Ro-Ro carrier ship for service between mainland France, Corsica and Italy, for the French company Compagnie Méridionale de Navigation (now known as La Méridionale). Her initial name was VILLE DE CORTE, and she operated on the Marseille-Bastia-Ajaccio-Propriano line. She remained in this service until she was bought in 1989 by ANEZ. ANEZ was Zakynthos' first public and anonymous shipping enterprise. They began operations in 1981, after the had bought the then two-year-old Greek-built ferry GIOCONDA of Greek Atlantic Cod Fishing Company. This ship was renamed ZAKYNTHOS and began operations on the Kyllini-Zakynthos line. Her service was very successful, but it abruptly ended on 28 December 1989, when she sank near the port of Kyllini, due to intense storms which hit her and damaged her severely. The consequence was the tragic death of one passenger. As ANEZ was left without any ship in their name, they bought the VILLE DE CORTE two days after the ZAKYNTHOS disaster. The Ro-Ro carrier arrived in Perama in January 1990, where she was converted to a passenger ferry, and was renamed ZAKYNTHOS 1, as her owners wanted to distinguish her from her doomed predecessor. She began service on the Ionian Sea in the summer of 1990, on the Kyllini-Zakynthos line. After her company became part of the now-defunct Ionian Ferries joint venture, which had been composed of competitors Zante Ferries and Tyrogalas Ferries, she also made regular appearances on the Kyllini-Kefalonia line, though her main service remained on the Kyllini-Zakynthos line. Like her predecessor, the ZAKYNTHOS 1 enjoyed a successful 15 years on the Ionian Sea thanks to her loyal and reliable operations. However, in 2004, her company began to head towards the opposite direction. This happened mainly because ANEZ made a huge mistake in buying a Russian-built cruise ship, the MIKHAIL SHOLOKHOV of Far Eastern Shipping Company, a ship with a very small garage and with passenger accommodation that did not correspond to Greek coastal service standards, and which therefore required a very important sum of money needed for a conversion to take place. Though the ship had started her conversion in Perama and had been renamed UGO FOSCOLO (after a poet from Zakynthos who lived during the 19th century), the company did not have enough money to pay the shipyard for the completion of her conversion, and she was subsequently sent for lay-up in Zakynthos. There, the company also realised that the ship was too big to operate on such a short line as the Kyllini-Zakynthos line, and therefore looked to sell the ship. As there were no buyers, their economic situation became even worse, which led them to leave the Ionian Ferries joint venture in 2006. The ZAKYNTHOS 1 operated independently during the summer of that year, but, in 2007, as the company could not afford to send her for refit in Piraeus, she was herself laid-up in the port of Zakynthos, on the entrance pier facing the one where her fleetmate, the UGO FOSCOLO, was docked. ANEZ quickly disappeared from the public view, with many believing that the company had ceased operations (though this proved not be the case, even though the company remained inactive). She spent the next five years abandoned in that same spot, with many people believing she would never return to service (due to her old age and due to her latest refit at the time dating back to 2006). Her exterior condition worsened, though it seemed that her interior was apparently in an excellent state. In 2010, ANEZ managed to get rid of the UGO FOSCOLO, but the ship did not leave Zakynthos until 2011, when she headed towards India for scrapping, at the age of 25. After the UGO FOSCOLO's departure, it had been expected that the ZAKYNTHOS 1 would follow the same path as her fleetmate. However, ANEZ had other plans, which were very favourable towards the ship's future. And indeed, during the spring of 2012, the ship left Zakynthos for the first time in five years to undergo a major refit in Piraeus. ANEZ, which was on the verge of joining Ionian Ferries again, had finally enough funds to bring the ship back to service. This eventually happened in December 2012, when the ship began operating on the Kyllini-Kefalonia line, thus operating for the first time since 2007, despite being 39 years old at the time. A month later, ANEZ rejoined Ionian Ferries, and the ship continued to operate on the Kyllini-Kefalonia line