Sustainable Holidays in Greece: Seafarer’s Fight to Save Seagrass

Sustainable holidays in Greece offer more than adventure, they’re a chance to protect Greece’s underwater treasures.

With more travellers seeking eco-friendly escapes, awareness of marine conservation is growing. But as sailing holidays become more popular, seagrass meadows face new threats from careless anchoring.

This is where Seafarer steps in. As a leader in sailing holidays in Greece, we’ve partnered with Sustainable Sailing Greece to inspire responsible sailing. Our aim is to protect seagrass meadows, one anchor drop at a time.

In this blog, you’ll learn:

• Why seagrass meadows matter for Greece’s marine ecosystem.
• How anchoring affects biodiversity below the waves.
• How Seafarer’s partnership is driving change in sustainable tourism.

Join us on a journey where every anchor drop protects the future of Greece’s underwater treasures.

Beneath Greece’s crystal-clear waters lies a hidden hero: seagrass meadows. These lush, green underwater forests play a vital role in supporting eco-friendly travel in Greece. They are known as Posidonia Oceanica.

They create habitats for marine life, stabilise seabeds, and act as “carbon sinks” by absorbing 35x more CO2 than forests. Locally, they’re known as “Poseidon’s Beard”, symbolising their cultural significance in Greece.

However, tourism and careless anchoring are threatening this essential ecosystem. Boat anchors drag across the seabed, ripping up seagrass and leaving barren scars behind. The impact is lasting, but it’s not irreversible.

By sailing with care and supporting sustainable tourism in Greece, we can protect these underwater meadows. Sustainable holidays in Greece aren’t just about adventure, they’re about preservation too.

Every time seagrass is damaged, it harms marine life and weakens Greece’s vibrant underwater ecosystem. For those seeking eco-friendly island getaways, these barren patches disrupt the beauty of the seabed and threaten marine biodiversity.

You can help by following three simple steps:

• Look for sand patches instead of seagrass beds.
• Use mooring buoys whenever possible.
• Learn to spot seagrass from the surface — it looks like a green underwater lawn.

Currently, Greece has a limited supply of mooring buoys, which could help reduce the need for anchoring. Groups like WWF Greece and iSea are advocating for the installation of more buoys in key areas, with the goal of providing safer and more eco-friendly options for sailors. By supporting this initiative, you help protect Greece’s seagrass meadows while enjoying safer sailing experiences.

By anchoring responsibly, you’re supporting sustainable holidays in Greece and protecting its unique marine ecosystem. Choose Seafarer sailing holidays for an unforgettable adventure that preserves nature’s wonders.

This month, Seafarer was recognised as a sustainability leader by Sustainable Sailing Greece. As part of their monthly Company Spotlight, they highlighted our commitment to promoting eco-friendly sailing. We partnered with Sustainable Sailing Greece to create a “Safe Anchoring” video. We provided a yacht and an RYA instructor, Trystan, for filming. This video empowers sailors to protect Greece’s seagrass meadows.

With our support, thousands of sailors received the video via our mailing list, helping them learn to anchor responsibly.

Our video shows how to:

• spot seagrass from above,
• anchor in sand patches, and
• use mooring buoys to reduce damage to seagrass meadows.

Seafarer supports initiatives from WWF Greece and iSea to install more mooring buoys in critical areas of Greece. By promoting the use of mooring buoys, we help sailors avoid anchoring on seagrass beds, reducing damage to these vital ecosystems.

When you join a Seafarer sailing holiday, you become part of a growing effort for sustainable holidays in Greece.

“Seafarer recognises the need to start making sailing in Greece more sustainable, so we welcomed Sustainable Sailing Greece’s (SSG) efforts to support charter companies with material for their guests. 

Our clients suggested videos would be helpful for sailors to understand how to implement good practices like safe anchoring, so we were delighted to support SSG to produce them.”

 

 Chris Lorenzo, Managing Director of Seafarer Holidays  

Sail with purpose. Protect Greece’s underwater world with every drop of your anchor.

Picture yourself sailing across calm, turquoise waters, knowing every choice you make helps protect Greece’s natural beauty.
The power to preserve seagrass meadows lies in your hands. With a little care, every sailor can make a difference.

At Seafarer, we believe in adventure with purpose. That’s why we promote sustainable holidays in Greece and support Sustainable Sailing Greece in protecting marine ecosystems. Our “Safe Anchoring” video teaches sailors how to avoid anchor scars and protect seagrass.

Be part of the solution. Book a Seafarer sailing holiday and sail with a purpose. Every anchor drop can protect Greece’s seabeds.

Watch and share the video now. Every sailor can be a force for good.