Vacation nightmare unfolds as ferry passengers battle seasickness at island hot spot

Tourists hopping betwixt Greece's islands connected high-speed ferries are reporting unsmooth rides and brutal bouts of seasickness on the way.

Across societal media, travelers this summertime person been opening up astir stories of rocky crossings, sick passengers and crews handing retired sickness bags. 

Given each the reports, the ferry has been dubbed the "vomit comet," according to The Wall Street Journal.

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High-speed ferries are a fashionable prime for travelers looking to determination rapidly betwixt Greece's islands, said Mina Agnos, laminitis and president of luxury question institution Travelive. "We spot astir clients looking for the quickest constituent from A to B," she said.

But the travel tin crook unsmooth erstwhile upwind and oversea conditions deteriorate, Agnos said, peculiarly astir the Cyclades, wherever seasonal Meltemi winds tin churn up the Aegean.

Greece’s beaches and affluent past gully immense tourer numbers. Yet high-speed ferry rides betwixt the islands tin beryllium stomach-churning for immoderate tourists, according to societal media reports. (iStock)

Greece’s beaches, sunsets and affluent past gully tourists successful large numbers. Tourism roseate astir 21% from January done May versus the aforesaid play successful 2025, according to the Bank of Greece.

Santorini unsocial drew astir 3.4 cardinal visitors successful 2023, according to Fraport Greece and Santorini’s Municipal Port Fund.

Yet the high-speed ferry rides tin beryllium stomach-churning for immoderate tourists, according to a fig of societal media posts.

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Some high-speed catamarans and speedboats successful Greece scope speeds of betwixt 40 and 50 knots, astir 46 to 58 miles per hour, according to the institution website.

On fashionable routes betwixt Athens and the Cyclades, high-speed vessels tin trim question times by astir fractional compared to accepted dilatory ferries, Greek ferry companies say.

Greece’s high-speed ferries (pictured here) connection a faster mode to island-hop. (iStock)

But that velocity comes with pitfalls, The Wall Street Journal reported.

High-speed ferries tin consciousness bumpier successful unsmooth weather, portion choppy seas tin summation the likelihood of question sickness, according to booking relation Direct Ferries.

Fox News Digital reached retired to Seajets Ferries successful Greece, 1 of the largest networks of high-speed and catamaran vessels successful the Aegean Sea.

In a caller station successful a Reddit thread dedicated to Greek tourism, 1 traveler expressed interest astir taking a ferry from Piraeus to Naxos aft speechmaking galore accounts of unsmooth crossings.

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The traveler said nary 1 successful the household was prone to seasickness, but they sought proposal aft encountering "nonstop seasick" anecdotes astir passengers aboard faster ferries.

"I'm not prone to seasickness, but my tummy did not bask the accelerated ferry connected a antithetic way [Paros to Milos]," a Reddit idiosyncratic replied. "It's a antithetic benignant of question sickness, and I conjecture you cannot truly conjecture if you volition get [nauseated] oregon not."

High-speed ferry routes to Syros (pictured above) chiefly link the land to Athens via the larboard of Piraeus. (iStock)

"It’s a comparatively windy area, truthful ferries tin determination rather a bit," different idiosyncratic said. "If radical commencement feeling sick, it usually causes a domino effect."

A 3rd idiosyncratic bluntly suggested, "Fly backmost from Naxos."

Last year, a Reddit station was entitled "Was this ferry from hellhole mean oregon conscionable atrocious luck?" The idiosyncratic penning the station said, "The rocking and sloshing connected this ferry to Milos was truthful convulsive I started vomiting wrong 15 minutes. I was horrified, but noticed others had started getting sick too."

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Thousands of societal media posts person called the boats "vomit comets" and your "worst nightmare," the Journal reported.

Agnos of Travelive, who splits her clip betwixt Florida and Greece, disputed the thought that stomach-churning ferry rides are becoming much common, saying she believes societal media is amplifying the issue.

"When it comes to traveling wrong Greece, it's not arsenic casual arsenic it mightiness look online."

"We've seen a immense surge successful the fig of radical traveling to Greece," she said. 

"As a effect of that, we person a batch much sound [in presumption of] radical who are having these experiences."

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"I tin accidental that, successful 25 years of operating a concern wrong Greece, I've had this acquisition doubly successful my lifetime," Agnos added.

"So it's not thing that's common. ... But erstwhile it does hap to travelers who are conscionable present for 10 oregon 14 days, it's evidently thing that is going to impact the prime of that acquisition for them."

A question adept who spends portion of her clip successful Greece said galore clients prioritize the quickest proscription enactment erstwhile traveling betwixt Greek islands, specified arsenic the ferry pictured here. (iStock)

Agnos recommended moving with a question advisor who knows Greece and tin assistance program routes that minimize agelong ferry rides and the imaginable for unsmooth crossings.

"When it comes to traveling wrong Greece, it's not arsenic casual arsenic it mightiness look online," she said.

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Indiana-based question advisor Kelly Shea said she recommends that clients sojourn Greek islands via airports, including Santorini, Mykonos, Crete, Paros and Milos, alternatively than hazard unsmooth ferry crossings.

Tourism roseate astir 21% from January done May versus the aforesaid play successful 2025, according to the Bank of Greece. Santorini (pictured above) has been a large draw, successful particular. (iStock)

"The Cyclades are ever tough, particularly this summertime with the precocious winds and waves," Shea told Fox News Digital.

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"Weather these days is conscionable excessively dicey to expect boats and winds and waves to spell good together," she added.