during the summer of 2013. A major engine failure ended her season in October 2013. In 2014, due to newfound economic pressure and disagreements with Zante Ferries and Tyrogalas Ferries, ANEZ left Ionian Ferries once again. A few weeks later, it was announced that the ship would be chartered to Kefalonian Lines, a company which had just begun operations the previous season, after acquiring the fellow Ionian Sea veteran and legendary ferry KEFALONIA, renaming her NISSOS KEFALONIA and placing her on the Kyllini-Kefalonia line (in fact, she was the ZAKYNTHOS 1's competitor during the summer of 2013). The initial charter agreement was for two years. The ship kept her name, and was slightly refitted in Piraeus, where she was painted in the typical Kefalonian Lines dark blue colours. In the summer of 2014, she operated on both the Kyllini-Zakynthos line and the Kyllini-Kefalonia line, alongside her new fleetmate, the NISSOS KEFALONIA, providing competition against her former operators, Ionian Ferries. In 2015, she only operated on the Kyllini-Kefalonia line, due to the arrival of newly-established company Levante Ferries and their superbly modern and luxurious ferry, the FIOR DI LEVANTE, which was deployed on the Kyllini-Zakynthos line. After the departure of Tyrogalas Ferries from the Ionian Sea and later from the Greek coastal service and the establishment of the Ionian Group joint venture between Levante Ferries and Zante Ferries, Kefalonian Lines were now the only other main competitor on the Ionian Sea market. In order to compete with the FIOR DI LEVANTE and her Ionian Group fleetmates, the company had to upgrade its veteran ferries (in 2015, the ZAKYNTHOS 1 was 42 years old, while the NISSOS KEFALONIA celebrated her fortieth year of service). Kefalonian Lines did not wait too long for the upgrades to happen. In 2016, the ZAKYNTHOS 1 was sent to Piraeus to modify her passenger accommodations, as well as to upgrade her average speed. After a month of work, the ship returned to service completely fresh and ready to compete against Levante Ferries and Ionian Group. Furthermore, her charter to Kefalonian Lines was extended to six years (which means she will be 49 years old once it expires) and she was deployed exclusively on the Kyllini-Zakynthos line, while the NISSOS KEFALONIA operated exclusively on the Kyllini-Kefalonia line. This long and huge historical background is essential in order to describe to you the experience I had with that particular ship. Although she has not essentially been one the best ships to have operated in the Greek coastal service, she remains a strong and reliable ferry on the Ionian Sea, an area which she has been serving loyally since 1990 (with the exception being her 5-year-long lay-up). So it was very special to travel with this ship in order to make my first Ionian Sea trip for the 2016 summer season, from Kyllini to Zakynthos. And the trip was even more special thanks to the fact that the ship has returned fully upgraded, which gave me the chance to explore the areas that were transformed in order to accommodate passenger to today's standards. The trip also had interesting personal facts and records. It was my second-ever trip with a ship operating for Kefalonian Lines, after I had done the exact same crossing with the NISSOS KEFALONIA a year earlier. It was also the first time I used this ferry while being able to identify her (I may have traveled with her when I was between 2 and 5 years old, but I unfortunately do not remember anything from back then). And, lastly, the ZAKYNTHOS 1 is currently the oldest ferry I have ever boarded in my life, as she was 43 years old last year (the second oldest is her current fleetmate, the NISSOS KEFALONIA, with which I had traveled in 2015 when she was 40 years old). All the above facts were key to my excitement in traveling with this ferry, which I was only used to see in the Zakynthos port's entrance pier in a very bad state. The trip succeeded my discovery of the renovated Kyllini port, something which I talked about last month, while also showing you a few pictures of the ZAKYNTHOS 1 preparing to leave Kyllini, as well as of the FIOR DI LEVANTE maneuvering in the port. However I will add three of these again in order to give you a clear first impression of the ship I am writing a Tribute post to. A view of the beautiful veteran ZAKYNTHOS 1, preparing to leave Kyllini for her namesake island. The FIOR DI LEVANTE, the flagship of Levante Ferries, which is 25 years younger than the ZAKYNTHOS 1. She also appeared for the first time on the Ionian Sea 24 years after the latter had done so, back when she began service in 1990. The FIOR DI LEVANTE is seen here maneuvering in Kyllini, while her competitor is preparing to leave the port. The Kefalonian Lines logo occupying the funnel of the ZAKYNTHOS 1. This was the first summer that the ship spent without the printing of the map of the island of Zakynthos in her funnel, which she had while operating for ANEZ (since beginning service in Greece in 1990) and during her first two years with her current operators (in this case, the Kefalonian Lines logo had been printed in a much smaller size below the Zakynthos map). The ZAKYNTHOS 1 in Kyllini, shortly before we boarded her. Right after boarding the ferry, the stairs leading us to the passenger accommodation area had an exterior view, in which we could see the FIOR DI LEVANTE, right after she had completed her maneuvering procedure, and having just docked in Kyllini. The ship's upper garage deck, which quickly became full. Another view of the impressive FIOR DI LEVANTE, in her second summer operating on the Ionian Sea, on both the Kyllini-Zakynthos line and the Kyllini-Kefalonia line. She had also been selected, about 5 months prior to this picture, as 'The World's Best Ferry of 2015' by Shippax. The ship's reception desk, which features the logo and the colours of Kefalonian Lines. The stern section of the lower indoor passenger lounge area. The ship had two passenger decks, with the upper deck giving the passengers the possibility to access the ship's outdoor areas. The corner of the stern section of the lower deck passenger lounge area. The central section of the passenger lounge area found in the lower deck, which features new rolling chairs, a nice bar, and plenty of space for passengers to move around. Another view of the central section of the lower deck passenger lounge area, with the modern rolling chairs, which were added during the ship's renovation during the winter of 2015-2016. The bow section of the passenger lounge area in the lower deck, which regroups several tables, chairs and couches in one small corner. The upper deck passenger lounge area, similar to the one found in the lower deck, though it lacks a bar (it instead has two large TV screens) and the chairs are greener, compared to the grey ones that I saw previously. They were also a new addition during the ship's major upgrade that year. Another Kefalonian Lines sign found in the corner of the passenger lounge. Right next to the company sign, there was an access to the public restrooms, which looked quite impressive, modern and stylish. The modern sinks and the motorcycle painting were all items added during the ship's most recent renovation. Another view of the upper deck passenger lounge area. And while I was preparing to take pictures of the ship's outdoor areas, I unexpectedly saw Kefalonian Lines' other ship, the legendary NISSOS KEFALONIA, maneuvering in Kyllini, after having just arrived back from her namesake island. Another view of the amazing FIOR DI LEVANTE. The NISSOS KEFALONIA maneuvering in Kyllini, in her fourth summer operating for Kefalonian Lines. Her previous Ionian Sea operations include stints with Strintzis Lines (1995-2000), Blue Star Ferries (2000-2004, Strintzis Lines' successor company after they were taken over by Attica Group) and Strintzis Ferries (2004-2013). From 1995 to 2010, she operated on the Patras-Kefalonia-Ithaca line, while in 2011 she was transferred to the Kyllini-Kefalonia line. She has since remained on that line, with the exceptions being 2012 (when she was laid-up for the entire season in Salamina and later in Drapetsona following Strintzis Ferries' economic difficulties, which led to the company's closure) and the summers of 2014 and 2015, where, apart from her Kefalonia operations, she also operated on the Kyllini-Zakynthos line. Her service on the latter line was fully taken over by the ZAKYNTHOS 1 in 2016. The starboard side outdoor alley of the ZAKYNTHOS 1, leading to the ship's bridge. Another view of the FIOR DI LEVANTE, which was preparing to leave the port 20 minutes after our departure. The stern section of the ship's outside area. Here, you can see both funnels being attached to a mast. An empty area in the middle section of the ship's exterior deck. The NISSOS KEFALONIA while she undergoes her maneuvering procedure in Kyllini. And another view of the FIOR DI LEVANTE. As I have mentioned previously, the 11880 and vrisko.gr signs in her hull serve as a way to promote both the telephone service company and the information website, which are both owned by the head of Levante Ferries, Georgios Theodosis. The upper exterior deck, with a view of the ship's stern. The lower outdoor deck has a useful tool: a sun deck right above the ship's wooden seats. The ferry's main lifeboat and some rafts are also seen on the left. The NISSOS KEFALONIA, having just completed her maneuvering procedure, is now preparing to dock right next to the FIOR DI LEVANTE. The NISSOS KEFALONIA almost ready to dock in the port of Kyllini. This was her fourth summer under Kefalonian Lines. One of the two iconic funnels of the NISSOS KEFALONIA, featuring, just like the ZAKYNTHOS 1, the Kefalonian Lines logo, which represents a small version of the geographic shape of the island of Kefalonia while also forming the company's initial letter K at the same time. The NISSOS KEFALONIA now ready to unload her passengers and her vehicles. A view of the bridge of the ZAKYNTHOS 1, as well as of the crew's cabins (obviously seen from the outside) on the starboard side. Another view of the great NISSOS KEFALONIA. The funnels of two of the three companies operating on the Kyllini-Zakynthos line and on the Kyllini-Kefalonia line. And both companies are fierce competitors between them. Another view of the Agios Nikolaos church in Kyllini, destined to protect seafarers. We are now preparing to leave port of Kyllini and head to Zakynthos. Our departure occurred less than 10 minutes after the FIOR DI LEVANTE's arrival, and less than 2 minutes after the NISSOS KEFALONIA's arrival in Kyllini. A view of the NISSOS KEFALONIA and of the FIOR DI LEVANTE as we prepare to head towards Zakynthos. The two main ships of their respective companies seen together in Kyllini, preparing for their next departures to their respective Ionian islands. The FIOR DI LEVANTE and the NISSOS KEFALONIA together in Kyllini. Both ships were built and began their careers in Asia, before they arrived in Greece. In fact, the ZAKYNTHOS 1 was the only European-built ship among the five ferries operating in Kyllini for the summer of 2016. Another view of the greatest ship on the Ionian Sea, standing to the one which could, if she stays for a long time in the area, surpass her. Another view of these two great ferries: the FIOR DI LEVANTE and the NISSOS KEFALONIA. A final view of these two ships, as we exit the port of Kyllini. And a last one of the NISSOS KEFALONIA, which has been the ZAKYNTHOS 1's fleetmate for the past two years. Another view of the starboard side alley of the ZAKYNTHOS 1, in the middle of the Ionian Sea. As we were approaching the port of Zakynthos, I managed to take my first-ever picture of the ex-IONIAN STAR under her current name, MARE DI LEVANTE. The ship, which had been bought by Levante Ferries during the summer of 2015, changed her colours and her name during her refit in the spring of 2016. Present on the Ionian Sea since 2003, it felt very awkward to me to see her for the first time without her former name and without the insignia of her former owners, Tyrogalas Ferries. Crossing the MARE DI LEVANTE on the Ionian Sea. Like her fleetmate, the ship also has the 11880 and the vrisko.gr signs on her hull. The beautiful MARE DI LEVANTE seen on the Ionian Sea. Her bow mirror was slightly modified during her refit, in comparison with pictures of her as the IONIAN STAR. The MARE DI LEVANTE heading from Zakynthos to Kyllini. Her sale to Levante Ferries marked a turning point in the history of the Ionian Sea coastal service, as it marked the end of Tyrogalas Ferries' operations in the area, and the end of the Ionian Ferries joint venture which was composed of her former owners and Zante Ferries. Furthermore, it marked the beginning of the new joint venture, Ionian Group, which is now composed of Levante Ferries and Zante Ferries. The beautiful MARE DI LEVANTE heading towards Kyllini. The MARE DI LEVANTE as she is heading towards the port of Kyllini. During the summer of 2016, she operated on both the Kyllini-Zakynthos line and the Kyllini-Kefalonia line, along with the third ship of Ionian Group, the DIONISIOS SOLOMOS of Zante Ferries. As we were approaching the port of Zakynthos, we were not the only ones preparing to dock. Indeed, the small passenger boat DELFINI of Voutirakos Cruises was also returning from her daily trip around the island, which she began in the morning. The DELFINI is the flagship of Voutirakos Cruises. Apart from her trip around the island of Zakynthos, she also makes occasional calls to the small island of Marathonisi. The beautiful DELFINI approaching the port of Zakynthos. I traveled just once with that ship, back in 2009. Since that year, I would always recognise her in the port, something which I had not done in the years prior to my trip with her. The DELFINI following us right behind in order to enter the port of Zakynthos. Right in front of the port of Zakynthos, there is a pier that is reserved exclusively to small passenger boats (except for the ones owned by Voutirakos Cruises) and to abandoned passenger ships. The first ship you can see is the DIMOSTHENIS of Top Cruiser, which also makes daily trips around Zakynthos. Right next to her, on the back of of the picture, is her fleetmate, the DIMOSTHENIS K, which also makes the same trips. The DIMOSTHENIS and the DIMOSTHENIS K together in Zakynthos. The port of Zakynthos greeting us for the first time in 2016. The DELFINI preparing to enter the port of Zakynthos, standing right behind us. The iconic Agios Dionisios Church campanile, standing right next to the port of Zakynthos. The DELFINI is now ready to enter the port, as we are now preparing for the maneuvering procedure. On the other side of the port, another ship belonging to Voutirakos Cruises, the MENIA MARIA I, was resting, after having completed her own pirate-themed cruise around Zakynthos and Marathonisi. The DELFINI having just entered the port of Zakynthos and now preparing to dock. The DELFINI is on her way to docking right next to her fleetmate, the MENIA MARIA I. The DELFINI heading towards the docking area that is reserved to Voutirakos Cruises ships. She was built in 2001 in Greece, and entered service for Voutirakos Cruises, replacing her older fleetmate, which was also named DELFINI. The latter was retired and scrapped due to reaching an old age in 2001, and her hull was used in order to build the current DELFINI. Another view of the MENIA MARIA I. Before arriving in Zakynthos for Voutirakos Cruises in 2011, she had previously spent her career under Athos Cruises on the Agion Oros region, serving the Ormos Panagias-Agion Oros line from 2002 to 2011. The MENAI MARIA I waiting for the DELFINI to come and dock right next to her. In the meantime, as the ZAKYNTHOS 1 is maneuvering, another tour boat, the IKAROS PALACE of Seven Islands Cruises, is leaving the port for her planned afternoon cruise. The IKAROS PALACE is the fastest small tour yacht on the Ionian Sea. She is the only ship of her company operating solely in Zakynthos by performing trips around the island as well as by stopping in Marathonisi. The beautiful IKAROS PALACE seen leaving the port of Zakynthos. In the meantime, the DELFINI has just completed her own maneuvering procedure, and is now preparing to dock. The ZAKYNTHOS 1 having just arrived in her namesake island. Here is a final view of the ship's stern. And the company still keeps its traditions: a sticker attached on the back windshield of our car, featuring the Kefalonian Lines logo, colours and website. And this marks the conclusion of my trip with the Kefalonian Lines ferry. It was truly a great experience, despite the ship's advanced age, which in the end did not have any significance. The trip was pleasant, comfortable, while I was also able to see the upgraded features that were placed on the ship during her most recent refit. It is great to see her in service on the Ionian Sea, because if you were in Zakynthos between 2007 and 2012, you could have easily thought that she would never operate again. But there she is still, continuing to provide efficient and reliable service until at least 2022, when her current Kefalonian Lines charter ends. And we have to wait, as there could still be more to come beyond that year. #zakynthos1 #kefalonianlines #summer2016 #greece #ionian #kyllini #zakynthos #anez #nissoskefalonia #fiordilevante #maredilevante #levanteferries #ioniangroup #delfini #meniamariai #voutirakoscruises #dimosthenis #dimosthenisk #topcruiser #ikarospalace #sevenislandscruises #tribute